Why Blog?

So what’s the deal with blogging anyway? I’ve asked some folks to explain it to me. Now these guys all insist that they are not what you would think a gay blog is. But what is a gay blog? Does it have to have pornographic content to be thought of as a gay blog? I don’t think so. Let’s take a look.

So what’s the deal with blogging anyway? I’ve asked some folks to explain it to me. Now these guys all insist that they are not what you would think a gay blog is. But what is a gay blog? Does it have to have pornographic content to be thought of as a gay blog? I don’t think so. Let’s take a look. First up we have Shinichi Evans, a 35-year-old San Diegan, who writes a writerly blog at http://shindotv.blogspot.com Then we have Morgan, a 40-year old living in Michigan, who has not one, but two blogs. The first is It’s A Blog Eat Blog World at http://morgenfiles.blogspot.com/ , a friendly, chatty blog, and his pet blog Purrchance to Dream at http://daphnex.blogspot.com/ where it’s cats, cats, and more cats.  And lastly, Camper of www.cramper.com He’s a freelance writer of nightlife, spirits, trends, and fitness topics, and the author of Party Like a Rock Star: Even When You're Poor as Dirt. Let’s see what the fuss is about.

Why blog? Does it fulfill a need that can't be met with friends, co-workers, lovers, or a really keen diary?

Shinichi: I started blogging last year as a way to keep writing after I graduated from an MFA creative writing program. I've never been a diarist or a newsletter kind of guy, so I put essays, creative non-fiction pieces, and reactions to various issues up on the blog. Having an audience is a need that's met on the blog. I enjoy feedback from people who read my stuff, whether they loved it or have taken some kind of disagreement with it. Morgan: I blog for the interaction with people, and as an outlet for my creativity.  My site started out as an online journal, but it soon became more of an interface with other bloggers – the people in the blogosphere have been wonderful new friends.  As for fulfilling a need – for me, it is a hobby (sometimes more like an addiction).  In real life, I'm kind of a loner, and the online friends I've made through blogging mean a great deal to me.  I am self-employed, in a small town in the Midwest.  Blogging connects me to people all over the world.

 

Camper: A blog is a promotion device, be it for a product or a person. Everybody wants some sort of popularity/celebrity/notoriety, and a blog is a way to accomplish that while pretending you’re just updating your friends on your latest happenings. A blog can serve very many other purposes, but we all want to be known (or have our product known) by more people. Or maybe a lot of us just need a lot more friends.
So many blogs fizzle out after an explosive start. Do you think you'll be blogging for years or just for a little while?

Shinichi: I think I'll be blogging for years. The blog didn't start out with a bang, it fizzled for a while, but I'm back on it. I've gained readers outside of people who know me in San Diego, so I think that will keep me going. Plus, as long as it's fun and enjoyable and I have something to say, I'll keep on posting. Morgan: I'm in this for as long as I can afford an internet connection.  Some people get bored with blogging, but I find it exciting and try to keep my site fresh – this feeds my creativity and keeps the boredom at bay.  I think the internet is a very fluid medium, and for people who are open to change, it can be very exciting. Camper: Well, I’ve been doing it for ten years now, so I guess I’ll stick with it for a while longer. I have four active blogs now and I can’t say which ones will go forth or fizzle out but blogging seems like a normal part of life.

I blog to get people interested in my novels so I will have a ready readership when the damned things get published. What is it you want to achieve with your own blog?

Shinichi: I am interested in getting my writing career off the ground. I, too, would like to have my fiction published, and I hope to use the blog to draw attention to myself as a writer. I'm also interested in developing as an essayist, as many of my longer entries are creative non-fiction or personal
essays. I also enjoy doing reviews of films, books, and CD's whenever I do. Morgan: A connection.  Like I said, I'm pretty much a loner in real life.  I have a partner and cats, but that's about it in the real world besides a few friends.  Blogging opens up a social world to me – from all over the world!  I have online friends in countries that I've never been, and it's that connection with people that is so rewarding for me. Camper: Of my four blogs, two are personal and funny. Those are meant to entertain friends and strangers. Then I have one blog to promote my book that nobody reads (the blog OR the book), and another one about my primary career (cocktail writing) that a lot more people read. What has been the most rewarding aspect of blogging for you?

Shinichi: Knowing that people enjoy what I have out there. That part means a great deal to me, and it makes me want to make my blog a better experience for my readers, viewers, visitors, etc. Morgan: While my two sites have been given some awards, it is the friendships that I have made through blogging that has touched me the most.  If you told me in January 2006, before I started blogging, that I would consider people from all over the globe "friends" through blogging, I would have said you need to have your head examined.  Now, I have a cherished group of friends that extends even beyond the internet – phone calls, cards exchanged, birthday gifts through the mail — it's amazing and wonderful to me the social need that blogging has provided in my life.  Camper: People reaching out to say they enjoyed reading something I wrote.

