Blogging Under a Pseudonym: Harmful or Helpful? // I reveal my “secret identity” (PLEASE READ WHOLE POST)

When I first started Nerd in New York, I really had to sit down, and think about a lot of things. Blogging sounds much easier said than done. There are a whole bunch of factors that I grew to learn about during my first month of blogging. And one of them was blogging with my real name or not.

If you can’t already tell, I obviously chose to blog under a pseudonym because of… various reasons (which I get into later on), but now as my 2 year blogiverasry is approaching I’m sort of regretting that decision. And they’re many reasons for that.

P R O ‘ S

• Honestly, the whole reason why I chose too make a pseudenoym in the first place was because of I didn’t want anyone to find out about this blog anyway. It’s a little ashaming to say, but I was pretty embarrassed.  There were so many reasons to judge me because of this blog because it didn’t seem like naything a regular teenager would do. So having a fake name was like a security blanket. No one would associate this blog to me.
• Whole new me! – Creating a new name was like creating a new person – for me- anyway. Balie is supposed to be a confident, funny, smart, and above all, a good blogger. And after a while, it worked. I loved this online persona I made, and I guess 769 other people did too
• I am a shy smol bean – Gosh, I’m so shyyyy I have about 8 friends total. I’m not lying when I say I’m a HUGE introvert. So when I made this blog revealing my name was out of the question. It would freak me out to know that people on the internet read, and commented about my opinons online

C O N ‘ S

• So much pressure!! – Blogging under a pseudonym meant I have to create two versions of almost EVERYTHING. Creating a new email, new social media (Instagram, Twitter, Facebook Tumblr etc…) , and then making sure that I don’t accidentally mix the two up. One time my IRL friend asked me why my instagram name was Balie, and I freaked out. I realized that I followed her under my bookstagram because I’m dumb , and forgot to switch accounts.

• I’m really proud of what I had accomplished so far… – Getting books BEFORE they even come out, having a large following, able to communicate with people, discuss about major things. Those are just a few golden sides too blog blogging. I’m so proud of what I have accomplished so far, and I literally want to climb on top of the mountain and scream it to everyone. Did ya see that development right there? I went from being embarrassed about my blog, to being super prideful about it
• Blogging under a fake name takes away some credibility for what I have done so far, because people will automatically thing that it’s not me, but someone else. I don’t want that too happen. I want my IRL friends too see this, and think “damn my friend is a genius” (because coding is super hard okay).

• Creating a whole new image – So I know I listed this as a pro as well, but it can also be a con. After a while, I was tired of Balie. It didn’t really feel… me. I didn’t feel authentic. Balie wasn’t me, which I guess was the point of creating a fake blogging name. Over time, I didn’t like this name for me, it sounded so generic, and boring. And I was favoring my real name more. And this led me too this new decision:

I have decided to actually reveal my actual identity! 

I mean it’s super obvious from the actual title that I would do this but whatever.

Hi, I’m the main blogger behind Nerd In New York! My name is Amena!! 

actual image of me

So from now on when any of you guys tag me, comment, or address me please make sure to use my real name!

I understand that it might be a bit weird, but hopefully we could get used to it.

Here are some facts about me

• I’m Bengali (a country almost right next to India, but NOT IN INDIA)
• I’m a Muslim teen (turning 15 soon enough)
• I’m really scared of dogs (I was traumatized when a German Shepard tried to bite ,y hand off)
• I have a weird shaped birthmark near my elbow which looks like a crescent moon
• I have an unhealthy addiction to drama (lol)
• I also listen to kpop, and watch kdrama’s (if you want me to listen/watch anything comment down below!!)

Ahem… so I get that could get really weird. I’m literally changing MY WHOLE FREAKING NAME! But like it’s okay, I guess. So what are your thoughts on using a pseudonym in the blogging community? Have you ever used one? Would you ever use one?