Blog Advice?

[CorporalClegg]

One of my New Year's resolutions was to join the masses and start a blog, but I have no idea what to do or where to go. I'm still trying to figure out what exactly I'm going to write about, but I need to first pick a host.

Wordpress, Blogger, and LiveJournal seem to be the most popular free ones. But I can't seem to find a conclusive pro/con list of each.

I know a lot of TBBSers have blogs, so I am just looking for some insightful words of wisdom.

 

[RoJoHen]

I am starting a blog as well! My problem with blogs in the past has been that I haven't really given them a purpose, and I don't think people want to read about my daily ramblings, so I quit doing it.

This year, though, I will be writing a "blog novel." It is my goal to write at least one full page of fiction every day for the rest of the year. Each page I write will be a new chapter in my ongoing novel. Obviously, there will be days where it will be impossible for me to achieve this, but I'm going to try and do it as often as humanly possible.

I have used Blogger in the past and find it the easiest of the free sites I've tried.

 

[sevenstars]

I see all kinds of blogs on all three sites: daily life ramblings, theme or issue-oriented ones, etc. I think for building a group of interactive readers, especially for a personal journal, the LiveJournal model can't be beat. But the site itself is lousy with ads unless you want to pay, and the LiveJournal clones can be kind of dead.

I love WordPress, though figuring out how to do things on there sometimes takes me a bit of time. Everyone seems to love Blogger; I've never used it because 1)Google 2)blogspot sounds like a crop disease, but it sure looks nice!

That's just my own experience though.

 

[Robert Maxwell]

I think WordPress is the best all around one. Write about whatever you like! It's your blog, your rules.

 

[Mr. B]

One of my New Year's resolutions was to join the masses and start a blog, but I have no idea what to do or where to go. I'm still trying to figure out what exactly I'm going to write about, but I need to first pick a host.

It would be better if you wanted to write because you have something to say, not because "everyone else is doing it."

 

[Robert Maxwell]

One of my New Year's resolutions was to join the masses and start a blog, but I have no idea what to do or where to go. I'm still trying to figure out what exactly I'm going to write about, but I need to first pick a host.

It would be better if you wanted to write because you have something to say, not because "everyone else is doing it."

This is true. If you're going to write self-indulgent prattle, that's what LiveJournal is for. But I kid...

If your blog is interesting and you get the word out, people will read it. But there's little point in having one if you really have nothing worthwhile to say.

 

[CorporalClegg]

I am starting a blog as well! My problem with blogs in the past has been that I haven't really given them a purpose, and I don't think people want to read about my daily ramblings, so I quit doing it.

This year, though, I will be writing a "blog novel." It is my goal to write at least one full page of fiction every day for the rest of the year. Each page I write will be a new chapter in my ongoing novel. Obviously, there will be days where it will be impossible for me to achieve this, but I'm going to try and do it as often as humanly possible.

I have used Blogger in the past and find it the easiest of the free sites I've tried.

That's actually a good idea. I thought of doing something similar myself but with, say, one short story a week. But it seems to ambitious for my tastes. Let me know though; I'd like to read it!

It would be better if you wanted to write because you have something to say, not because "everyone else is doing it."

Oh no. You misunderstood. I was simply suggesting that I always had a negative (and admittedly short-sighted) view of bloggers. The real reason I'm doing it is because I want to write more, and it seems like the most accessible outlet for reaching a critical audience.

I'm a bit of a wordophile, so the idea I had was to take a word that is currently focused in the pop/news lexicon and run with it. Talk about the etymology, make quirky observations, irony found in the idiom, and that sort of thing.