So here we are, Blaugust 2021 is a go, and despite my initial doubts I did decide to sign up after all. The thought of giving such a great event a hard pass just didn’t feel right. Which means, of course, that I’ll try and post at least a tad more regularly than I have in recent months.
As I’m in a bit of a gaming slump right now…no, that’s not actually true. I’m in a blogging about gaming slump, I guess that’s what it is…they key to that will most likely be to also write about stuff I usually don’t write about, or at least not nearly as often.
Which, incidentally, is what I already did during Blaugust 2018. Of the 31 posts I penned during my first ever Blaugust participation eight had pretty much nothing to do with video games at all.
Since this week’s theme is “Welcome to Blaugust” and veteran bloggers are encouraged to give some advice to newbies – not sure whether I would call myself a veteran quite yet, but let’s just roll with it for the moment – I guess this would be mine: don’t feel obligated to only post about a certain range of topics.
First of all, your blog is exactly that – yours. As long as you don’t intend to reach a very specific audience and keep it happy and/or plan to make a living with your writing you can post about whatever floats your boat at any given moment.
Sure, on first glance this corner of the blogosphere is all about gaming, but that doesn’t mean we don’t read and enjoy each other’s posts when they’re about something else for a change. You’ve probably heard this truism about giving speeches: “It’s 70% how you look, 20% how you sound and only 10% what you say”. I think there’s some truth to that, and despite the negative connotation it also has its upsides and kind of applies to writing as well. For example, it’s because of their writing style, their use of language and their sense of humour that I always enjoy some bloggers’ posts, no matter the topic.
And, again, it’s your blog. Whether I like your posts doesn’t really matter. As long as you enjoy the process of writing and are happy with the outcome yourself, you’ve already won. And you’ll have done something a great many people never do: stopped just consuming and started creating. Go you!
In the spirit of leading by example my next post will indeed not be about gaming. Well, not about actually playing games at least, so I guess it counts. What the heck, my blog, my rules – it’s gonna count! 😉
Happy Blaugust, everyone!
Blaugust 2021 post count: 1
Mailvaltar 
“It’s because of their writing style, their use of language and their sense of humour that I always enjoy some bloggers’ posts, no matter the topic”. Yes, I agree there are some bloggers who just have an inherently amusing or naturally engaging way of expressing themselves and that is why I’ll read their stuff, pretty much regardless of where they stray.
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I know it’s a truism but I genuinely believe that if you write to please yourself you stand the best chance of pleasing others, too. Writing to a specific audience is an interesting challenge and it can be fun, too, but unless you plan on making a living at it (or you have to give the Best Man speech at a wedding) it’s not going to be something most of us need to do very often. Best just go with whatever interests you right now and trust your enthusiasm will bring others along with you.
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Writing to please yourself first is really one of the best tips you can give. When someone is passionate about their posts and the topics they’re addressing, you can always tell. Rather than someone posting things just to meet a quota they’re enforcing on themselves, or trying to manipulate some SEO algorithm.
I always advise against starting a blog for money, popularity or any other reason beyond yourself, because the amount of time that it takes to build up an audience from the forefront is just going to leave people seeking those things disappointed. Really, blogging is for the long haul, there are seasons of come and go on the Internet, and if you’re not doing it because you love it, it’s not going to last, sadly.
Good luck with Blaugust!
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Thanks for the comments, and good luck to you too!
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