Why I Blog  

Posted by Dristanel in ,

Gypsy gives me way too much credit. She probably thinks I started blogging with some lofty goals to help people and be an approachable member of the WoW community. Really, I just like to hear myself talk. Or write. I only like to hear myself talk when I'm severely inebriated and everything is just so damn funny.

But I've been blogging for a few months now, and I intend to stick with it. I've fallen into a looser schedule than I would like, but I am still writing and still thinking of new things to write and share. They say the first couple of months is the hardest, and I've gotten past that particular hurdle, coming out on the other side with 155 subscribers as of today and a couple hundred views a day. That's... just mind-boggling to me, honestly. I've been linked by WoW.com three times already, and linked repeatedly by long-time bloggers I respect the hell out of. It makes me think I must be doing something right.

So why do I do it?

Despite the snarky opener, I really don't blog for myself. If I did, I'd be done with it now. There's only so much of myself I can stand, really. The truth is, I started this blog to show myself that I could. I'm very good at starting things strong with plenty of enthusiasm, but I become easily distracted by other projects and tend to lose motivation. It's why I have a hard-drive full of short stories, but no completed manuscript, despite working on the same one for about five years now.

I love paladins. Always have, always will. And I feel like I am fairly competent at playing one. So I wanted to share what I've learned with a community that I've found to be surprisingly warm and receptive. Without the community, I wouldn't be here. That's plain and simple and it's never going to change. Even if I don't keep up with responses for every comment, I do read them all and appreciate every one, even (and especially) the ones that disagree with me. Show me a new way of seeing things and I will take a good, earnest look. I don't believe this makes me less confident in my own view, just better able to understand those around me.

I intended this to be more of an informative blog, but that just isn't me. I'm way too fond of sarcasm to be serious all the time. But I'm also not nearly interesting enough to blog about any random thing on any given day. So I write with the hope that I can get people to laugh or nod in empathy while learning something new. I poke fun at my own mistakes because no one should ever take themselves that damn seriously, and hopefully someone out there can learn from my idiocy.

Despite working retail for five years, I like people. I like meeting new people and learning their point of view and where they're coming from. And that's really what blogging is, to me. I have blogs in my reader from classes and playstyles I would never enjoy, but the authors of said blogs are entertaining and present well-phrased ideas that even I can understand. I have folks that I have read for years with whom I now share a common hobby as well as the drama that comes along with it. And as common sense as it should be - no one wants to blog into a void, after all - most every blogger wants to converse with their readers. These are the unofficial Warcraft community representatives with whom you can actually talk, one-on-one, in a laid-back environment.

I suppose that's what I aspire to be. It's cliche, and I'm ripping off Gypsy here too, but there's really no better way to put it: If one person says to me 'Thanks, your writing made me smile / helped me / got me inspired to blog' then I've done my job. That's what I write for.

This entry was posted on Friday, March 19, 2010 at Friday, March 19, 2010 and is filed under , . You can follow any responses to this entry through the comments feed .

6 comments

Raina  

I must say that your reasons for blogging are very similar to my own. I can't be on of those informative blogs mainly because of my lack of skill/knowledge in WoW. But I can post about things I have found out in playing and maybe even make someone smile a little. A good friend has told me I have inspired him to start blogging himself. This also makes me want to continue.

Thank you for this post. It has made me realize even more why I too blog.

~Kai~

March 19, 2010 at 11:15 AM
ithilyn  

I love reading your blog, it's become one of my favorites. Your writing style and content are great. Thanks and keep it up! :-)

March 19, 2010 at 6:36 PM
Dristanel  

@Engel Thank you! That's great that you inspired someone else to start; it's a wonderful feeling.

@ithilyn Aww, thanks!

March 19, 2010 at 7:24 PM
Traestus  

That SS will haunt me forever >.<. I need to watch what I send you now.

March 20, 2010 at 12:11 AM
Gypsy  

I demand payment for use of my idea! My team of lawyers is standing by to sue!
<3

March 20, 2010 at 1:42 AM
Dristanel  

@Traestus Fair gaaaame!

@Gypsy You know what you're doing when you post this? Cause I know what you're not doing...

March 20, 2010 at 7:04 AM

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