I got an email today with the headline “Is Blogging dead?” and later read an article someone linked to Facebook that told me if my blog got less than 1000 hits a day it was going to die. WHAT?????
The article went on to say that in order to have a successful blog, you need to talk about things that are important to your readers, and you must have a target readership who you come to know pretty intimately.
Alrighty, then. I’ve been blogging for about five years, and yes, writing about things which interest me. A good month might see a thousand or so hits.
But let’s take a step back. The people writing these things are assuming that in writing a blog, you are trying to sell something. All I’m doing here is sharing life’s experiences, in hopes that they might resonate with someone and help them through something I’ve already experienced. Heck, I’m not even asking for donations! I just enjoy sharing, and seeing that at least a few people manage to find my blog and read it…for pleasure.
Certainly, when I get my website set up to start developing a platform on which to market my book, I’ll find a topic and do my research so I’m actually informative when I write in the associated blog. But for now, as I’ve said on many occasions, I blog because I’m a writer, and as a writer, I must write. It’s as important to me as breathing. I’m not trying to win any contests for blogging. I’m not trying to sell or convince or otherwise engage in any kind of business venture. I’m simply writing because I love to write, and if I help a single person with my ramblings, it’s icing on the cake, the cherry on top of my hot fudge sundae, and I feel like I’ve made a difference, however small, in this world.
I’m a simple woman. I like comfy clothes and hanging out with my cats. Dancing and laughing with my friends, and sharing the little joys and sorrows which float in and out of our days. If I never had to put on a dress, stockings and heels again, that would be just fine with me!
I talk to my plants and sing or talk to the cats when I cook. You would probably find nothing special about me if we just met. You’d have to take the time to get to know me to find the diamond in the rough.
But there are a couple of things I have going for me which many people never find.
First, I’m madly in love with myself. I don’t care that I’m not perfect, though I do keep trying to make positive changes.
Second, I have learned to find the positive side of almost everything, and find joy in every day.
and Third, I’m grateful for every little thing, from getting both contacts in on the first try in the morning, to hitting all green lights on my way to wherever, to going a whole day without my undies crawling up my tush! I’m just so darned happy that good things happen to me, everywhere I look!
So as far as my blog dying for lack of readers, let me assure you that I get just as excited on the days I have 10 hits as I do on those rare days when I get 300. Each and every person who stops by is important to me! I will keep blogging for as long as I can think of anything to write. I get my inspiration from life, from things people say, from posts I see on Facebook and from emails I receive. I would even take requests if anyone had one.
When I was younger, I read everything in sight. These days, I write it. I call it “evolution”.
My gratitudes tonight are:
1. I am grateful that I don’t really care what other people think or believe. The only thing that counts is what I believe.
2. I am grateful for inspiration, the good, the bad and the ugly. It all gives me a reason to write, so it’s all good to me.
3. I am grateful for all of the different points of view. I may not agree, but the variety amuses me.
4. I am grateful that the world is my muse.
5. I am grateful that I’m nearing the end of the edit/rewrite of my book as there are so many other things I want and need to do. But I learned this year that I need to focus on one thing at a time, and see it to completion before haring off in seven or eight new directions.
Love and light.
