The title of this post is a bit presumptuous because I am assuming that I am not the only blogger to ask these questions, or maybe I am.
1) If you are an anonymous blogger would the loss of your anonymity stop you from blogging? Golda Leah touched upon this in her post today and many other bloggers have dealt with it.
My own anonymity has been compromised and I simply refuse to stop writing because this is outlet means a lot to me. I am appreciative of the community I have become a part of and happy that I have been given the opportunity to learn.
But there is no doubt that the removal of the veil changes a blogger's approach. What do you think?
2) Many blogs have regulars, you know they are the commenters that show up on most if not all of the posts. Sometimes those commenters disappear. Do you wonder where they went? Do you wonder if they think that your blog has jumped the shark, if you upset them or if there is some other explanation for why they have forsaken you.
3) Do you ever wonder what the shelf life of your blog is? That is, how long will you be able to keep you going/how long do you want to keep going?
I readily admit to all of these, but I have to say that I my smallest concern is how long I can keep this up. I don't have a problem coming up with content. The big question is how much of my evening I want to dedicate to this.
If you enjoyed this or are curious to read my other rambling remarks about blogging try reviewing the posts on the blogging drop down menu such as
Blogging for Ego, For Experience, For What
Do you Have Blog Envy?
How Many Blogs Do You Read?
10 comments:
I'm less concerned with losing readers. I'm more concerned with gaining them. Truth is if people stopped reading, I'd stop writing. Sometimes I wonder, if I'd be better served by teaming up with a few other bloggers with similar (but not identical) views. I don't want to lose my individual voice, but I wonder will I ever evolve beyond where I am now? If after 2 years I'm averaging 100-150 hits a day, what are my chances of going higher, or have I pretty much hit my ceiling.
I was on the verge of giving up my blog several times, the correct one is actually resurrected from an old version, if I were under the impression that nobody read my posts anymore I think I'd move on to something else.
I would probably stop to write if my anonymity were to be compromised, it’s one of the essential ingredients of being able to blog freely.
David,
I don't see why you couldn't gain a larger audience. Some of this is just a matter of exposure.
Prag,
Anonymity sure helps.
Nothing keeps me blogging more than when I see people reading my blog. If I haven't posted in a few days I actually feel pressured to do so!
The anonymity issue is interesting. Losing it certainly inhibits the blogger's ability to post about everything and anything. Once you build a loyal readership I think it becomes harder and harder to stay anonymous though. To the casual, occasional reader just passing through I think it is still possible for the blogger to remain anonymous.
I'm not an anonymous blogger, so I don't really think the first question applies to me, but if I were, I'd say that I love writing enough to keep on going no matter what.
As for the second, yes, I'm wondering where some of my regular readers go, but it sometimes happens that they reappear. My own blog reading goes through cycles, when I take temporary breaks from my regular reads, so it's probably the same for some other people.
I've been wondering how I'll keep on blogging when I start law school etc, but I figure I'll see when I get there. For now, I blog because I'm enjoying it. If I see that there's a better outlet for my creative urges, I'll move on. : )
Hi Wanderer,
Agreed on all points.
Irina,
I don't imagine that you are going to give up blogging any time soon, or so it seems to me.
Since I got started blogging as a result of a misunderstanding of something David emailed me during the summer (a short but uninteresting story), I'm not sure what would make me stop--since my reason for starting never existed.
I must be either tired or existential...
DA,
I suspect that the story might be more interesting then you give credit for.
1) Would keep blogging even if my identity was revealed - but it probably would change the tenor of my posts.
2) Don't really worry about losing readers. People have different time commitments/interest levels. As long as there is some activity/interaction on the blog, I can't ask for more than that.
3) I wonder all the time how long I will keep blogging. Right now I am enjoying it. But who knows how long that will last?
Keep it up, you do it so very well.
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