Friday, December 14, 2007

Blogging Without Obligation

I was talking about my blog once, and someone said to me “But don’t you feel pressured to read a book every week? What if you don’t feel like reading?” Well I always feel like reading, so that part’s no problem. And remember, a book a week is just an average, not a schedule. Some weeks I don’t finish a book. Like this week, for example. I am most of the way through The Inheritance of Loss by Kiran Desai (it’s excellent). I am also still spending a lot of time with They Called Me Mayer July by Mayer Kirshenblatt and Barbara Kirshenblatt-Gimblett (also excellent). And Bad News by Donald E. Westlake is still humming along in my MP3 player. Maybe I should stop trying to read all three at once, and concentrate on finishing one.

Be that as it may, it is true that sometimes I don’t feel like blogging, especially when I don’t have a new book to write about. But I don’t want to go too long between posts. On the other hand, no one wants to read filler, so I try to avoid posts about nothing.

Tiffini Elektra X, who blogs at Down the Rabbit Hole, notes this same problem, and also points out that she is tired of reading blog posts that begin with apologies about how long it’s been since the blogger posted. (Me too.) She has created the “Blogging Without Obligation” button which links to her list of reasons why less is more. Not usually a fan of buttons, I have adopted this one, if mostly to remind myself that it’s okay (in fact, it’s better) to not post when I have nothing new to say.

Thus I will leave you with my favorite quote from The Elements of Style, by E. B. White: “Omit needless words!”

7 comments:

Deepak Adhikari said...

Nice post. Check out my entry on Inheritance of Love http://deepakadk.blogspot.com/2007/01/desais-inheritance-of-loss.html

Maxine Clarke said...

I agree, I have lost count of the number of blog posts I've read that begin with an apology. I probably used to do it myself until I realised how irritating it is when other people do it. Blogging is for the blogger to enjoy, the blog does not control the blogger!

Anonymous said...

Thanks for writing this and thanks to Tiffini Elektra X for her thoughts as well. This is supposed to be fun and fulfilling, not a job with huge obligations. I will take this philosophy to heart and write what is in my heart or what I have read, after I've read it.

Anonymous said...

Well said -- and very true.

heather (errantdreams) said...

A very good philosophy indeed!

lafsar said...
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helen cohen said...
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