{"id":2446,"date":"2011-09-09T06:40:58","date_gmt":"2011-09-09T06:40:58","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/marlenacompton.com\/?p=2446"},"modified":"2011-09-09T06:40:58","modified_gmt":"2011-09-09T06:40:58","slug":"on-blogging","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/marlenacompton.com\/?p=2446","title":{"rendered":"On Blogging"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Magic sofa is magic.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Unless you write a blog, there’s no way to understand how random the different aspects of it can be.\u00a0 Within the blogosphere, random takes the form of:
\n* Bloggers who inspire me and keep me blogging
\n* Who the comments come from, what they say and when they show up
\n* The different places I go while writing posts
\n* The posts that show up in front of the public and the posts that don’t
\nRecently Justin Wehr,\u00a0 a blogger I’ve followed, like for years, posted on his blog writing habits<\/a>.\u00a0 I’ve also been talking to a few people who are interested in starting their own blogs. This post of mine copies the format of his post with my answers.\u00a0 Justin: this post is for you. Blog on.<\/p>\n

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Why I got into it<\/strong>
\nThe reason I started blogging was because I was going through a Masters of Software Engineering program and wanted to have something I could easily show others when I finished.<\/p>\n

Why I stay(ed) in it<\/strong><\/p>\n

I found that it helped me think through my schoolwork and that I enjoy writing more than I ever understood.\u00a0 I’ve always had a journal in one form or another.\u00a0 In fact, several years worth of entries exist on the 286 pc clone running Norton commander that I think might still be in my mom’s basement.<\/p>\n

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My blog has been a metamorphosis for my personal and professional life.\u00a0 It’s taken me around the world.\u00a0 It’s introduced me to some very good friends I otherwise would never have met.\u00a0 It’s kept me connected during some dark times and has continued to help me process the world around me.\u00a0 I process my life through writing, some of which makes it onto this blog.<\/p>\n

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What *is* blogging for me?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Blogging is the most purely selfish habit I have.\u00a0 Whenever I sit down to write a post, the priority is always on me and what I want to say.\u00a0 There are no ads.\u00a0 There is no genuflecting.\u00a0 I have never written a post because someone asked me to or taken money for anything that has shown up on this blog.<\/p>\n

Although my content was pretty narrowly focused in the beginning towards school projects, it’s turned into quite a mixed bag.\u00a0 Anyone remember the Kangaroo post<\/a>?\u00a0 What about the Desert post<\/a>?\u00a0 Then there’s the dumpster post.\u00a0 (We’ll just leave the “Twilight” post in the ether, shall we?)<\/p>\n

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How hard is it to keep chugging?<\/strong>
\nFor most of my blogging life, I’ve never, ever had a problem coming up with posts.\u00a0 There was only one period in time when I worried that my blog was withering and the fact that I wasn’t writing freely was a very strong smell of things going on in my life.<\/p>\n

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Do I read and\/or revise old posts?<\/strong>
\nThere is always a small mistake or two that I miss in a post.\u00a0 There are very few posts where I haven’t hit publish then looked at the post and thought (oh shit…edit!\u00a0 Edit now!)\u00a0 Although, to be fair, the edits are always quite small.\u00a0 I do, on occasion, read my old posts.\u00a0 My thinking is circular and I enjoy looking at how my opinions change over time.<\/p>\n

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What keeps me from sucking?\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

There are a few guidelines I have for myself.<\/p>\n