Why What We’re Told About Blogging Is Wrong
An ambitious title for a first post, but since it’s taken me so long to even get started, why not get started with a bang? I have had Medium for 4 weeks and 5 days, but today is the first day I post something. That’s 33 days that I thought about writing but put zero words on paper. However, it’s also 33 days that I spent scouring the web for information on how to start. Instead of just writing, I let people tell me what to do with my own blog for 792 hours (pause for dramatic effect — now acknowledge that this statistic is embellished as it also includes the hours I spent researching, say, recipes with kale).
What I very quickly realised is that sure, information on ‘How to use subheadings effectively’ is useful, but all I was doing was procrastinating from facing that cursor on a blank screen, from facing my fears that whatever I write is irrelevant. It takes a whole lot of courage to take the plunge and put yourself out there, to believe that what you write could mean something to someone. Moreover, with the onslaught of information including “expert opinions” and infinite websites dedicated to boosting blog traffic and “foolproof tips” on how to widen your online presence, it’s easy to stop before you even start.
“The first draft of anything is shit” declared Ernest Hemingway. Wise words, even wiser once you understand the full import — because it’s crazy to impose the pressure of perfection onto something that doesn’t even exist yet. As a writer, I constantly feel cold, probably because I’m surrounded by so many drafts! Of course, it’s easier said than done, and you’re not alone in doubting yourself. I am my own worst enemy, and it’s hard to defeat an enemy that has outposts in my head. But that’s why you do it anyway. Joan Didion said, “Writing is the only way I can make sense of what I think”. It takes time and practice, but it’s worth it.
Is there a writer whose creative life hasn’t been punctuated with slow writing periods? (Pun intended). I’m still figuring out the nuances of the process, but I think that’s because I am still figuring out who I am. Being yourself in a world that is trying its damnedest to make you somebody else is the hardest battle, but I think that if you want to, it’s a battle worth recording no matter what the rest of the Internet has to say about it.
1. Valuable content is not enough
Fair enough, muttering the secret of life in a packed Coldplay arena will not reach the masses, but does that mean we shouldn’t constantly strive to deliver something of value when we write? One can only spread the word when there is word to spread.
2. Don’t tell your stories
The logic behind this piece of advice is that we underestimate how interesting our lives are. But life is subjective. My father would rather greet the clients of his accounting firm in a Batman suit than watch an episode of ‘Keeping Up with the Kardashians’, but 19 million viewers per episode beg to differ. Just because X doesn’t find what happened to me in my ski trip last year (a story for another time perhaps) riveting, does not mean Y will not. Yes I might suck at telling it, but does that lessen or devalue what someone might take away from it? Does that mean I shouldn’t share it?
3. Writing every day is a waste of time
I’m not saying spam your subscribers, but holy shit, Ernest Hemingway called a day without writing a day closer to death. I’m not romantic like that, but regular posting not only improves the quality of your writing and keeps you at it, but each idea you fail to post is one that could have been “the one”. This hope is what keeps you writing, the drive to create something that impacts its readers and triggers change and the reevaluation of perspectives. There are more than 6 billion people on this earth. If you’re wondering something chances are somebody else is wondering about it too. Practice really does make perfect.
4. Write what your readers want
This irritates me. A lot. What I hope to gain from this blog is the chance to strike a balance between saying what I want to say and finding people who want to read it. Trying to mould your responses to what people want to hear or trying to be someone you’re not is a losing battle, and readers can smell bullshit faster than a sniffer dog at the Mexican border. Being a good writer to me comes from honesty. Moreover, you write for you. More than photographs or videos, it’s an insight into you as you are right now.
5. Keep the content of your blog consistent with the topic
If you’ve read this far: a hearty thanks. But the content of this blog is unlikely to revolve around a specific subject because since when do human beings have just one specific interest? I understand that if you love baking, subscribing to a baking blog over one that deals with basketball makes sense. But what about those of us who like basketball and baking? Will I alienate readers by confusing them? This is your blog, write for you. Life is confusing. Why should blogging be any different?
“I begin with writing the first sentence — and trusting to Almighty God for the second” said Lawrence Sterne. Figure out what’s right for you and do it, no matter what.
P.S.
Please do let me know what you think. As opinionated as I am, I like to think that it warms me to other opinion.
