I wholeheartedly advocate blogging for writers. The regular routine of having to pound out some words, even when you’re not inspired, is invaluable for developing discipline and creativity.
But, there are some dangers. Some writers feel that blogging drains too much creativity and hinders their “real” writing. Others feel that blogging can absorb so much time that they devote hours to posts about their cat instead of revising that novel.
I don’t have those problems. But I do struggle with one danger of blogging: getting sloppy.
No matter how serious you may take blogging, it’s still something that you do for yourself, with little to no editorial review, in as quick a manner as possible. Sure, there are some big posts that we all work and revise over time. But the day to day stuff is generally blasted out before catching a train, or before giving the kids a bath, or during the commercials on the 11pm Sportscenter. I guess I’m trying to say that even though I take even the quickest of blog entries seriously, it’s still not as rigorous as other writing.
A buddy recently pointed this out. “You’re getting rusty,” he said after reading a recent magazine piece of mine. “Rusty? I’m writing more now than I ever have.” He scoffed and said it was still crap. And he was right. My editor at PopMatters has justifably ripped a few of my pieces to shreds for similar issues.
And now, I’m struggling with a simple essay. I just need to prove an argument. It’s nothing more than a persuasive essay, the kind of thing you write in Comp 101. And it’s freaking killing me. Ridiculous.
So, my advice to you is to slow down. If you’re a blogger, strive to set aside a few pieces each week to really fine-tune and revise. Pretend you’re back in school or that workshop where the class is threatens to eviscerate you if your character development isn’t strong enough. Take a deep breath and just go back to basics, and all those other sports cliches that are thrown around so often. I generally don’t use writing exercises, but I might incorporate some into my routine.
I’m sure musicians periodically return to practice scales. I’m probably going to have to do the same thing. Anyone still got their old Comp 101 textbook handy?
I whole heartedly agree. As a writer who edits herself mercilessly, however, having a blog has been great for my productivity. There’s nothing like seeing that I haven’t posted something in several days, and the worry that I will therefore never post again.
It’s important to maintain a balance, as you suggest. Managing ourselves and our time is as important as the writing itself!
How To Cure Blogger Pox…
My novel editing has stalled ever since the holidays. I think I may have a case of Blogger Pox. Blogs help you publish and find an audience faster than anybody ever dreamed. Paradoxically, this beautiful technology can doom you to……
I’m glad you are risking the danger — I enjoy your blog a lot.
Truer words were never spoken. Blogging, like journaling, is addictive. It’s also esoteric. Many diaries develop a private language all their own, and invariably that bleeds over into other writing as well. In the case of blogging though there is the additional sense of urgency because people are waiting for that next post… Well, at least in theory there are people waiting. Sometimes I wonder if I am just writing for the Googlebot, and then I wonder if it enjoys what it finds.
I’m newish to blogging and when you first start and are learning you REALLY can be a little obsessive (I recall dreaming about it one night!). Blogging feels more like fun to me, and is a little more creative than my book because I include graphics, where my third book is just words, words, words (38,500 so far). Now that the holidays are done, I will get back to it (I should be working on it right now, but I’m too tired after shoveling, plus I’m busy reading other people’s blogs!).
You’re exactly right, Jamie. The “private language” aspect of blogging is another danger. Hopefully, you bond with your readers and blogging becomes like a conversation among friends. You have your tics and quirks and inside jokes and everyone knows the language. And, just like chatting with friends, you become comfortable enough to break the rules of grammar and say, “There ain’t no way I can eat another bite,” or whatever.
So you get used to this private language. And then you sit down to write something for an editor you’ve never met, maybe one that’s a stickler for grammatical precision, and it’s your first assignment, and you want to do a great job, and that private language completely handicaps you. It’s like having to put on a coat and tie and going into the corporate office when you’re accustomed to working from home in your underwear all day.
Glad to see you all agree and I’m not the only one afflicted by these issues. I’m not saying, “writers should not blog!” I just think we need to remember to be careful.
And thanks for the kind words, Forrest.
bookbabie, I dreamed about blogging, too, when I first started! I thought that was so odd and wondered if I should pull back a little. But I have not.
Scott, are you seeing careless writing anywhere? I hope not at my blog…
W, I don’t see any obvious examples of careless writing on blogs. Except for the mistakes I make on my own. I am still, obviously, a big fan of blogging writers. I think it’s well worth the time and investment and, even the periodic risk. And I never thought that blogging was somehow inferior to other writing.
I was simply noticing things in my own writing that I needed to rectify. As I said in an earlier comment, blogs can become comfortable and chatty. But when you are submitting a piece to a prestigous journal (and you’ve never been published there or worked with the editor before) that chatty tone and style may not be appropriate.
So I’m trying to make an effort to ensure I devote enough time to “formal” writing as well as the “informal” blogging. If that makes any sense…
I let my blog sit for almost a year, while I wrote, polished, and rewrote short stories. Frustrated with the odds of getting a story published (it has happened to me, but not often), I grew obsessive about perfecting every page, paragraph, and word. To cure myself, I resolved to put original fiction on my blog daily. Sloppy? I am sure. But I work really hard and do rewrite whatever I put up at least once, even if my perspective is limited to one day.
Some posts, naturally, are better than others. At the end of this year, I discovered a fluidity, tracking from one character to another that felt very much like something I had always wanted to do. The blog’s format helped produce this. The limits become a rule. Of course, this may be pure fantasy, because I haven’t stepped back yet. Readers rarely comment but when they do, it’s great. Wonderful if someone asks what a character’s motivation was, and wonderful, too, when some one lets me know they found my blog randomly and followed a serial piece through to the end, because they enjoyed reading it.
very interesting, but I don’t agree with you
Idetrorce
As someone who taught at the university level, I think blogging is a terrific way to free the writer up. It can be close to a free-writing session, a way to get unclogged before working on a very structured or demanding piece. And yes, it is good to be able to break the rules, once you know them.
I wish my students had been into blogging. For most of them, the empty page was terrifying. Sometimes it still frightens me - after all these years.