Ten Reasons to Blog

Here's where I blog.

I've been asking myself—why do I blog? TravelinOma is five years old next week, and this is my 5,000th post! Each post takes me at least two hours to write, so that's over 10,000 hours I've spent working on this little hobby—not counting all the prepping, designing and linking. Since I don't have ads, there's no money-making involved. So is blogging worth it?

Ten Ways Blogging Has Paid Off For Me

1. Blogging introduced me to one of the great loves of my life—Mac. You can read about him in a post I called An Affair to Remember.
   
2. Blogging is it's own reward—I'm becoming a better writer. I've got three shelves of books on writing that I'm always studying, and I use my blog to practice the techniques I'm reading about. Looking back at my early posts, I see improvement, and that's satisfying to me.
3. Because of my blog I take more pictures, download them that day (in case I want to use them on a post) and label them immediately so they're easy to find.
   
4. All my old photos are now organized in iPhoto. At first I was searching through boxes and scrapbooks for pictures to use on posts, so I started scanning them in and making digital albums, labeling them with names and dates. (Another bonus from blogging.)
   
5. I learned how to scan—and create files to store scans in. And color code my files. Initially it was just for my blog, but my eyes were opened to a world of possibilities. (You have to remember I was raised during the Dewey Decimal decades, and this is all new to me.)
   
6. I learned to cut and paste, and then to copy and bookmark and explore icons, which taught me to add images and make italics, and change fonts. That gave me confidence to try other writing programs like Pages and Scrivener. Now I can create my own templates for newsletters—and novels!
7. I haven't even mentioned what I've learned from your blogs. You find humor in the mundane and miserable moments, and you relish the joyful ones. Reading what you write encourages me, and I feel refreshed by dipping into your day. (Even though I hardly ever comment anymore.)
   
8. When something interesting pokes my mind, I think, "Blog." It's a great motivation for research. I wrote about Anne Frank once, and that post alone has had 51,000 hits!
9. Blogging has given me a new outlet. Even the bleakest of days can turn into a memorable post.
   
10. Finally, I love blogging! At the beginning of my blogging career the prevailing attitude (of non-bloggers) was that it was a waste of time. I felt defensive. One of my most popular posts is called Wear Your Paper Bag With Pride, and after I wrote it, I settled into my blogging grove—with pride.

"When I sit down at my writing desk, time seems to vanish.
I think it's a wonderful way to spend one's life."
—Erica Jong

How long have you been blogging?

Leave a comment before Saturday November 5th at midnight,
and you'll be entered to win a copy of my book!

Buy it here!