Doesn't it seem sometimes like blogging has been around forever?
Well, maybe not that long, but still.
When we first started out,
wasn't it a thrill to know that blogging
put the world at our fingertips?
And we had plans,
big plans!
But is blogging on the wane these days?
Many bloggers have stopped posting.
It's slow going to get new readers.
Lots of people have drifted away to
faster and easier platforms like
Facebook, Twitter,
YouTube and Instagram.
However, the die-hard bloggers remain!
We're still enthusiastic!
We're still enthusiastic!
Not even trolls, the bane of the internet, can deter us!
We just activate comment moderation and carry on!
So why are we die-hards so persistent in our blogging?
The answer is obvious.
Keep on posting, my friends!
This fabulous blog badge is the creation of
junemac57 of 57beyond blog -- you can read
her post on the same subject here!
She encourages us all to display
it on our blogs too!
A super idea!
You may be right. Lots of my blogging friends just haven't felt like blogging for various reasons this year, and they haven't been visiting other blogs either. This time of year makes it rough too. Many bloggers have gone on to podcasting too. Even though I blog, I still visit Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and Pinterest to see what's going on and to share pics. I hope that paper books and blogging stay around for quite some time. I love your memes! Hugs, RO
ReplyDeleteI remember the first day I blogged. Took awhile for me to do so, but once I did, I took off. At one point I had about 6 blocks at once? Remember. That soon caused blogger burnout. I do miss a lot of the old bloggers. I, too, take breaks, but I always end up coming back. I miss my friends.
ReplyDeletethat bobdamn troll hit me 3 times yesterday, but his stupid fuckwit "comments" will NEVER see the light of day on MY blog! bwhahahahahahahaha! eat shit and die, troll! you too, donald dump!
ReplyDeleteWhenever I worry about readership, I remind myself I decided to start my blog for my own pleasure. It’s become a great diary of these past 9 years, and I’m happy if I can even share with a small number of special people. So I’ll keep writing.
ReplyDeleteI didn't exactly quit, but rather slowed down. The slowly slide began the day our shithead-in-chief took the oath...when I realized most of my blogging efforts was about his sorry ass. Three years later, it still affects me...so I just don't bother any more. I am no longer a blogger, per se.
ReplyDeleteActually a lot of old bloggers returned to blogging this year, some people we haven't seen for years are blogging again.
ReplyDeleteI love the meme!!!! Yes sadly this year many of my favorite bloggers cut way back and even stopped. So the remaining of us must continue tootes! Mine acts as my mood board
ReplyDeleteI'm like Mitchell, I do it to put ME out there, and my thoughts and such, and if people like it, well, I like that.But I don't get too caught up in visitors and numbers and such.
ReplyDeleteOh yes! Let's! I'm certainly getting more viewers but still not much engagement. But i'm not as active as you are in the visiting field.
ReplyDeletei think about this a lot. if it wasn't for my kids, i would have quit a while ago. i still might. but my blog has always been a way to chronicle things for my kids and to store my recipes because i am horrible about writing them down!
ReplyDeletenever really had a "troll" problem at my blog.... but at Spore.com had several who continued to "down-rate" All of my posted creations...
ReplyDeletenarrowed it down to a handful of "suspects", so Subscribed that group... guess whoever was in that group... (likely thought we knew exactly which one) and not had that problem since
I have lost so many blogs that I love to visit - Insomniacs Attic, Coffin Kitsch, and now Pumpkinrot. However, I agree with Mitchell, I do it for myself and the fact that I have met so many lovely people along the way is the icing on the cake.
ReplyDeleteDebra you are an angel getting this out there and in such STYLE love your blog style my friend. Thanks for posting a link back to my blog. I intend to carry this on and i am adamant blogging will be back big style lol. All it takes is a little more care and word of mouth and we will sure feel the love.
ReplyDeletehugs June x
You are so right. I used to have so many interesting/funny blogs to read, now only a few. Thank goodness for YOU! Also, I had SO many faithfull readers/commenters and now, they're all gone. Gone to the land of instant gratification with stupid FB. yes, I said it.
ReplyDeleteI'm gonna go check out your friend and see what she has to say about it all.
XO
I must not be blogging right. I've received no "Go F*CK Yourself"s :( Just keep trying.
ReplyDeleteI love blogging and wish there were more readers reading and commenting. The reason I blog is to keep me from getting arrested. The thing I love so much about blogging is the passing of ideas and information. Recipes fall into that and I dearly love recipe and cooking blogs. Many people are moving onto Youtube with vlogs and that is sad because I like reading more than watching.
