Write Now, Edit Later
"Don't get it right, just get it written". James Thurber. This is a quote that is often bandied about with regard to creative writing. I was watching a documentary last night about a guy trying to find financing for an independent film he was making and a variation of this philosophical statement came up. I suppose that the reason it is so commonplace is because it is true. All writers at some point find themselves procrastinating to a greater or lesser degree. While writing this simple blog post, I’ve been distracted by incoming email and a message notification from my phone. Sometimes I will draw the curtains in my office so I don’t end up aimlessly staring out of the window at life’s rich pageant or the bird on Mrs Coletart’s roof. Because I am an organised person and like to plan, sometimes I focus too much upon the detail of my writing, rather than just getting the raw ideas down. Hence even the most simplistic of blog posts can at times take an hour or more to get written.
Building Communities
Back in July 2014, a small group of podcasters banded together to launch The Gaming and Entertainment Network, a website which aggregated the content of eight independently produced shows. This eclectic group of podcasts covered a range of subjects such as gaming, movies, TV, hats and bacon as well as other aspects of popular culture. The project was conceived and implemented by Braxwolf from the popular blog Gaming Conversations. It was designed to raise awareness of the respective shows, as well promote group collaboration between the content creators. In addition to the website, TGEN (as it was abbreviated to) also had a presence on twitter, Facebook and Anook ensuring that the network was represented on all popular social media. Initially 8 podcasts participated in the project. Aggrochat, Battle Bards, Beyond Bossfights, Cat Context, Contains Moderate Peril, Couch Podtatoes, Massive Failure and Roleplay Domain.
Nothing Further to Say?
Today, I was going to write a post about the controversy surrounding the video game Six Days in Fallujah. I read up on the relevant background material and then started making bullet points regarding my own personal opinion. While doing so I had a sense of deja vu, so I started looking back through previous posts I’ve written on comparable subjects. And my suspicions were confirmed. The basic points I wished to raise, I had previously explored in a post about “the trivialisation of World War II”. So I decided to abandon the planned post about Highwire Games new FPS, because I wasn’t really offering anything new to the debate, as far as I was concerned. Subsequent reflection upon this matter has led me to the inevitable conclusion that once you regularly write about certain subjects for a decade or so, you eventually reach a point where you don’t have a lot further to say because you’ve probably said it already. Well, I think that’s where I’m at.
Thoughts on Blogging Part 13
I mentioned not so long ago the possibility of a website revamp. I was concerned that the general layout of the blog was not optimal and that readers couldn’t easily find old material. In the past I even went as far as to write a guide to navigating through Contains Moderate Peril and using the categories to find old posts. Well I got a few emails and Twitter DMs about this and it would appear that folk like things just as they are. So I have reviewed my position and decided to leave things as they are at present. I did a little digging though my website stats, both from Squarespace and Google Analytics and it would appear the summary blocks at the bottom of each post are used and that the bounce rate for my site is not exactly as it first appears. Seems that readers do peruse other articles and the search facility is being used more often, especially for finding film reviews. So if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.
Redesigning Contains Moderate Peril
I moved Contains Moderate Peril over to Squarespace from a hosted WordPress service in August 2015. The main selling points of a platform such as Squarespace are its resilient infrastructure and simplicity to use. Over the last five and a half years there has been no downtime, no software to update, no addons and plugins to manage and no additional charges due to traffic increase. Overall I like the service and therefore do not feel the need to change it. However, I think the site could do with a cosmetic overhaul. At present posts tend to look better on mobile devices than they do on PC. I also think the blog needs some additional functionality added that allows older content to be found more easily. However, I do not want the cosmetic changes to overshadow the content. The design needs to be clean, intuitive and functional. The focus of any blog should always be the writing.
Blog Comments
Leaving comments on a post is a perennial talking point among bloggers. A good comment is often encouraging, provides valuable feedback and is also personally rewarding. However, allowing them on your site is also an invitation for assholes to talk bollocks. Setting aside the overall debate, comments per se just seem to be in decline these days. I find that people will respond to a post on Twitter, where they saw the initial link to begin with. Although this is pleasant it doesn’t leave anything permanent associated with the post. But such is the nature of social media. And of course another major stumbling block to leaving comments are the foibles of the various websites and platforms themselves. All too often a site will just ignore or reject your comment. This itself then acts as a future disincentive.
Essential Technology
Today’s Blaugust Promptapalooza writing prompt is “what technology would you have the hardest time living without?”, which is a great question. Fellow blogger Telwyn has already tackled this conundrum over at Gaming Sans Frontières and I found myself agreeing wholeheartedly with the sentiment they expressed (more on that shortly). Over the course of my life, technology has become more and more ubiquitous and is now an integral part of our society. We take its presence for granted and only fully realise the benefits it provides when it ceases working or there’s some sort of outage. Technology has also dramatically fallen in price over the last five decades. What used to be marketed as expensive, labour saving luxuries or recreational indulgences, are now just disposable consumer items. The pace at which technology advances has also accelerated. It’s a struggle sometimes to keep abreast of what is new.
