When You Have Something To Say November 2, 2012
Posted by nrhatch in Blogging, Humor, Word Play, Writing & Writers.trackback
I forget where I saw it and exactly how she put it, but I read a comment recently bemoaning the fact that some bloggers choose to post daily.
The commenter contended that it is rare to find someone who has something worth saying every day.
I disagree. I follow bloggers who write consistently entertaining posts day after day after day.
Kate Shrewsday springs to mind. A laminated copy of her recent post, Toilet Zen: Henry VIII and Lavatory Reading, should be kept in everyone’s throne room. Kate’s writing is majestic.
Other bloggers share inspirational thoughts, words, photographs, art, recipes, and images on an equally consistent basis.
A visit to their blogs always feels like time well spent.
Perhaps our contentious commenter reads the wrong blogs? Or maybe she is annoyed that prolific bloggers have stolen “her” audience?
That said, WP’s recent post, NaBloPoMo is here! Need some inspiration?, rubbed me the wrong way when, with great exuberance, it cheered:
“It’s time to put your thinking cap on, fire up the computer, chug some extra coffee, and get a-postin’!”
Why? So that we can ALL boast that we posted something EVERY day in November in conjunction with the NaBloPoMo challenge?
Where’s the value in that?
I headed round to compare the NaBloPoMo challenge (write a blog post a day for a month) with the NaNoWriMo challenge (write a 50,000 word novel in a month).
Arriving at NaBloPoMo headquarters, I stared in horrified fascination at the site’s self-proclaimed theme . . . blogging for blogging’s sake.
Wow! That sounds a bit like talking just to hear yourself talk! At least WP encouraged us to put on our thinking caps BEFORE striking blindly away at the keys.
Blogging is a great way to say something . . . when we have something to say. It has far less value when we post just to say something.
For that, there’s Facebook.
Aah . . . that’s better!
Have you ever stopped following a blog because they seemed to be “blogging for blogging’s sake” . . . even when they had nothing to say?
Related posts: Why I Write (Janna T Writes) * Why I Write (The Water Witch’s Daughter) * Why Write? * Cooks cook. Dancers dance. Writers Write.
Comments
Sorry comments are closed for this entry
Spirit Lights The Way 
Sometimes I blog because I feel like it’s expected, and that stems only from the pressure that I place on myself. I don’t think I’m interesting enough to blog daily and I feel like it’s a waste of someone’s time to just come to mine to read a quote that I post to fill in those off days.
Yes! Good thoughts. That’s the reason the NaBloPoMo challenge seems pointless ~ it creates the expectation that bloggers should post every day even if they have nothing to say.
Most of us do not entertain and enthrall readers by posting fluff and nonsense every day. We gain readers by sharing words with worth.
Oh, Nancy, what an accolade, thank you 😀 I find there is always something in the ether waiting to be discovered. Blogging was the way I learnt to be attentive to it, and draw out what wanted to be said. It is my primary entertainment: I am privileged to learn so much, every day, just by asking questions and answering them.
I think reflection, in whatever mirror one chooses, is very important. But what is right for an audience: well, that’s a different matter. People will not return if you do not entertain: why should they? And you’re left proclaiming your life to your own little cyberspace. I’m with you: a blog must have ‘it’ to keep them coming back. And daily posting is not generally a surefire way to get it.
People are going to accuse me of having a crush on your writing, Kate. For good reason.
You’ve hit the nail on the head ~ if we do not entertain, educate, amuse, or inspire visitors, they will drift away to another pond in the cyber sea. As they should.
Life is too short to follow blogs that do not offer sustenance.
I do try to post everyday Nancy, and sometimes, I’ll admit, I have nothing to say and it does show in my posts. Even though I’ve been blogging for over two years now, I’m still learning and experimenting with different things / topics / styles. Sometimes, I actually write about nothing (although I do this as a very last resort!). I post everyday because I enjoy it and because I want to do it, not because I feel I have to do it. I don’t think I blog for blogging’s sake though, no matter how bad my posts turn out…
I haven’t been following your blog for long, Tom . . . but my visits, thus far, have convinced me that your “thinking cap” is firmly in situ before you start tapping away at the keyboards.