ReplyDeleteIn my life I have seen the rise of the digital world. I am mostly positive about it. Blogs, and book blogs in particular, are one reason that I am so positive. I am still thrilled that we can have this interactive platform where we can all share ideas. I have been blogging for over seven years and I think that I have only received one trollish comment the entire time.
ReplyDeleteI have been blogging since 2008. Was with Windows Spaces at that time. Still in contact a few of my old Spaces friends and also met some in person. 2 passed away already. As for trolls, who cares cuz that's what comment moderation is for. Anonymous comments have no chance either. On some of my posts I have as many as 157 views, mostly from Asia and Scandinavia, but these regular peepers never ever comment, which I find a bit annoying. Anyway, the countdown is on. 5 more shifts, then it's travel time :) Love, cat.
ReplyDeleteHello Debra, I think that blogging is a very superior form of self-expression and connection to the world. You get to know people through their blogs in a way that is not possible with the simpler and briefer forms of social media. The effort the writer makes in putting together a blog is one of the prime reasons to admire what has been crafted for our enjoyment.
ReplyDelete--Jim
I enjoy blogging and will continue until the joy is gone! Next week? Lol.
ReplyDeleteI don't blog as much as I used to ~ but I would miss too many folk if I gave it up completely.
ReplyDeleteWell, that hit close to home! Lol. I'm reluctant to check and see when was the last time I posted. I'm pretty sure it was this year! I guess another post is in order...
ReplyDeleteAnd, here's the thing, although I don't post much, I truly enjoy reading other people's blogs. So, I guess that means that I too must carry on. It's a circular thing, eh?
Blogging has slowed down for sure.
ReplyDeleteThings like Twitter (barf I hate Twitter).
And Instagram (super fast to share a photo),
and other hot spots are out and about.
But .. But .. But ..
Blogging is always home to me.
Just is. Will be.
And it's nice to be back.
Sometimes I just have a prolonged brain freeze. I think the important thing (for me) is to not let it take root. If you go without blogging for an extended period of time, it's harder and harder to get back to it. But I love everything about blogging - I have 'met' so many wonderful people and it's wildly entertaining to catch glimpses into their lives. Blog on!
ReplyDeleteThis here blog is the one and only place wherein I'm treated with loads of love from folks across the world.
ReplyDeleteMBGA!
I started blogging thirteen years ago this month - it was originally meant as a record of my 60th birthday trip to Vietnam. Of course it became more than that - it recorded the trial and tribulations of dealing with a heritage home in Aylmer, time in Beijing, our life in Rome and travels throughout Europe, readjustment to living back in Canada and Ottawa, our move to PEI and the joys of ours canine masters.
ReplyDeleteWhen I reread posts I am embarrassed by how badly written some of them are; at other times catch myself puffing up with pride at a well turned phrase. And when I felt that no one was reading my blog I decided like Mitchell that ultimately I was writing for myself as much as anyone else. On more than one occasion I've almost quite but am always drawn back. There are at least 90 drafts of things I started and never finished - and chances are they will never be finished. I formalize projects in my mind and then nothing happens.
I admit lately my posting has been sporadic as has my reading of other blogs - I tend to binge. But I when I do it I still enjoy the writing and research; when I read my friends' blog I still enjoy catching up with them.
All that to say - thank you for putting into words and pictures what I have been thinking lately.
Big hugs from the Big Spud.
I read a lot of baseball card blogs, in fact, discovered this one from a link that originated from one, though I think once or twice removed. They are talking about declines in readership and content there as well.
ReplyDelete7 out of 9 pictures are not showing up for me. Anyone else having that problem? I've been seeing this on other people's blogs at times recently.
ReplyDeleteMike I started having that problem and I switched to a different browsers and that worked for me.
DeleteI find it very disconcerting when people I have been communicating with for several years suddenly vanish without a word. It leaves you wondering what on earth has happened to them, and whether they are alright. If I gave up blogging, which I am not intending to do, then I would say so.
ReplyDeleteI used to get 300 readers a day, and at least 30-40 comments. Now, it's about 150 readers at most, and maybe 5 comments. Many of my friends who still blog don't visit or at least don't leave comments on my blog anymore, but we do "see" each other on Facebook, Instagram, etc. Mostly now I just blog for my own writing enjoyment and sharing with the few people who still bother to drop in. You still have a decent following -
ReplyDelete@ Mike -- Oh no! That's terrible that you're not seeing the images -- they're the best part! I hope other people aren't having that problem too. I don't know which browser you use but perhaps that's the issue. I use Chrome.