What's the worst part of blogging?
Shinichi: Knowing that there is some kind of risk involved, some of them having unfair consequences. The idea of people getting fired over what they put on their blogs is an idea that doesn't sit well with me. I don't like that employers are using them (along with profile sites like MySpace) as a character assessment tool. The documented case of the Phantom Professor not getting her teaching contract renewed because she used her blog to write creative non-fiction about her workplace is one example that stand out to me, though there are a few others. She anonymously wrote all these entries, laboring under that pseudonym, but many students and administration figured out who she was.

Another risky aspect is writing about people you know, even when you assign pseudonyms. A friend of mine was shocked to read in some of my blog entries about my MFA experiences and that I saw him and his writing in a certain way. I intended nothing malicious from the entry, but it's hard to anticipate how people will react to seeing themselves in a blog entry. Morgan: Sometimes, your thoughts and emotions and the nuances of speech are lost in the blogosphere, which is primarily a written medium at this point.  Sarcasm, of which I am abundantly full of on some days, can be a lost art online.  Emoticons can help, but nothing can replace the verbal inflections of a bitingly funny sarcastic comment.  Camper: Feeling obligated to come up with something when you haven’t posted in a while.

Do you read other people's blogs?
Shinichi: Yes, definitely. There are I couple of blogs I like to read regularly. Plus, I have a ton of blog subscriptions in my Google Reader. Morgan: Yes, definitely!  I have a regular group of friends' sites that I have to read every day, and then I have a "secondary" list that I get to at least once a week.  For me, that's the  'give and take' part of the blogosphere.  You have to BE a friend to have friends.  Camper: But of course.

Do you read books, and if so, do you prefer fiction to non-fiction? Is blogging just another something to read, like books, newspapers, and magazines?

Shinichi: I like to read fiction. My favorite author is Ursula K. Le Guin, and I also enjoy Neil Gaiman and Jonathan Lethem. Blogs are a strange reading experience. The ones I like usually provide a lot of content: well developed text and ideas (like good print media). Then, some blogs are just one sentence or a phrase per entry. That's going to invite me to come back and read? I don't think so.

Morgan: I'm an avid reader. Yes, I read many blogs.  But I also love print magazines – I subscribe to many magazines, and holding that glossy print in my hand is a joy in my life.  As for books, I do read a few non-fiction books ( The Queen Must Die by William Longgood – about learning human nature from bee-keeping is an amazing non-fiction book), but primarily I read fiction.  The mystery genre is what appeals to me.  Especially the "cozy" niche of mysteries.  The China Bayles Herbal Mysteries by Susan Wittig Albert are one of my favorites.  As an avid reader, I usually read for about an hour or so every night before turning out the lights.  Camper: I read a mixture of both fiction and non-fiction books, but a ton of magazines. Many blogs that I read are similar to magazines- you read the headline or a couple of sentences, then if you want to read more you follow the link. It’s a lot like flipping through a lifestyle or news magazine.  With reading blogs of friends, it’s a way of feeling in touch with humans despite sitting in front of a machine.

Do you think a gay blog differs from a straight one?
Shinichi: I don't think there's a significant difference. It's usually what the blogger makes of his or her blog, and that's different for each person. Morgan: Some do.  Some don't.  Every blogger is an individual, and hopefully their blog reflects that.  Some gay blogs are very gay-centered and I even know some blogs by gay men that proudly say "no women allowed" — I'm the opposite of that.  I would guess that 75% of my readers at It's A Blog Eat Blog World are straight women.  I've been told I'm "not gay enough" to be considered a "gay blog" – whatever. I'm blogging for ME, not to fit into anyone's definition of what my blog should or should not be. Camper: Nope. In most cases it’s just a different perspective on the same stuff that everyone else is writing about. Often you want to listen to people who agree with you, so you read people who have a similar perspective, and being gay that’s the gay perspective.  It could easily be the college student perspective or the new mom perspective or the cat lover perspective. But a blog is a blog.
Do you actively look for other gay blogs? Is a gay perspective important to you?

Shinichi: A lot of the ones I've read lately have been through blogrolls (such as Best Gay Blogs), bloggers links to other bloggers, what I've found on sites such as Glee.Com, and what friends tell me they read.

For me, a gay perspective is important on some issues, especially religion because we've experienced a political and religious climate that hasn't been friendly to the GLBT community. Wayne Besen's blog (http://www.waynebesen.com) has been good for that. Morgan: When I first started blogging = yes. Now, not so much. Just as in real life, some gay blogs are warm and open and accepting of all people. Some are not. I'm not a typical "gay clone" — I'm overweight, nerdy, and more interested in curling up with a good book and the cats than going out to a dance club.  Because I'm not a beautiful shirtless young man in my online pictures, I know that many gay men are not interested in getting to know me. Their loss. The blogs by gay men that I tend to frequent are people who are "real" and have a good sense of humor, and are writing/posting about their lives, not just sticking up gratuitous pictures of shirtless guys… not that I have anything against a good Eye Candy picture, mind you!  As for a "gay perspective" – I think that the perspective I'm interested in is getting to know the blogger, no matter what their orientation. Camper:  I read a lot of blogs in general and many of them are gay, but I don’t think I’ve sought any of them out. If it’s interesting or relevant, I’ll keep reading, no matter who is writing it. I want to say a gay perspective isn’t important to me, but I do make a point of reading gay news blogs like Queerty and Towleroad in addition to local and national news so I guess it is after all.

