Blogging: What Works and What Doesn’t?
Revisiting the topic of improving blogging and blogs – including this one.
I’m a member of the Codex writing group of pro, neo-pro and aspiring professional writers. The group, which has at least 130 members, includes one of last year’s Hugo and two of this year’s Nebula winners amongst their ranks; they are collectively and individually, a formidable group.
Perhaps arising out of the Codex Blog Tour which I’ve been participating in –
-along with Aliette, Gareth, Alathea, Gray and many, many others—there’s been a lot of discussion just lately about the quality of blogs, and how to improve them. And change starts at home; that is, here.
Author Sandra Taylor, has started posting on the topic, while Amy Sundberg has started a series of posts titled Get A Backbone. This has led to me to do some more head scratching about my own blogging.
Based on stats that internet usage drops by 40% at weekends as people spend their time doing things rather than sitting in the office surfing the net, I’m going to drop one of the weekend posts, and perhaps one of the weekday ones.
I’m aware that this blog doesn’t really have an identity – in that respect, my earlier blog -Random Mumblings- was probably a good title for this one.
Is that eclectic nature a strength or a weakness? Do you prefer specilist blogs rather than my grasshoppering across subjects? Short blogs every day or long ones once a week? (Madeline Ashby and Tania Hershmann are examples of the latter sort, whereas the former is more the default setting)
If you’re posting a comment and your website has a commercial orientation (ie Wolverhampton computer repair dot com) you might want to leave your website off your comment, so that the ever hungry spam filter doesn’t eat it.
I’ll post more on this whole topic in a few days.
This is an interesting point Colin and one I’ve been pondering. Recently my blog on my site has basically just become a run-down of my latest work and announcements, which is fine from a business point of few but hardly thrilling.
But then as I write for all kind of areas, if I blog about one will it put off the rest. For example, I’m doing a fair bit of commercial, corporate writing at the moment. If I blog about my love of horror on my site, will it put off potential employers. Indeed, should I have seperate blogs for different subjects.
Hmmm. Decisions, decisions. I might blog about it.
C
Cav,
I suspect that everyone who blogs regularly runs into this issue sooner or later. However, there seem to me to be underlying issues that are completely different. I’m worried that I’m boring (to be blunt about it ) while you –at the risk of being contentious- sound almost as if you’re contemplating self-censorship, either by omission or by misdirection .
But yes, go for it! I might even pop over and comment!