You may be reading this as a result of the very kind article in the latest edition of Writers’ News (Blogging Joy for Robert, Vol 17, No 6 June 2006), for which I am grateful to Mr Jonathan Telfer. Either way, I thought I would add to what has already been said.
Up until January this year I had not heard of blogging. Although I like to think of myself as being reasonably computer literate, this particular modern publishing phenomenon was completely unknown to me.
All that changed one rainy weekend afternoon in the middle of January as I sat browsing the latest editions of various writing magazines. It was then that I came across an article in the February 2006 copy of Writers’ News, written by Jonathan Telfer and entitled Blog Show Case Opportunity. It was about to send me off on a project which has since become an addiction.
One weekend later, I had set up my first blog and, with great trepidation, posted article number one. Just over three months later, I have posted ninety eight articles and logged almost nine hundred visits to my site (from as far away as the USA, Korea and Australia).
Why do I do it? The answer is simple. It is an exciting way to place articles, which wouldn’t easily find a home elsewhere, into the public domain. The fact that people are interested enough to read them is both rewarding and encouraging. Blogging also helps to develop one’s writing skills and, who knows, there might be a book out of it one day!
Last month I decided to start a second blog dedicated to my attempts at poetry. This was undertaken with a considerable degree of apprehension, as I acknowledge my obvious shortcomings in that particular area. However, at some stage a writer needs to be bold, crawl from under the bushel and expose himself to possible criticism. The risk is that the writer also exposes his inner self to public scrutiny. However, is that not what poets have always done?
A third blog is in the planning stages. This one will be a window for all those short stories which have either served their purpose or fallen by the wayside. It seems such a shame to leave them languishing in a filing draw.
In a short space of time, blogging has become an invaluable addition to my spectrum of writing and I would recommend it to any writer who is trying to develop their craft. In the meantime, my only regret is that visitors rarely feel encouraged to leave comments. It would be pleasing to receive constructive feedback or to spark off some thoughtful debate from time to time.
You may also be interested in following the link below to an earlier article where I explain why I write (Writer's Itch, January 2006), and possibly another article Success by Osmosis (January 2006) which explains why I have chosen this particular pseudonym.
No comments:
Post a Comment