(Image credit: “100 fotos de My Buffo,” by My Buffo on flickr)
This is my 100th post. Amazed I made it this far actually.
Some quick observations on blogging practice:
- It’s hard. Writing posts comes to me a lot less naturally that I thought it would. Prolific bloggers amaze me. But then I’ve never been one to think out loud (or with a keyboard).
- It takes time. Each post takes me a lot longer than I thought it would. I really tend to fuss over the words. In fact, most of my published posts end up quite differently than they start out — my creative process requires a lot of re-working.
- Links are a pain. I know they’re important and great for SEO and all that, but finding and inserting the ones I want (even the ones I’ve boomarked) takes a lot of work.
- Images and multimedia are fun. I love the way that they complement (or replace!) the words. But they also take a lot of time to find and insert.
Given all these whines, why don’t I just quit? After all, most of the time I’m perfectly happy to part of the 90% who lurk. Why bother struggling to be part of the 9% who contribute from time to time (never mind the 1% who account for the bulk online content)?
Well, for one thing, I like how blogging gives my writing muscles a good workout. My blog writing is very different from the writing I do in my “regular” work, being in the first person and all. It’s good practice in a different mode. And hitting the publish button after a good post is very satisfying.
Another good reason is that the blog provides me a good excuse to keep an eye on the social media, web 2.0, and government 2.0 spaces. And this has good effects on my day job — advising my colleagues on web communications has become a big growth area for me. And I’m very happy about this. (Can you tell which way I want to move in my career?)
And of course, I would be dishonest if I didn’t mention the ego boost that comes with knowing that others are actually reading what little old me has to say.
BTW, here’s a great essay on the practice of blogging from one of the granddaddies of the medium.
What's a spaghetti test?
