ah life
Okay, so the blogger shut down of a week ago really, really bummed me out.
On top of which I am just at a "creative crossroads" about my work here and whether "this blog"....ie. on a blogspot template...is even a good idea.
My bottom line is that I'm leaning towards splitting my work into two streams: one would be essays which I would do on a blog like this...but one that I owned and controlled the space it appeared on..."A blog of my own" so to speak... with carefully written essays that appear when I can do them. The other stream would involve doing expressly political writing on a larger community blog that has content people want to read every day...and to which I contribute my writing, politics and sensibilities.
If you know me from dkos or booman, you know that I already cross post many of my expressly political pieces on those blogs. To be frank, it would be foolish to publish some of that work exclusviely here. Regardless, I'm thinking something a bit different going forward...I'll keep you posted.
At any rate, the current state of affairs here is just not working...despite all I've tried...and the reasons for this are much more complex than any simple fix...(write more, different template, collaborate, content, quality etc.)...and have a deeper and more complex personal back story than I can say. (Something that's true for all of us, I'm sure.)
I am convinced that the modest numbers of readers who read and comment here are among the best readership in the blogosphere...I'm grateful for that. Our numbers here, however, are truly: small. (The readership / link drive had a negligible impact.) k/o is relatively large for a personal blog of course....but it is miniscule in terms of impact and sustainability. I just can't do what I've done for the last six months here, oftentimes daily, for free. It's not sustainable for me.
So, given that, I'd like to build something of my own, that has it's own pace. I think k/o has been a good stab in that direction but the infrastructure...and my ability to deliver content people want to read has been frustrating.
For now, aside from a slower pace, nothing will change here...I'll let you know if and when it does. I fully intend to keep writing and that you will able to find my work and enjoy it if you so choose. So, please, pardon the mess while I do some remodeling of both my infrastructure and my headspace.
Aieeee.
peace
Paul
On top of which I am just at a "creative crossroads" about my work here and whether "this blog"....ie. on a blogspot template...is even a good idea.
My bottom line is that I'm leaning towards splitting my work into two streams: one would be essays which I would do on a blog like this...but one that I owned and controlled the space it appeared on..."A blog of my own" so to speak... with carefully written essays that appear when I can do them. The other stream would involve doing expressly political writing on a larger community blog that has content people want to read every day...and to which I contribute my writing, politics and sensibilities.
If you know me from dkos or booman, you know that I already cross post many of my expressly political pieces on those blogs. To be frank, it would be foolish to publish some of that work exclusviely here. Regardless, I'm thinking something a bit different going forward...I'll keep you posted.
At any rate, the current state of affairs here is just not working...despite all I've tried...and the reasons for this are much more complex than any simple fix...(write more, different template, collaborate, content, quality etc.)...and have a deeper and more complex personal back story than I can say. (Something that's true for all of us, I'm sure.)
I am convinced that the modest numbers of readers who read and comment here are among the best readership in the blogosphere...I'm grateful for that. Our numbers here, however, are truly: small. (The readership / link drive had a negligible impact.) k/o is relatively large for a personal blog of course....but it is miniscule in terms of impact and sustainability. I just can't do what I've done for the last six months here, oftentimes daily, for free. It's not sustainable for me.
So, given that, I'd like to build something of my own, that has it's own pace. I think k/o has been a good stab in that direction but the infrastructure...and my ability to deliver content people want to read has been frustrating.
For now, aside from a slower pace, nothing will change here...I'll let you know if and when it does. I fully intend to keep writing and that you will able to find my work and enjoy it if you so choose. So, please, pardon the mess while I do some remodeling of both my infrastructure and my headspace.
Aieeee.
peace
Paul
Comments
If you don't make mulitple posts daily, your readership drops off. If you have a life, where does the time to post come from?
If there is anything I can do to help let me know. It would be a shame to loose your voice.
Nothing beats having your own blogging space. During last weekend's Blogger outrage, the majority of my readers and their blogs were down, but Blognonymous stayed up. Thank the fates Blogger's comment system still seemed to be working, as it kept a fairly popular contest we were running at the time going.
Moreover, when Blogger decided to censor some of the comments we were receiving, I was able to copy and repost them despite Blogger's interference since I'm not hosted at Blogspot.
Personally, if you produced a well-thought essay once a month, i'd be pleased and appreciative, and pretty damn attentive.
Why? Because your writing is great, and i think you execute it better and more thoroughly when you have reasonable time to do so. Most of us know that you have, um, a job outside of this blog and never, ever expected you to make daily contributions of the caliber that some of your finer efforts achieved.
This particular site may never reach the traffic you've hoped for, but damn, brother, you spin out a strong ol' thread into the overall fabric. Don't judge your impact by the comment numerics alone.
Could there be a way to have a multiblog RSS education drive? I think that most blog readers don't really understand what a powerful tool it is.
Words like 'aggregator' are offputting I think. But, a set of nice FAQs could make the whole thing less intimidating.
And your RSS Drive would ultimately be a success.
Case-in-point: I came to your blog tonight to re-read one of your old posts about fighting dems. Why? Inspiration.
One suggestion: why not add a subscription option to your blog, so folks like me (who are busy and sometimes forget to come here) can receive your posts via e-mail?
SayNoToPombo does this and it has kept me coming back to Matt's site again and again...
That said, I still dig on what you write, and hope to keep reading your work here, or wherever.
Peace.
Do not worry yourself with the expectations of your readers. If, however, your concern is moored in your own expectations of yourself, then do what will bring you to your happiness. (A very Joseph Campbellian tho't, I know, but hey, I'm a chick; whaddaya gonna do?)
As for me, I do indeed have expectations of you: To write superbly. I honestly don't give a flying f*** on the frequency of your posts, but I do have every hope that, when you do post, it will be personal, thought out, probing, to the point, of a point, and with a point of view.
The one last thing I want to say is that I hope that, whatever you decide, you will not dispose of this blog altogether. It is good to have a place where you can be less formal, where your readers can come to you on a face-to-face basis, so to speak. I like the smaller readership; it makes me feel like I'm in a master class of progressive and provocative thought and activism.
'Nough said.
Thanks so much for the positive comments; that means a great deal to me.
I'll take them to heart and give your suggestions some thought.
I can echo some of those sentiments that people have expressed about blog growth and thinking about how to best spend your time.
I wish you the best of luck, and think perhaps crost-posting may be a good way to send in traffic as well as get your ideas out. My Left Wing and Political Cortex may be good avenues (I think I remember reading your writing over at MLW before). In any event, I'll be a reader.
Deano