Why I'm Starting a Blog

Originally written in September 2010 as "Starting Off" — updated with reflections, clarity, readability, updated links, and new context in 2026.

My friend Kelly had suggested that I should start a blog more than once. Then, during a conversation at church one Sunday morning, somebody else suggested exactly the same thing.

At that point I thought I should probably stop thinking about it and just start writing.

As I was setting everything up, one question kept coming to mind: am I really opinionated enough to write a blog?

We'll soon find out.

Anyway, I hope you enjoy reading whatever comes next.

2026 Reflection 

Looking back, that question makes me laugh.

Am I opinionated enough to write a blog?

Sixteen years, more than a thousand published posts, many revamped posts, and countless late nights, strained eyes, and evolving writing later, I think it's safe to say the answer was yes.

What started as a simple personal blog has changed direction many times over the years. In those early days, most of my writing focused on my Christian journey, faith, and what God was teaching me. Later, the blog became a place to share Family and parenting experiences, family life, and our home education journey.

As life changed, so did the blog.

Disability, inclusion, accessibility, church culture, ministry, theology, lifestyle topics, reviews, cooking recipes, and family life all found a home here at different points. Some readers arrived for the church content. Others arrived through disability advocacy. Some came looking for parenting support. A surprising number found me through completely unrelated Google searches.

The blog kept evolving because life kept evolving.

A Veteran of the Blogging World

One thing that fascinates me when I read this first post is how different the online world was in 2010.

Instagram didn't dominate people's attention. TikTok didn't exist. Influencers weren't yet a career aspiration for thousands of people.

Back then, bloggers were often the people building communities online.

We wrote long-form content, shared stories, reviewed products, documented our lives, and built audiences one post at a time. In many ways, bloggers were the forerunners of what would later become influencer culture.

Many blogs from that era have disappeared. Some were abandoned. Some were lost when platforms closed. Others simply faded away as social media became the focus. Life moved on. 

This blog somehow survived, even if I took 6 years off from blogging regularly. 

More Than a Hobby

What I couldn't have known in 2010 was how many opportunities blogging would create.

Over the years I have worked with organisations, reviewed products, supported campaigns, written guest content, developed websites, customised blogging platforms, set blogging writing standards, wrote about my own writing, creating a unique voice, did blogging challenges, ran linkys, and helped other bloggers improve their own sites and writing.

At one stage I was fortunate enough to be recognised through award nominations, something that would have seemed completely impossible when I published this tiny first post.

The little blog that started because two people encouraged me to write became far bigger than I ever imagined.

The Constant Theme

Despite all the changes, one thing has remained the same.

This blog has always been about sharing life, from my perspective, no matter what others have said.

Sometimes that's through faith. Sometimes it's through parenting. Sometimes it's through disability advocacy, technology, church leadership, or everyday experiences.

The topics have changed.

The purpose hasn't. The blog remains a place to share everything that's "Inside Martyn’s Thoughts."

Writing helps me process life, share what I'm learning, and hopefully encourage somebody else along the way.

Advice From Sixteen Years Later

If you've found this post because you're wondering whether to start a blog yourself, here's my advice.

Start. 

Don't wait until you're an expert.

Don't wait until your website is perfect.

Don't wait until you have hundreds of post ideas.

Keep writing. Find your voice. Press publish.

You never know where one small blog post might lead.

I certainly didn't.

Meta Description

Why I'm Starting a Blog was the first post ever published on this website. Updated with reflections on sixteen years of blogging, faith, parenting, and disability advocacy.