What's the Point of Blogging?

Today is National Writing Day! A fact that was lost on me until I saw it trending on Twitter. I don't know what this says about me as an aspiring writer but I find it fortuitous that National Writing Day falls on the same day I read a post declaring that blogging was dead.

It came as kind of a blow to me. My first thought was, "But no! I'm just now starting to meet these super interesting people and I love reading about the things that are important to them." I'd be pretty bummed if all of the blogs I read just up and vanished. Where else do you see people talking so openly and passionately about the things that matter to them?

Then I thought, maybe some kinds of blogging are dead but community-based and community-minded blogging isn't. And hopefully it never will be. I have met so many people from all over the world I know I wouldn't have met otherwise through this blog. On a daily basis, I get to learn about how lives are across the oceans. I see coats and shoes I might have missed in my own online shopping. I learn crafts. I pick up recipes. Having access to blogs is like having access to a repository of people who know things and who like sharing what they know. And that's awesome.

I know blogging is sometimes likened to shouting, "Hey look at me! Look at what I have to say!" to which I respond, what's wrong with that? What piece of literature out there exists for a purpose other than "Hey look at me! Look at what I have to say!" Even the seminal works like Frankenstein, 1984, and Great Expectations exist because someone had something to say.* Writing is writing. Ideas are ideas. And yeah, maybe some blogs are up to their metaphorical eyeballs in RStyle links or are so carefully curated, they give the Louvre a run for its money, but again, so what? Issues of non-disclosure, tax, etc. aside, it's just a more prettily packaged Amazon and I, for one, really like Amazon.

And this whole train of thought got me thinking: why do I blog? Why put in the effort day in and day out for what essentially amounts to an Internet window display? Part of it is because I like to write. I like sitting down at the end of the day and verbalizing how things went. I like to put down on (virtual) paper the things that do and don't make me happy at this very moment in time. It helps me make sense of myself and the world around me. The other part of it is that I like a ton of things. I like TV shows, movies, books, shoes, makeup and recipes and I love meeting other people who love those things, too.

On that note, I know I follow a lot of you already, but if I don't, I'd love it if you'd drop me a link so that I can see what you have to say. And I want to thank you guys for taking the time out of your day for reading what I have to say. Writing can be a very solitary thing and blogging makes it just a little less so.


*Totally not comparing blogs to 1984, just trying to make the point that writing is writing, no matter the form. 

18 comments:

  1. I just adore this post beyond Ally! The best part of blogging is getting a view into someone else's mind - I love reading other people's writing and it's the loveliest thing that writing can be shared, supported and commented on!

    Raashi
    http://raashiagarwal.blogspot.com.au

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    1. I definitely agree! As much as I love writing longer stories, it can get super lonely not having anyone there to cheer you on. Blogging is a perfect mix of the creative and the community, I think :)

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  2. This was a great post. I have been reading a lot about how blogging is dead and I found it so interesting but sad, as I just started exercising my little online voice. I agree some blogs might be so curated or so RStyled, but that doesn't bother me. I enjoy reading them, seeing little bits of people's lives, and finding products I would never find otherwise. Like you I work in a demanding job professionally, so its so fun to just write about purses and make pretty posts and pictures as a creative release. And then, if I want to write a deeper post I have a space to do that. I'm glad to follow your blog and I'll enjoy seeing where you take it!

    Laura
    Laura Aime Vous

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    1. I definitely get where you're coming from! I wish I could spend all day looking at beautiful things but that just isn't the case, so it's nice coming home and getting to write/read a sentence that doesn't start with "The court held..." I think I'd go crazy without an outlet!

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  3. Great post but blogging can't be dead yet. I just started! I find the whole process enjoyable and I have learned so much about building a blog, html etc. Just don't let it die quite yet. ♡♡

    xoxoBella | http://xoxobella.com

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    1. I agree! I don't feel like it is :) I've seen way too many great blogs for it to be

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  4. This post. I love it, Ally! I don't think I've come across your blog before but we share the motivation and reason for blogging; verbalizing to make sense of things.

    Cheers to community-blogging and writing, Ally. I've followed you on Bloglovin' and CANNOT wait to see what else you've got to write and say!

    May | THE MAYDEN

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    1. I'm glad you like it! I'm excited to follow your blog as well! The pictures look absolutely gorgeous!

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  5. great post, thanx for sharing

    http://carrieslifestyle.com
    Posts online about Dubai, Amalfi, Amsterdam....

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  6. There's always room for interesting blogs, so I don't think it's dead. But I do see a lot of saturation such as fashion blogs where someone just posts their daily outfits. We don't really need more of those kinds of blogs.

    http://www.pixics.com/

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    1. I agree. I think every person is going to give a different perspective, even on issues that are commonly parsed, so I think there's always room for more. I'm still finding my feet on putting together a professional wardrobe so I definitely don't mind the daily outfit blogs but I can understand how they wouldn't be everyone's cup of tea!

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  7. Blogging is a great outlet if you like to write, and it is great for meeting people!

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  8. blogging is so not dead! I completely agree with you there! I haven't had my blog long but I'm absolutely loving it! Love your blog by the way :) x

    http://rhaea13.blogspot.co.uk

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    1. It's good to know I'm not alone :) and thanks!

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  9. I just found you and I'm loving your blog! And this post is so relevant, I completely agree with you. I started my blog a few months ago, and I seriously need to make more posts but I think blogging is the most wonderful outlet - it's like a small reflection of our minds and our interests. I love seeing what people have on their blogs. <3

    http://www.thedalmatinka.com/

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    1. Definitely, definitely agree :) It's like getting to see slices of life from all over the world.

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