#GirlGang: The first twitter chat

Image courtesy of Jemma @dorkfaceblog

I sit with so much excitement and anticipation for this Twitter chat. I have my coffee in one hand, iPad in the other and my candle lit – just like most bloggers do before a chat starts. This isn’t just any old twitter chat however this is the first #GirlGang chat set up by Jemma aka @dorkfaceblog. 

WHAT IS #GIRLGANG?

Jemma has recently set up a bloggers #GirlGang; it’s main goal being to spread positivity to everyone (“girls, boys and whatever gender you identify with is always welcome” - Jemma). She’s going to write a “newsletter updating on giveaways, creative challenges, showing love… scheduling Twitter chats… events, merchandise… and EVEN A BLOG AWARD” (-Jemma). I think this is such a brilliant idea and I am so excited for it and after the first #GirlGang Twitterchat (that we got TRENDING may I add), I am almost exploding with excitement – hence this post.

IMPORTANT AND NECESSARY 

I feel that the bloggers #GirlGang has come at just the right time, with many girls feeling like every blogger is shouting but no one is actually being heard. Blogging has exploded over the past year and I feel like every girl has a blog they want people to read but hardly any are taking the time to read others. I am, regrettably, extremely guilty of this; after a day of reading dusty old books in the library the last thing my eyes want to do is continue reading. However I have recently discovered or more so, rediscovered the power of communication, the power of conversation and also the enjoyment of reading other people’s blogs. I have returned to the roots of why I started a blog, to communicate and also because I thought other peoples’ were so fucking cool. Anyway, without going off on a tangent I want to congratulate Jemma on what she has achieved.

THE FIRST TWITTER CHAT

At 6PM the chat commenced with Jemma’s first question: The happiest moment you experienced growing up. I felt a bit silly; I had a pretty good upbringing and childhood but couldn’t put my finger on a specific moment. A lot of other girls went for simple memories such as baking cakes with their grandma and visiting Disney Land and some girls were coming out with profound and bittersweet memories like escaping domestic violence. 

I felt a bit silly and with all the responses a bit lost, daring not say anything, however I soon found other girls that were in the same position as me. Once you get going you realise that you’re not the only socially-awkward one. It makes sense, why else would you be sat behind a screen writing a blog if it wasn’t to get your voice heard without the effort of actually speaking to people. 

And that’s the point, connecting with other girls who were just like me, and that why this chat was so empowering and IS so necessary. It allows people to connect with each other across the country (even world, I saw one girl mention she was Finnish) from their bedrooms. Feminism needs this and blogger chats, especially this one, are hopefully going to achieve a lot… possibly a revolution on how we smash the patriarchy?

The chat ended (very reluctantly, no one wanted to go – I even postponed peeing for a good 15 minutes) with the question of what you would tell younger self. This brings out all sorts of amazing quotes from all the girls from ‘be confident’, ‘be yourself’, and my personal fave ‘less stressing more action’ from @StoriesofSam which I definitely need to put on a post-it for myself!

THANK YOU 

The #GirlGang chat has got me so excited for what we and the bloggers #GirlGang can achieve and I really look forward to what’s going to happen in the next few months. I think I speak on behalf of all the #GirlGang members (That’s 270+ last time I checked) when I say THANK YOU JEMMA!

If you want to be part of the bloggers #GirlGang all the info is here. The chat is at 6PM every Monday!

Apologies if this post is a bit rambly, as you can probably tell I am highly caffeinated and thrilled about #GirlGang and also in a rush to put up my Christmas tree!