the other day someone asked me, “how come so many people comment on your blog?” then, someone else mentioned it to me again today.
i really can’t answer that because you guys are the ones commenting…
so, what about this little blog here inspires you to react, to comment?
i think i’d kind of like to know too! :)
yin and yang. balance is essential. what makes me ditch your feed was so…yesterday.
today, a more positive spin: three reasons blogs end up in my google reader. but a confession? most new blogs go into a “just testing” folder…i am totally afraid of commitment.
anyway…on to the list!
3. you had me at hello. if i can skim over whatever is on the front page of your blog, read about you, and maybe even put a face with a name in under a minute, more than likely, i’ll spend a couple more minutes exploring. but those first few seconds are essential. what kind of vibe does your blog give off? i’m not saying you have to be a professional graphic designer or writer, but you know what its like to feel something and connect to it.
2. one of these things is not like the other. do you have conservative political views? are you an atheist? are you gay? have kids? it’s easy to find people who think like me, who write like me, or work at churches. i lived in a blogging bubble long enough. i love finding people who have nothing in common with me because i simply want to see what it’s like to live in somebody else’s shoes.1. interact. again. i can’t stress how important this is. if i leave a comment or email you, will you respond? how do you treat other people who comment on your blog? how do you write about others — when you hat tip someone or disagree?
respectfully? often?
good.
being sick and homebound since wednesday evening has left me a lot of time to do nothing. i’ve actually been able to read most of the things that come up on my google reader, add a few feeds, as well as remove a few feeds. i’m not one to talk about the “dos and don’ts” of blogging, but since i have some free time, i thought i’d give you three reasons why i’d ditch your feed.
3. posting a lot of content frequently. posting frequently is one thing. posting a lengthy but well thought out blog is another. posting six novels a day is absurd. i wish i had time to read it, but i don’t. when i have 12 new feeds and 10 are yours and they’re 1000 words a piece, i can promise you i won’t read them.
2. the polar opposite of number 3. not posting. ten of my feeds haven’t posted content since may. three of those ten haven’t posted since january. sionara.
1. don’t interact. this is my biggest blogging pet peeve. to me, blogging is interactive. personally, i do my best to send a thank you email to new people who comment on my blog, to interact in the comments, or to write back to comments that are especially witty or interesting and thoughtful.
i’m not sure what it is, but some people give their blogs the appearance of a discussion format, and then don’t acknowledge or interact with any of the people who comment. if you don’t want to interact, turn off your comments. at least that way it’s somewhat apparent that discussion is not on the forefront of your mind when it comes to blogging.
not even acknowledging people who comment, or not answering people who ask specific questions is like walking by and ignoring someone who says hi to you on the street. it’s just rude.
what are reasons you say farewell to feeds? anything i could do better?
i’m bored.
So a few posts ago, I asked for your thoughts on blogging and a lot of you replied to some extent, “It’s what you make it to be.”
Honestly, I don’t know what I want this blog “to be.” A journal? A forum for asking questions and getting people to think and share their opinions? Something to put my design/writing examples on? I don’t know.
So, I am going to be taking a hiatus from posting anything until I can answer that. Can a blog simply be? I’m sure it can. But I’m the kind of girl who lives and thrives in the black and whites, not the greys.
Thanks for reading. Always feel free to email me or comment in the meantime.
So, I am reverting to my 1995 ways and falling in love with instant messaging again. Since I have iChat at work, and can’t afford a .mac account (well, I can’t justify the expense), I am pretty much an AIM user. So, I’d love to get your screen name if you also an AIM person. If you use Yahoo or MSN, go ahead and leave your screen name…Don’t worry, I’m not an obsessive IMer. But I figure let’s expand the blogosphere a little more!
Leave yours below!
Sunday, I was asked to be a part of a blogging focus group. One of their topics was MySpace – if we used it, how, etc. I do have a MySpace but there is nothing on it except friends and some photos.
The only reason I MySpace is obscure bands and old friends. Saturday night I was really wired and started looking up people from my past. I hope they don’t mind me linking to their sites (and if you do, please let me know and I’ll unlink…) but I found:
My brother’s first grade crush.
My first boyfriend (I was in third grade, he was in fourth).
My babysitter in the first grade.
A really nice guy I dated when I was 20.
Another really nice guy I dated in high school.
A girl I used to play with in 2nd grade.
One of my best friends growing up.
Some very different people from very different stages of my life. It’s been fun catching up – most of the old boyfriends are married and have kids. Weird! Some of these people look the same, and some of them look a little different!
I’ve really loved reconnecting with all of them and I hope to find more friends I’ve lost touch with over the last twenty years.
Do you have a MySpace?
I did this a few months ago, but since there are some new people, I thought I’d do it again…I’d love for even those who have been reading for a while to post, just so we can get to know everyone. You never know when you might find someone who shares a common interest!
-Who are you?
-How old are you? (you can give a range…)
-How’d you get here?
-If you have a blog, a link…
-What is the best advice you’ve ever received?
