Reader Feedback: Personal Blogging
Personal March 6th, 2007As of recent I’ve had to keep away from my WordPress install, due to the fact that I’ve increasingly been wanting to write more personal opinion posts about topics currently (and currently not) in the news. This inspiration to get more personal has mainly been pushed into my head from one blogger, Khoi Vinh of Subtraction.
I love creating feature content which appeals to everyone - yet I’d love to be able to throw a few posts in here and there about my life. About personal experiences and ramblings on technology, blogging, photography, design, and the web in general.
What do you think about this? Would you mind if I started getting a little more personal and starting to blog about my perspective and opinion on things, or should I keep the same flow and routine which has drawn you to this post?
March 6th, 2007 at 2:07 pm
Do whatever you want. It’s your blog. The only reason i can see for you not wanting to upset your readership (and therefore asking them) is that you are worried about loss of hits and page views. Which would only matter as this would be hurting your advertising figures. Well.. why are you running the blog? For profit or because you enjoy doing it.
Stop asking, As Matthew Parris said ‘we dont want bucket loads of democracy”. In this case we read your site because we want to. You do what you want to do, beacuse you think it’s right. Stop asking for other peoples opinions. Be bold. It’s far more exciting.
March 6th, 2007 at 2:12 pm
Seriously Glenn, i think the number one thing that you should do I write for yourself. The instant to start writing just to please the crowd, you lose the best part of blogging.
March 6th, 2007 at 2:13 pm
I think its a good idea, if that is what you want to do then do it. Personal opnions on topics lead to great discussions. So i say go for it.
March 6th, 2007 at 2:18 pm
In my opinion, the entire point of blogging is to get personal about it. Put your own spin, your own ideas, and your own imagination to things. The personality behind blogging is what makes it diferent from news, how-to, or web-service sites.
Go for it. I’ll sure stick around, and I’m sure most of your other readers will, too.
March 6th, 2007 at 2:18 pm
Thanks for the inspiration anon. Those two paragraphs you strung together has provided me with some energy and freshness. Jeremy, Pierre, MacFreak - thanks for the comments, expect to see me get more personal and decisive with my opinion.
To be bold, I blog because I enjoy writing. I enjoy feedback, I enjoy letting me views on matter be heard - not for money, which is why I value my readers to give me feedback and actively communicate under the posts. Readers help drive me to keep creating content.
March 6th, 2007 at 2:27 pm
I’d say go for it!
Blogs are intended to be personal. You should always write what you want to write and not what you think your readers want you to. So, yeah.. I’d say you should go personal.
March 6th, 2007 at 2:42 pm
I totally agree with anon, and also want to add that every blog in my RSS feed reader can say that the Apple TV is released, or something like that, but I really enjoy it when one blogger, instead of just reporting, puts a spin on it and gives his or here opinion in a very cool, fun to read way.
You have that talent Glenn, just because you’re starting to get popular doesn’t mean you have to forget the reason you blog!
Keep up the great work!
March 6th, 2007 at 2:54 pm
I think it’s a great idea! Because I own a blog and have been blogging for about a year now, I’ve noticed, like you, that you really can’t post news and such all the time. And some times, you just need to blow off some steam or put something on the web. I usually don’t go to that extreme but hey, it’s been done. xD
Opinions are important. People want to know what other people think. Blogs are one of the best places to read that. And from what I’ve seen it will increase that little graph you see of how may visitors you have =p.
You already have your “fan base” so now you can entertain and enlighten them even More! Don’t worry about it. We’ll stay here and we’ll look forward for the non-personal stuff too. I for one can’t wait.
Good Job and Good Luck!
March 6th, 2007 at 3:05 pm
Everyone else has pretty much said it all.
Do what you want!
March 6th, 2007 at 3:13 pm
Your blog.
Your content.
…I’m staying.
March 6th, 2007 at 3:15 pm
By the way, I wouldn’t mind if you posted a little more ;)
March 6th, 2007 at 3:34 pm
Yeah go for it! Opinions blogs are great
March 6th, 2007 at 3:35 pm
honestly, I read the posts that show your voice in them. That post that just got dugg is honestly terrible. Though lists are good at times, posts like that are god awful. No offense intended, but you just put pictures up. Any baby with a brain could’ve done that. But most of the time you have some really great content, and I’d love to see more of your voice shine through. so +1 digg to the whole personal idea. w00t glenn!
March 6th, 2007 at 3:50 pm
Great! Thanks for all the comments so far guys, keep them coming.
March 6th, 2007 at 6:34 pm
I think more personal would be a nice idea. Opinions are great, and I’d be interested in reading yours.
March 6th, 2007 at 7:24 pm
Personally, I would love to read more into the mind of who Glenn Wolsey is. There’s nothing better than reading great content and knowing the mind that wrote it. It’s a great connection to have with your readers.
March 6th, 2007 at 8:14 pm
I really like personal posts.
For one thing, enough blogs out there already re-state the news that we all get from TUAW or Gizmodo or wherever.
Also, I think that more personal posts might even attract more readers. In my opinion, it’s great to kind of get to know the blogger in between all the more “technical” posts.
Finally, as everyone has said, it’s your blog, your domain name, etc. Do what you want and the readers will follow.
March 6th, 2007 at 9:14 pm
I think posting about your personal life would add something special to your blog. I find it interesting to read about other people’s personal lives. I feel as though it helps me deal with things in my own life. We can learn so much from other people, if we all just listened to one another.
March 7th, 2007 at 12:18 am
As long as they don’t become borderline narcissistic, I see no reason why not.
March 7th, 2007 at 3:30 am
I started reading for your personal takes on things. I like your perspective sometimes and if things outside of what you normally write about build that perspective they obviously are relevant. It also provides a bit of insight to how you think about things.
It also helps when feeling a bit blocked to have more options to go to for subject matter. Variety makes for less frustration for the writer and makes it interesting for the reader.
I also don’t think it has to be opinions, it could be anecdotes about the experience you have with what you have already written about or make it a think-a-loud about some of your decision making.
March 7th, 2007 at 3:47 am
People want to know more about the mysterious Glenn Wolsey.
March 7th, 2007 at 8:38 am
Glad I could help Glenn. You and I have more in common than you realise. (except im a few years older). keep up the good work. I’ll be in touch.
March 7th, 2007 at 12:07 pm
Glenn, it’s certainly a dilemma. I struggle with this on my own blog.
I believe sharing personal opinions/anecdotes and writing content with large appeal are not mutually exclusive. Do I want to know what color socks you’re wearing today? Perhaps not. Do I want to know your opinion on technology or the demise of Digg.com? Yes. If it relates to the broader topic, your opinion is relevant and helps us to know you as a person.
I do disagree with the notion some have about blogging as a purely personal endeavor. Blogs are inherently meant to be read, by others, by an audience. You could of course make it password-protected so only you could read it, but then why just not have a Word document on your computer.
March 7th, 2007 at 1:04 pm
Hi Glen - I’ve only just discovered your blog, and it’s great as it is.
But you know, there’s plenty of design resources and news sites out there that I could surf - but blogs offer me something a little different - a window into a real persons life.
Keep up the good work. :)
March 7th, 2007 at 2:39 pm
I say go for it, Glenn.
I am a radio DJ and people really respond to the personal touch. The site *does* bear your given name.
March 7th, 2007 at 4:07 pm
Having the personal posts mixed in gives your other posts more personality and flare because we have a better idea of who’s writing them.
I say go for it. It will make reading glennwolsey.com a little better.