This week HCX had the opportunity to chat to Lucy Ronan, the creator of Faraway Lucy and a key member of HCX’s Travel Team.
Name: Lucy Ronan
Course: English Literature
Year: 1st
Hey, Lucy! So first things first, what inspired you to start writing a travel blog?
Well, from an early age, I’ve always been passionate about reading, writing and photography. I thrive off being creative. I won’t lie and say I popped out of the womb ready to hop on a plane with a passport clutched in my hand but over the last four years or so, my desire to travel has rapidly increased. So I put these two passions of mine together and started a travel blog: Faraway Lucy. At first it was just a lifestyle blog where I covered everything from travel to music to fashion, but as I began to start taking my website more seriously and professionally, I found my niche and called myself a travel blogger. It’s funny because I hadn’t read any blogs at the time of creating it, nor did I know they really existed… I was totally unaware of the huge blogging community, but I just sort of jumped in the deep end with it.
Do you have any exciting travel plans for 2016?
As you can imagine, on a student budget, I can’t really travel that much, which is obviously a bit problematic for a travel blogger. But so far for 2016 I have booked trips to Copenhagen, Amsterdam and Ireland. I can’t wait!
So, what made you want to write for Her Campus Exeter? And what’s your favourite thing about it?
Blogging can get lonely. Despite spending all of your time on “social” media, as a blogger, it is an extremely introverted and personal pastime. There’s no denying that. And I’d never properly written for an online website/publication that wasn’t my own before. During Freshers I wanted to meet more people than just those that I live/study with, but I’m not a sporty person, so those kind of societies were out of the window. While I did sign up for other journalism-style societies, like Exeposé, Her Campus seemed to be far more intimate, fun and also a lot more chilled out. Half of our meetings are spent sipping on cocktails and chatting about life in general, so it’s a nice balance!
What do you want to accomplish from your blog in 2016?
My biggest hope for 2016, in terms of my blog, is simply to network more! I’d love to attend my first travel/blogging event (like TBEX, Traverse and WTM London) to meet other like-minded people and organisations. It’s all about contacts in this industry, unfortunately… turns out eXfactor was right, after all!
A far-fetched dream of mine would also be to win a blog award – I doubt it’ll happen but you’ve just got to put yourself out there! At the end of the day, whatever you’re doing for your blog is exposure. You shouldn’t feel embarrassed about your creative outlets; even if your blog is only new and small, if you love what you do and you’re confident about it, people will be attracted to that and latch onto what you’re doing. You gotta fake it till you make it! Finally, possibly my biggest venture yet is to write and publish my first eBook. This is the first time I am talking about this online (you heard it here first, girls!), but I’ll keep the topic on the down-low for the moment! You’ll have to stick around to find out…
What are your favourite things to see and do around Exeter?
Unfortunately I feel like I didn’t explore the city enough in my first term of living here. So exploring the city and the surrounding area is one of my travel aspirations for the year! If we’re talking about a night out, you’ll most likely find me at Cavern’s Indie Club on a Saturday, dancing my pants off on the stage. Otherwise, very stereotypical choices, but I loved the Christmas Market, and I really want to explore Dartmoor and the Jurassic Coast sometime this year!
What would you say to anyone who wants to start a blog but is a little apprehensive?
Without re-enacting Shia LaBeouf, JUST DO IT! It doesn’t matter if your only camera is a rubbish one on your phone, or if you slip up on grammar… if you start, you’re only bound to improve. However, if you just want to start blogging in order to become the next Zoella and reap in the freebies, you will never be fully satisfied. Do it because you love writing, and most importantly, do it because you’re passionate about whatever you’re writing about!
Also if you’re worried about what people will think of you, (because yes, people say it is a narcissistic hobby), just ignore them. You can start out writing a private blog and only share it publicly when you feel comfortable about it!
So, where do we go if we want to find out more about Faraway Lucy?
Head over to www.farawaylucy.com and you can find me on social media too: Instagram, Twitter and Facebook. Or if you happen to see me around campus or in town, please come and say hi!