On Blogging

Blog Blog Revolution

Ah, blogging.

It’s so little understood.  My father-in-law asks me, in all seriousness, how the “blopping” is going.  My uncle wants to discuss how he can better “participate in my blog.” My mom leaves heartfelt comments on my blog, thinking they’re visible only to me.  My friends think I’m crazy for wasting so much time on something so silly.

The thing is, when you don’t DO blogging, it doesn’t really make sense. First of all, what kind of word is ‘blog’ anyway?  It sounds like the noise you make when you hurl up sausages, or the name of a character on Star Trek. 

To the uninitiated, blogging appears to be an elusive sub-culture… the domain of the technically-savvy front-runners of our Internet age.

But you and I know that’s not really true.  Blogging is available to anyone with something to say.  Ok, and a computer is sort of required too.

Did you know there’s a 98 year old woman in Mexico with a blog?  True story.  And already I’m seeing more and more of my friends and family (who are mostly younger than that) take the plunge to reading blogs… Followed by the big step of starting up blogs of their own.

It’s a revolution!

I had NO idea what I was getting into when I started this “blogging thing.”  I fumbled my way to Blogger, signed up for a templated site, and wrote my first post.  Little did I know that by clicking “publish,” I had taken the first step on a journey towards… what?  Well, not being there yet, I really can’t say. 

But so far I’ve found new and dear friends and a constant source of entertainment and support.  I have reconnected with my passion for writing and have even figured out how to make a few bucks!

I’m excited about this column, because I’m excited about BLOGGING! 

There’s so much to talk about!  From tips and tricks, how-to’s, and what-not-to-do’s, to the bigger questions of WHAT DOES IT ALL MEAN?  And why are we doing this anyway?  We’ll talk about the empowering possibilities of (gasp) making money from our blogs and the grim reality of HOW THE HECK DO WE GET MORE READERS?!  I even plan to interview the bright & shining stars of the blogosphere, pick their brains, and share their secrets with YOU!

This column is for everyone… for those of us who’ve been doing it for a while, for the novices and newbies, for the techno-geeks and the techno-phobes, and even for the people who are thinking about starting a blog, but haven’t taken the plunge.  To you I say… JUST DO IT!  Join the revolution!

So sit back, pull up your keyboards, and lend me your eyes.  

Let’s talk blogging! 

Catch more of Jenny Blackburn’s humorous anecdotes on being a mom, a woman, and a whole lot crazy at Absolutely Bananas.  You can also find her blogging for the Seattle Post-Intelligencer in Adventures in Parenting.  If you have questions, anecdotes, or topics for “On Blogging,” email jenny@seattlemomblogs.com.