Let’s Talk Bookish – My Real and Online Personas

Hola amigos!! Hope you’ve had a wonderful week! I am so ready for the weekend just so I can sleep lol. But first, we have today’s LTB discussion which I am very excited to talk about.

As always, Let’s Talk Bookish is a weekly meme, that is hosted by me and Dani @ Literary Lion, where we discuss certain topics, share our opinions, and spread the love by visiting each other’s posts.

Today’s topic is: Do You Use an Online Persona for Book Blogging? (suggested by Lydia @ Lydia Schoch)

Thank you so much to Lydia for suggesting this topic!! Let’s get started.

When I first started blogging back in December of 2018 (CAN YOU BELIEVE IT??? It’s been nearly 2 yearsss 😭) I decided to go with a pen name.

Being the impatient genius I was, I hastily chose J. R. Lynn as my pen name without putting enough thought or care into it. Honestly, everything about the start of my blog was hasty, awful, and a period of time that I would love to redo.

Related: see my book blogging firsts tag where I talked about this some more

Okay, that’s not totally true. I did put some thought into it and I wouldn’t redo everything. At the time, my favorite author was Jennifer Lynn Barnes. So I took the J and Lynn from her name, and then made the middle initial the first letter of my name and ended up with J. R. Lynn.

I know; very original and sophisticated. I cringe whenever I see that name. At the very least I could have chosen Sophie or something since I really like that name instead of That.

Anyway. I think the reason why I started out with a pen name was because I was trying to separate my blogger life from my real life. And I actually didn’t talk about my real life at all then.

Over the past year, I finally switched my name, and now go by Rukky. I like that so much better; it feels realer in a way. It’s a name that I actually know and relate to since it is my real nickname.

Ever since then, I’ve kind of talked about my real life especially in wrap-ups. However, I’ve not done so recently partly because I haven’t done a wrap-up in forever (seriously, I need to get around to doing that) and also because I think I’m going to go back to keeping my online and personal life separate.

Why?

I honestly don’t like telling people IRL about my blog because I want my IRL persona to not be associated with my online persona and vice versa. I am a hugely different person online than I am IRL. I talk a whole lot more here, I’m a lot more “outgoing”, I’m more than likely to strike up a conversation with someone I admire or am interested in getting to know, and I’m much more gushy/affectionate as well.

IRL though, I’m very quiet, very shy, very reserved, just getting through school, doing whatever I have to do, and being the exact opposite of Blogger Rukky.

It’s sometimes very funny to me just how different my two personalities are, and that’s kind of why I want to keep them separate. Of course, I will still lament about school and share some foodie stuff every now and then, but beyond that, I don’t think I’ll be talking about my life here anymore.

And this is besides the point, but sometimes I feel like I’m an imposter because of how different my personalities are. But it’s not like I’m faking it. I genuinely feel so much more comfortable online talking to you guys, and I feel a lot more passionate and outgoing here. But for whatever reason, I can’t bring that passion and outgoing-ness out into my real life, and trust me, I truly wish I could. Do you feel like this sometimes??

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One of the example questions for this topic was: Do you think book blogs should focus on being book blogs and not veer into other territory?

My answer is no. I think that book blogs can still be book blogs even if the blogger talks about their studies, shares studying/work tips, dabbles in some lifestyle or fashion, or decides to share recipes or art.

Honestly, I want to dabble in sharing recipes or doing some foodie stuff on the blog; however, that doesn’t negate the fact that I am a book blogger at heart. It could even make my book blogging side better if I veer into other territories since I’d be experimenting with different post types and getting ideas for my bookish content as well. So no, book blogs don’t have to only be about books.

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To wrap up: sharing your personal life on your blog is a PERSONAL choice that you should not feel compelled to do at all. For real, you should not be feeling like you have to tell your readers what’s going on, or how you’re feeling, or why you disappeared if it’s something that you don’t want to do. And if somebody has an issue with that, they need to go re-examine their life choices.

How much you choose to share is up to you. How much you choose not to share is up to you. If you want to use a pen name, that’s totally fine, and again, totally up to you.

You started a blog to share a passion that you have. You may end up feeling so comfortable that you spill your life worries here to get some support, and that’s okay. The community will always support you and offer advice if needed. And if you choose not to share, I promise that they’ll fight anyone who tries to make you.

At least, I know that I definitely will.

This Week’s Participants:

Clo @ Cuppa Clo | Evelyn @ Evelyn Reads | Rian @ Dogs and Books | Dani @ Literary Lion | Abby @ Beyond the Read | Aria @ Book Nook Bits | Sammie @ The Bookwyrm’s Den

That’s it for today! What do you guys think? Do you talk about your personal life on your blog? Why or why not? Am I the only one that feels like an imposter at times? How different are your personalities online and IRL? What’s the best thing you’ve eaten all week? Chat with me in the comments below!!