New Blog, New Start.

Hello!

Wow, it's been three years since I wrote a blog post or even looked at a blog. Why is that, I ask myself?

If I'm honest, writing about life and having the time for it has been near-impossible over the last few years. I've been working hard in my job, investing in my career by starting a new postgraduate course, moving house, finding new relationships, and having many contemplative, anxiety-ridden and panic-stricken moments about my future - all of which I haven't been writing down. So now I think it's time I start writing them down! 

Why now?

I was partly inspired to restart my blog by my postgraduate course: a Diploma in Library & Information Services Management. I'm in my final term and one of the modules requires a lot of reflective writing, where we evaluate our professional skills, what we've learned in the past, and how we can improve our skills now. For my portfolio assignment, I will have to reflect on various experiences in my career, both professional and personal, to evaluate the person I am now and use that to apply for jobs.

Not only has this encouraged me to reflect on my professional self, but also on my day-to-day life, and myself as a person. After so long not writing in my blog, I've realised how little I've reflected on myself generally, and I think now is the perfect time to get back into the habit, given my course completion is near and I'm keen to move into a new job once I'm qualified. 

Alongside studying for my Diploma, I have been working as a part-time Library Administrator at UWE Bristol. 2026 marks two years of being in this role, which feels mad, not only because of how quickly the time went, but because I didn't expect to remain in the role for this long. I either felt I would struggle too much with a job I had no prior experience in (I'd never worked in finance, reading list support etc.) or I'd find another role more local to me within a year. 

I am proud of how I persevered in my administrator role and excelled in areas I didn't think I would, but haven't yet secured another role despite getting various interviews. In a way, I'm glad I've had as much time as I have to feel like an expert in my role, as well as dedicate spare time to studying, so I can leave both my job and my course feeling completely prepared for the next step.

While working towards completion of my Diploma, I have taken up Careers Mentoring through the University of Sheffield, which has paired me with a voluntary mentor so they can offer careers advice, such as CV edits, interview tips, LinkedIn profiling, and help with job applications. Communicating with my mentor while studying and attending webinars from CILIP, British Library, and NLISN is allowing me to soak in as much knowledge and advice as possible. I feel more readily armed with the skills and awareness of the sector needed to progress in my LIS career, even if it's just the early stages.

Life outside my library career

I am currently living in the seaside town of Weston-Super-Mare, with my best friend for a housemate and an amazing boyfriend living ten minutes away. It's been surprising how at home I feel in this shabby yet charming town, perhaps because it reminds me of the equally shabby seaside town I grew up in, which also has its charm in many other ways. I've made friends here, learned about the local landmarks, and immersed myself in the local culture and coffee hideouts. But it's only a matter of time before I leave, likely to return to Bristol, so I plan to make the most of my remaining months here.

While living here, I've obviously dedicated most of my time to my job, course, and professional development, but I've also been writing in my spare time. Writing has been my passion since I was a child, hence my choice of university degrees in English/Creative Writing and Scriptwriting. While I haven't been writing quite as much as I did, due to focusing on my library career, I still write as much as I can in the evenings and weekends, and I'm pleased to announce a full-length novel is in the works. This project is an adult romantasy, taking inspiration from stories like Game of Thrones, Narnia, The Hunger Games, and adult animated works like Hazbin Hotel and Samurai Jack, and I can't wait to work on it further once my free time has increased.

How this blog will work

I will have two main pages for my blog posts.

One will be a personal/general blog, where I post about any daily musings, reflections, or random topics in my head at the time. I will also post about my writing, including any short-form or long-form fiction projects I'm working on (short stories, novellas, novels etc.), and potentially thoughts on books I've read recently (though I may make that a separate page to avoid overcrowding).

The other will be my professional career-focused page, where I reflect on any updates or news relating to my career in Library and Information Sciences - hence the name, 'LIS Blog.' I thought this would be a good way to have a space for ongoing reflections on my career, given this is important for continuous professional development, and to share my achievements and experiences with others who wish to read.

I don't currently have a schedule for how regularly I will post, but I will aim for once a month for both my personal blog and LIS blog.

Contact me!

One of the main reasons I'm starting this blog is to reinforce my connections and networking, both in the LIS sector and the writing/authors community. So if you want to get in touch to chat about anything I blog about, please go to my 'Contact' page and reach out via LinkedIn, Bluesky, or my email. 

I'd be really happy to hear from you and am open to chatting about anything and offer/receive any relevant career advice. For now, thank you for reading my first post and I can't wait to expand this blog further. :)