In contrast, I’ve visited blogs that discuss, ad nauseum, tedious, revealing, or revolting details . . . in tedious, revealing, and revolting detail.
I tire of “TMI prose” in short order and retire from their blogs poste-haste . . . trailing my golden parachute behind me! 😆
Actually I love my daily bloggers who share valued info. Have never stopped following someone for blogging daily. I think the monthly challenges are wonderful because many of us liked to be challenged.
I have never stopped following someone for blogging daily . . . I have stopped following bloggers when I get the sense they have nothing much to say but insist on saying something anyway. 😉
I think different styles of blogging suit different people and you should find what works for you. I totally agree about blogging every day in Nov for the sake of it is crazypants!
Crazypants! I like that, Catherine.
If someone wants to challenge themselves to blog everyday . . . great. But if they find they are having to search for inspiration from others everyday, they might question the “WHY” of it all.
I like “crazypants” too. Great coinage, Catherine!
Thanks Sandra.
Sometimes I write every day. That might last a week… it might last exactly one day, but I write when I want to share something. I haven’t participated in a DailyPost challenge because I guess I’m worried blogging would become a burdensome chore. I don’t want to feel pressured to get a post done. I want to enjoy writing about something and share it when the idea strikes me.
Well said, Tori! When we write because an idea “strikes us” . . . it’s often worth sharing. If we rely on external prompts just to find something, anything, to write about, it may mean that another hobby might be a better fit for our time and talents.
Three things struck me…as a journalist, I HAD to come up with something every day. It was my job. The whole city was my oyster. How could I not find something to say? Besides which, did I mention it was my job. People seemed to like what I wrote.
Now that I am blogging, I would LIKE to write every day. I am digging myself slowly out of the whole of huge overwhelm and too much work to do. I am slowly coming back to my blogs and my favorite bloggers. It is a delight. I do admit that the ones who write every day get missed by me a lot, not because they are not good, but because I still have to ration my time.
WP’s encouragement was the first time I heard of NaBloPoMo. When I read their article there was something that didn’t sit right, a few things actually. Nancy clarified those things and saved me the trouble of digging deeper. Thanks, Nancy.
(*runs back to her 1667 words for today’s Nanowrimo writing session*)
Good points, Sandra. Just because someone chooses to write every day doesn’t mean that we should feel obligated to read and comment on everything they write. Because we are not the only people in their intended audience.
SLTW is rather eclectic ~ happiness, environment, animal rights, mindfulness, meditation, nature, birds, etc., etc., etc. It would be rather arrogant of me to assume that everyone should read everything I write.
Like you, WP’s encouragement was the first time I heard of NaBloPoMo. It seemed a bit off to me . . . like a way for bloggers to compete with those participating in NaNoWriMo. But when I saw the theme, blogging for blogging sake, I recoiled in horror ~ I’ve been around people who liked to hear themselves talk. They are deadly dull. I don’t plan to follow bloggers who want to hoe that road in written form.
Best of luck with NaNoWriMo. See you in December? 😉
Well said 🙂
Thanks, aawwa. What I enjoy about your posts is that you ALWAYS take any prompt you use in an unexpected direction. Which makes for good eats!
Sometimes you do have something worthwhile to say every day – but it maybe worthwhile to you and not to others. But it’s true; if you’re blogging just to have something to post, then maybe you should think about your true reason for blogging.
Exactly right, Maggie! Do we write because there is something within us that must be shared with a wider audience? Or because we ourselves wish to be seen?
Distilled to its essence: Do we wish to give? Or receive?
