Last Wednesday, Sasha and I had a little talk over iced tea while everyone was playing badminton. We were discussing blogging nuisances when the topic of speaking and blogging came up. But since we were so fired up with the nuisances, we weren’t really able to discuss it more in detail.
Sasha said she blogs the same way she speaks, and I think even The Jester-in-Exile agrees to that. But me, I can honestly say that the way I speak is very different from the way I blog.
You see, I had a bit of journalism and creative writing background in me. I took up an elective in Creative Writing under Danton Remoto and had tutelage in journalism from required seminars and my colleagues (under Sunday Inquirer Magazine’s Ruel de Vera’s supervision) during my editorial stint in the school paper. So yeah, that’s one of the reasons why I am able to show a very small fraction of me through my blog, and why I’m able to write long entries instead of short ones.
My blog posts here in Kutitots are similar to editorials, or feature articles. I tried to write like Abe once (you know, short and concise), but it didn’t feel right. I tried Marc’s comedic blogging style, but it didn’t feel right either. It didn’t feel me.
Everyone has their own style of blogging (or writing). You have the editorial-type, complete with an opening, a body, and an ending. There’s the poetic style, which you wouldn’t understand without reading twice (or thrice). The double-meaning posts. The straight-out reportage. You even have those that seem to have more links in the post than actual content. But let’s not forget the “write as you think†blogs, which I believe most of us are doing.
It would be wrong to say that one style is better than the other. After all, the blogging style you would adapt will be consistent with your blog’s purpose. If it’s a tech blog, you’ll use a blogging style appropriate for a tech blog. I normally write editorial-type posts here in Kutitots, but if you take a look at my Pinoy Dog-Lover and My Pet Hamsters blogs, I write differently—conversational, instead of editorial. In My Filipino Wedding, it’s a bit like feature writing. See? You don’t necessarily have to stick to one style of blogging. As long as it’s consistent, it’s effective.
Consistency plays a big role in establishing your blog’s identity online. But now isn’t the right time to talk about this. I’ll just tell you more at the iBlog3 Blogging Summit on Saturday. I’ll be speaking at four in the afternoon. Hehe. Bitin ba?
I’ve already asked you guys the question of why do you blog. Let’s have a bit of fun before iBlog3 (and yeah, I need some blog case studies to discuss, so your comment will also help)…
How do you blog?
Interesting topic. Actually I am not sure. Sometimes I write like I am talking to somebody, and sometimes I think I sound like a news reporter. Looking back at my posts, sometimes I think I try to emulate how other writers in the net might write, and other times it is really just me 🙂 (short moments of inspiration).
gail! hi 🙂 i absolutely do not talk the way I blog. if you noticed i just listen to everybody and hardly talk.. which is bad! haha but im getting around to that. 🙂