The Danger of Blogging
September 20th 2010 12:08
Fictional Worlds has been my blog, my writing spot, and my safehaven for expression for a little over three years now. Until recently, nobody I knew in real life read my blog; I didn't want to build readers that way. I built readers through online forums, Orble's community, and sheer force of will. The reasons why I kept my blog away from the people were several.
The first is that I wanted to build an unrelated reader base. I wanted people to find me who didn't know my name, who didn't know that I existed. My first comment on my first blog here was from a complete stranger, and that's how I wanted it to be. Part of this was also because I know a lot of people; I could have a hundred readers without having to search for them. I felt it was more authentic if I struggled to find my first reader, and my second, and my fiftieth.
The second is that I didn't think most of the people I know would take it seriously, especially the non-Nano writer folk. I do have friends who have written books. I thought that my more serious writer friends would scoff at my blogging efforts. I thought they would say 'why write a blog when you haven't even gotten a book published yet?' And while I have a thousand answers, I wasn't ready for that. The writers who I know and respect but who I am not close to are the ones I'm talking about here.
The third and final reason is that I wanted this place to be an outlet. Fictional Worlds is about writing, and writing is deeply personal for every writer. I could write a thousand posts about short stories and novels without once worrying about what my friends might or might not see on my blog. Poetry, on the other hand, is even more deeply personal for me. Most of the poetry I write reflects current situations in my life; very little is narrative poetry. All the best poems that I've written-and that I've posted here-were written in response to events in my life. I've felt comfortable posting anything and everything here.
Well, I've set up a Fictional Worlds feed on my facebook. I've added close friends to my Twitter feed, where I show off new blog posts. While I haven't out and out told most of the people I know in real life to check out my blog, a lot more of them have that option than they did before. People I know in real life are getting to know more about my online life.
What does this mean for Fictional Worlds? Probably a lot less poetry. Nothing else will change. My weekly prompts will go back to being mostly short fiction. It's a mixed blessing. I'm glad that people I know and care about are reading my blog; I'm glad that they care enough to check it out. But Fictional Worlds can be my sanctuary no longer.
My soul will always be bare here at Fictional Worlds; writing is deeply personal. My soul shows through in my passion for my words, my passion for my stories. But there are some things best kept hidden. Someday all the poems from the darkest places of my soul will be shown to the whole world; today is not that day.
There is one last poem prompt planned for this week and then we will begin a new era of short fiction here at Fictional Worlds.
P.S. I wrote this post yesterday, and a few hours later I read this post: But Who is the Enemy? Funny how similar themes show up in the writing world...
The first is that I wanted to build an unrelated reader base. I wanted people to find me who didn't know my name, who didn't know that I existed. My first comment on my first blog here was from a complete stranger, and that's how I wanted it to be. Part of this was also because I know a lot of people; I could have a hundred readers without having to search for them. I felt it was more authentic if I struggled to find my first reader, and my second, and my fiftieth.
The second is that I didn't think most of the people I know would take it seriously, especially the non-Nano writer folk. I do have friends who have written books. I thought that my more serious writer friends would scoff at my blogging efforts. I thought they would say 'why write a blog when you haven't even gotten a book published yet?' And while I have a thousand answers, I wasn't ready for that. The writers who I know and respect but who I am not close to are the ones I'm talking about here.
The third and final reason is that I wanted this place to be an outlet. Fictional Worlds is about writing, and writing is deeply personal for every writer. I could write a thousand posts about short stories and novels without once worrying about what my friends might or might not see on my blog. Poetry, on the other hand, is even more deeply personal for me. Most of the poetry I write reflects current situations in my life; very little is narrative poetry. All the best poems that I've written-and that I've posted here-were written in response to events in my life. I've felt comfortable posting anything and everything here.
Well, I've set up a Fictional Worlds feed on my facebook. I've added close friends to my Twitter feed, where I show off new blog posts. While I haven't out and out told most of the people I know in real life to check out my blog, a lot more of them have that option than they did before. People I know in real life are getting to know more about my online life.
What does this mean for Fictional Worlds? Probably a lot less poetry. Nothing else will change. My weekly prompts will go back to being mostly short fiction. It's a mixed blessing. I'm glad that people I know and care about are reading my blog; I'm glad that they care enough to check it out. But Fictional Worlds can be my sanctuary no longer.
My soul will always be bare here at Fictional Worlds; writing is deeply personal. My soul shows through in my passion for my words, my passion for my stories. But there are some things best kept hidden. Someday all the poems from the darkest places of my soul will be shown to the whole world; today is not that day.
There is one last poem prompt planned for this week and then we will begin a new era of short fiction here at Fictional Worlds.
P.S. I wrote this post yesterday, and a few hours later I read this post: But Who is the Enemy? Funny how similar themes show up in the writing world...
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Comment by Anonymous
I wrote a reallyarticulate post that was wiped out and now I recover with prose that are mere shadows ...
Interesting that sharing words with those one knows is fraught with a set of issues. That is - they think it might be about them, or it's not about them, or it's something that you thought of, or that you have ideas like *that*. Sometimes a whale is just a whale and words are just words. Sometimes it's the reader that brings all the baggage and ideas to the party, not the writer. My beta group are evidence of that. Having said that - I will NEVER share the unedited work with a subset of my circle because they will reasonably identify themselves in the piece ... no matter how much I say ... It's not actually *you*.
I also was fascinated with the link. Two thoughts ...
1) Editors should NOT have one's best interest at heart at all times. It's not their job. It's not their role ... so why expect them to and then say mean things about them because they don't? Seriously ... editors do what they do and, with luck, do it well. Accept them for their capacity and move on.
2) The notion of enemies ... I'm not sure that any one of those listed qualify as genuine enemies. This may be a word choice selected to provoke and/or make a point. And yet "enemy" is a bit harsh. I don't see any of those groups with wilful intent to cause harm. They irritate, waste time, must be endured ... but those things are more about us and less about them. Like editors, they are what they are. Find a way to deal with them and move on.
Then again, I can afford to be all high-and-mighty since I don't have any of these particular problems or deal with these types to make my living.
Looking forward to Wednesday. : )
Cheers!
RP
Comment by Dianna G
I Wish This Was 42
Fictional Worlds
The truth of the matter is that the words were about those people. The poetry tells a story; everybody sees the story, not everybody sees the specifics. But there are things better dealt with in the real world. And there are things best left alone.
You make a good point, but I think to an extent the word 'enemy' was used to make an entirely different point, and both of those points are valid.
~Dianna