So about a year ago I launched this blog and todays entry is number 100. I can't believe it. But I put myself on a schedule to publish every Monday and Thursday and have pretty much kept it up. There are a couple of blogs that I read regularly and my two main complaints are that they are irregularly published (3 in one day and then 10 days of nothing) and that they are often too long. I try to keep mine short and to the point.
I knew that it would change over time and its been interesting to see the changes. I had some grand ideas about the nature of art and artists at first, but I quickly realized that life was more about local artists. So the focus of my writing began leaning in that direction. I'll let others write about the rich and famous.
I learned that I enjoy writing. I enjoy the process. But I have to write in the mornings. When I write in the evening I get whiney or crabby. The blog starts to sound like "If everyone would smarten up and just do it MY way.....!" It was originally suggested to me that I make it funny because those are the blogs everyone wants to read. But writing in a funny manner is a skill that I have not yet developed. I'll work on it though.
I've also learned that the blog post I write is very often different from the one I thought I was going to write. I try to get out of my own way and let it develop organically. This means that I will often delete a line because it doesn't work or delete a paragraph because I've suddenly seen a new theme develop that I like better. That's part of the process and it's more invigorating than aggravating. The frustrating part is when I throw out an entire post and just start all over. Some are beyond redemption.
This sounds as though I know a good one from a bad one, but nothing could be further from the truth. I am surprised weekly by the general response. I've posted some that I was real proud of only to have them generally ignored and others that I was unsure of that generated a lot of compliments and have been read by a lot of people. It's always a high compliment when readers respond with a comment. My favorite is when they ask permission to quote me.
I am pleasantly surprised by the number of international readers that I have. I think it's something like 22 different countries represented. Some, like Germany, France, and Russia, are pretty regular and others like Portugal and Latvia are a little more sporadic. But still.....
I want to thank you all for reading my stuff this past year. I am going to continue for another 100 posts to see how it goes and I hope you will continue with me. Please recommend me to your friends and keep in touch.