Fandom Memories
Syp over at Bio Break leads the charge with today’s Blaugust Promptapalooza writing prompt, with this interesting question. “What is your earliest memory related to one of your core fandoms?” Please do read his thoughts on going to see Return of the Jedi upon its original release back in 1983. It is something I can certainly relate to. I’m a decade older than Syp and so I can recollect actually seeing Star Wars for the first time at my local cinema. However as that was a starting point for a specific fandom rather than an “ongoing” example, I won’t cite it here. I have even earlier recollections of going to Longleat Safari and Adventure Park and having the extra bonus of seeing the Doctor Who Exhibition which ran there from 1973 to 2003. This would have been in August 1974 and I was six at the time. I have dim recollections of all the exhibits being mainly from the Jon Pertwee era and the Daleks being the high point of my day.
Your Writing Environment (Again)
I thought I’d tackle another Blaugust Promptapalooza writing cue. Today’s question is “Tell us about your physical creative space, and how it influences your content creation” and the official promoter of this prompt is Krikket over at Nerd Girl Thoughts. Do go check out their very candid thoughts and personal experience on this subject. Because where you sit and create your content is a big factor in the process. Sadly, for practical reasons it is often the one that is most overlooked or neglected due to the realities of life (as Krikket explains in their post). Very few of us have a purpose built studio or specifically designed workspace. Most of us just try to adapt an existing part of our home and make do with that. I have done this in the past, when I was living in a rented flat. The lounge dining table also doubled as a writing desk, as well as a computer workstation. It was a little too high for such purposes and it ruined my posture after a while. The ergonomics of where you sit is not something that should be ignored.
Walter
I shall be taking a degree of “artistic license” with today’s Blaugust Promptapalooza writing prompt. The original question (as given by Rambling Redshirt over at Beyond Tannhauser Gate) is “If you had a mascot to represent you, what would it be?” but I’ve decided to adjust this slightly. I already have an unofficial mascot for Contains Moderate Peril and they have featured in several blog posts. Furthermore, as an experiment in marketing, they have also appeared in several social media campaigns. The idea was to see whether they could gain more traction with existing “followers” and provide a more effective means of promoting this site. I was initially surprised by the results but upon reflection, given what usually proves popular on social media (IE things that are deemed “cute”), it should have been obvious from the start. So without further ado, if you are not familiar with him already, allow me to introduce Walter.
Finding Wisdom in Quotes
Today’s scheduled Blaugust Promptaplaooza writing prompt is “what is/are your favourite quote(s)”. Now I have always had a liking for quotes and feel that a well selected one can often contribute to a good conversation. Something like “The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing” which is attributed to Edmund Burke. Furthermore, a cunning quotation can also be used to bluff your way through a discussion, especially if it’s a subject that you have no knowledge of. The more esoteric the quote the better, I find. Something like Immanuel Kant’s “Metaphysics is a dark ocean without shores or lighthouse, strewn with many a philosophic wreck”. And I also have a tendency to append day to day statements with obscure pop culture references, mainly for my own amusement. I often shout “Bullshit, Mr Han Man!” at the TV, when politicians are interviewed on the news.
3 Types of Underrated Content
Blaugust Festival of Blogging is an annual event held usually during the month of August. It’s designed to encourage content creation of all kinds and foster a sense of community. This year due to the lockdown in many countries, the event was held early in April and was well received despite the difficult circumstances. Now that August has arrived, Belghast, the founder and organizer of this prestigious festival has decided to hold an additional event in the form of Promptapalooza. It’s a month of scheduled writing prompts and a blogging relay. Each day a designated writer will explore a specific topic and then pass the blogging baton on to another. Hence, over the course of August, the event will showcase the work of 30 different bloggers. The list of writing prompts are all available in advance for anyone who may wish to use them.
Community and Friendship
I joined Twitter back in 2010. Perhaps the most surprising thing I quickly discovered about the platform is the immediacy of communication that it offers. You can follow someone, reply to something they say or initiate a conversation with them in real time. Hence interacting with those who share a common interest becomes very accessible and enjoyable. It’s a far cry from going to a convention, wandering around and then plucking up the courage to speak to someone or join in a conversation that others are having. Social media removes those awkward “ice breaking” moments. Of course not every Twitter exchange is a pleasant experience but overall I’ve not encountered many problems using social media over the past decade. Twitter has broadly been a positive experience and introduced me to a wider community. It has provided me with an opportunity to meet new people and become part of something that is both social and positive.
