What a ridiculous question, you ask! What better life could there possibly be than blathering incessantly about wild and crazy international adventuring the likes of which millions will enviously adore from afar and aspire to similar tales of wanderlustful whimsy and perhaps even seek groupie-like levels of obsessive fandom and fanfare?
None!
But a mid-travel crisis is taking hold. As utterly compelling and adorable as these adventures can be, it’s not the one and only thing I’ve ever wanted to do with my existence. And launching a travel blog, which I’m well aware is far less glamorous and far more time consuming than its title would have you believe, can only push those other projects down the road.
Back in my 20s I would have jumped at the chance to be an indefinite digital nomad, wandering every corner of the Earth with nothing but my trusty backpack and occasional travel buddy to keep me company. But as much as I still idolize that unburdened existence, the passion burns less brightly than perhaps it used to. Not because I care any less than before, but I just have other things on my mind. The last time I traveled, I was barely there. I liked what I saw, but my mind was off in the clouds.
For many years I would avoid purchasing any item that required a truck to move. Sadly, that chapter is over. Now I want a home base. Not a big one, but one with a bed. And a sofa. Oh, and pots and pans. I was learning to cook! It was fun!
But perhaps the biggest issue is that being a travel writer isn’t the only thing I wanted to accomplish. I can’t help but wonder what it might be like to build up a readership of fans who enjoy listening to fun travel stories, only to jump ship to a new project and never look back. What then? Do I abandon a project into which I sunk years of my heart and soul? Do I keep it going, but as a backup project? Seems just a little sad. The voices in my head are telling me that if I’m going to do a travel blog, it had damned well be the best travel blog in the universe. And the idea of letting that die makes me sad.
Plus, there’s the money. I could jump ship and go somewhere cheap and live simply while building up an online income, but I’ve got a home now. I figured if I hunkered down and built things up for a while, I’d be fine. I could maintain a home base and do excursions of a few months at a time, taking random breaks when I needed them. And I could always sublet the place while I’m gone. But, of course, each of these options brings its own headaches, even if comparatively minor.
I guess the short version is that I wish I had gotten started half a decade ago. I’d have lived out my 20s on the road, whereas I ended up spending plenty of that time working. If I get things started now, maybe I’ll be proud of what I’ve accomplished in a few years, and I don’t want to look back and regret not doing it. But do I want to be a full-time travel blogger then? Will my middle-aged self still want to skate across the surface of the Earth with no end in sight, forever? It’s hard to say. It also means that other projects get kicked down the road, probably pretty far. Maybe forever.
So it’s weird to launch this thing while I’m already thinking of moving on. It’s a tough decision, and one I wish could have been made years ago, when it would have been my one and only.
We’ll see how it goes.
We absolutely get you! Maybe it’s time to have a blogging break and get back when you feel you are ready :)
It’s a tough decision, but I’m starting to get itchy to travel again. It’s looking more and more like a good decision to take off for a few months, live somewhere cheap, and work there instead of here. Plus, it’ll be fun, and I’ll get plenty of material for the blog.
I feel you. I started my blog in 2010 after moving to Asia from Hawai’i, got it going alright, then abandoned it after about 6 months. Lost the inspiration and desire to write about my experiences. But I’ll tell you this, the whole time, for almost 2.5 years, it was always in the back of my mind, haunting me. I would get random emails from mysterious visitors who stumbled upon my dormant blog on their own after finding it by who knows what means. So it never left me completely. I started it up again in November and it’s been slower going getting it started then it was 2.5 years ago. Maybe the web is getting flooded with ‘travel blogs’, and anyway it made me feel a little regretful at not having cared for it as well as I should have. At the same time, though, I feel I have a way better grasp at who I am as a ‘blogger’, my unique angle and individual viewpoint, and that was something I hadn’t been aware of 2.5 years ago. So there are positives and negatives to starting it and leaving it and going back to it. But I will say, if you start it, and it so far seems to be great quality and entertaining, try your best to stick to it, just let it evolve with your personal evolution, let it move with you as you move. That way it stays and grows on your terms, and you won’t look back 2 years after abandoning it with regrets and thoughts of what if. Peace.
It’s only been a month and it’s been pretty encouraging so far, so I think I’ll keep at it. But as you say, even an abandoned blog still gets attention, and it’s right there, ready to go when you want to hit the road again. Might as well just start it, even if you have no dreams of grandeur.
Try living as an expat! You have most of the comforts of home (a kitchen!), but you still feel as if your off on an adventure- which you are. And there’s time to try some new things. I love it.
I haven’t done the expat thing for a while, so I think I should. Hostel hopping has been my operating procedure for quite some time.
Suggestion: travel *and* blog. I suppose it is self serving, but I really enjoy your posts. I follow a lot of travel blogs and yours is by far the most entertaining. I’m not sure if it’s the oh so humble self depiction or the photo captions or the candid descriptions…but I sincerely hope you keep the posts coming.
It’s a money issue at the moment…I’m working toward online self-employment, so it’s taking up most of my time for now (though I’ve been thinking of running off to Nicaragua or wherever life is cheap), but fear not. I shall be trampling my travel blogger foes under the heel of my ultralight travel shoes even if it’s the last thing I do.