Sunday 12 June 2011

Blogging


I started blogging and then stopped. So I decided to think about why I started and why I stopped.

 
Writing is something you learn to do at school but generally, unless you have to do it as a job, it's something that's restricted to letters or reports. All of which can be pretty dry stuff. So why do we stop writing creatively when we leave school? Go back 100-150 years and we would have written letters to friends & relations that were more like a diary, telling them what we had been doing, where we had been and any interesting bits of "gossip". There was no other way of communication - as long as you could read and write! We would have kept diaries that were a place to write your feelings, dreams and desires. How many people have a paper diary these days, let alone one that's used for more than appointments? Even 20 years ago, pen pals were a popular pastime and it was easy to write 4 or 5 pages to a friend you possibly would never meet. I'm still in touch with pen pals I made all those years ago, albeit via Facebook mostly.
 
So why did I decide to blog? Well I kept reading some very interesting blogs, mostly about Charlton Athletic, written by a variety of people around the world. My thought was not that I could do better, but I could attempt to put my view over. After all isn't this what a blog is all about? What I forgot was I haven't done any writing for years and it's harder than you think. And because I struggled I kept starting and stopping and have a list of half finished blogs. So I stopped!
 
Another reason why I stopped was I thought who would want to read my blog? I'm not attempting to write a best selling novel, I'm just writing about things that interest me. If other people don't find it interesting, then does it really matter? The answer to that is no.
 
So I may just decide to blog on Charlton's upcoming fixtures for next season, why I love cricket, my taste in music and all sorts of other things and you, dear reader, can decide if you like it or I'm just waffling a load of old nonsense.

2 comments:

  1. Write as if it's a diary. There's a reason why other people's diaries are interesting. Forget what other people want to read, write for yourself.

    CA.

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  2. I don't think you'll be alone in questioning the point of blogging!!!

    When I set up my Hungry Ted blog I did so with the intention of satisfying my own desires to write creatively, simple as that. I couldn't have cared less who read it, if anyone (but there had to be a point to the writing, if you can understand the logic in that). I have always loved the written word but beyond work e-mails I never had a chance to 'be creative' (I'll let the reader judge how well I have achieved that!!!).

    Anyway, the point is, if you've been driven to set up a blog in the first place, you have a desire to write...so do so.

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