Who are you and what do you do?
I’m Claire, an Irish Book, Beauty and Lifestyle blogger – I market by day and blog any chance I get. Often found collecting random things around the house as props for my blog photos.
Tell us about your blog
Claire by Reverie is a blog aimed at people like me who don’t really go for the mainstream. The tagline is “Beauty, Business, Books and Beyond”, so it is absolutely not a niche blog, but more of a catch-all for anyone who wants something that little bit different. I’ve become known for telling it like it is and for becoming impassioned when it comes to women’s issues.
Why do you do what you do?
I’ve been blogging for seven or eight years now, purely for my love of writing. Starting off as a music blogger, I’ve finally found my place on the net with clairebyreverie.com. I do it because I love to write, and I also enjoy bringing something a little different to the table in the world of Irish blogging.
Describe your audience!
Most of the people who read my blog are women, but the age demographic is very diverse. From 18 right up to 60 plus. I would like to think that we are the outsiders, and proud, not quite satisfied with what’s popular or current, and always looking for another book to stick our noses into.
What’s your media diet?
First thing every morning I go to Twitter and check the trending topics, see if there is anything to be outraged or joyous about. Instagram is always next stop, because I like to keep engagement up over there, and I’ll more than likely have a scroll through the blog sharing threads in the blog community I help to run on Facebook to see what everyone has been blogging about. (it’s called Irish Beauty & Lifestyle Bloggers Inspire).
Three people you respect?
That’s a hard question. I respect and admire so many people, especially in the blogging community. The first three people who spring to mind in relation to blogging are probably:
- Sara Delmer (Not Another Book Blogger) – Sara has been blogging for years and is well known in parenting blogger circles. Recently though, she set up a new book blog and has been doing really well, slaying every other blogger out there on Instagram in particular. Most of all I admire the fact that she doesn’t follow the crowd, which isn’t easy to do in blogging.
- Danielle Loftus (Lilliwhiterose) – Danielle is a wonderful blogger with a genuine heart of gold. She established Irish Beauty & Lifestyle Bloggers Inspire to create a community for bloggers that is about support and making friends, rather than self-promotion and making connections. Her personality really comes through in her blog and on her social pages, which is so important. I probably would never have set up this blog if it weren’t for both Danielle’s and Sara’s support, so that speaks volumes as to why I respect and admire them so much.
- Sera McDaid (The Style Guide Blog) – Sera and I closed down our previous blogs around the same time, and we set up our new ones around the same time too. She has faced a number of struggles over the years and I admire no one like her for facing it all with her chin up. She is kind, and positive, and supportive of other bloggers, and she has totally come up trumps since launching The Style Guide Blog, working with a local magazine in Colraine and building her profile even more so than ever through snapchat and other platforms. She is a force of nature.
What excites you right now and Why?
I’m excited by the prospects of where clairebyreverie.com might go. Although I’ve been blogging for years, I never really took as much pride in my projects as I do in this. It feels like it’s 100% mine, 100% me and I’m excited by the opportunities it might bring, even if that’s just meeting more and more interesting people.
Proudest post? Finest moment to date? Most embarrassing moment to date?
My proudest and finest moment has been making the Finalist round in two categories in the Blog Awards. I normally don’t care about awards, I’ve been a finalist in these awards quite a few times, but never really cared. This time because I’ve put my whole personality and soul into it, I’m really proud of getting that far. By the time this has published I might even have won it, who knows? I doubt it though!
Most embarrassing moment was the time I fell through an oversized deck chair at the Beauty Blog Awards. I say embarrassing, I thought it was hilarious, but it seemed like quite a few people were embarrassed for me.
What channels are your favourite and why?
Instagram is probably my favourite at the moment because I’m discovering a lot of UK and Australian bloggers through it and it’s interesting to see how they are doing things. I always love Twitter for connectivity, and for giving out about things.
Tell us a secret - something we should know about you?
Oh dear, I’m an open book! Although I do have a double jointed baby finger which is both useless and mildly off putting.
What’s the master plan?
I don’t really have a master plan at the moment. Honestly, I am just enjoying the process and I’m excited about what may or may not lie ahead. I don’t think I’ll ever make a living off blogging as such, but that’s not why I do it anyway, I do it so I have my own little corner of the internet to craft some words and have some rants. I’m pretty happy with that right now.
Where do we find you?
