Homework

For the past few days, blogging has begun to feel like homework for a class I hate. This feeling makes me incredibly sad because I love blogging.

I think part of the problem is that I'm too perfectionistic about my writing. Perhaps you think this idea laughable given my nonsensical posts in the past few days, but honestly, the idea that people are actually reading my blog freezes me in my tracks. I drive myself crazy wondering whether what I've written is good enough for an audience.

Another part is the pressure to write something important. It's much easier to blog stuff and nonsense and link to other people's substantive posts...

And, finally, the worst part of the problem is that many of the things I want to blog about are off limits. The thoughts I would normally type and publish are securely in the not-to-be-blogged category.

So, anyway, I'm getting desperate. Anybody have any suggestions? Is there anything you want to know about me? Are there any thoughts I've started that you want to see completed? Please, help me appease my blogging jones.

4 comments:

Rebecca said...

I had to get over my impulse to go back and correct typos and grammatical errors. Some days it would be almost impossible to contain the impulse. The only thing that enabled me to resist is knowing that others track my posts with Bloglines and they would see every republished post come back with nothing new added...only corrections.

As far as writing stuff of importance, I can tell you that - as a reader - importance is not as important to us as getting to know the blogger. As a blogger, part of the satisfaction is venting or talking about stuff we liked or cool things that have happened. Although it's also nice to post every now and then about something really meaningful to us.

But if you are hestitant about touching upon the thoughts in the not-to-be-blogged category, have you thought about starting an anonymous blog for those? Or instead of this one? Many bloggers choose to be anonymous just for that reason - to blog about stuff that they would not normally say publicly.

Is it possible that it's been feeling like homework because you've given yourself an assignment? I think your countdown was a really cute idea, and I've been enjoying it. But maybe it's caused unnecessary pressure in your blogging.

In any case, I hope you manage to work this out. I feel sure that you have much that is interesting to share, and I'd hate for you to avoid doing so because of any misconceptions.

Kate said...

The "not-to-be-blogged" stuff is actually stuff that I've promised to keep private to one person or another.

There is little danger that I would stop blogging (my countdown is actually the easiest post of the day)...I'm just going through a short bout of blogger's block. In a little more than a week, I will have more than enough material for posting.

Though, I'm serious about suggestions, from anyone.

Abigail said...

you could always fall back on the only trick that saves my blog.

get married before having three girls, and then post way too many pictures of them in posts devoid of thought or substance.

on second thought, just keep on doing what you're doing...

Kate said...

Abigail, I would be more than happy to follow your plan, but that would require something of a hiatus in blogging in order to find a man, marry that man, and birth three babies, while attempting to earn my M.Div. That's a lot.