Looking through some of her posts that I missed, I found this one, titled: Blogs without topics are a waste of time. As a blogger, this hit me right to my core. It felt like the first time I realized I was not going to grow up to play professional baseball. (I think I was 12 at the time.)
Although, I really don't like to consider myself a blogger, and I usually conisder this blog a form of entertainment, rather than a productive endeavor. So maybe I'm happier this way? Or maybe I'm just deluding myself.
Oh, she's straight up calling us out. She's never visited FIWK but if she did she would spit on it for being an unfocused mess.
ReplyDeleteCould we even choose a topic if we wanted to? I find it unlikely.
On the other hand...
Here's what Trunk writes in her guide to blogging about choosing a topic:
"2. Pick a topic — you can change it when you know what you're doing.
This is like dating. Pick something that seems good, and if it isn't, try again. Don't get hung up on topic. As in dating, you'll know when you've found one that's the right fit. There are some obvious things, like pick a topic you have a lot to say about, pick something that interests you, pick something that will help your career. This is great advice, but you already know that if you look for a perfect match you'll never actually go on a date."
So really we can just consider this whole thing a test bed and if something in particular catches on fire, then we can run with that. It is no risk - if no one was reading when we had no blog, and no one reads now when we do have one, is there a difference? If a tree falls in the forest...
Also I am enjoying it. And we have a few people who stop by and say hello from time to time who seem to enjoy reading and chatting here. So maybe it's not a total failure?
Maybe after her conversation with Caitlin, she followed Smile Like You Mean It to our blog and Penelope Trunk has in fact seen our blog and decided it was a waste of time? Maybe she did have us in mind.
ReplyDeleteAhahaha I love the conspiracy theory... Penelope Trunk hates US
ReplyDeleteThis is the blog equivalent of the "nobody believed in us" sports team... nobody believes in FIWK! We are gonna shock the world!
Is there an argument here that we do have a focus and a concept, and we are sticking to our guns? Conversation and stimulating reads about a variety of things? The interest is in the fact that we have multiple contributors, and we all keep it interesting for one another?
I agree that to be "successful", one probably should have focus, but I like the idea that we're starting with a blank slate and letting this thing go where it naturally wants to go.
ReplyDeleteWho knows - perhaps we'll stumble upon something that heats up, and we pursue that option for 3-4 months. Or, perhaps we end up finding 2-3 key themes and we break this down into multiple FIWK spaces...I say we go as we've gone, and continue going as we go, so that we will never be able to say that we didn't go.
So... we go?
ReplyDeleteExactly
ReplyDeleteComing back to this briefly, I could also see FIWK remain as-is (potpourri of sorts) with each of us branching out into our own blogs, "guest writing" on FIWK whenever we've got something to say outside of our own "niche".
ReplyDeletePurely for entertainment purposes - if you had to choose right now, what would each of our niches be? Don't be afraid to get goofy and/or offend
ReplyDeleteWow - finding a niche for all of us would be tough right now, but here goes:
ReplyDeleteRoyce: Either "Book of the Quarter", "Styles Guide 101", or "Business Week Reactions"
Aaron: Either "I (Dis)Like ____ Because...", or "Sports 101"
Scott: "International Relations 101"
MP: Either "Why the World Hates Me", "France 101", or "Neat Ways I Can Make Fun of Royce" (to be honest, I can't get a grasp on MP at all)
Yours really was the easiest Royce since you're the most active; and mine is what I would honestly try to branch out to as of now...the rest were just quickly tossed together.
ReplyDeleteI could also write "How to Turn 5 Sentences into 1: Thoughts on the Ellipsis"
I like your last suggestion on the ellipsis, you should run with that
ReplyDeleteMik is pretty tough to nail down. I'd like to hear everyone else's suggestions for our niche blog subjects, this is entertaining
Scott, I think you have me down pretty well. My other niche would be: "This writer is really smart...here's a one paragrpah summary and a link."
ReplyDeleteMP: "Intelligent passion: I debate with reason and/or endurance."
Scott: "Random article: Surfing the intelligent internet."
Royce: "Still trying to figure out how to create a podcast..."