Hello and welcome to Vicoli and Caffè!
When I sat down to write this “return to blogging” post, I struggled a great deal with the starting words. I wanted something original, full of character, but after a couple of hours of writing, deleting, writing and deleting again the same three or two words, I took a big glass of aperol spritz and went for a classic hello.
One can never go wrong with hello. I suppose. But that’s not why you’re reading this or why I’m here. Let me introduce myself! Let’s see…
I’m Cam, your not so local aro-ace overlord, usually grumpy, quite fond of cats, coffee and thunderstorms, writing from Italy and based in Rome.
There’s a chance that you already know me, because nope, this isn’t my first blog! But hopefully it’ll be the one I will stick to.
My blogging path started in Italian and as a book blogger with La Lettrice in Soffita.
After a while, finally broken by the morally dry and bigoted Italian community, I took the decision to switch for apparently nicer virtual lands. I slowly started to blog both in Italian and English, until the transformation reached its final stage and The Reader in the Attic was born.
It was a fun and nice experience, but not built to last. Partially for the same reasons of why I left behind the Italian sphere, partially because I was growing tired of book twitter “method” of talking stuff, partially because of many more partial reasons that would compose an immense list no one is asking to read.
Despite taking… wow, almost two years of hiatus? Well, despite taking such a long pause, I did missed blogging, having a space of my own where I could write how and what I wanted
I created a new dimension for myself, something new with a touch of my past. This how Vicoli and Caffè was born.
Why Vicoli and Caffè?
Books and writing have always been a huge part of my life. Both pushed me towards one of my favourite hobby-job – blogging, of course – and later to meet people that became close friends of mine.
But it wasn’t enough. Soon I found myself in a box. I could break that box occasionally, but the people interested in the box didn’t want that from me. I could write a silly little “bookish relatable” tweets with no originality or personality, a book blog post about a topic old as dust, and get more engagement than me talking about important topics that were dear to me.
There was a point when, after launching a poll, I came to realize that a very small percentage of my followers cared about me as a person that was also a blogger. The majority wanted a blogger that fed them content over content they perceived as “good” for them, but cared very little if I, as a person, faced any issue or had any other kind of interest that slightly diverged from the usual.
I’m perfectly aware this is part of the blogging’s reality: you pick a niche, you create content for said niche, people interested come to you, you keep creating and they remain entertained and active.
But I was never one to fossilize and the perception – then confirmed reality – that I couldn’t do anything else besides talking about books over and over, drove me away from my life as a book blogger.
What can I find on Vicoli and Caffè?
Vicoli and Caffè is a literature and lifestyle blog. Big words, right?
And maybe you’re asking yourself, if I wrote down literature, what the whole section above was about. Don’t you want to get “book blogging free”?
It makes sense, I swear!
Books are an important part of my life. So is writing. But so are many other things. Vicoli and Caffè was created to contain multitudes, possibly very well calibrated multitudes that won’t take space over one another.
This blog is a space where I can still talk about books while not leaving aside all of the rest. In the end, books can be a lifestyle. In a way, reading is a hobby for some, for others even a profession – it shapes our habits and so our style of life.
The same do writing, researching, gaming, traveling, eating, dressing… and more.
Vicoli and Caffè is a space where I can equally share tales about my passions and the life around me. Think of it as your home and the city where you live.
There’s your house, where you sit to read, grab a coffee to drink while plotting a story, or spend some nights diving into the narration and the action of a videogame. It’s the place where you take care of yourself, maybe you have a routine that supports you during the week. And when you open the door of your house and go outside, your world morph in a new reality made of streets, people, your and others cultures.
Vicoli and Caffè is both places, a chance to share what I love and the world I grew in, in a nice mix of hobbies and culture. I hope you’re ready for a good dose of “italianity”.
In conclusion…
If you want to know more about me and the blog, don’t forget to check the “About me” section. You can also find me on Pinterest, Twitter, Instagram and Goodreads if you want to follow me on socials. And for now, I think I’ve said all that I could. I even wrote more than what I was planning to.
Cannot wait to see you all in the comments and next time with newer posts!
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Let’s chat!
Did you follow me from some of my old blogs or this a fresh meet for you?
What do you hope to see from Vicoli and Caffè? What are expecting?
CAMMMMMMM!!! Welcome back to blogging! I’ve missed your posts and your blog so much! I am really excited about this new adventure you are undertaking with Vicoli and Caffe <3 pumped and ready to see all the beautiful things you will do here! <3
Hi, Sam! Thank you so much for your sweet comment! Once the last issue are resolve, yes, I cannot wait to go back to fully blogging. I’ve so many amazing posts idea and draft waiting to be published. Thank you for your support!
