Hi Diamon G -

Welcome! I responded already to your other post about string guages, so I won't comment on that here.

Regarding strats vs. lp for blues - an lp should suit you just fine. I got my strat first and always thought of that as a blues guitar. I was quite surprised when I tried out some lps in the store that they could give you a very bluesy sound too! Some great blues players use lps - Joe Bonamassa for instance. Use the treble (bridge pickup), boost the treble and mid on your amp, and you'll have all of the bite you need!

I've found my lp to be more versatile than my strat. I can make my lp sound smooth as butter or harsh with biting attack. It can wail, believe me! My strat can sound smooth, but not as smooth as my lp. The single coils in the strat also pick up a lot of extraneous noise which can be annoying.

I also found the floating bridge on the strat to be a pain in the butt. If you change string guages, you have to open up the back of the guitar and adjust the tension springs. If you play two notes at once, bending one of them, the unbent note will detune because the bridge will move. I got fed up and just adjusted the floating bridge hard against the guitar body.

A lot of this is a matter of personal perference, so others can argue that they find their strat to be more versatile. Based on my personal experience and taste, I'm finding my lp more versatile.

Oh, and regarding comfort...it depends. Depending on what lp you have, it may be heavy! I have a faded studio lp, which is comprable in weight to the strat. A standard or custom lp will weigh a ton in comparison and will hurt your shoulder after a while. The neck on the strat is significantly longer than an lp. So if you are of smaller stature, you may find the lp more comfortable. My strat feels like a bass compared to my lp. The strat has a contoured cutout on the back of the body that will make it more comfortable against your stomach if it happens to stick out.

Ultimately, the best thing for you to do is go to a guitar store and try out a strat for size and see what you think. At least now you are armed with what the differences are.

Good luck and have fun!!