On Blogs and Blogging (again)
Last month I wrote about taking a social media break. I looked back over my time on Instagram and also touched on the way blogging has changed over the years. I want to spend a bit more time considering blogs and blogging, giving the topic its own post (I’ve written about blogging before and will most likely write about it again).
Some history:
Although I’ve been blogging in this space for not quite two years, I’ve been writing a blog for much, much longer than that. I can’t remember, exactly, when I started my first one. I skimmed through my journals to see if I could find reference to blogging and the first time I saw it mentioned was March 2009, so I know I started it sometime before then.
a selfie from March 2009
My first blog no longer exists (which is probably a good thing). I created it with iWeb, Apple’s web design and hosting software. Matthias was teaching software for Apple and wanted me to be a guinea pig. One of my best friends had also told me I should start a blog around that time, too, but I had no idea what I should write about.
although I don’t remember exactly what I shared on my original blog, flowers from my garden probably appeared regularly
Writing has always been a natural part of who I am, but writing a private journal and writing short stories, parts of novels and poetry are all so different than writing a blog. Somehow, though, I figured it out. And blogging and my creative journey have become completely entwined.
Although I stumbled into blogging without much of a desire to do it, a creative yearning had been simmering beneath the surface for a while. I was unhappy in my work. I needed some sort of change. Matthias and I wanted a fresh start and among other things, dreamed of moving out of Cleveland.
Back in March of 2009 I wrote in my journal:
“I guess I just want to reclaim the creative person that I was, I want to press together all my creative experiences. Compress them, let them coalesce, let them grow, fertilized by who I was. Why do I sometimes forget who I was and what I’ve done? And I say who I was as if that’s a separate person, but it’s not. Who I am… I am the same person. I am that little girl and that college student and everything in between and I am this nearly 33 year old woman who sometimes feels lost and sometimes feels like I have no clue how I got here, how I became an “adult”. It’s so strange sometimes. I’m not scared of getting older. I’m scared of suddenly being old, of having time fast forward without me really enjoying every moment.
in addition to blogging, in 2009 I sewed, crocheted and was obsessed with growing roses
Now here I am, eleven years later. I’ve reclaimed my creative self. My creativity has grown. It’s evolved and flourished. I’m still growing and evolving. Although I don’t enjoy every moment (I don’t think anyone ever can), I try to truly be present and am constantly on the look out for each day’s glimmers of joy.
I’m so grateful to my 32 year old self for dreaming her dreams and for not giving up. I’m also so grateful to all the bloggers who were sharing their stories on the internet back then. Through blogs I learned that I wasn’t the only one with creative yearnings. Other people were reclaiming their creativity as adults and crafting and sewing and decorating and making art. Blogs gave me glimpses into other people’s lives, into other people’s dreams. And they showed me it was possible to create a different life.
Eventually, through blogging, as I dreamed my creative dreams I found a creative community, too.
I started my second blog at the end of October in 2010. And opened up my first Etsy shop around that time.
this crocheted necklace was the first thing I sold in my first Etsy shop in 2010
I participated in Art Every Day Month (AEDM) that November.
one of my first watercolor paintings painted during AEDM in 2010
In February of 2011 I took Get Your Paint On, an online acrylic painting class with Mati Rose and Lisa Congdon. Then in March I began participating in Paint Party Friday. I met so many people and they cheered me on as I shared my first clumsy painting attempts and other creative dabblings.
crochet and sewing were my main focus in the early part of my creative journey
Back then I wrote blog posts multiple times a week and I read and commented on blogs all the time. I have a folder in the bookmarks on my browser titled “AEDM blogs” that has 190 links and another folder titled “Blogs” that has 219. I didn’t take the time to check them, but I’m guessing only a fraction of those blogs still exist.
The blogosphere was a vast expanse of creativity and inspiration. Blogging was a creative outlet and a way to connect with other people. Over time this changed. For so many reasons: monetization of blogs, the rise of social media, the shift of our digital lives, the ever increasing speed of daily life*, the proliferation of mobile devices**. It’s a complex issue and I don’t know if there’s a complete answer to the question or a clear picture of why and how things have changed.
Blogging is still a vast expanse, but there are also many other ways to share and connect on the internet. Instagram is one (although I’ve recently discovered some people consider Instagram a blogging platform and posting there is considered blogging. Who knew?).
But is blogging dead?
By sheer numbers, with over 600 million blogs out there, it’s not.*** And beyond the sheer numbers of blogs (and growth of blogging) is the dedication of long-time bloggers. Jayne Gorman writes a travel blog and a couple years ago she declared that Instagram isn’t killing blogs, it’s making them better (two years later she’s still blogging). Elsie Larson of A Beautiful Mess considers reading blogs as part of her wellness routine. The photographer Helena Woods thinks that Instagram is dying and that blogs will remain. Just Google “The Future of Blogging” or “Is blogging dead” and you’ll find LOTS more opinions.****
My friend Dana (whom I think I first “met” in Get Your Paint On all those years ago) came back to blogging last year. One of her dreams for her new blog was to reclaim the community aspect of blogging. This hasn’t happened for her yet and she even contemplated shutting down her blog when it came time to renew her site. I’m glad she decided to stick around and I love that she’s created a list called “blogs I love”, a nod to the old days of blogrolls in your sidebar and a dedication to reading and loving blogs.
As for me… I’m still blogging.
Perhaps part of it is habit, but it’s more than that. As I mentioned last week, I think it’s important to share our stories. We learn so much from each other. Not necessarily about how to do things (although I do love sharing that as well — it’s why I teach!), but by sharing our stories our struggles our joys our successes our failures we create connections. We see ourselves reflected in someone else. We experience a taste of the rich diversity of our world. We encourage one another. We inspire. When we share our stories we remember and are reminded that we’re all in this together. Life, art, creativity… it’s not a competition. It’s a community.
My art is more than just pretty pictures of flowers. My blog gives a glimpse of what’s behind the images I create with watercolor on paper.
I begin my about page with these words:
The thrill of the first flower unfurling in the spring. The bliss of a sun warm tomato eaten straight from the vine. The perfection of a handful of acorns discovered on a walk.
There's magic in even the most ordinary bits of nature.
That magic? It’s what I want to show you on my blog, too.
Life is complicated, fast paced. We’re often disconnected from nature and we’re also disconnected from each other. Isn’t that even more of a reason for me to dig in my heals and keep blogging?
Do you have a blog reading routine like Elsie Larson? Could you come up with a blog love list like Dana Barbieri’s? Are there favorite blogs you look forward to each week (or according to your/the blogger’s schedule)? I’d love to hear about them if you do. (I’ll add mine below and continue to add to it).
I think the community aspect of blogs and blogging isn’t something that’s determined from outside. It’s something we all have control over. If we’re writing and reading and commenting on blogs, then we’re creating that community one word and one photograph at a time.
Blogs I Love
Here’s a list of some old favorites, some new favorites and some in between (I’ve probably forgotten some). I’ve tried to only include blogs which have had new posts within the last month or more recently.
*So much has been written about the pace of modern life. Makes me tired just thinking about it!
**These stats about mobile device usage are staggering!
***These stats say that there are over 600 million blogs in the world today.
****This article gives an interesting history of blogging, stating that today blogs have reached “adulthood”.