There are number of things that piss me off, so I have moved from being the stereotypical “angry young man” to a “grumpy middle-aged man” (and I expect to become simply crotchety in about 20 or 30 years). The focus of my wrath, however, today will be blogging. In trying to figure out what to do with my own blog, I spent some time (perhaps far too much) doing “research” which entailed mostly reading a lot of other blogs. What follows is a short list of things that I don’t like, and will do my best to avoid at all costs.
1. Anonymous blogging.
There are a number of prominent blogs that do a great job about going into detail about the various trials and tribulation the author goes through. Medical issues with kids, financial troubles, the various problems faced in the school setting or with siblings. Unfortunately that honesty is compromised by hiding behind a veil of secrecy. It isn’t like these are national secrets. If you’re not going to be completely honest, don’t put it out there at all.
2. artificial corrections or unnecessary strikethroughs
The strikethrough is supposed be something to let readers know that a correction has been made after a post has been published. Some people, while still composing their post, before publishing, will strike though what they have written and then finish their true thought. Why? Usually these are meant to be clever bits to give the reader a humorous glimpse into the author’s feelings. It feels like lazy blogging.
3. fake awards
Some bloggers create an “award” and give it with the stipulation that they award it to somebody else and post it prominently, then keep the whole thing going forward. It’s a type of self-promotion that doesn’t really mean anything. Some blogs get littered with these various icons and links. This practice just seems like a way to get other blogs to link in and drive a few more (temporary) hits.
4. replying to another person’s blog post in order for them to visit your blog and reply to a post
If I reply to a post, it’s because I actually have something to say. Some people travel the blogverse replying to each new post on their link list in the hopes that the person they are replying to will do the same. Most of them do the same thing. It’s another form of artificial self-promotion and perpetuating a needless cycle of inter-dependency. It’s a pointless practice.
5. having a guest blogger in order to fill a quota
It’s your own blog, and if you’re not going to be able to post for a day, then say so and deal with the consequences. Would you really lose that many readers by missing a day? Then your blog isn’t that strong to begin with. I don’t have a problem with guest bloggers, but the “hey, I’m over at a different blog today, so instead of my usual post I have somebody else here” type of thing.
I know that there are some other things that piss me off, and I’ll make sure to mention them at some future point. I’m sure this is enough to alienate most of the blogging community.