Reflection

In blogging, the most difficult thing for me to do is write something that I think will be engaging. I read blogs occasionally, and I never want to read something that is too long unless it really grabs my attention. I know that people read blogs for amusement/recreation and no one is going to read something long and boring. So I found it challenging to try to create a post that was thoughtful and analytical as well as compelling and entertaining. Also, I found it difficult to create my personal voice. When I would sit down and write a blog post, I could hear the sarcasm or disappointment or any other tone in my head. While I though I was clearly conveying my attitude, I realized other people are not going to read my post exactly the way I heard it in my mind when I wrote it. I think the tone is an important part of a blog and a key element to the blogger’s voice. When writing my posts I felt I was very obviously not taking and show or opinion too seriously and I had sense of humor about it all. It is difficult to read your own post and know how another person is interpreting it; therefore, I found it to be difficult to strongly convey a voice.

I found it was easiest and most enjoyable to write about something that I was passionate about. For instance, I had more fun writing about Chelsea Lately than I did about Jillian Michaels. I think that the reader would notice that too, and see that I have more passion for one show than the other. When I wrote about Chelsea Lately, the words flowed right through me: I wanted the reader to feel the way I did about the show and I tried to convince who ever was reading that the show was funny and worthwhile. Jillian Michaels, on the other hand, I had more trouble with. I wasn’t really into the show and I struggled with developing a compelling post.

When I revised, I went through my posts and tried to read them from a different perspective – as if I hadn’t written them, and tried to take out that parts that were less interesting and add something a little more compelling. Also I tried to add a little bit more of my voice into the post.

Blogging is different from regular scholastic writing because of its casual nature and, as I mentioned, the struggle to keep the reader engaged. When writing for school I never thought so much about keeping the reader engaged, I think because I knew the only reader was my teacher. In this case, I knew the whole class, and anyone really, could be reading my post, and I wanted to have it be interesting so that other people would like it. Also it blogging the writing attempts to create a conversation. It is one thing to argue a thesis for a paper, but in a blog, you want to give your opinion and hopefully leave room for the reader to have an opinion while feeling comfortable to comment that opinion.

After I began writing the blogs, I watched TV a little more critically. I noticed social commentary a little more; I began to notice trends– in genre, plot, humor, etc. Themes in TV go in and out of style and it’s interesting to see what is popular and think about why. I also had never thought about the difference between shows on basic cable and premium cable networks. It was so interesting when I realized that the shows on cable channels cater their plotline to advertisements because they rely on a commercial break, while premium channels can focus on the show’s story line. This class and blogging definitely made me more aware of the strategies in television, themes, production, and commentary made by good TV shows.