The Sunday Roast

All Rise, Please, To Greet The May Queen

This week's interview is with Maggie May,
who writes the blog Nuts In May.

(When she sent me this photograph, she added the comment:
"I'm sorry that neither Harry nor I do full frontals!")

The first of the standard questions. Why do you blog?

I blog because my son, Sam, set one up for me thinking that I would enjoy it. Before then, I was always writing in longhand and had contemplated writing my childhood memoires! I do blog about some of these memories from time to time. I am now really hooked on blogging, so Sam was right ... I do enjoy it.

What's the story behind your blog name?

Sam & I wanted to include the name May and I thought of "The May Flower" or "The Maypole" ... but then we decided on "Nuts in May" inspired by the film that we thought was funny in a droll sort of way. Of course, you have to be "nuts" to be a May in the first place! Apologies if there are any others out there!

What is the best thing about being a blogger?

The best thing about being a blogger is that I can write about anything I want, when I want, how I want. I have also made so many friends of all ages and I feel that I really know all these people through blogging. Although we will never meet, their opinions are greatly valued by me and I look forward to reading their posts & sharing their lives with them.

What key advice would you give to a newbie blogger?

I would advise a newbie blogger to be yourself and write in your own style. Read other blogs that inspire you & interest you. Sometimes I come across a blog and know that I have something in common with that person right away. Look down their blogroll and see who their favourite people are. Leave positive comments if you find an interesting post. Before too long people will get back to you and you will have begun a successful blog that I am sure will bring you much pleasure.

What is the most significant blog post you've ever read?

This is difficult. I have come across blogs that shock me because of the content. Aims from Big Blue Barn West and Suzy from Identity Crisis have written about terrible things that have happened to them in the past and how they have overcome their bad start in life and how sometimes they are still trying.

What is the most significant blog post you've ever written?

That would be Ripples Of Sadness. My posts tended to be funny when I first started writing and then out of the blue, I found myself writing this post and shocked myself, my family and my regular readers with this sudden change. It was a post about how I felt about the suicide of a best friend, looking back after 20 years and it turned out to be a tribute to her and her family.

This was a turning point in my writing and the response I got from that post, gave me the confidence to write down my true feelings and not just make light of everything in case I caused offense. As I said before, it's OK to be yourself.


Today's Sunday Roast with Maggie May is the 49th in a weekly series of interviews with bloggers from around the world.