"Shut up and read. Or ignore at will." Blogging in the decade to come

Over the last few weeks, my email inbox has been brimming over with posts from other bloggers proffering advice (and flogging books) on how to blog bigger and better in the new year.  The majority of these posts take the form of lists of what to do differently (which undoubtedly includes translating my sometimes cumbersome paragraphs into something more telegraphic).  I confess that, while I have deleted only a few (whose sources I don't entirely trust), I haven't been able to bring myself to read the ones that still await my attention.  There are a number of reasons for this, some of them obvious (celebrations, family time, year-end exhaustion).  The less obvious ones would, I think, appear on the radar of the author of a comment on an earlier post of mine, which I reproduce here in grateful acknowledgement of its thoughtfulness and timeliness.

Adriana said:

Oh dear, sounds like you have hit on a rather formulaic view of blogging (if you substitute 'formulaic' with 'wrong' I won't disagree much in this case). Your blog is your castle - to paraphrase the English phrase. It is your space to deliberate, write, share, rant, shout, or even offend, if you can face the fallout. Interactivity is overrated and over-used. Sharing and collaboration is often a shield used by people who have little original thought or are afraid to be alone. (This applies only to individuals, my criticism of organisations for lack of interaction, sharing and openness is known.) I think blogs like yours are what still keeps me interested in blogging (I started blogging in 2002 and have seen several waves of people arriving to the blogosphere, each bringing their own assumptions, objectives and experiences. Darren Rowse is but one of them.) I am interested in thoughtful writing, longer forms than just a few bits regurgitated by many bloggers. I like to see ideas that would not have seen the light of day, if not for the blog form and the drive of the author/blogger to capture them for their own reasons, not to please some audience. There are as many types of blogs and ways to write them as there are books and writings styles. They share one thing in common - they are expressions of individuals, not of institutions. That to me is revolutionary! They allow us to drive our 'identity', as defined by ourselves. This is one of the most valuable things the web has enabled. So if you decide to write only interminable screeds based on your innermost thoughts and notes, that's fine by me! The good news is that you will get audience that will value your blog exactly for that. There is no point in writing a blog to fit an imaginary audience. Your blog is an expression of things you want to express and the rest of the world can shut up and read. Or ignore at will. Of course, there are a few things you can do to make your blog more visible and discoverable to others. For example, I found you because you linked to my blog in one of your posts and I liked it enough to explore your blog further. I might even subscribe to it. :)

 

And here is an excerpt from my reply to Adriana Lukas:

To have an indication that I can go on writing without the reader in mind, and still garner readers like you, makes a big difference.

 

This will still hold true in the decade to come.