It pisses me off to no end, when people assume that with modern technology, with the ubiquitousness of social networking and user-generated content, and with My, Live or Windows Spaces everywhere, blogging has now become “for everyone” and that what I’m doing, or you perhaps, is easy.
It’s not.
Why don’t you browse through the random blog sections of WordPress or Blogger? Have a look at what you see there, read a bit. Then claim that it was worth your time, or just reasonably okay.
With Andrew Keen and his Cult of the Amateur it has become commonplace to assume that writing — consistently, intently — for a period of time, is something everyone can do. It’s not what he claims, but it’s what my neighbour thinks, on instinct.
It’s also like all those guys down the pub at 4 a.m. who’ll publish that novel yet, or those folks who look at a contemporary painting and say I can do that.
They can’t, they don’t, they won’t.
I’ve been blogging for three years now, writing professionally for a decade and a half, and doing stuff with text and stories for as long as I can remember.
I can say: your writing sucks and be right about it.
And no, you don’t have to cut me some slack. Not asking for that. Just that you do it yourself and then come back to me.
Update: have a look at the excellent addition Brendan (who comments below) made to my line of thinking — that it’s not writing that’s hard, but that good writing still is.
Tags: amateur, andrew keen, blogging, quality, writing
14 June 2008 at 10:26 am
So I clicked the WordPress and Blogger “next” links in your post and ended up at two sites that weren’t worth my time, but which didn’t make any claim of being worth my time and probably weren’t intended for me anyway. I don’t see the harm in it. (But then, I don’t write professionally — at least, not in any way that competes with crap blogs.) Why so grouchy about the background noise?
14 June 2008 at 10:59 am
Why so grumpy about a mere Saturday morning rant? Let an “old” guy have his pleasures…
But seriously, though, my rave isn’t so much about the noise — I’m fairly confident that with Twitter and Friendfeed and what have you — I’ve become versed in dealing with that.
No, my gripe — if that word isn’t too strong already — is with people who know nothing of the web, heard a vague comment about how it’s all shit anyways, don’t contribute themselves, and then tell people like me, or you, that what we do isn’t “real” or “worthwhile”.
I just want to tell them it is. But since they won’t read this, perhaps what’s the point indeed.
Thanks for engaging in the conv though. Cheers!
Oh, and PS: good to see you back!
14 June 2008 at 11:28 am
Reminds me of so called “blog gurus” that have been blogging for < 6 months and thus have the requisite ‘time in the sack’ to be able to tell us all just quite how/ when or where we should write.
It’s not so much that folks can’t write (well, there are exceptions, but still) – it’s that they don’t write with passion, on subjects that interest them, for fear of not writing something they think others might want.
Writing for the crowd seldom delivers the same enjoyment as writing for oneself. The best stuff is always right from the solar-plexus, at 3am when that “I get it now” light goes on and the author writes with total and unabashed passion.
14 June 2008 at 11:00 pm
I’m confused now… Is the problem people who claim to be good writers but are actually crap, or is it people who discredit the efforts of people who write?
Things have changed a lot from the time when blogging first became popular, but isn’t the intent still supposed to be the same? Isn’t it a personal expression? Some people may not express themsleves as eloquently as others, but that doesn’t remove their right to do so.
I enjoy writing. I enjoy expressing myself. Yet, anybody who has ever stumbled across my blog would probably say something like, “He’s not much of a writer” or, “This isn’t interesting” or, “What’s the point of having a blog if you’re not going to write consistently?” To these charges I would simply say, “My writing satisfies me (both the action of doing it and the resulting prose), and it is highly consistent: I write every time I feel like it.”
In the end, it’s my own personal spot on the web and, as long as I’m happy with it, that’s all that matters.
Bottom line: Yes, there are a lot of crap blogs out there. But I’m not competing with them for syndication, so what harm do they do me? Or I them, for that matter?
(Sorry Nils… this one just kind of struck me differently than most of your other pieces…)
14 June 2008 at 11:53 pm
I doubt my writing is the world’s best. It isn’t as captivating, as well-written or as unique as half of what I read.
Still, I feel that by blogging I’m developing my writing and creativity. You really can’t argue against that.
14 June 2008 at 11:54 pm
Oh, and by the way. The first WordPress blog I came to was half-decent, but the following batch were awful!
16 June 2008 at 10:36 am
Jerry (I see you’re using that name now): in this post, it’s definitely the second, combined with the first. People who write, can discredit my efforts, people who don’t, can’t. People who write, but write crap, should confess to that. People who write but don’t, should shut up. People who write, but write crap, and discredit my efforts, but they’re wrong, while people who … wait…
Oh, well, you know what I mean!
16 June 2008 at 10:38 am
Joe, it’s not so much about how good you are, or I am, or whatever. I’ve always had many examples of writers I look up to and who I know I can’t even begin to compete with, and I also know that with time I am getting better or at least more skilled as well. I do realize that.
17 June 2008 at 10:31 am
Check out this article in Scientific American on how blogging is good for people. It reduces stress and so on.
Many (most?) blogs are like diaries, but public. What we need isn’t fewer blogs. What we need is a good filter, a way to find well-written blogs. I wouldn’t dream of discouraging people to publish their thoughts online because they’re not very articulate or expressive. On the contrary, blogging might help them improve their writing skills. I know it helped me.
17 June 2008 at 10:34 am
True, it helped me as well, esp. since it forces me to think harder – English still being only a second language.
I’m just tired of hearing it’s just bogus for malcontent teens all the time.