As I traverse the blogosphere, I have noticed that a number of my sister and brother posters have what might be called, without any criticism intended, a "schtick."
Some primarily write about relationships. Others hone in on what it is like to seek love, sex and marriage from the perspective of a suburban dad or a rural single mother. Some blog as a sidebar while working on a book or as an athlete or a professor... and others use blogging as a way to highlight a cause that they believe in.
It's hard to tell who they really are when they aren't posting, of course.
Actually, it's harder in some cases -- the closer one is to being a professional writer, the easier it sometimes is to hide behind the words.
But rarely do they seem to shift personas and lenses with the predictable unpredictability you will find on this page.
If you were being charitable, you could see that I am writer who has a fondness for viewing personal and political issues from many perspectives.
If you didn't want to cut me a lot of slack, you could also say that I'm undisciplined, and perhaps a little unfocused, a flighty flitter.
I have a serious side -- the punditista, the world events commentator, the progeny of eggheads aye unto the tenth or so generation. The fact that I'm ordained gives me a bit more gravitas (anyone want to barf yet?)
And then there is the aspiring pop culture vixen. Slightly cheeky, she's provocative, clued in, and interested in helping you become, well, more authentically you.
I've seen lots of blog writers who pan with a pretty wide lens -- but not a lot who so publicly play out this conflict in front of their reader.
Questions for my fellow bloggers and readers in general:
* If you are a blogger: do you have a particular virtual persona (and if you decide to answer this, please try to be as candid as possible)?
* How close is it who you are when you are offstage?
*Do you ever wonder what bloggers are like in "realtime?"
Or are you as changeable as a storm, a dust cloud, shadows and sunlight?
2 commentaires:
Personally, I love the variety (and delicious contradictions) in your blog. And I agree with you - there's "everything" out here. The personal journaling bloggers, the professional "cause" bloggers, the monetized bloggers, the sideline bloggers, the professional writers who may cross all those categories, the very focused bloggers. And yes, the more skilled one is in writing, the easier it is to hide one's real life. Or even the reality of mood.
And that may be intentional. This is, after all, the big bad world of the Internet.
However, I think that voice comes through. Authenticity comes through, even when you choose to retain measures of privacy. And writing is a piece of one's life, not the life itself, even if writing is (for some of us) who we are, in all its forms.
Like you, I prefer variety. I love the unexpected, the provocative, and the ably written. That's what makes certain blogs a pleasure to read.
That said, the words I write are very true to who I am at a given moment, on a given day, sometimes experimental and labored. Other times vented. Most often, something in between, which allows for a lot of spectrum to cover. But always, I hope, in a recognizable voice. One characterized by contradictions and curiosity, not a particular quest - other than my own - as a writer, a woman, and more.
I try to put a mix of serious, sexy, funny, poppy stuff out there. I like being unpredictable. I tend to be a little cheeky. And yeah, I think I'm like that in person. (Except maybe in person, I'm pretty predictable. My wit isn't!)
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