Is there anything such as 'Blogger etiquette'? I often wonder what would happen if a petulant,irate, irrational person decided to blog. Would he last? Would anyone lend him an ear after the first time? Bloggers are often very selective and discretionary of what they choose to read, and more so of that which they choose to comment on. A comment has to be deserved for a blogger to put it there. You may rave and rant or then shed oceans of tears on that blog, but to no avail if there's no audience; so when do people listen? The answer to that would probably outline 'blogger etiquette'; the implied code, which if recognized and followed, invariably brings readers back to a blog.
The community of bloggers is now probably in the millions but not all of them have a reader following. Not following 'blogger ettiquette', is that the reason?
5 comments:
Petulance, ire and irrationality are the spice of human nature. Without weaknesses, humans just wouldn't be human, would they? If the world were filled filled with Little Lord Fauntleroys, ennui would be Prime Emotion. The ancient Persians believed that Hell wasn't all fire and brimstone; rather it was an infinite expanse of nothing-to-do-ness. Maybe it is better to stand one's ground and show some spunk, some fight. Reminds me of an Urdu couplet:
girte hain shehsavaar hi maidaan-e-jung mein
woh tifl kya girega jo ghutnon ke bal chale
(It is the mounted warrior who falls in battle;
what fall would he have who only crawls on his knees?)
I totally agree with your analysis of me: I AM petulant, irrational and quite unable to stomach criticism. Hehe. But this to-and-fro of nasty name-calling and inspired viciousness is quite a change from my usual bleak, uninteresting life. I have, in fact, been quite thankful to you for the opportunity to roll up the sleeves and get down to a scrap.
Oh, and thanks for still lending an ear. I MUST be following blogger etiquette, mustn't I?
WIIFM (whats in it for me) is the question every post must answer- be it a hearty laugh, a good value addition or atleast a good read. that's my definition of blogger etiquette.
I totally agree with you. But the thing is how can you define irrationality? It is quite variable depending on many aspects.
I believe some of the following play a role, society, morals, religion, interests, upbringing, they are just too many to list. I mean one person may be making sense to people on common grounds but not to others. I believe one must be able to be amicable in their disucssions, and if one chooses to comment on subjects against their belief, they should first try to understand why the other side is saying the things they are.
Ethics do play an important role i believe in comments. I've had so many experiences where people have been extremely unethical just because we were on different grounds of belief.
Not every one comes back to a blog, not necessarily because what is posted is not good enough. Also that has many variables and the importance of the topic discussed does also make a difference. I've been to blogs where i have recieved terrible comments some rude as well, but i had to go back because what has been posted is of importance.
I remember reading something when I made my blog about manners etc. There are some who are ill-mannered, even rude. I guess just like in "real" conversations, there are all kinds of characters.
~Deb
Sometimes the writing style appeals to me -- humor, sarcasm etc. And there are theme based blogs -- political, military, movies. But one thing that cuts across all such categories is the "personal touch".
Bloggers stand for freedom of thought and expression. They may be biased, but are still free from external pressures(writing incognito does help in achieving that). During the recent presidential elections, "bloggers" were hired by both democrats and republicans. The work they produced in that exercise, doesn't qualify as blogs in my opinion -- not even a political blog.
Regarding blogging etiquettes, yes, I think these are important. Honesty of opinion, and speaking from the heart, are things that make certain blogs stand out from the rest. Sincere response to comments also helps give a feel to readers that the blog is alive. I think these are the things that distinguish blogs from a general website or an e-book.
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