Writing vs. blogging
I am honored to have been mentioned on the Yellowstone Public Radio program Tuesday night about blogging. I couldn't quite tell if it was Ed, David, or Craig who first mentioned this blog (it was a male voice, so it wasn't Karen); but somebody else chimed in to agree. I missed the program during its original airing, but caught it on the Web here.
The context was to cite me as a good local example of blogger-as-writer. A caller to the show was wondering if blogging would help him as a fledgling writer. They noted the literary quality of Todd and David, and then how I especially tie these posts to books and articles I'm writing.
Well, thanks guys. I'm glad you remembered me, and I agree with your characterization of this blog. I also agree with the advice you offered the caller: blogging promises to be writing, but often seems to take away from writing. (By the way, as I've mentioned before, that time sink is the big reason this blog doesn't provide commenting -- I love to hear from people, I just won't take the time to police comments here.)
In the end, though, I think blogging IS worthwhile for aspiring writers. For one thing, it serves as an online clip repository, so you can prove your writing skill to potential editors. For another, it's a publishing outlet for ideas that you can't get published elsewhere (either because you don't have the right contacts or because the idea is too ephemeral.) For a third, it helps you refine ideas that can later become paying articles.
You have to be disciplined to make it work right. But that's the same discipline required to succeed at freelance writing.
Join the discussion at
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/johnclaytonoutreach/
The context was to cite me as a good local example of blogger-as-writer. A caller to the show was wondering if blogging would help him as a fledgling writer. They noted the literary quality of Todd and David, and then how I especially tie these posts to books and articles I'm writing.
Well, thanks guys. I'm glad you remembered me, and I agree with your characterization of this blog. I also agree with the advice you offered the caller: blogging promises to be writing, but often seems to take away from writing. (By the way, as I've mentioned before, that time sink is the big reason this blog doesn't provide commenting -- I love to hear from people, I just won't take the time to police comments here.)
In the end, though, I think blogging IS worthwhile for aspiring writers. For one thing, it serves as an online clip repository, so you can prove your writing skill to potential editors. For another, it's a publishing outlet for ideas that you can't get published elsewhere (either because you don't have the right contacts or because the idea is too ephemeral.) For a third, it helps you refine ideas that can later become paying articles.
You have to be disciplined to make it work right. But that's the same discipline required to succeed at freelance writing.
Join the discussion at
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/johnclaytonoutreach/
