Blog Discussions

1

My philosophical take on the matter? Sometimes, people aren't ready for that content. But you still need to write it. So that the content can age, can gather momentum, can gain trust in the eyes of search engines.

And when people are ready, that piece of content will be so compelling to them. This can explain why your "getting to the point" post was popular, because people can readily identify with it (regardless of its length).

I find writing a post and waiting for hordes of comments, or gaining attention from social media sites immediately (or within relatively short time) tiring. And it's unrealistic to expect that kind of response for every single post.

The simple answer could be time. It's just not time yet. The idea that the Earth was round took some time for people to accept it, didn't it?

2

I did a post on my blog a month or two about about writing a "stream of consciousness". The entire post was done in 8 minutes. It ended up getting more traffic than a post I spend 4 hours on earlier in the week. What I think made the post so popular was the fact that it was done so quickly. For the most part though, you just can't predict it.

3

I never expect comments. I am honoured each time someone makes the effort. I am gleeful if they have something nice to say about my post or whatever it is I have done.

I've blogged fabulously and not had a comment. I've blogged what I thought was nothing and had feedback telling me what great doodles I do. I've blogged heart deep pain and found I had friends I didn't know about, people who have been reading or lurking and felt the same things I am. Those are the comments I like. When they stopped to let me know I'm not alone and don't need to feel I'm playing my own violin every time I feel down.

When reading a blog post, even yours, I am a skimmer. I begin and only finish if something engages me. Whether it is the writing itself, the topic or the humour, sincerity, etc. Something keeps my wandering thoughts and I realize I've come to the end all at once. I seldom read long posts to the end. I'm distracted too easily, often by something in the post which makes me think of something else.

My browswer always has a ton of open windows with things I'm in the middle of. Each night I have to choose between getting to bed in decent time or finishing up all the things I have started. :D

4

I'm like Laura on a lot of things: like skimming (I too have short attention span) and not expecting comments. I think though it's hard for me to say to other people that they shouldn't either because I've only come to accept that comments aren't that important to me after all this time that I've been writing publicly. When I first started writing publicly (the word blog hadn't even been formed as an idea let alone uttered yet) of course I cared about getting comments... but after a while you learn to write for yourself and really... why does anything else matter when you can make yourself happy? :D

5

I think because people are unique beings, it's hard to find a set pattern. Everything seems too random. What strikes a chord with me one day I might gloss over on another. I guess other readers are the same.

I tend to find though that my posts written "on the spur of the moment" often get more response than a more "polished" post. I guess I'm more likely to reveal something of myself in an "off the cuff" piece of writing and I think that is what blog readers will often respond to.

6

Vincent - good points and I certainly don't expect lots of comments on every post. This week, I've noticed some trends with commenting on my site. I might write a bit more about them in a week or two. In the meantime I'll certainly keep writing the posts.

Jeff - good to hear I'm not alone in this. I'm starting to understand what makes people comment. My last few posts have certainly helped with this.

Laura - seems like a bit of a running theme here. I am skimming posts more and more often as I subscribe to a slowly increasing quota of blogs. I hate not finishing things and it's resulted in a lot of late nights over the years, but in recent weeks I've been getting off the PC and going to bed earlier than I used to. It makes it easier to get up in the mornings, focus on what I need to do, and generally have a less-stressful life. I wouldn't be surprised if the previous regime was starting to reflect badly on my blog.

fragileheart - it probably depends on who you're trying to appeal to. Building on what you've said, I think that once you've had a certain number of comments, you don't seem to need them quite so much. I like getting comments and I like replying; I also like writing detailed posts and seeing what people say about them. However, there are days when I'd rather write shorter posts and shorter replies. There's no reason why they can't be just as good when they're concise. Varying the length of my posts has been a big thing for me this week, and I've enjoyed blogging a lot more than usual. I blogged on a Saturday and revived my Quick Tips series. That's probably a good sign!

Lightening - I seem to go in cycles. I don't always like the long posts. Nor do I always like short posts. Mixing it up a bit has been a very rewarding experience and I'd like to continue doing it in the future.

Thanks for the comments. :)