#WCW: FASHION & LIFESTYLE BLOGGER, MBOLE EKANEY

Hello people..It's Wednesday...And my WCW  is my fellow colleague in  Camer blogplanet Fashion & Lifestyle blogger of the HotJem, Ms. Mbole Ekaney.

Tell us  about your blog and what it is about

THE HOTJEM is a Fashion & Lifestyle blog that simply chronicles my personal fashion style and provides an overview of some of the latest fashion trends (from my perspective), beauty tips, some entertainment news and lifestyle events (including healthy living). THE HOTJEM also has a section called STREET @AFRICANA which is primarily dedicated in promoting African designers and fashion but also showcases anything African such as art, photography, entertainment and businesses as I feel that Africans are underrepresented and are not heavily promoted in any of the categories mentioned above. It is my way to show support of Africa and our talents. Of course since charity begins at home, I made it a point to first feature a lot of our Cameroonian talents while branching out to other African countries.  

When did I start blogging?  

Although I did my very first blog 4 years ago, I really started blogging on a regular basis a little over a year ago. In 2013, I made a decision to start blogging regularly as this was a fun hobby I knew I would love as to me it is like telling a story… my story of my style and my interests.

Why do you blog and why are you a style blogger?

I blog is because I enjoy expressing myself with writing and through pictures. I am a style blogger not because I am a fashion fanatic (which I am not) but because I love fashion in general and it fascinates me to see how different people have different ways of expressing their style based on their personality. I also think it’s fun taking pictures of what you wear and sharing it with your friends and family as I have my own style and through my pictures, I want people to understand that you should feel comfortable wearing what YOU like and what brings out the best of you and not what everyone else likes or expects you to wear. I believe this is important because I like to send positive messages to women in general that you don’t have to wear skinny jeans for example to feel trendy if that is not your thing or if you don’t have the body type to wear it. I’m a curvy girl (more like an hour glass shape) and far from skinny so I wear what suits my body type and I embrace it. THE HOTJEM signifies a strong and confident woman who embraces her beauty and uniqueness and who is not afraid to express it through her personal fashion style.  

Please tell us a bit about yourself.[I know you are not just a fashion blogger *smiles*]

In my everyday professional life I enjoy finding ways to help people directly and indirectly and this is seen in my professional background. My educational background consists of two graduate degrees both in the science field (healthcare management and pharmaceutical systems). I worked for a healthcare institution where I learnt a lot about the healthcare system and I now for a major Pharmaceutical company where I work closely with scientists (with different backgrounds such as Doctors, Nurses, Pharmacists etc) and other research professionals to find medicinal cures for patients.

I am also a freelance writer and would love to write more articles for print and online magazines, websites and blogs in the area of blogging/social media, fashion and lifestyle events.  

My Selfies are better than yours...lol

What do you want to see in Camer blogging community/blogosphere?

I am very happy to see a sudden influx of Cameroonian bloggers in the last couple of years. However, there are some major things I would like to see happen in order to improve the Camer blogging community/blogosphere

I would like to see more Camer bloggers supporting and promoting each other (regardless of if you are anglophone or francophone or where you are from in Cameroon) the same way they support and promote non-Cameroonian bloggers and with the same engagement and passion. We need to do this first before we can ask others to support us as bloggers. Charity begins at home. The blogging community in other countries is very tight knit and they are great in supporting one another to an extreme and I would love us to be the same way but I don’t see that much among Cameroonian bloggers.

Although things are slowly changing for the better, we (Cameroonian bloggers) still have a long way to go in putting our names out there and in being recognized as legit bloggers. If we want people to take us seriously then we need to take ourselves and our blogs seriously. This is why promoting each other because very important.

We need an official blogging organization that fully supports Cameroonian bloggers, provides some educational tools and conducts blogging events. This will make bloggers who are associated with an organization that looks out for them feel encouraged to blog more. I don’t see that we have that right now and if we do have one then they aren't making themselves visible nor its activities in supporting Camer bloggers.


Lastly, it would be great to see more Cameroonian public figures and companies that get blogged about or mentioned by Cameroonian bloggers to occasionally acknowledge these bloggers (It’s not easy putting features or interviews together as it takes a lot of time and energy). There are so many ways that public figures can acknowledge bloggers. They  can give a simple shout out via social media to the blogger who featured or interviewed them, post the bloggers blog link (of the feature or interview) on  the public figures Facebook page or reference it during interviews or on the  their own websites and on social media. Can you imagine what a simply tweet can do from say a popular singer/actor or public figure in general can do just by giving a Camer blogger a shout out or thanking them for featuring or interviewing them on their blog? It goes a long way as it can drive traffic to the bloggers blog and it boosts the morale of the blogger and makes them feel as if their hard work has paid off and has not been ignored. This gives them even more reason to want to blog as it’s not for nothing.

Wow Mbole..Thanks a lot for the interview.You have a great vision for the Cameroonian blogosphere.Hopefully we will see more support, structure and organization within the blogging community...The impact and influence of bloggers cannot be underestimated in today's world. Public Figures/Entrepreneurs/Companies/Brands..Wuna don hear nuh?

I can without a doubt say that Mbole is a VPC (Very Patriotic Cameroonian)..lol..Check out her 237 Inspired Outfit here.. She is  an inspiration and my blogging mentor :)..You don't want her to be on your case about  something. lol (in a good way though) 

Inspired? Check out her out at THE HOTJEM here. Follow her on facebook, instagram, twitter

Y.M.
IRepCamer