Welcome back to blogging! You were missed! I cannot wait to see what you have in store for us ♥️♥️
Thank you so muhc, Ruby! I’m soglad for all the support you and the others are giving me
Welcome back, and lovely blog! Looking forward to your posts, especially on Italian culture and folklore. Have you visited Sicily?
Sadly I never did! But hopefully one day I’ll be able to visit more of south Italy. Life always lead more north
Welcome back to the blogging community! It is great you have found a new love for blogging and I look forward to reading more of your posts! It is great to hear how you created the blog! Thank you for sharing!
Lauren
For some reasons, you poor comment ended up in spam?! How rude of jetpack. But jokes aside, thank you so much for this warm welcome! I cannot wait to post my next articles. I hope the people will appreciate it
Welcome back. What a lovely post.
It’s good you’ve decided to talk about subjects your interested in. Can’t wait to read more content.
Thank you! I hope you will like more of what I’ll publish and thank you for passing by
Reading through your entire post, I can relate so much! My first book blog had a lot of engagement, and while I am proud of the content I had created at the time, looking back I can see that I was focusing more on creating content that were trending for the niche I was writing for, and not because I actually had real passion in doing it. As I grew older, and ended up pursuing a career that requires me to write content for specific target audiences, I realized that the last thing I wanted to do when I came home and sat on my blog was to write for someone else.
I wanted to write for me. I wanted a tiny bubble of space in the internet to be my safe space, my virtual home. And that’s how The Keysmash Blog came to be. It is far from perfect but it’s wholly mine.
Anywho, all this to say: I am super excited for Vicoli and Caffe and cannot wait to read more of your posts! <3
Omg, this is the sweetest comment so far! Thank you so much Tanaz, I truly appreciate it. And yes, I understand. Right now I want to find the right balance between writing something that people will like but that I’ll like too and that I’ll have fun actually writing it! That’s truly important
Aaaah so excited that you’re back to blogging Cam 💜 I can understand why you felt trapped, it was one of the big deciding factors on me changing my blog name. Since as much as I love books and reading, I also wanted my blog to be a space for me to share posts on various topics. Can’t wait to read all your posts *hugs*
Thnak you so much, Clo! It’s so nice to have such great support from you all <3
CAMMMMMM I’m happy to see you back in blogging and hope you’ll stick to this blog as well! It feels like it’s been so long though – has it really been two years? 😮 I definitely feel that when you mentioned feeling tired of the method of talking about stuff and feeling like you’re stuck in one place where you can’t be yourself – I love this new chapter for you and I’m excited to see what’s in store!
Aww, Sophia! Thank you for passing by! I’m so glad you did! And yes, it has been so long. I did, actually, asked myself if it has been truly two years but apparently it has been at least… very close to more than one year?
I hope you will enjoy my future posts
Welcome back!! I love the new name and design and cannot wait to read your posts 🥰
Omg, thank you! What’s funny is that, just a few days after having sweated and lost my mind over the initail design, I had a moment and I completely re-designed the already launched blog in one single day. Totally a normal thing to do
welcome back to blogging and i’m excited to know more about you through this space! also this blog looks so cute!
Thank you so much! Are you excited to know me? Okay, I’m low key flattered because it’s the first time I hear anything of the sort 😂 But I appraciate it, truly!
Your blog is beautiful Cam! I think one of the good things about blogging is that you can take a break whenever you want- and easily come back to it when you’re ready. I hope you enjoy growing your blog now that you’re back, I can’t wait to read your posts 🙂 x
I had to recover your poor comment from the spam! I love that my anti-spam filter is so tight but umh… maybe a bit too much 😂 But aside from that, thank you so much! It’s true that one cantake a break whenever it’s needed, but tbh I’m not sure how easy it to be back, but I’m glad I’m doing it right now. I hope you will enjoy my future posts!
I may be late to the welcome thanks to my very poorly timed Internet Detox right when you finally launched Vicoli and Caffe, but CAM I AM SO EXCITED FOR YOU! I love the new blog and reading your introduction post got me even more excited for this new space of yours. I’m your biggest – if also flakiest – advocate, and love the multitudes of your personality reflected here. xoxo
Don’t worry Kal! And also I’m glad to say that none of your comments were in the spam section. My blog has a little cache issue, so it may take a little time before the comments posted are visibile to everyone