Time For a New Project (Again)
I am currently in a quandary with regard to my creative output. There’s a good chance that the lockdown has contributed to this state of mind and perhaps even the recent Blapril blogging event is partly to blame. I feel the need to do something at the moment but have no specific idea as to what it should be. I want to write but can’t think of anything at present that enthuses me sufficiently. I also want to return to podcasting, which is something I’ve always enjoyed. But I don’t especially relish producing a one man show. I’ve tried live streaming but don’t really think the medium plays to my strengths. Plus, I’m a little burnt out with gaming per se at present. Perhaps the answer lies in trying my hand at something completely new? This could potentially kill two birds with one stone as documenting the resulting learning curve could be a good source of blog posts. However, the first hurdle is deciding what my next project should be?
Top Five Most Viewed Posts by Year
If you’ve been blogging for a while, it can be informative and fun to trawl through your statistical data. A common refrain from bloggers is that the post that they consider their best work is often the least read and that it’s the throwaway posts or articles written on a whim that find an audience. Both Wilhelm Arcturus and Belghast have analysed their website data and listed their respective top five most viewed posts by year. Having been writing for a comparable amount of time to these well known community figures, I thought I’d follow suit. Because I moved hosts to Squarespace and effectively started from scratch in August 2015 this will have to be my starting point. Although I exported all my content from my former hosted WordPress site, I have little statistical data. However, the six year period covered reveals some interesting details about what posts prove popular.
Blapril: Lessons Learned
I still think it was a good idea to move the scheduled August blogging event to April and take advantage of the lockdown. Many of us still have a lot more spare time on our hands than usual. However, upon reflection the lockdown has come with its own set of problems, one of which being a degree of mental discombobulation which does impact upon one’s motivation. So Blapril has felt a little different to last year’s Blaugust. The passion has still been present but I think this time round there’s also been a degree of catharsis. Writing can be good therapy for all sorts of problems. However, the uncertainty of the times and the worry it engenders has also impacted upon bloggers stamina. I was ill for a third of Blapril which threw my schedule. I’ve also been smitten with a degree of indolence that has made writing a bit of a struggle at times. I certainly don’t think I’ve applied myself to my mentoring role as well as previous years.
Writing and Motivation
This week’s Blapril writing prompt is about “staying motivated”. It’s a perennial subject and one that is always relevant. Whenever writing events such as Blapril/Balugust are held, many of the participants are swept up in the initial excitement and camaraderie. At first they find both the time and the inclination to write. However, after a while, the realities of regularly writing become apparent. Finding the time may become more difficult, as does choosing material to write about. Something that was fun and enjoyable can eventually feel like a chore. Especially if you don’t receive any form of feedback. Hence it comes as no surprise that many blogs fall into decline and fade away. Content is posted far more intermittently and then there comes a point where the writer just stops. According to Google, only 167.4 million out of the 500 million plus blogs had been updated in the past 120 days.
My Writing Process (The Recipe Analogy)
Easha Dustfeather suggested a Blapril writing prompt to catalogue your writing process “as if it were a recipe”. I like this idea so I thought I’d give it a go. My process is one of two distinct halves. Ideas for blog posts come through a variety of means. Sometimes while thinking, one will spontaneously occur. More often inspiration is derived through reading other people’s content or by simply addressing current news issues. I have mentioned before how I keep an ideas list and continuously add to it. The next stage which I shall detail here, is how I take an idea forward and develop it into an orderly post. Again I must reference how I was taught to write up a Science Experiment at school and how that process has stuck with me over the years. This recipe idea has a lot of similarity to this which is why I think it inherently appeals to the way my mind works.
Draft Posts
I currently have 98 blog posts sitting in my draft posts folder. Some of these are just a series of bullet points waiting to be developed into longer posts. Others are fully developed articles that just need some polish or minor tweaking. Many are film reviews that I’ve started and need to finish. Some are long and involved think pieces or talking points that have long ceased to be topical. Often these are in response to posts I’ve read on other websites such as Massively Overpowered. The oldest draft post dates back to 2014. The majority are from the last twelve months or so. For clarity, I write all my blog posts via Google Docs but all material is saved to a folder called Draft Blog Posts. When a post is finally completed and published on Contains Moderate Peril, I download it, save it as a Microsoft Word document and move it to an archive folder on my PC. The copy in the drafts folder is then deleted.
Blapril: Topic Brainstorming Week
According to the Blapril schedule, it’s Topic Brainstorming Week. One of the most common questions that you’ll hear from new or occasional bloggers is “what should I write about”. Now don’t go thinking that some of us are blessed with more inspiration than others. The reality is quite the opposite. Most of us can come up empty on occasions and struggle to find inspiration. This is just another aspect of blogging that needs to be managed and planned for. Therefore, I strongly advocate collating a list of subjects and ideas for future blog posts and continuously adding to it. So let us without further ado, get on with brainstorming a list of potential topics for bloggers to write about. Just remember that brainstorming is a nonlinear process, and I am writing my thoughts down as they occur to me. Hence many of the ideas will be somewhat tangential to each other, without any semblance of order. You can also find some useful ideas here, in a post I wrote back in 2016 called “Got Nothing to Write About?”.