ReplyDeleteI blog because I have a passion to write. I will continue blogging until the passion dies, independent of an audience.
ReplyDeleteI will NEVER stop and I WILL be the last blogger standing. ME...CALVIN, because I am one of the planet's great bloggers. I am just criminally ignored by the idiot mass audience.
ReplyDeleteAs a relative newcomer to the blogosphere (I've only followed She Who Seeks for about a year), I think blogs are great! I wish I had discovered blogging much sooner. I've always avoided Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, etc like the plague because they only seem to offer vitriol or shallow, self-absorbed navel gazing to the nth degree. Do I care what your roommate said or that your cat had a crap this morning? NEIN!
ReplyDeletePlus, I'm one of those readers guilty of checking out some of the recommended blogs on Debra's list and not leaving comments (e.g., Bluebird of Bitterness, Calvin's Cave of Canadian Coolness and Moving With Mitchell). Please forgive my faux pas!
Life got busy for me. But Im still HERE!
ReplyDeleteJP
I started blogging in February of 2006 when I got fired from my job and hubby and I decided to go on a road trip. My posts were part travelog and part existential/philosophical. And it was a way to keep in touch with family and friends (before I started doing Facebook - a horrible decision). I don't know what happened...I did write and publish a memoir, so much of my writing energy went into that. I have kept up three different blogs, my original one and one cooking blog and one that our dog Benni "writes" from time to time. But mostly I have lost enthusiasm for writing. I devolved to a picture-poster and video-poster with little original writing.
ReplyDeleteAnd I must be doing SOMETHING wrong on Blogger because I find the interface to be very quirky at times and things don't always end up looking right or lining up correctly and I end up spending way too much time "fixing" the posts or uploading photos. So it stopped being fun. Not to mention the fact that very few people read any of the blogs. But I will say that some of my older posts might still be interesting.
Blogging is great. Sometimes I have nothing to say, and don't, but I recover in a day or two.
ReplyDeleteSo many of the other bloggers' comments resonate with me. I blog for myself, primarily, but am happy if folk enjoy what I write. Lately, I haven't felt that there has been much to report, but I doubt I'll totally stop blogging in the near future.
ReplyDeleteI'm using Chrome also and all the pictures are there now. I'm sure it's got something to do with Blogger's servers.
ReplyDeleteI actually left for awhile and came back with a vengeance.
ReplyDeleteCount me among the die-hard bloggers, Debra. I love the wonderful and talented people who have become my online friends. Now, if I could just figure out how to catch up with everyone's posts and stay caught up ~ LOL!
ReplyDeleteThat's a great blog badge, will add it to my blog.
ReplyDeleteI love the blog community, it helped save my life back in 2008 so I will always be a blogger.
Keep on keeping on Debra.
Hugs
Peggy xxx
But is blogging on the wane these days?
ReplyDeleteCan't say I've noticed, though I've heard people say that. Yes, I've seen a fair number of blogs go dark over the years, but there are also new people starting up. And there are always new blogs to discover, even if they're only new to me. So many times I've thought, "How come I only just discovered this person when they've been blogging for years?"
Twitter and Instagram aren't suited to posts of any length. YouTube is so shitted up with ads these days that it's getting unwatchable. And I've never been able to figure out what Facebook does other than collect data on its users to sell to advertisers and spy on people.
Part of the fascination of blogs is their individuality. Each blog is so different because each one represents the style and interests of its owner. I don't see any other medium on the internet which manifests that to the same degree that blogs do.
No matter what other social media sites I participate in, blogging is always my favourite, even if I only comment on other blogs or post just once in a while on mine. It's the absolute best place!
ReplyDeleteHi Debra, I just popped back to let you know i just published photographs of the project we completed this year. Its on a page on my blog here. https://57beyond.blogspot.com/p/n.html if you want to take a little look see. xxx
ReplyDeleteBlogging is a way to be creative. The only way I have at the moment. If I ever get that call from Hollywood, well, I might have to cut back some.
ReplyDeleteI used to be a blogger, for almost 6 years, until recently...then I was attacked by some odd traffic that didn't help in anyway...so I deleted it...completely ! I worried the internet had gotten out of control...
ReplyDeleteI loved blogging...
Now, I read other blogs....but you are right...there are many other bloggers who have left as well....
Well, now I have more time...not blogging.
