Love our Lurkers IV

I've only just realised today is the fourth annual Love Our Lurkers day. I missed Bonnie's email while I was away, and have only just seen it. Close call!

Love Our Lurkers is a concept Bonnie (of the justly famous My Bottom Smarts) came up with three years ago. Today is the day when you - all you out there reading this - are invited to step up and say hello.

Maybe you don't comment because the little spanking-blog-universe seems very cliquey, full of people who know each other. This is in one sense true. But most - if not all - of those people were, at one point, like you: reading, wondering, thinking, too shy or busy or unsure what to say to participate in the conversation. The wonderful thing about this little universe is that while it's a community, it's not an exclusive one. It's not elitist. You don't have to be pretty to take part, or have a model body, or be young, or have loads of play experience. As long as you're interested in That Thing We Do, and have your own thoughts and ideas and fantasies, there's a place for you here, and there's a place for your opinions.

This started out as a professional, spanking-model industry blog. It's turned into as personal a blog as my private diary. Some of my dearest friends have been made through this little universe. So don't be shy. Don't feel you have nothing of worth to say. Don't feel that you aren't one of the cool kids (I've always been an awkward geeky kid, at any rate).

Bloggers are often an insecure, shy bunch, you know. It's much easier spilling your heart to a computer screen than to a crowd of real people. Getting feedback from readers - making real connections - is what motivates every blogger, and many of the people who started out making the odd comment on one blog or other are now fully-fledged, popular bloggers in their own right. And when you're talking spanking, posting that first comment can be more than a simple de-lurk: it can be the first step in coming out to other people, to starting to seek out what you've always wanted. Reading is great, but it's even better to talk.

So hey there. Good to meet you. How was your day?