Best of luck with NaNoWriMo. Thanks for taking a break to join in this thread. 😀
Blogging is a great way to say something . . . when we have something to say. It has far less value when we post just to say something.- and that is exactly why I’ve cut back on posting…that and the fact I’m finally spending time on some other writing projects I’ve put on the back burner. I enjoy blogging; writing my own, reading others and commenting, but I’ve found I just can’t do it every day and make progress on my other projects. I’m working on balance and posting when I have something to say.
Thanks, Suzi. Your posts always share a unique perspective on the world . . . I always leave the Water Witch’s Daughter more fulfilled than when I arrived.
I have never set a schedule for SLTW. I write when “spirit moves me” and remain silent when I have nothing much to say. The idea of posting everyday just to post everyday seems “odd.” It transforms writing from a creative endeavor to a daily chore. Ack!
“blogging for blogging’s sake”? who came up with than silliness? When I did the post a day challenge in 2011, It helped me develop a keener sense of awareness of my world, well my world beyond me, if that makes sense. Now I blog partly because I enjoy it, partly because the community of bloggers has become a part of my life, and partly for stretching my writing and sharing muscles. Plus, well if I stopped y’all would miss me!
It does seem silly. Motivating ourselves to keep our eyes, hearts, and minds open to the moment makes sense. When we do, we often find something worthwhile to share . . . or, maybe, it finds us.
But when we set out to write every day, even if we have nothing to say, the value of remaining mindful is lost in the shuffle.
And, yes, if you stopped, we would miss you! 😀
I generally make an effort to follow bloggers that write about topics that I enjoy, so I don’t stop following a blogger because they blog too much or too little.
I agree, Marie. When I enjoy reading what someone writes . . . I keep reading, time permitting, no matter what schedule they choose.
But I have stopped following blogs where I sense that they are more committed to posting on a “set schedule” than they are in offering something of value to visitors.
With time of the essence in my life these days, there is no way I can write every day. Reading is even more problematic for me. I’ve tried various “rules” (read three or four a day, read 10 on Saturday, etc etc) but that thing called real life keeps popping up and interrupting me!
I follow people who post every day and others who don’t. I’ve never stopped following anyone yet, but with my sporadic reading I probably may as well have. 😥
One day life will return to normal. Until then, I read what I can when I can!
Makes sense, Robyn. “Real life” trumps blugging ~ eating and sleeping must come first.
“Do what you can with what you have where you are.”
I am an inconsistent blogger. I really enjoy reading blogs and commenting on blogs more than getting my own posts up. I blog when I feel like it and when there is a photo challenge that I feel will make my heart happy to get out and snap. There is no way I could post daily. I do feel the pressure to post more often, pressure from my own little self.. 😀 I don’t know that I have stopped reading someone’s blog because they seemed to be just grinding out a daily something. I know I have quit reading blogs that I just lost interest or the blogger went off in some direction that no longer held my interest. Maybe the same thing said differently?.. 🙂 When a blogger I love to read has a long interval from their last post to the next, I hang in there and wait and when they post I am happy to click over and read. I’m am surprised at the diversity of blogs I have chosen to read!
Ditto! I’m an inconsistent blogger too! You stated this well! I, too, will wait between someone’s posts. There’s life out there or maybe they’ve got a writers block!
Great thoughts, Pix & Irene. Most times, posting daily is a breeze for me . . . but somestimes it is an uphill battle. Sheer torture. When words don’t come with ease, I let go and go with the flow without trying to satisfy some preconceived notion I (or somebody else) had about how often I “should” blog.
I think we’re looking at different sides of the same apple, Pix. I stop reading blogs when I lose interest in what the blogger is saying . . . which tends to happens when they aren’t saying much, despite churning out posts every several hours. 😉
When a beloved blogger has been on hiatus for a time, I am always excited to see a new post from them waiting in my in-box! Yay! The diversity of blogs available is amazing and wonderful and exciting and inspiring.