Nancy
(formerly from wild oak Designs)
Not sure when I started blogging, but my best guess is at least 18 years or so. I started writing about daily adventures and current events, burned out on the latter, and switched it up to focus more on hobbiesReadership has definitely fallen since the early aughts, comments too. A minuscule number of the people I used to regularly read still post. I've never been interested in moving to Instagram or Twitter, so at this point I just use the blog as a personal hobby journal.
ReplyDeleteSince I started, I always loved blogging. Far more interesting and involving than say Twitter. But yes, sadly it is an old form of social media.
ReplyDeleteI love this post, Debra. I love blogging but it has taken a back seat to my working full time right now. I am retiring in a few months and will actually be starting a new blog come spring...as we start to travel in a RV.
ReplyDeleteI am so happy to have met you along the way here-you are smart and fun...two of my favorite qualities. xo Diana
I blog for me, it's a kind of therapy and certainly not about numbers (although it's a pleasure when you get readers). I've been doing this over 15 years and not planning to stop. The problem sometimes is there are bloggers out there who simply use blogging as an income generator, I'm not here for the commercials. Nothing gives me more pleasure than finding a good honest blog.
ReplyDeleteHow did I miss this?
ReplyDeleteBlogging is here to stay! Look at the responses here!!! Yay!
I left blogger for awhile to do micro-blogging on Tumblr but once they got all prudish and stupid I told them to fuck off. Now I'm back on long-format and loving it.
Is it not the 'it' thing to do? Who cares! It's fun.
XOXO
Debra, I find it is the older crowd that blogs now. Very rare to find someone in their thirties and below that blogging is thought of as something your grandmother does. I have been doing it for 12 years and all my original blog friends and readers have disappeared years ago. The people left now seem to be more dedicated. I don't worry about readers, I blog as a release, I prefer having a small group of characters (like I do) to interact with. I actively try to stay under the radar. I have thought of quitting or maybe stopping for a while. Really when you think about it, if you enjoy doing it, then you have arrived at a good place. There is no point in putting pressure on yourself to blog. I know that I would miss it. Blogging is my line in the sand, I have no interest in Facebook or any of the other trending sites. I think those sites are for silly things like taking a selfie drinking coffee while blogs usually have more character behind the person.
ReplyDeleteI love blogging and I will never stop! Even though I am behind! Great post Debra! Big Hugs!
ReplyDeleteI haven't been able to blog as much but I keep at it, doggedly. Gee, haven't used that word in a while, somehow sounds odd, but the meaning is correct!
ReplyDeleteYes we've lost a lot of bloggers over the years and I only post once or twice a month, but I still enjoy checking in with folks like you Debra! Thanks for the blogger badge, I will proudly add it to my blog!
ReplyDeletei love to stay connected with amazing blogging friends and sharing my thoughts with them
ReplyDeletelistening their thoughts about my topics
it is important to me dear Debra :)
I love blogging. I've dabbled with Facebook in the past but hated it. I tried Instagram last year, but found it was just too addictive and INSTANT as it were...it lacked the personal touch of blogging. People thought they were connecting with you when they "liked" all of your posts...it was a pretty lonely place to be! Great post Debra, blog on! :)
ReplyDeletehttps://www.messynessychic.com/2016/09/14/inside-le-monocle-the-parisian-lesbian-nightclub-of-the-1930s/?fbclid=IwAR0ynmotN6H4uzmX23VYWQ_j5Uk9k55GOIPjxDFS7t-WjSa65HcWsDVG4tk
ReplyDelete@ Cal's Canadian Cave of Coolness -- Thanks for the great link!
ReplyDeleteJust about everyone I broke into blogging with has folded their blogs and went to Facebook. I guess constant turnover is a design feature of the platform. It's always fun to find a new blog to follow as old ones disappear.
ReplyDeleteI have one troll in particular who turns up every couple of years. I recognize his style and the particulars of his metadata, so I always decline his comments. Once I know it's him, I barely even skim the comment. I like to imagine him as a lonely voice, crying for attention in the wilderness. He's not interested in real dialogue, just stirring up trouble and casting aspersions onto my personal life. In the wilderness, he will remain.
It's amazing to find so many bloggers keeping the tradition alive. I've been at it over ten years and have accumulated maybe four readers, so blogging must be satisfying some sick need I have to type. The arrival of the Russian Usurper has just made it worse. I dislike podcasts and social media is where the mad people live, so I'll probably be The Last Blogger. All welcome, I don't moderate. Let's stir up trouble.
ReplyDeleteI'd been trying to get back to blogging, but new meds knocked me out for over a month. It's crazy. I've saved that button and will get it up soon. I hate FB and IG is getting really bad. I miss blogging.
ReplyDeleteblessings
~*~