(#132-1) February 11 2015. To be told that what you are doing is pointless—and fails across the board—is disconcerting. Still, such criticisms make me think—never a bad thing.

RECENTLY, I WAS TOLD BY A VERY CHARMING AND INTELLIGENT WOMAN THAT THIS BLOG IS A WASTE OF MY TIME—FOR A LONG LIST OF REASONS

I CAN’T REMEMBER THEM ALL, BUT HERE ARE SOME

DO I AGREE? WELL, I PAID CLOSE ATTENTION AND UNDERSTAND WHERE SHE IS COMING FROM—BUT NO. THAT SAID, I ALWAYS LISTEN TO ATTRACTIVE WOMEN (AND I FIND MOST WOMEN ATTRACTIVE)

I have explained my reasons for writing this blog on several occasions in the past (put ‘blog’ or ‘blogging’ in the search engine and they should come up). Now, I no longer feel the need to justify this blog. It has become part of my writing day—and, for better or worse, who I am. I hope to blog until I die—improving steadily over time, may I add.

I’m content enough with the existing format and contents, but am determined to do vastly better. In broad terms, I want my main blog to become more personal and to put specialist areas like military matters, comments on the economy, and aviation into their own sections.

If had more computer expertise, these changes would have been done by now. As matters stand I endeavor to do the best I can within the limits of my skills and circumstances.

Now let me list her criticisms.

It doesn’t make money.

It wastes time that would be better spent on creative writing.

It won’t interest my existing readers.

It won’t gain my any new readers.

It covers too wide a range of subjects.

It doesn’t reflect my style as a fiction writer.

It is merely an outlet for my loneliness.

Above all, it won’t change anything—because American are too wrapped up in the myth of being rugged individualists to care.

There is clearly some validity to the above comments—particularly in relation to it not being a money maker (that is not its purpose) though quite how they can be made with such certainty without knowledge of the figures is a good question.

But some validity does not mean that the charming woman in question is right overall. Actually, it does interest some of my existing readers and I think it is highly probable that it will land a few new ones. As to changing things, I am an absolute believer that just because you don’t see a result immediately doesn’t mean you are not having an effect. You simply have to take the long view.

But the real point of my blog is the effect it has on me. Precisely because it covers disparate subjects, and I—quite deliberately—don’t plan it in advance—it forces me to exercise my brain rather than let it slumber on in its comfort zone.

As for my loneliness, firstly, I am blessed with marvelous friends; secondly, I am surprisingly self-sufficient; and thirdly—if it is therapeutic (which it is)—all the better.

But let me quote from from a Micheal Stelzner piece on Seth Godin.

The importance of blogging

Seth started his Typepad blog about 10 years ago, and says that even if no one read his blog, he would still write it every day. The act of writing has done more for him than any other habit. Blogging pushes you to notice things, it gives you a schedule and puts you on the hook to publish something daily.

Everything starts as a blog post, Seth shares. “Sometimes I don’t publish it, because by the time I finish writing it I decide that it should be an ebook. Then, by the time I finish the ebook, I decide it should be a book.”

The above isn’t exactly what I think but it’s close enough.

VOR words c. 400

---