Mood: chillin'
Now Playing: Mannheim Steamroller - Los Peces en el Rio
Topic: My Writing Life
There have been a lot of questioning going on in my mind lately. That's mostly not a bad thing, especially in the writing life. Questions need answers. Who better than a writer to provide them?
If you are a blogger, you too have lots of questions. But, recently I've been getting a lot of questions about blogging. Circle complete.
I am not quite certain why anyone would come to me, thinking that I could definitively answer questions concerning keep a Journal, or Blog. For some reason, it seems that questions of etiquette keep arriving at my step. I am going to posit some theories about blogging etiquette. If you are a reader of this Blog, I would appreciate some input. I'd like to know what you do to keep good blogging etiquette. Mine will be some general principles that will help you keep your blog current, active, and vibrant. Or, at least so they tell me. Perhaps a general statement is more in order than a specific list of answers.
One of the questions that seem to come toward me more often than not is a bit of a simple one: "How Do You Blog Well?"
Do you know anyone who does not Blog? I do, but only a few. When you make the decision to keep a Journal, or a Blog, you are making a commitment that will require a significant investment on your part. This is true if you are the only human to ever read the words you write. Keeping a Blog honestly is a commitment much like raising a child. (If true, then I have nine jewels in my Crown--several of which are about to be orphaned!)
Blogging begins as an adventure. It is a very "young" sport, at least in one sense. Mankind has been communicating inner thoughts since the first chisel was forcefully applied to Granite! Journalling is an ancient, and highly regarded historical reality. Blogging is nothing more than the most recent reflection of this same rich tradition. To writers, Journalling is one of the most basic and fundamental tools in the kit. The very first law of writing (even among the few inviolable dictums particular to our craft) is:
"Writers write!"
Good writers, and certainly the very best writers, write every day. With the creation of the Internet, and the neighborhood we call the World Wide Web, it was no leap of faith to know that Journals would, at some point, make their appearance here. Web logs (Blogs) came into fashion by those who were writing the code that created the Internet. From every line of code, to the purpose and intended function, Web logs were the first-generation programmer's Bible. Information passed between programmers led to the creation of email. Having a place to keep, read, and share information about programming gave us websites. And, through it all, there was the Journal. Web logs is a bit of a mouthful, requiring the unneccesary application of usually, and otherwise, inert muscles! Programmers love minimalism. Thus, Web Logs became Blogs.
So there, you have it. Now you know where the word came from. Feel free to fool your friends, and amaze your mother!
Blogging is an optional activity. You can choose not to keep a Blog, in the same way that many people never kept a diary or journal. But, some do. If you have kept a diary or journal, you have recorded history in your possession. Most people keep a Diary or Journal for completely different reasons than blogging today. These were private documents. Within their pages were the secrets of the soul. Diaries (and many Journals) were sold with locks, and keys! (Do you still have your Diary/Journal key? I do!)
Especially with teens today, the Internet is not a powerful tool of commerce. (Well, at least until they "discover" EBay!) To youngsters today, the power of the Internet has a reality those of us who helped to program it into existance never considered. The "net" has become a social tool. Much more "humanitarian" than we ever envisioned, teens have brought an almost tactile humanity to the net via the Blog. "Social/Encounter" websites are among the fastest growing, and most popular of all sites on the web. From MySpace, FaceBook, and UTube, people are literally "living" on the web.
In the best of traditions, this new anomaly will keep pundits and talking heads conversing with shrinks for decades to come. I would love to listen to many of those conversations. I would be incredibly interested to see just how very wrong these "Professionals" would be. Newspaper articles (remember newprint?) abound on the phenomena surrounding blogging.
It's not only intensely personal, but it is also big business. Very much unlike the days of my youth, this is a very different world. If you choose to Blog, there are some things you really should keep in your mind. All is not well on the web. As wonderful as immediate contact, socialization, and access to your most personal life may seem, it is also a grave potential danger.
The danger can be as apparent as reading your entries. Believe it or not, many people WILL read your words. There are some on the web who seek out victims for crimes as serious as kidnapping, rape, and murder. We are, after all, dealing with the same humans who inhabit our planet, and our prisons. Yes, prisoners do have access to the web. It is a major source of income to many of them.
It is not the same world that gave us locking diaries and journals. Today, the Diaries and Journals we keep are available to the entire population of our planet. And, sadly, many have learned this truth by a very difficult path. If you keep a Blog (regardless of the access level or security level you establish), there is someone who will read it. You do not get to choose, finally. A crime is still a crime, and there are still criminals smart enough to break any lock you put on your writing. You need to know, and remember this, for several important reasons that may not even seem apparent to you right now.
1. Criminals use the web to seek out, learn of, and select victims--successfully.
2. Employers use the web to identify, select, interview, hire, AND MONITOR their employees. Writing in your Blog about the latest tiff with the idiot you work for can have immediate, and dire consequences on your career.
3. School administrations are watching your blog, for everything from speaking about wanting to blow up your school (Boy! Now that will get a few hits on the sitemeter!) to your intense passion for your teacher! What you may see as "Freedom of Speech" is, in fact, not.
4. Telling a friend you know a secret about a friend you are mad at does NOT guarantee that the friend you are mad at will not eventually read the entry to your friend. Not only that, but it also does not mean that the entry may not be read several YEARS from the date you wrote it into your Blog. Archived pages do not expire. Google still works. Because you have a "private" Blog with a secure password and a limited list of members does NOT extend a presumption of privacy. Sorry, but that's the legal truth. It just is. Know it, and never forget that every word you write, no matter where you write it, can be read by a stranger.
5. Family histories can be a terrific hobby. There is a strong argument for putting them in Journals, or Blogs. What is true for your friends is doubly true for your family. And, in both instances, seeing the disagreement with Auntie Gert can come back to bite you--even years later.
These are some of the necessary considerations that must be dealt with when you seriously consider the creation of a Blog. There is a wonderful community of excellent bloggers on the Internet that make blogging a terrific adventure. Some prior planning can yield many good results. You just need to know what to consider.
There are many more positive aspects of the blogging life that I will highlight in the next entry, eventually. But for now, I hope these points will help you not only determine the value a Blog has for you, but that you will also create a Blog that you will never regret.
That's just a part--a large part--of the writing life.