Why Blog?

I am willing to bet that the first time you heard the word ‘Blog’, you said, ‘Excuse me, What did you just say?’ That is certainly what I said. I thought the person had sneezed! The word blog is so completely inelegant as to alienate people immediately upon hearing it uttered for the first time.

The descriptions of the word blog offered up by the Mainstream Media (MSM) tend to be none too flattering either. ‘Pointless egotistical diary entries.’ ‘Narcissistic ramblings.’ ‘Flawed, poorly written, unedited junk!’ And, truth be told, many blogs fall into the category of personal journal that the world could probably do just as well without. But, before we dismiss this thing, this powerful tool, called Blog, let’s determine what, exactly, we’re talking about.

What is this thing called Blog? A ‘Blog’, according to Websters dictionary and Wikipedia is,

…Web site that contains an online personal journal with reflections, comments, and often hyperlinks provided by the writer.

…Short hand for ‘Weblog’ (Web Log)…A Website that…provide commentary or news on a particular subject; … A typical blog combines text, images, and links to other blogs, web pages, and other media related to its topic.

…are part of a wider network of social media.

Simply put, a Weblog or Blog is a very easy way for John and Jane Q. Public to write, publish and explore their ideas online.

If you choose to open a blog with one of the many free blogging services, you can be writing your first post five minutes after you’re done reading this sentence! It’s that easy. If you can type a document on a computer, you can Blog!

So that’s the what of blogging. But the important question is why. Why in the world would I want to start writing where anyone can read it? It’s a fair question and one that only you can know the answer to for yourself. I can tell you that, for myself and for many people that I know, blogging is an excellent way to explore and expand on the ideas in your head. In any event, writing down you ideas anywhere is a good idea. Be it with a pen in a journal or with a keyboard on a word processor or with a stick in the sand on a beach, the act of writing gives an idea a physical existence and weight. It allows you to work with the idea, to mold, and shape it. It lets you get a handle on what you are thinking because it’s there in front of you, clearly, in black and white. A blog, like a journal, is simply a tool that lets you work with your writing in specific ways. I argue that a blog one of the better ways to improve your writing and your ideas.

A blog can help your writing in several ways:

First, it helps to get you into the ‘writing habit’. If you make it a goal to post (writing a blurb or an article or a piece on a blog is called ‘posting’ or ‘writing a post’) X number of times per week, it can encourage you to be writing and to be thinking about what you want to write about.

Second, if you choose to write on a blog that you make publicly available, you will think about your ideas differently. You will. Trust me, it’s inevitable and it’s a good thing. Since the ideas are no longer simply the thoughts in your head, you have to find a way to clearly communicate them to your audience. This simple change will greatly refine and hone your ideas. You may find that when you try to write your idea down, you need to go out and read a book or take a class on writing! And that’s okay!

Thirdly, a public blog post can be your first statement in a conversation you are having with the world. An integral feature to most blogs are the comments system. Once you’ve posted an article, readers can choose to comment on it. They may agree, disagree, heap praise, argue, cite other sources, criticize or respond just as anyone would in a conversation. There will be rude people and fans, angry cynics and ecstatic supporters . And as the author, you can respond to them. And they can respond to each other. What began as your take on an idea blossoms into a nuanced conversation with your readers from your community and from all over the world. People can share pictures and links to resources and references. What began as an idea in one persons head has now evolved into a fully fledged resource combining many pieces from many participants. And it all started because you wanted to share this idea you had this one time…

Can you tell that I want you to go out right now and start blogging? I do!

ChannelBV ’s purpose is to be one avenue for the sharing and exploration of ideas within our community. And we hope that you will want to share some of your thoughts about this community and your world, your skills and your passions. We want you to be both readers and writers, bloggers and commenters. At the heart of this idea is the belief that participatory culture, the culture that exists where we all produce, consume and converse with each other, is a connected culture and contributes to an exciting, vibrant community. Buena Vista is a community that has ideas to share. And we are excited to hear and talk about them!

If you would like to learn more about blogging and meet the people who’s ideas you read on ChannelBV, we will be holding monthly workshops and get-togethers to talk about our community and to expand our skills as writers and communicators. Sign up for our events calendar to be sure you hear about the next gathering.

For more resources on starting your own blog, click here.