This is a delayed post as I spent yesterday in the ER. I’m ok now…just tired and worn down. But I shall persevere. Anyways…
Well, I mean, I guess. Ok. I’ll do it.
Once upon a time I started a blog on WordPress.com, and eventually I revamped it but stayed on the platform, and then came the day when I realized I needed a domain name like a grownup. So, I shopped around, and at the end of the day…yeah. WordPress. Whatever.
I will tell you upfront that I know nothing about web hosting. It’s all foreign to me, and all my attempts to learn something have just resulted in me banging my head against a wall. So, the end result seemed to be obvious: just buy a plan through the site you’re already using.
But, my blog isn’t my main focus anymore. Yes, I still update twice a week and will continue to do so as long as it is feasible. However, I am also trying to sell a book, create another, and I have something waiting in a publishing queue that could happen at any moment. It was brought to my attention that what I really need now is an author website.
For a few months, imposter syndrome kept me from entertaining such fanciful ideas, such that I was important enough to warrant my own website. But the logic was sound. I wanted a place that consolidated my blog, my around-the-web writings, and a place to hype my book. Then one day, WordPress emailed to tell me of a flash sale, and I saw no reason not to go for it.
Hence the debut of brigidhannon.com.
Over the weekend, I changed my social medias to reflect the new website. In the past, they reflected my blog: the breakfast banner, the side-eye photo, the Brigid Hamandeggs moniker. All of which I love, but are the Brigid of 2018, when I first started my blog, not 2020, where I stand now. My handle on pretty much everything is hamneggs716 and will remain as such, but otherwise, it is time for actual representation of myself.
More than one person has discussed my “brand” with me this week, which still feels like a silly concept, but is one I have to consider nonetheless. I am moving from my Ham ‘N Eggs brand into the brand of myself, Brigid Hannon.
This is a big thing. See, I always kept things like my blog and Twitter and such fairly anonymous. I did this for two reasons: 1. I was crippled with anxiety about my own abilities, and 2. I wanted to get a job. Nowadays, I would not take a job that was not okay with the words I put out, and my expression of myself. However, in the past, I hid my writing, because I was working with children. You never know when a parent might see you drop an f-bomb and suddenly have a problem with your employer. Seriously, I have seen it happen. So, I tried to keep myself as silent as I could and even considered a pen name.
But see…I love my name. It’s the reason I never legally took Mark’s. And I want my name on my work. So, a couple years ago, I took a deep breath and I submitted to a few journals, and now look. JUST LOOK. I have a book and a website and I was published in my hometown newspaper, and I have so much more upcoming and my Momma even wants to get me business cards. I am no longer looking for work because I am creating work, and I feel happier and freer than I ever have.
So please, visit my site and see what I’ve got going on in the world. And thank you, dear blog reader, especially those who have been here for a long time. I appreciate you. Thank you for your continued readership, because even though I am doing other things, my blog is still my baby.
Even if I didn’t buy it a domain name.
Ham 'N Eggs 