(Originally published Apr. 2, 2008).
On Book Marketing Buzz this week, Dorothy Thompson asked an interesting question: Why do you blog? I was stumped. Truth be told, unless I receive explicit notification of a topic that intrigues me (and Dorothy’s did), I seldom peruse other authors’ blogs. Who has the time? So the question becomes: Why do I blog, particularly if I suspect my weekly entries languish, lonely and unread, in cyberspace?
Dorothy kindly went on to provide the top six reasons for blogging: money; fun; fame/profile; business; networking; and other (boredom?). I looked at those reasons and scratched my head. To be frank, I gave this question many hours of intensive contemplation. At the end, I still wasn’t entirely sure why I blogged.
Money? I think not. Since few readers access my blog with any consistency, I can say with some certainty it’s not for the money.
Ditto for networking.
Fun? You can’t be serious. Most weeks, I go brain dead on selecting a topic. I expend hours of precious time trying to decide on a lively talking point that won’t lull my readers to sleep. I want to toss my computer out the window and run from the room. Safe to say I don’t write a blog for the sheer enjoyment of getting my pearls of wisdom out there to my salivating fans.
Scratch other.
That leaves fame/profile and business, which, to me, are one and the same.
Here’s the thing. It all boils down to the fact that if I were an editor, agent, and/or reader (hey, I am one of those), I wouldn’t pin my hopes on a blog-less author. A blog is part of the price an author pays to conduct business. A blog establishes credibility. I believe that any author worth her salt proves her talent by cranking out regular blog scribblings to demonstrate versatility, consistency, perseverance in the face of adversity, imagination, talent, and a sampling of her voice.
I would be interested in hearing why you blog.
I would like to offer my thanks to Dorothy for providing me with this week’s blog topic.
