Better Blogging
Sometimes I write stuff on this blog that I’m really proud of. Other times, I cringe at how juvenile and amateurish I allow myself to be. My post on Friday about Jon Stewart is a good example of the latter. I look over that post now and I agree with the sentiment, but absolutely wince at the execution.
Look, I don’t know if at the end of the day I’ll ever be anything close to a good writer. The few folks who visit here notwithstanding (and I’m grateful that you guys check in every once in a while, believe me!), I don’t think I’ve created anything yet of lasting value or even immediate usefulness. The stuff you see here isn’t generally original or different or anything you couldn’t get from a million other blogs. Nor have I really seen it as my purpose to be any of that. Rather, this blog is something I do for me, as a record of what piques my interest, a catalog of the stuff that rises above the level of noise to what I pay attention to. But all that is no excuse for not making more of an effort. More importantly, even if I was the only one who ever read this blog, I would want to be prouder of the work I’m doing.
If how one writes is a reflection of how one thinks, I want my writing to start to reflect more of how I see myself: clear, insightful, funny, honest, with broad interests and strong opinions. Taking some time to develop a point or sitting on a post for a while to give my own thoughts a chance to mature will not be time wasted. Nor will the effort I put into the craft of writing be effort wasted.
Sunday, October 17th, 2004 @ 11:19 am 
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October 17th, 2004 at 3:14 pm
I agree with both your sentiments in the first para. I still think your “9/11 Didn’t Change Everything” the other day was a really good piece of writing, and demonstrates you are certainly capable of it. A lot of the rest is, I agree, less so. No point not being honest, because insincere flattery only hinders.
Writing is hard. It is very difficult to get the self out of the writing. It is quite useless writing stuff that is really addressed to yourself. It is one of the biggest problems I face trying to write anything.
Lots of examples of good writing around, but for one example, I think Rebecca Blood does a very good job – occasionally you can see how she has thought a very great deal before writing one single word, and she seems (to me) to be able to set the goal and keep it in sight. Have a look – http://www.rebeccablood.net.
You might consider dropping the “this lousy blog”. There is a lot of value to readers in a blog that collects clippings from other sources – saves them having to read everywhere themselves. The value is in picking things that are worth reading. If you do this well, then it is not a lousy blog. Do it badly and it sure will be.
October 17th, 2004 at 4:19 pm
Graham –
Socrates said (among other things), “Think not those faithful who praise all thy words and actions; but those who kindly reprove thy faults.” I take no offense at your honesty.
I’ve been having kind of an existential crisis about this blog lately, really asking myself why I’m doing this. I’ve proven to myself that I can be disciplined enough to post on a more-or-less regular schedule. But so what? What’s the point of posting every day if what you’re posting is a bunch of crap? Anyone can do that. I think I still need to find my voice, and I’m realizing lately that I haven’t given that search a lot of attention.
Thanks for reminding me of Rebecca Blood. I actually bought her book when I first started blogging, but I haven’t visited her site in a long time. I’ll add her to my RSS reader and start paying attention to what she does.
And, oh yes, the “lousy blog” line… Of course, that’s meant to be tongue-in-cheek, but the joke would work a lot better if this were a better blog. And you’re not the first person to mention that to me lately, so maybe it is time to drop it.
Back to work…
October 17th, 2004 at 6:22 pm
I’m with Graham. When I read your “9/11 didn’t change everything” I printed it out to show to friends. The writing and thinking was excellent. OK, so you got excited about Jon Stewart. I’m still coming back every day to see what I should be reading instead of your lousy blog. Keep up the good work.
October 17th, 2004 at 6:28 pm
Simon, I’m touched. Honestly. Thanks.
October 17th, 2004 at 8:36 pm
Stu, I think you have a great blog, even though I disagree with you on most things. I too, get pangs of insecurity over my writing, which I think most people do. For me, blogging is a way to find out what I think. You know, that old line about “I don’t know what I think about something til I say it”. Sometimes I’ll revise the same post over and over a hundred times before I publish it, and when I eventually do, the conclusion I’ve reached is sometimes different from the one I started with. I don’t know if that’s been your experience too, but I imagine it might be. My point is, that’s a worthwhile process even if it’s only for you to read, you know?
I really appreciated the sentiment of this post – I respect your desire to do something worthwhile, both for you and your readers. You are! It is worthwhile. I have your blog in my site feeds and I read you nearly everyday – you’re one of the more reasonable and conscientious people out there. I appreciate that. I often follow your links, too – you provide a valuable summary of currents in the more liberal side of the stream, which is helpful for me, being a conservative.
I hope my trackback to your Jon Stewart post didn’t have anything to do with any bad feelings on your part. That’s actually a good example of what I was talking about earlier – I started out agreeing with you, actually, but by the time I’d read the transcript and rewritten my post a couple dozen times, I’d ended up at the opposite view. But your post was such that it sparked a desire in me to articulate my own feelings on it, and that’s a good thing. Anything which sends off sparks in people’s minds is good writing. So I hope you took my trackback in the spirit of friendly disagreement
Anyway, please, keep it up. Like I said, I usually disagree with you but I think you’re honest and articulate, and a very good writer. And BTW, how’s your cat doing?
October 17th, 2004 at 10:17 pm
Wow. Again, I’m really touched. I’m so used to thinking of this blog as something that’s really only for me that I’m blown away by the mentions of support. I wasn’t fishing for compliments, believe me. I really thought of this as a note to myself to do better work. And perhaps your responses are an indication that I do need to stop thinking of this as my personal, private journal. I’m ruminating in a public place, so I need to decide how I want people to encounter me.
Johnny, I’m embarrassed to admit that all too often I take almost the opposite approach from yours: I unthinkingly tap out a quick bunch of words in order to get something on the blog. Fine. It’s my blog and I can do what I want, except I don’t always like looking at the results.
Regarding your trackback, I didn’t take offense in the least. (Well, okay, I curled my lip a little in a “How could he possibly think that” kind of way, but it was all in good spirits.) No, I value your perspective and your feedback, so please: disagree!
I guess my bottom line is I haven’t always felt like I’ve been giving my best effort, and that’s not good enough for me. Accepting that others do, on occasion, pay attention to what I print on this blog makes me more determined not to let my effort lapse.
And the cat… Thanks for asking. The cat (George) is getting better. He’s eating on his own, walking better, and seems in much better spirits. However, given that he had his colon removed, we’re still dealing with the you-don’t-want-to-know-what as his digestive tract adjusts. Let’s just say we’ve done a lo-o-o-ot of laundry lately.
October 18th, 2004 at 12:10 am
Awwwww…bless his heart (as we say down here). My little pile of purrs (Muriel) is in my lap as I type.
Glad to hear you didn’t take offense, and again, keep up the good work, and most of all, if I may be cliched, have fun. Take care!