I am at the Communities for Learning Summer Institute, 2009. Two years ago I started this blog with what I call my Passion for Literacy Statement. And the statement just sat there--no one read it or commented on it (not that I told anyone to read it or comment on it--I thought they would just come). The in-interactivity made me feel that if I were to use this spot it would be like a journal or diary and I already do that somewhere else. So I abandoned it.
I also felt that to use this blog I only needed to post my finished thinking and I just don't have time to finish pieces of writing. Plus I don't have a lot of finished thinking. So I abandoned it.
At our fellowship this summer, Angela, one of our fellows, gave me two amazing insights. She talked about the purpose of blogging as different from that of publishing an essay or book. Blogging is a place to evolve one's thinking by putting writing in a place where collective thinking can happen.
First--she talked about how to engage other readers who are bloggers. She described the way to get others to read a blog is to first read their blogs, comment about their thinking and make connections that help other bloggers to realize that reading your blog might be of interest to them and that we both benefit from reading what each other has written.
Secondly, she talked about blogging as a place to crystalyze and to stretch thinking--not as a forum to print final thinking. That makes so much sense to me and it lifted up the pressure I felt to only put on my blog finished pieces. As I read your work and comment on it, my thinking evolves as it does when you read my writing and it causes you to wonder, or it makes you think of a concept in a slightly different way.
So I am going to venture into the land of the blog once again. I am going to start small--read and comment on others' blogs at least three times a week, write in this space in a regular way and look to use this cyber-space to interact as a way to learn and to stretch my thinking about literacy, leadership and educational issues.
7 comments:
Deb!
I'm so glad that you are here again and that I'll be keeping up with you in my reader!! Welcome back to blogging. I am so thrilled to have you here to learn from.
Welcome to the wonderful world of blogging! Ang is right - it is a place for you to extend your writing! And I hope that many find you!
Hi Deb - this comment is just to say hello, and so that you know I read your blog and enjoyed it very much - I know it's strange to blog away and wonder if anyone - anywhere - is reading!
Hi Deb,
Absolutely relate to your worries of needing thoughts to be finished and concrete before posting, but now I find if you write first, the rest follows.
I am growing to agree with you, Charmaine. But now another problem is showing its ugly head--finding the time to actually write and get it out of the thought stage.
Deb,
What lovely sentiments. I like the idea that ideas don't have to be pretty or finished before we tell the world. The fact we have ideas is the big thing!!!!!
I also think we do our best work after midnight!
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