I was poking around my blog entries the other day and at the time, I had no real reason for doing this other than to review what I’d written, check to see how long I’d been doing it, while trying to decide what I should write about next.  I don’t want to repeat myself and after 30 or so posts, there IS that possibility.  After reading a few entries, I came to the conclusion that all I’m really doing is sharing advice on topics that others with more writing experience have written about, and if I were to be frank, maybe written about it in a more interesting way – i.e. like Nathan Bransford, for example.  http://nathanbransford.com/

Then I had an exchange with Caroline Upcher (editor I mentioned in the previous post) about writers having a blog.   I started mine because I’d read this is what writers ought to do – it’s a way to get out there, connect with other writers, and gain some recognition (maybe).  Essentially, the “desired” social media package for authors at this point primarily consists of blogging, tweeting, and having a Facebook page – not your personal FB page, but one that is specific to the books you’ve written.  I had read social media usage was expected by publishers of their authors and Caroline verified that all this was true.   My thought has always been, if you are doing it before being under contract to a publisher, it might be a pleasant surprise to them to find out you are already experienced with these tools.

I began to consider that I’ve been blogging about my personal experiences in writing and seeking publication for 19 months now.  Since I’m no expert on either subject,  it surprises me how I actually extracted something from my brain once a month, and then once a week to offer to other writers as “advice.”   I mean, I can only write what I’ve been through personally thus far and let’s face it, it ain’t been unique.  If you write, you already know how it goes.  We send our scribbles out, we wait, we stress, we worry, we write something else in the meantime, we get feedback, we feel good, bad, indifferent, stupid, smart, anxious, determined, and then we write about those feelings or use them in a story in some way.

Knowing how many have already been through this time and again made me  stop to consider, is what I write about out here really of any value?  I can’t answer that.  That’s when I began to question this blog in general, how to go about making it more meaningful to other writers, something different and new or just keep on as I have been, taking this blank space every week and dumping my latest news or thoughts into it.

Now I’m stuck and still thinking about that.   I am not sure if I just keep on like I’ve been doing, or if I worry myself to death over how to amp it up.  I only know that after taking a look back, much like looking at where you’ve been in a rear view mirror, if I feel like I’m not helping or telling other writers something they don’t already know or have already experienced for themselves, what’s the point?