I’m not a person who can blog everyday. I just don’t have that exciting a life or the insight most people have. I also don’t have time. I would be on the computer all day! I envy those who can post once a day. But that Nanoblogo or whatever it is just turns me off. Blog because you want to, not because WP or some other organization tells you to. Forced writing has no real content. I love a challenge, but I don’t want to do something like that just it’s there. Sure, I could do it, but the posts would be inane and boring. That’s not blogging. Like you said Nan and said it well, that’s what Facebook is for.
Yes! Exactly!
Except for your claimed lack of insight . . . that’s BS! 🙄
When a prompt or a challenge resonates with me, I go for it! And there may be a few bloggers who need encouragement before they can “speak up.” That’s cool.
But the idea of talking just to talk or blogging just to blog in a micro-climate where others are encouraged to do the same seems a bit insane. It’s why I stopped frequently FB. Too many people chattering all at once without saying much of anything.
I did see the NaBloPoMo and groaned. We seem to be awash with challenges. I am taking part in the NaNoWriMo but that is personal to those taking part and writers have different reasons. Even if I only reach 30,000 words of my novel, I’m 30,000 words closer than before I started.
I personally love reading as many blog posts as I can, I know I can’t get round to visiting everyone everyday…but then people understand that.
Perseverance is good . . . provided that we are headed in the right direction.
Write on! Have FUN!
Posting every single day would be a pain for me, and those unfortunate enough to stop by my blog. My life just isn’t that exciting. I think blogging for blogging’s sake is a bad idea. That’s about as interesting as broadcasting what you’re doing at the moment so everyone will know.
Wait. That already happens 😳
Yes! Life is full of people who have mastered the art of “telling it all” without saying much of anything. 🙄
Fine for Facebook and Twitter . . . not so enticing on blogs.
Ah, every blogger has his/her own opinion about blogging. Personally, I don’t mind the frequency of the posts, as long as I enjoy reading the posts! I only read blogs once a week, so the most important thing for me is to find a post that I enjoy reading – and that the author has enjoyed writing!
Frequency of posting never scares me away . . . but when the quality dips to a steady drip of rusty nothingness, I drift away and find someone who actually has something to say.
I agree with you Nancy – post when you have something worth sharing 🙂 As I have nothing to add, I’ll stop wasting your pixels on this one 😉
Bwahaha! That’s life in the digital world, eh? When we captured images on film, we judiciously selected shots. With digital cameras, we can snap away with impunity.
The secret is in the art of the edit ~ both words and photos. 😀
I no longer post each and every day Nancy. For me it became a chore and then of course, lost the fascination of writing for me. So now I post when I have something to say and use the rest of the time reading and catching up with the bloggers I follow and enjoy – like you!
Thanks, Judith! I’m with you. Writing a blog should be fun. Any time it begins to feel like a chore, I step away from the keyboard and pursue other interests.
I enjoy reading a little substance or humor whenever it happens. The first year I wrote on my daily cow blog, I post every day because it was a social experiment in itself. Today I post about 3 days a week, even though I continue to see cows every day.
I think most people are reasonable and don’t post every day if they don’t have much to say but some people are less disciplined and write endlessly. I have several blogs going so there’s no way I’ll write every day on each!
The writers I follow these days are ALL reasonable . . . they post when they have something to say and don’t when they don’t. Reading their blogs is time well spent.
In contrast, I stopped following a few “over zealous” bloggers who posted multiple times a day on topics with marginal appeal to me. They followed a pre-determined posting schedule rather than allowing thoughts and words to flow of their own accord. They began “blogging for blogging’s sake,” and reading the words they churned out each day became a chore.
So I pulled the plug. Aah . . . that’s better!
[…] Katie’s post, HaMoLoObMo ~ Hating Month Long Observances Month, mirrors many of the thoughts I expressed about NaBloPoMo in When You Have Something To Say. […]