... are you spontaneous and if you see a blog you like you add it to your list immediately?... or do you hang around a bit to wait and see if week after week they write about things you like and things that speak to you?
Are you a silent follower and linger unnoticed or do you let the person that is "speaking to you" know that they are? Do you just "pop in" on your favorite blogs and drink in a little inspiration from photos that are just like eye-candy or do you draw your inspiration from the written word?
How often do you find yourself thinking that the blog you started following is no longer going the direction you thought it was when you first started reading? Do you "expect" updates on a regular basis, only quickly to delete it when they do not come often enough?
Do you mainly follow the "popular" blogs, commenting often to get your own blog recognized? Or do you search for those who you really identify with... maybe those who you consider to be a lot like you?
... so if you happen to be "tuning in", I would simply love to know.
It is a bit complicated sometimes, I do a bit of all of it :-)
ReplyDeleteIf a new reader has come over and left a comment, I will go over to their blog , have a look, leave a comment thanking them and see how it goes. Might go back , might not. I have my sure favourites, my friends in Paris, I have blogs from all over Europe. Some I have followed for along time.. another thing I do, is if I visit a new blog , I might look at the comments and do a bit of blog surfing.. you might find something that takes your eye.. Hope this helps. :-)
If I follow a blog, I usually leave comments. Not every post, but most. I do not expect a daily update or even a weekly update because I would much rather have the blog owner write when feeled inspired than just trying to fill up space. While I do follow some of the popular blogs, I don't do it to get my blog recognized but because I like that blog. Since I don't get hundred of comments, I try to always answer peoples questions and always thank new visiters for stopping by. In the end, my blog is for me. If others enjoy reading me that is great. I enjoy getting comments, but understand when others don't leave comments. I takes time!
ReplyDeleteI'm following too many blogs, so I'm due for a weed out soon. I have several categories in my Reader (I quit adding via the 'follower' button on Blogger b/c it did nothing for me) and I skim most of my categories about once a week. Some blogs I read right away b/c I either know the person (i.e., those private family update sorts of blogs) and/or I really like the blog.
ReplyDeleteYes, I'm following blogs I don't really love, but those are mainly ones related to running your own business, editorial things, etc. that are more 'practical' and worth a weekly headline skim. =)
The blogs I'm about to delete are ones where I was hooked by 1-2 good posts, then signed up hoping for more of the same, and then the blog just didn't 'deliver' what I was hoping for.
Commenting happens a) if I really want to say something in particular, b) if I have time, and c) if there aren't 500 hoops to jump through to post a comment. Depending on the post/comment I may actually NOT comment b/c there's no way to 'follow comments' and I'm interested to see what happens next (and I'm too lazy to go back to that post repeatedly to check in). Sometimes I comment just to sign up for the comments (like a post asking for Copenhagen recommendations and I'm planning a trip there myself).
I switched off word verification on my blog and received more comments overall. I also got spam, so I made word verification only required on older posts and that seemed to be the right thing to encourage the right sort of comments. I still get spam, but Blogger catches it now in a spam folder, yay.
I have to say, in general, I lean towards commenting only on a small group of blogs. These have either been blogs of friends or blogs where I've been a long time reader. I think there's only one 'big' blog that I comment regularly on, and that's b/c I've been reading her since she started and we've exchanged so many emails over the years, so it's a kind of virtual friendship.
I'm the kind of introvert who could spend all day online and not feel bad, so I know I better limit my comments and online-friends circle, otherwise I'll become a hermit! ha ha!
Regarding updates: Well, I'm obviously an erratic blogger myself, mainly due to work and sharing our one computer, so I think I'm more relaxed on judging when a blog slows down. If the content is still interesting to me, I'll keep following! (I think Google Reader makes this easy to do.)
So I'm curious to hear your thoughts!
meine güte....das war viel zu viel lang! =/ sorry!
ReplyDeleteSuch an interesting post; great questions! There are only a select few blogs I comment on; a lot of the time dropping in on other people's thoughts is more meditative and I enjoy simply browsing, even if I do return frequently. Right now, I am in the midst of figuring out where I want to go with my own blog, so, in general, I'm not visiting new blogs as much as I did in the beginning. What about you??
ReplyDeleteI think I search for those who I "really identify with"... and also, to be surprised, inspired...
ReplyDeleteFor those reasons, I like your post :)
You've caught me , I'm a silent follower. I'm a Brit, who's been in Germany for simply ages. I try to be creative , despite the daily chaos, I've just opened my own tiny little shop
ReplyDeletehttp://de.dawanda.com/shop/ItFitsIn, Love to read about your adventures , in and with the german culture.....and realise I've often been there.
I started my blog, and who I follow, some time before the baby came along. Now that that the little guy is here, I only have just a few minutes to quickly pop in and glance over a few of my favorite blogs (and I really mean glace). I usually spend a little bit of time with a blog before I add it to my list to make sure that I really like it. There are several blogs that when I make the time to stop and read them, I really enjoy them.
ReplyDeleteBut, unfortunately I don't have the time to comment on people's blogs like I would like. I would especially really love to visit the blogs of those who comment on mine, but sometimes I barely even have time to write blog posts of my own, much less time to visit others.
I don't really comment on people's blogs to get more readership on mine, but if the person has written about something that really speaks to me I do.
I am constantly rethinking what I blog about and why. Sometimes I feel like my direction is clear, and other times not. Sometimes I wonder why I do it at all, and then out of the blue someone tells me how much they enjoy what I write and somehow that reinspires me to keep on.
....Tja,
Fiona... were you at the show in Stocksee this year?
My personal preference is to follow blogs of people that I know (friends & family) and speakers that touch me (mainly women from Proverbs 31 Ministries).
ReplyDeleteI enjoy reading words from people with different experiences (you & a farming friend) and from people sharing from a life a lot like mine (other friends). It gives me comfort that I am not alone.
I don't often delete blogs or "follow" them. I check in on a regular basis and read their insightfulness. I will post a comment every now and then to let them know that they are writing to readers. I love to receive comments on my blog and figure that everyone else does too.
I enjoy the pictures if blogs have them but they are not necessary for me to enjoy the blog. I like the info.
I try to keep up with my blog for family but I think I only have 3 readers. People forget about it.
Enjoy your blog! Happy Blirthday! (Blog Birthday)!