Start A Blog For Me

It’s been a long time since I last told people to start a blog¹ which means the Blog Police could take away my license any day now. There’s so little left unsaid in blogging’s favor that I don’t want to repeat all the ways it would benefit you. Instead let me tell you how your blog would benefit me!

The first reason is the obvious one. I’d like to read your blog. Recently I was listing things that bring me unreasonable joy, and surfing blogs was high on that list. Then I went and surfed some blogs and it did bring me joy. Just think of the happiness your future blog could bring me.

The power of my joy also undermines the most common would-be blogger fear, that your writing will be crummy. I like crummy blogs just as much as polished ones, maybe even more. In the land of blogs, too much polish can come across as bland or formulaic. All that gets in the way of seeing what another person is excited about, which is the best part (and arguable purpose) of a blog.

I love exploring blogs so much that I will literally help you set up a website (and I’m not great, so crumminess is guaranteed). If you’re put off by the how-tos or just haven’t gotten around to it, I can walk you through the best options for you and get you started². Obviously this offer will expire in the unlikely event that I get too many requests (a risk I’m willing to take). If talking to another person is a bigger hurdle than the technical setup you should definitely start a blog (here are links to a couple good guides³).

Speaking of linking, there’s another reason you should start a blog. I want more links on my blog. I put up this Directory a while ago, but it’s a little anemic. Nobody posts much, and half the links are to my direct family. If more people don’t start blogs pronto (and tell me), I may need to start scrounging big time for more links to put on here.

If you would be so kind as to link to my blog, we could form even fancier linking arrangements like a webring (eg). If there are enough people in the DC area, it would also be cool to start a blogging club (eg).

If you read that and don’t feel like you’d fit in at a “blogging club”, that means you probably would have different things to write about than the average blogger which would therefore be more interesting to me. When I told my brother I was starting a blog, he discouraged me because “you’d have to be very knowledgeable or have a technical niche”. But when I said it wasn’t going to be a technical blog, he said “oh, then go ahead”. Write your poems, your recipes, review TV shows, whatever you’re reading or learning. Just go for a walk and write about that. Write about how stupid and annoying bloggers are. You actually don’t even have to write about blogging (I was joking earlier about the Blog Police). Again, the exciting part is seeing what someone’s interested in.

Once I know what you’re interested in I can bother you about it. I could tell you my thoughts about your latest post and ask what you’re working on next. And that could stave off the conversational lull for the precious moments needed to prop up something like normal human friendship. Believe me, I have enough blogs to read (too many really), but I won’t call up a popular blogger. Then I don’t know how to ask my blogless friends what they’re writing.

At this point I can tell you’re just dying for me to wrap it up so you can go and start your blog. Let me leave you with two final words. If you’re not sure what to write, you may write to me (I am your loyal fan), but you must write whatever you want. And if you feel weird and selfish having a blog, don’t. I am specifically requesting it for my own benefit. If anything, I’m the selfish one asking such a big favor.