First blog post! This is a thing that is happening. I have put it off for far too long. I’ve been meaning to start this blog for a while, actually. Originally, I was going to do it at the beginning of summer after my freshman year of college. However, over summer I realized it made more sense to start at the beginning of sophomore year. Once I got to college though, I kept putting it off and now it’s two days after Labor Day. So. Here we go.

Introductions! My name is Lauren. I am nineteen years old and I am a second-year (but technically third-year) journalism major at the University of Florida. I decided to start a blog to help me consistently write nonfiction. What is more nonfiction than writing about my own real life? Basically, it is just going to be a journal. (And yes, I know what you’re thinking: “But Lauren, there are already soooooo many blogs out there! Who is going to read yours? Why would they read yours?”) I hear you. But I feel like anyone could benefit from hearing about someone’s college experience. I’ve already grown a lot from my freshman year at UF and this time I’m going to document every piece of it so you can really see what it’s like being me. Plus, I will be able to see how I grow and change as a person.

It’s about to get real.

I struggle with social anxiety. Like, not as bad as some people, but it definitely affects my life. This year is really going to put that to the test. As a journalism major, I will have to go on assignments, ask people questions, make phone calls, etc. To be honest, this absolutely terrifies me. I recently went to sign up to be a contributing writer for the local college paper, which initially I was excited about.  I got the first email about it… and boy was it intimidating, especially because I have no experience with journalistic writing. (I know what you’re thinking now: “Lauren! If you have no experience writing for a newspaper why did you pick journalism?” We’ll get to that.) So yeah, attempting to write for a newspaper is something I’m going to have to work towards, because I don’t think I’m there yet, hence, The Blog™.

I chose journalism because I adore writing. I have been writing fictional stories since early middle school. Journalism affords me the freedom of (after graduation) working for a magazine, newspaper or media company and getting to do what I love – writing. And I would have time to write my own novels. Hopefully one day I will publish a book, but for now I get to ramble on the internet. It’s a win-win.

So. This blog is a way for me to get my thoughts out there into the world. I can talk about my fears and anxieties, but also celebrate my successes and talk about the things I’m learning. I will be able to take all of my readers – whether there are a lot or very few – on this life journey with me. I don’t quite know how frequently I’ll update (I’d like to say weekly, but I’m going to be realistic.) Hopefully you all will learn something too.

I have absolutely no idea how to end these. I’d like to have a cute little sign off like all of those YouTubers out there… hopefully something will come to me. But for now:

With love,
Lauren