Comments on One Crafty Mother: In Which I Preach To The Choir

I watched House last night too, and I was interest...

2010-11-24T15:27:16.441-05:00

I watched House last night too, and I was interested in how the blogger was portrayed. I doubt I would read someone's blog who posts from her hospital bed, immediately after hearing life-changing news. The boyfriend was spot-on when he said she wasn't doing it for the community, she was doing it for the audience.

It has always seemed to me that you are blogging for a community, not an audience, and I think your readers can see the difference.

I started blogging because I like to read blogs, and I wanted to comment on them with more than just my name. Am I a good blogger? Not really. Could I give it up tomorrow? Yeah. But I enjoy doing it all the same - for myself. The fact I have readers is a fantastic bonus.

Really interesting comments, everyone. Thank you...

2010-03-09T22:03:03.356-05:00

Really interesting comments, everyone. Thank you.

I particularly like the idea of community vs. audience. Obviously, you can't have a community without an audience, but the motivation for writing feels different. I like that.

Hope - I hope you do submit something for the new blog! That would be wonderful!

-Ellie

I've been blogging for 5+ years now. I started...

2010-03-09T21:47:39.753-05:00

I've been blogging for 5+ years now. I started it because I wanted to prove to myself I could write. I also have a chronic disease and at that point in my life I was bordering on being disabled. The blogosphere was a great comfort during that time when I couldn't do much outside the house.

I blog anonymously because of my addiction stuff. My husband and adult kids read the blog as does one of my sisters. So do a selection of friends. When I came clean about the sex addiction some of my friends got really uncomfortable. Any time I blog about really personal stuff I run the post past my husband before I post it. And some stuff is out of bounds for the blog. I do think about going from anonymous to not but so far haven't.

Btw - I hope to write something for your new blog endeavour soon.

I watched "House" as well. I thought th...

2010-03-09T21:33:36.277-05:00

I watched "House" as well. I thought that the blogger-patient went too far. Seeking the opinions of her followers barely before her husband had given his thoughts. And she seemed to be swayed by them.

I think there is a danger in making the blogosphere more important that the real life. If relationships suffer for the sake of the blog, IMHO, it's gone too far.

But having said that, I've been a blogger for 2.5 years and it has given me much and I don't intend on giving it up any time soon. It is, I grant you, self indulgent.

While I think many people unfairly dismiss blogs, I have to admit a lot of blogs out there I do not care to read.

I started my blog simply because my sister-in-law ...

2010-03-09T19:30:41.524-05:00

I started my blog simply because my sister-in-law has one to keep us updated on her, my brother and their children as they move around constantly with the Air Force. I thought it would be fun to post pictures of my kids and keep in touch with family. When we started having trouble with our daughter with seizures and behavioral issues, I (very tentatively) blogged about our struggles parenting her and ultimately about her epilepsy diagnosis. It became almost like therapy for me and a reaching out for support and encouragement as I shed many tears over her. Then when our other daughter needed her second open heart surgery on top of that, I poured my heart out on the blog. Now my blog is part diary, part everyday life as a mom, part keeping family up-to-date, and part hoping I can encourage someone else struggling as a parent to children with medical issues. I do think twice before I hit "post" because I think you can overshare on the internet. I ask my husband what he thinks of my posts because he is more private, and if he disliked something, I would not post it. My family tells me they like my blog, and I have had a few acquaintances come up at school or around town and tell me they like my blog - but they have never left comments so I did not know they read it, and then I felt a bit naked! As long as I have something on my heart, I will probably still blog.

I watched House last night too, and I was interest...

2010-03-09T17:55:52.903-05:00

ps: i was over at your new site this morning. i am...

2010-03-09T15:29:07.358-05:00

ps: i was over at your new site this morning. i am very, very impressed and inspired. good work.

no one knows i blog. it is been my secret for over...

2010-03-09T15:28:31.838-05:00

no one knows i blog. it is been my secret for over a year. i mean, my husband knows, and my best friend in another city knows, but my daily running pack has no idea. i don't want them to know. they wouldn't understand, but that is my fault, because i have cultivated real life friendships that i am not too excited about anymore.i started blogging to say the things i could never say to them.

my husband is totally into it. he loves reading about himself and scours the comments to see who is sticking up for him (or not). but he and i have a very healthy 19 year marriage under our belt, so the most i ever complain about is him refusing to rub my feet or something silly. but sometimes, when i write about my son's illness (another huge reason i started blogging), my hubby gets sad for me and thinks i am being too dark. but the feelings have to go somewhere, and that somewhere is on my blog.

so there you go.

It depends on the person... I've recently hear...

2010-03-09T15:06:07.654-05:00

It depends on the person... I've recently heard from one friend that it's too personal - that they feel like they're reading my diary. So she doesn't read it.
But for the most part I've heard how much more people have gotten to know me through my blog, because when you have children, at the typical playdate or gathering, you don't have time to talk about the things that matter so much. Enter the blog... where I talk constantly about things that matter to me... :)
It's my therapy. And I love it!

A well-written post! I feel similar to you on thi...

2010-03-09T13:53:45.012-05:00

A well-written post!
I feel similar to you on this matter: I started my blog 1) as a somewhat self-indulgent diary to make me feel good, 2) a way to keep friends and family in the loop of our lives after moving, and 3) to capture the positive transformation that our family is currently undergoing, and share it with the world. We fell subject to the economic apocalypse, and are heading out of it now. I want to bring others some semblance of hope.
Friends and family have been supportive of my blogging. I have to try to not be too hard on myself! I often feel like no one really wants to read what I have to say. I often feel as if I am not a real blogger because I'm only two months into it, and others out there who've been doing it longer are much better than me. I keep going, however, and well, imagine my surprise on having 130 people coming back to read my blog last month! That has outperformed my wildest expectations!

Well, E....I became a follower of your blog after ...

2010-03-09T13:12:31.970-05:00

Well, E....I became a follower of your blog after purchasing some of your fab jewlery. That was last spring and you had less than 10 followers. You now have over 100!!! I'd say you've found a tribe or they've found you.

Keep on keeping on, lady! xo

I feel the way you do about blogging. I started my...

2010-03-09T10:28:19.322-05:00

I feel the way you do about blogging. I started my blog to participate in a writing contest that insisted that you have one to post your serial novel in. Since then I have been struggling to figure out what else to do with it.

I enjoy your posts. Both you and Elizabeth(DaMomma) have a real gift at getting to what is important in everyday life and you are both failing honest about everything. I am glad to find some other mom's who's kids drive them nuts even though they couldn't live without them.

I am further along with the parenting thing than you. My daughter is graduating high school in 2 months, and my "Finn" is just starting middle school but I feel as if I have found a kindred spirit and that's a rare thing.

My only advice would be stay honest and don't give up. We'll firgue out this blogging thing eventually.