 |
| credit to blog_corporate.gif |
Today I had lunch with one of the first friends I ever made in the blogosphere, Jennie from Tea Stains. The fact that she was an expat, a Brit and living in Thailand, a part of the world I was already falling in love with, immediately drew me to her. And then I met her for coffee during one of her annual trips home, and my first real blogging friendship developed. Jennie was also the person instrumental in setting up all those events I did last spring while on my SE Asian tour with A Clash of Innocents. And to top it off, she seemed to have brought the tropical weather with her, summer had finally found London. We decided to eat al fresco and then take a long walk along the river.
So what did we talk about? The usual woman stuff — kids, losing friends, moving, husband’s jobs. The usual expat stuff — kids, losing friends, moving, husband’s jobs. The usual writer stuff — am I doing it right, am I doing enough, the difference between envy and jealousy, self-belief and the lack thereof. But we talked about something else as well — blogging. Why do we continue to do it? Jennie’s blog has been around for five years, mine for nearly four. Has the nature of blogging changed? Am I doing it right? Am I doing enough?
I think we came to the conclusion that as we enter different phases of our writing careers, we feel all sorts of pressures from the market, whether that market is real or perceived. “People” tell us we should blog every day to build up a readership. Some say to cast your net wider you should mainly blog about professional issues (i.e. how to get published, get an agent, get a better agent, a bigger publisher). Others say you need to bare your soul, tell all sorts of personal details about your tawdry life to gain a sense of intimacy. It was interesting that we were both feeling the same pressures, even though they came from different sources and we are doing different things with our writing. My God, we thought, if you can’t even have your blog be a place where you can just do it as you wish, for whomever happens to find it funny or enlightening or whatever, then what do we have left? Yes, of course blogging is a marketing tool. And I know that I certainly have and will use it as such. But does it have to be? Is that all it needs to be? We had no answers for each other, just frustrations.
But as I gave Jennie a hug, saying goodbye on the Hungerford Bridge, I realised that we did have the answers for each other. We were the embodiment of our answers to the question Why Blog? Jennie and I are two women of slightly different age, who grew up on different continents, are living our adult lives thousands of miles away from each other, with nothing to connect us but our blogs. We never would have known each other in any other way, and the same is true of other bloggers around the world who I now have the honour and pleasure to call my friends. Friends don’t write letters anymore. Sad, but true. But some of us do write blogs. And for me, at least, I know that’s enough.
Signing off. Happy New Year to all my Jewish friends. And I wish the same to all the rest of you, too — a sweet life, full of forgiveness for each other’s mistakes and shortcomings, a life full of sincere connections, no matter how they come to you.
It was so lovely to see you yesterday. I know blogging seems to be less popular now than when we both started but I still love it. I know I just needn’t to listen to all the ‘experts.’
(And you were a bit magic too because I was so much better after seeing you. Thank you.)
Wonderful post and sooooooo true. I couldn’t not blog and it has brought me gently into the world of now meaning the internet. My blog is changing – I suppose it must, but it will and must remain true to me and its beginning….
Oh, and I love my blog friends and even when I haven’t met them in the flesh they are as much a part of my life as those I have never exchanged a ‘comment’ with 🙂
lx
Nice post, Sue.
I blog quite regularly and have a steady readership, but it’s still very small in book audience terms. It certainly wouldn’t be worthwhile as a pure marketing exercise.
I’d say there are two reasons I do it. One is I am an obsessive writer, and it’s a useful outlet. The other is that I’m an incorrigable showoff. I am not implying all blog writers are, btw – these are just the reasons why I blog.
What a lovely post! I’m a new blogger, only blogging once a week and still finding my feet. I think I do it partly so that I have a regular writing commitment, even when I’m not working on my novel, and partly for the interation with other writers – in fact, the subject of this week’s blog post (due tomorrow) will be the importance of contact with other writers!
Thanks again, Jennie. Looking forward to our next meet -up, wherever, whenever that may be.
Liz – interesting you say your blog is changing. I wonder if that has something to do with the imminent publication and all the other changes that brings. I know that’s when I started to feel as if people were looking over my shoulder more.
Brian – thanks for dropping by. I love all your reasons for blogging, and it is actually comforting to hear you don’t think it’s all that valuable a marketing tool. takes some of the pressure off, I think.
Susan – thanks for coming by. I think the interaction with other writers has been one of the most important aspects of blogging for me. Community is essential, I agree.
Great post and so true. I’ve met so many people, both online and sometimes also in the flesh from blogging.
There’s also such a great support between blogging friends wherever we happen to be in the world.
As someone who met you first through your blog and then met you in real life- for me that’s exactly it. If my blog does any marketing for me, that’s an extra. But the real reason is to make connections, to have a place to put down my thoughts wherever they might take me. I’ve also read all of the advice about blogs. That’s well and good for them, but I know what’s good for me. Blogging has added a fabulous dimension to my life I would not have found anywhere else.
And I met Sue Guiney (and a few other blogger friends, who have now become flesh and blood friends) !! The cherry on top! :))
My blog is nearly three years old-it has changed so much in that period-when I started a very experienced book blogger with big readership told me if I blogged long enough and put my heart into it in time I would find my blog has somehow taken on a life of its own-
one long term great benefit of book blogging to younger than me bloggers is it will be so great to maybe be able to look back and see what you read 30 or 40 years ago-one day there will be 50 year old book blogs!