What matters to you most about choosing what blogs to read? Is it style, content, images? How long do you stay with a blog? How many have you started reading and stopped?

Shinichi: Style and content matters. I hit blogs for what people say on them. I'm interested in reading what's posted. I like multi-media elements, such as pictures and YouTube videos, but comments from the blogger usually add to them.

I haven't stayed with many blogs for that long. Some blogs have drawn so much heat and argument, and those get tiresome.

Recently, I found a couple of blogs I enjoy reading, so I may be reading them for a while.

Morgan: I like to read blogs where I can get a sense of the person behind the keyboard.  Personal style, and content are more important than flash and graphics.  I have started reading many blogs and stopped.  I prefer Blogger-blogs, and when many of my gay blogging acquaintances fled Blogger when it went into "Beta" and then "New" mode, I stopped going to many of their sites.  I was frankly disappointed by the reluctance of embracing change that I found in many gay bloggers.  To me, the fluidity of the blogosphere is about change – if you don't change and progress, then you become static (read: boring) and you will lose the people who frequently read your blog.  Camper: Written content is 90% of my interest. Images are nice, but not crucial. I stay with a blog until the author pisses me off or stops writing. Usually it’s the former!

Are there too many blogs out there?

Shinichi: Yes, there are. Just as there are too many books. Am I adding to this overabundance of blogs? Yes, but I'm not sorry.

The nice thing about there being too many blogs or whatever is that there is more to choose from. And, there's a better chance I'll find something I enjoy tuning in to.

Morgan: No, unless you want to say there are too many people out there, but that's another whole can of worms. I think it's wonderful and incredible that people can express themselves with a blog. Camper: There are too many blogs to expect people to read yours unless they’re getting something out of it.
Do you think blogging has a future, or is it just the internet flavor of the week?

Shinichi: I think blogging's on its way to becoming an institution, if it hasn't already. Morgan: I believe it has a future. So long as people change with the times and embrace new technologies and move forward. I see myself as a "writing" blogger, as opposed to a podcaster or a video blogger, but there are some sites out there who are fabulous at podcasting and video blogging.  Since I feel that I'm more creative in writing, and since I'm so anal-retentive about the "look" of my blog (yes, I can be OCD about my site…) I think I'll be blogging for a good long while.  And I know that because of that connection – bringing people together – I believe that blogging is here to stay and not just a fad.  Camper: Certainly blogging is evolving and in some ways splitting up into video blogs, photo blogs, podcasts, and written blogs, which should then find their way to aggregate blogging websites where you can mush them back together. But the need to express ourselves is a basic human quality that will never go away, so neither will blogging in some form or another. 
What is your current fav blog to read (besides your own)? Shinichi One's Ramblings of a Hopeless Khowaga (http://www.khowaga.us/blog) and the other's Urban Bohemian (http://www.urbanbohemian.com). I enjoy reading what these guys post.

For non-gay blogs, I enjoy reading Joshua Minton's Boys Wear Pants, Men Wear Trousers (http://www.boyswearpants.com), and Murphy J. Stillwater's Murphy Speaks (http://murphyspeaks.blogspot.com). I like Joshua Minton's site because he is a creative writer and has a lot of opinions on current topics. Murphy is also very opinionated, and I found out about his blog the Unofficial Mr. Deity Fan Blog (http://mrdeityfan.blogspot.com). Morgan: My favorite site is full of humor, great writing, and touching stories.  The blogger's name is Neila, from "Blog That Mommy!"  and if you're wondering how a gay man from Michigan became friends with a stay-at-home mommy in Kansas, then you haven't been following my answers thus far.  Neila is one of those people who I mentioned that I have become true friends with.  She's been there for me, and her site is part of my morning coffee routine when I first get to work.  Her site is well-written, and funny and touching.  It's a great example of what I think is the best in blogging: it represents the person behind the keyboard.Camper: Hmm, I think I’ll answer “most impressive” blog instead- Scalzi.com. He’s a straight family man in the Midwest blogging about a combination of daily life, work, and news. It’s engaging enough that he sells many hundreds copies of his science-fiction books to non sci-fi readers because they like his blog so much. So his one blog not only discusses several different topics, it’s successful on both a personal and a professional level. He’s my blog idol.

Thanks, guys, for sharing with us. Keep flogging those blogs!