I’ve been thinking a lot lately about how difficult it is to attract new readers to this blog and I’ve realised the problem is most likely me. You see, I’ve never been great at socialising, which is such an important element in online activities these days. I have a Facebook page and two on Twitter, but I’m not a diehard contributor to these mediums and I feel like posting all over the place is really just spamming. I know that’s not generally the case, commenting on other people’s blogs and social networking sites is the way to get yourself known. But it still feels a little uncomfortable for me.

The trouble is, I’m really quite a shy person. If you’ve read my earlier post on post partum depression, you’ll know I suffer from social anxiety disorder. This makes it difficult for me to interact with strangers and develop the kind of friendships that are now required to be noticed in the blogging community. It doesn’t help that the whole thing can seem like a kind of popularity contest sometimes, one that I have absolutely no chance of scoring well in – and I couldn’t care less!

I was thinking about CyberMummy earlier, as it’s merely days away and many mummy bloggers are writing about how excited they are to be attending. It’s a huge social event in the mummy blogosphere and a great way to find new contacts, but I have absolutely no desire to go. Not because of any disinterest in meeting other mums, but I simply dread large social gatherings. I’m more confident online and don’t really like the growing trend of meeting up with people offline. I like my little bubble, and the fact that I can turn away from the computer screen if I’m no longer at ease with what I’m reading or who I’m conversing with.

Am I alone in feeling this way? Am I truly out of touch with the way things are? Or is there a quiet army of fellow mums (and dads!) out there, enjoying the simple act of writing about their adventures in parenting, not looking to become a “top 10 mummy blogger” listed on popular websites?

I mean no offence to those who are doing well in this niche – in fact, I applaud you for cracking into a tough market successfully. I’ve blogged in several areas over the years, and this is definitely the hardest one to get noticed in. But I would love to get to know some of those under-the-radar mums and dads like me. I really would like to make new friends, I just prefer to have a smaller circle, rather than a zillion people on Facebook I know nothing about.