January 8, 2008
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If no one reads, why write?
For some reason, these days, every time I sit down and open up a ‘new post’ window for Xanga, I always end up closing it after writing a few lines. There’s plenty to say but I guess I just don’t have the heart to write when I’m not sure who I am writing to. If no one reads, why write? Xanga has been so quiet. On the flipside, I have been having the privilege of being one of the bloggers on The Scroll for the past few months and having a blast over there because there’s so much discussion and dialogue. I love discussion and dialogue. I also recently started another blog devoted to a specific purpose. And I’ve also made another article submission to Mutuality — and received an email today saying that my article is going to be published! Hurray!! Writing – is – life – to – me. If I’ve spent a whole day writing and God takes it and uses it for something, then I have spent a day well. The satisfaction is indescribable. I write because I am hanging on to the hope that these little letters strung together into words and paragraphs will somehow rise from the surface of the computer screen and transform someone’s life. If I didn’t have that hope, then I would stop writing. If no one stops by here any more, reads, dialogues and is challenged or encouraged for even a fraction of a second, then why write? Without comments and discussions, it’s like yelling into the abyss and getting nothing back — not even the echo of my own voice.
Comments (20)
aww, I have been reading lately.. but for me it’s always a sporadic thing. Glad you are able to do something you love so much. I’m working on moving my life in that direction. And sometimes I want to blog/post more. But then, I feel like, my thoughts are so random. One day I’ll want to blog about some networking hardware, the next about finances or investing, the next about some psychology book i read, the next about Jane Austen, the next about some random ideas I’ve been having, and people would find that weird, I think. I’m wondering if I should try it anyways, as an experiment maybe..
I think xanga is just going down in general. People who are not writers have moved on to facebook where it’s a more social network than xanga.
Do keep writing! I miss reading your blog entries
Hey Mary Ann – I read your xanga, but I am not one to meet conflict head-on. So if I disagree, I don’t say anything. It’s the passive-aggressive Asian in me.
i ready your xanga, too! =) i find it a lot less noisy than facebook.
xanga is going down :p
plus blogs are getting more and more specific these days… people read blogs about specific issues… rarely general blogs anymore. Xangas are all general blogs about a persons life… one reason what its going down.
Hrm. Interesting. Do you think people are more interested in blogs that focus on a certain issue? For example, a sports blog, a photography blog, a theology blog — an egalitarian blog? I suppose that’s more interesting than reading one person’s blog of random thoughts… but if you know someone, wouldn’t you be interested in that person’s happenings? Blogs used to be a place where you can check in with someone to see what was happening in their life. Nowadays, I suppose people use Facebook for that sort of thing. Yet, still, I think blogs can be useful for the expression of oneself. There’s more room to say stuff than Facebook. It encouraging contemplation, reflection and therefore growth. But this is a writer’s opinion.
if noone reads, why write? good question. if there was a beautiful flower in the amazon rainforest, would that lessen God’s creation if it was never discovered? i think most people write to reflect and think and to record thought and experience. it’s still a wonderful creation, even more so when discovered.
It sounds like some encouragement is in order. Please continue writing! I stumbled across your site over a year ago and have been both challenged and encouraged by your thoughtful and biblical reflections. I’m not subscribed to any other blogs you write to (as I am am less theologically invested in complementarian and egalitarian systems in marriage, and enjoy the diversity of topics and personal meditations you bring to the page more than a one-issue focus), so I’ve been much edified by reading your xanga updates as a subscriber. Thanks, and keep it up!
hey mary ann, please keep posting on xanga! i enjoy reading your reflections as well =)
i still read when i get new xanga postings emailed to me! I enjoy hearing the ins and outs of your life and thoughts as well as other ppls. KK made a great point!
I read too (friend of wilma’s) I just don’t post a lot on sites–haven’t had time, but yours are always so encouraging(and comes in my inbox!). The blogring “ESEC folks” for those of us who taught with them, was a “lively” place until the CN gov’t blocked it last year…I’ve noticed most of the folks moved on to Facebook, which does give you a lot quicker access to people’s pages and isn’t blocked. Keep writing; you’ve got a lot to say!
Sheila
i enjoy reading it! but we can’t help it that other places may be getting more popular. but as long as you keep writing, i’m sure there’ll be ppl who keep reading.
content is everything on a blog. i read about…20+ blogs a day (using a rss reader of course…), i have to say that yours is one of the few blogs from a faith perspective that i continue to read and enjoy to read. i should comment more though
maybe i need a question to respond to….
i dont think you need a topic specific blog — what you’re doing here is great.
Thanks for your comments, everyone. I really appreciate the thoughts, feedback and encouragement!!! It’s true that a beautiful, unseen flower in the Amazon is still ‘beautiful’ whether someone sees it or not — and yet, it’s also true that a flower cannot truly be beautiful unless someone deems it so. The nature of knowing something is beautiful is that it needs to be ‘known’, ‘seen’, ‘experienced’ — it’s subjective.
Yes, I can write just for my own sake — and yet, why do that on the world wide web? I can’t justify the hours I spend crafting entries ‘for my own sake’ — when I could save time by pouring my heart out so much more simply in my (handwritten) journal. The main purpose for having this blog has been to glorify God by edifying others through sharing to the world my relationship with Him. Without readers, the purpose is not fulfilled. The need for feedback, dialogue, criticisms, thoughts from others is essential. There’s no way for mutual encouragement without that dialogue. Is it possible that there are things I can write about it in my life that would encourage this kind of conversation to be the usual rather than the rare occasion on this xanga? That’s what I want to know!
I love reading this blog, but I find it much easier to comment on both the other sites where you blog. Maybe it’s also because I am invested in those topics. But since I rarely use Xanga, I am never sure if I will be able to sign in to comment. It feels a bit formal for a casual reader like me.
On the other hand, I don’t know if those sites will let you do Pho cooking shows, and that was one of my favorite blogs ever.
Do keep writing. =) You’ve inspired so many.
wow. that’s a lot of readers.
Thanks for the feedback, everyone. For those few readers out there, I will keep writing. Thanks for letting me know that some still read — and who you are!
I’ll try to post more questions so that it’ll leave it open for discussion… hope that works!
Please don’t stop writing. I read. Just b/c I don’t respond or write back doesn’t mean you don’t speak to some piece of my heart every time you write. It just means, I haven’t had the time, or in the case of my workplace’s firewall, the ability to respond.