Hi. My name is Jen and I’m a … blogosaur. Yes, I’m one of those .0000000009 per cent of the world’s population who is a blogging virgin. Never blogged, never particularly wanted to.
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Even worse, I have to confess to not having a Facebook page or a Twitter account and can barely operate my iPhone.
I have dipped my toe into Facebook but ended up severing ties when I realised that a) people who I had never heard of wanted me to like them and b) I read that my niece threw up all over her father after the Royal Easter Show (which if you knew my brother-in-law is wildly hilarious). I didn’t even know they were going to the show and it hit me - my sister’s Facebook friends knew more about her life than I did.
So it’s kinda weird that of all the journos in this office, the boss tapped me on the shoulder – the dinosaur of the newsroom – and presented me with the task of building our blogging presence.
Looking back now, I should’ve realised the boss wasn’t in a sane state of mind, or he really would’ve thought twice about his choice.
“I want you to go out and find a gazillion local people to write blogs about things that interest them,” he said.
The poor bugger obviously had me confused with someone who knew what they were talking about. “What’s a blog?” I said.
“Well, see, there’s this thing called the Internet…”
“It’s OK, boss, I’ll figure it out.”
“Good. How long it will take?”
Not wanting to own up to having absolutely no clue, I did what any good employee should do in the circumstances: I made a wild guess, doubled it, and told him.
“Half that,” he said. “And another thing.”
“What?”
“I want you to write your own blog, too. There’s nothing to it. A stroll in the park. Just make sure it’s good.”
So I took a deep breath and a deep gulp of Sav Blanc and headed off into cyberspace to educate myself. And here I am. The Blogosaur – a technological dinosaur venturing into the blogosphere on an extremely steep learning curve that has more potholes than the Nullarbor.
I have to admit, it’s been quite a fascinating journey. I’ve read blogs from around the world on every topic imaginable. I’ve printed out a small forest of information on what works for other newspapers and other websites; on what to blog about and want to avoid and how to make sure visitors to your blogs are “civilised” in their online behaviour.
When it comes down to it, there’s no sure-fire recipe for a successful blog. What I may love, you will probably hate, and vice versa.
And that’s the beauty of it, because in the blogosphere, it’s about exchanging ideas and getting involved.
So if you have any ideas for blogs, let me know by email (that I can handle – well, almost) at blogs@illawarramercury.com.au