Hari's Corner

Humour, comics, tech, law, software, reviews, essays, articles and HOWTOs intermingled with random philosophy now and then

Cooking ideas into articles

Filed under: Bits and Bytes by Hari
Posted on Tue, Aug 12, 2008 at 21:18 IST (last updated: Tue, Aug 12, 2008 @ 21:19 IST)

The lack of regular updates from blogs seem to be the flavour of the season as it has been for some time. I've also been analyzing it from a personal point of view.

To me the biggest constraint to meaningful blogging seems to be the definition most people have of a well constructed blog post. Whereas some people are satisfied with putting together a few words and calling it a "post" I have a different idea of what constitutes a good article. There lies the trouble.

So why do I find constructing blog posts on a regular basis troublesome? Well, I emphasize the flow of ideas - they should be readable and coherent - and they should be easily expressible in simple language. Unfortunately most of my ideas stay in cold storage for too long to reach the point where they're "cooked" properly. Since I am very particular about form, I don't want to put them down in a half-baked way. Therefore I allow so many good ideas to waste away without expressing them. I think it's actually a good thing. Sometimes committing ideas to words might make them too clarified when I am not really bothered much. Opinions expressed in words always seem stronger than they actually are and I am careful about voicing random opinions in public as I can never be sure of where it will come back to bite me.

I also consider the costs of cooking a well-defined article out of randomly generated ideas. Issues of time and space get in the way. It's not easy to write naturally and quickly unless an idea is particularly well developed. This lack of focus has happened so many times that I've lost count. I always begin writing something and then lose focus. The best writing seems to happen naturally and flows effortlessly with an idea, developing it into fruition.

This is one reason why I always vary the pace. I don't schedule blogging. It's a hobby and it will always remain that way. Most of my readers know that a sudden rush of activity will be followed by periods of total inactivity here. There was a time when I wrote more opinion articles, but that phase seems to have gradually faded away. I've also slowly moved away from the software and technology focus.

Humour and comics have kept me in business. The motivation to entertain readers has just about kept the engine running. :)

13 comment(s)

  1. :DWhen I saw your post title, I thought that you'd discovered my secret for adding content with little effort, but your article went in a different direction. :D

    Comment by MrCorey (visitor) on Tue, Aug 12, 2008 @ 22:47 IST #
  2. Your secret shall be probed, MrCorey. :)

    Comment by hari (blog owner) on Wed, Aug 13, 2008 @ 06:47 IST #
  3. If I think I'm writing a poor excuse for a blog post, I just throw it away and forget it. That's why sometimes it's a couple weeks between posts for me. I can force myself to write niche articles, but the fun stuff and humor has to percolate around until it's ready. Some of my ideas sit on the back burner for months.

    Comment by Tim (visitor) on Wed, Aug 13, 2008 @ 08:40 IST #
  4. Tim, I agree completely. Writing good humour isn't as easy as it appears to be.

    Comment by hari (blog owner) on Wed, Aug 13, 2008 @ 09:06 IST #
  5. You wouldn't believe me, but this is one of the blogs that inspired me to register a domain name and start blogging myself :D
    I just feel like I have so many ideas that would be nice to share with the rest of the world. Since I am pretty new to blogging, I don't have so much experience, but try this:
    Whenever you get a new idea, write it somewhere. Look back at your list in a few days, and if you still feel like you can post something about what you have written down, then do it. That's my way of blogging, and it works for me so far.

    Comment by Petar Petrovic (visitor) on Wed, Aug 13, 2008 @ 21:37 IST #
  6. Thanks Petar. I'm flattered :D

    Comment by hari (blog owner) on Wed, Aug 13, 2008 @ 21:57 IST #
  7. You don't need to be. There is a real value in your blog. But it must be good to know that you've inspired someone else through your work :D

    Comment by Petar Petrovic (visitor) on Wed, Aug 13, 2008 @ 23:52 IST #
  8. There is absolutely nothing wrong in the way you blog, Hari. Each person has different goals and bloggers are no exception. I'm really only different than you in the regard that I am a 24-hour blogger -- I have to force myself not to write -- and you have a real job.

    Comment by RT Cunningham (visitor) on Thu, Aug 14, 2008 @ 17:08 IST #
  9. RT, yes, since I started working full-time, it's certainly been a hard grind trying to write articles regularly.

    Comment by hari (blog owner) on Thu, Aug 14, 2008 @ 22:58 IST #
  10. Don't you think we should just let the idea float? Too many re work, editing, thinking can spoil the naturality of the content...

    Worrying too much about the content may not be a good idea, unless it is a professional blog written for business purposes...

    (personal opinion only)

    Comment by Shrinidhi Hande (visitor) on Sat, Aug 16, 2008 @ 18:09 IST #
  11. Yes, of course. That's why I prefer to work with natural ideas, Shrinidhi.

    Comment by hari (blog owner) on Sat, Aug 16, 2008 @ 22:30 IST #
  12. Second your thoughts. Sometimes, we lose focus on what we write. We can write just for the sake of writing when we aren't satisfied with it.

    Comment by Manasa (visitor) on Tue, Aug 26, 2008 @ 23:57 IST #
  13. Manasa, thanks for your feedback. It's not just about losing focus, though. It's about being coherent, being reasonably relevant and being interesting.

    Not all ideas fall into the above categories and I'm particular about them.

    Comment by hari (blog owner) on Wed, Aug 27, 2008 @ 10:51 IST #

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