The Art of Blogging

I've been blogging pretty regularly for a year now and following several other blogs by people I'm interesting in. Here's what I've found:

1. It's not easy to do. I don't always have something to write about and when I do, I walk a fine line between saying too much and being way too vague. This past year I feel like I may have bared my soul a bit too much - but they were honest feelings. It's annoying to read blogs that are so trivial you feel you waste your time by reading them.

2. It's not easy deciding how often to write. I try to update once a week, or four posts a month. There are some blogs I've stopped reading because they update too often - several times a day - they must just hang on that computer and that's too much work to keep up on it. But some people I really would LOVE to hear more about, update too seldom (you know who you are!) I've been waiting for new pieces from some of these people since the fall.

3. Is anybody even reading? I don't have many followers signed up, but people will comment sometimes on what I've written, so I know they are checking in. I started this blog as a way to build a "platform" for my writing, but it never has been just about that (there's that whole "pie" thing!)

So, I'm going to keep sending these little notes out into space and hope people touch base with me once in a while. And please forgive my attempts at poetry - I'm due to begin another session of "even day poems" in May and I'm sure I'll share at least a few.

Writing Quartet

I haven't written about my writing quartet for a while - but we are still hanging in there. We had a change in membership this year when one of the ladies had a baby and really has too much else on her mind. But we invited another like soul to join us, Judy, and she's been a delight!

We each write so differently:

Sue- is a medical technician by day and a poet at all other times. She loves to write about nature the most and is an avid birder. It's thanks to her that we are each trying to write a piece about birds for each month that we meet.

Ali- is an artist in addition to being a writer. In January she began the new job of executive director of the Box Factory for the Arts where both she and I have writing/art studios. Her writing is such an indicator of how she approaches life - short energetic bursts with wit and humor.

Judy- just retired in November and is revelling in her new found freedom and unlimited time to write. She is ethereal and mystical and I enjoy each piece of her writing because I feel it is so much a picture of her soul.

Denise - as for me I am plugging away, not sure where I want to go with my writing, but certainly feeling more comfortable and safe when I write about, and try to come to terms with, my past. I'm still struggling to deal with losing my mother, and just when I think I have passed a milestone and can start putting it in perspective, something happens and I find myself back to square one. Most of my writing in the past year really reflexs this struggle and I long to move on, while at the same time knowing that it will take time.

The four of us have much in common. We all love cats and each of us have at least one (Ali and I each have two) We all have long-term relationships with our spouses, which gives us a feeling of safety and stability at home. We all love the arts in its many forms. We all have a certain belief in the mystical and the world that can not necessarily be seen or fully understood.

And we all believe in the magic of putting words on paper and the notion that these words can live beyond us and serve as a sort of legacy.

Writing groups sometimes just fall apart for various reasons, but I hope this union of writing friends can continue as long as possible. It's an important part of my life.