Who are you, readers?
Blogging is supposed to be “a conversation”. That’s what all professional bloggers tell us.
“Enter into a conversation with your readers”. “Reply to comments”. “Leave comments on your friends’ blogs”.
To me, this conversation looks more and more like a monolog.
I don’t have many comments. Most of them are this kind : ” i love line rider and i want to play and keep line rider 2 can u pleaze send me or give me away to down load it I love linerider!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!” ( I had to cut some exclamation marks).
What Can I reply to this?
I don’t know my readers. I know 3 of them, maximum. Even my girlfriend doesn’t read me.
But : I have readers. Check out by yourself my feedburner stats for the last month.
An average of 41 readers. (You will notice no real progression despite changing the position of the feed icon).
And I have an… email subscriber. One. One precious email subscriber. Yes, you. You, who are reading this email with Gmail ( I also use Gmail). Thanks for being there.
So here are the questions to my 40+1 readers: What do you find interesting in 365questions? Why are you visiting ? What can I do better? Am I on the wrong track ? How can I make a difference with this blog? Should I write in French, my own language ? Should I stop asking silly questions?
You tell me. All comments will be published. You can remain anonymous.
Thank you.
February 27th, 2007 at 5:07 am
As you can probably see, I clicked over from where I usually read you, on my Google Reader. Why do I read you? First, because you have my favorite thing about any blog: you linked to me so you must have good taste. No, I’m kidding. I read your blog because it shows all kinds of things on the web which I never would have discovered on my own and they’re written about in an interesting way.
I haven’t been reading enough to know what you should do differently, it all seems good to me so far. And as for French, I only know about ten words, mostly curses, so I’d be lost unless you plan to swear a lot.
February 27th, 2007 at 11:16 am
This is a comment from one of the 3 readers you know, and who also contributed to this blog, some time ago (hum hum, shame on me, I have never delivered this promising stunning contribution about how the Web affects memory…)
We have already had some discussions about the editorial line of your blog, so here is my point. I visit your blog (through netvibes, by the way there is sometimes some discrepancy between your site and the feed on netvibes, strange…) I enjoy reading it, not because you’re a friend, otherwise I would have stopped visiting a while ago, but because I find information here that I do not elsewhere. You must be browsing the Web very extensively and/or very efficiently to find all that.
In addition, it is pretty well written and there is sometimes some interesting analysis (though not a lot).
So this blog does not really produce original information but is a nice way to check out new stuff on the web. Now, up to you to keep it this way, turn it into something more personal… I would tend to think you should be persistent.
Available to discuss all that, drinking some beer or wine since we live in the same city.
About having your girlfriend reading you, try writing something about her she would like, an online declaration?
February 27th, 2007 at 11:14 pm
i love line rider and i want to play and keep line rider 2 can u pleaze send me or give me away to down load it I love linerider!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
February 27th, 2007 at 11:15 pm
Thanks Becca,
I was really happy to get your feedback this morning.
Everybody can easily find tons of interesting things on the web everyday. But I’ll try to find things that are different from what others could find, that are not already featured on popular sites. Maybe I’ll try to give it a more personal twist.
I am happy I found your post about the music awards by the way. I added you to my Netvibes page, so I read you too since then.
The good thing about English is that it allows people from different horizon to communicate (I know it’s cliché). Like today, me in Paris and you in New York.
Cool!
February 27th, 2007 at 11:16 pm
Only joking.
I read you because you found me first, and I like your range on subjects - similar interests to my own.
Check out http://thermalblog.co.uk/ as well. He’s got a similar mix you might like.
February 27th, 2007 at 11:22 pm
RD :
It was all bluff. I have only two readers, not three, and now I know who they are!
Thanks for the good word, so I’ll continue.
And what about you starting your blog about let’s say : “Stock exchanges, Aikido and me”. And you can link to me in every post, except those on Aikido.
February 27th, 2007 at 11:32 pm
Pinksy,
Thanks for coming back.
Thanks for the link. I ‘am enjoying Thermal right now !
It’s great because I’d like to feature some good European blogs more an more.
February 27th, 2007 at 11:39 pm
Any recommendations of your own?
February 27th, 2007 at 11:56 pm
Sure : Recently I found http://magicjewball.com and re-found Tale of the Gurrier (irish blog) http://thegurrier.com/.
I recommend both.
In a different style, I think Gaping Void is excellent.
http://www.gapingvoid.com/
Cheers.
February 28th, 2007 at 12:24 am
Thanks for the tips JFB
February 28th, 2007 at 12:31 am
Ah, now I know who my Netvibes reader is. Thanks.
I do go to Digg as well as other sites and blogs which show me interesting things. Each reveals the writer’s take in ways which range from subtle to over-the-top. Yours is more subtle and you’re right, you could bring more of yourself to it. But, for instance, you have a kind of whimsical and inquisitive style which immediately made me think you were French, I checked the “About” page and saw that you were. So you may communicate more than you think!
However, in order to engage people and get responses, a blogger has to really show himself and allow his personality and his life to flow more into the writing. I look forward to whichever direction you take.
February 28th, 2007 at 1:19 am
Merci.
These are good elements for a post about blogging !
I would like to read all you posts when I have time.
This evening I read the “Snappy answers to stupid question” and I loved it.
February 28th, 2007 at 11:38 am
Blogging is quite appealing to me indeed
But I would pick up a different topic if I do
I actually have too many ideas and not enough time…
February 28th, 2007 at 12:01 pm
Hey link love all round!
Thanks Pinksy, although when he said ’similar’ JFB, he actually meant ‘better’.
We have France to thank for the blessed Arsene Wenger, but I’m afraid I’d struggle with a blog written in French
February 28th, 2007 at 7:32 pm
Write in french! so that I can understand everything.
And stopp “douter”.
Moi, les trucs sur le net, ça m’intéresse pas spécialement, mais ton esprit caustique, ton regard dépressivo-comique sur le monde, si…
But maybe you can write about things of the real world, more political, as everything is political, - and so your blog is already - or more personal…as says your friend.
“Who are readers” is une nouvelle veine, qui donne envie de mettre un commentaire because you speak really to someone.
Sorry for my english.
February 28th, 2007 at 10:45 pm
Le problème du blog en français, c’est de trouver le bon ton : ce qu’on lit oscille entre le language prosaique à tendance regressive “dé foa jékoute skairok bling bling ta vu lol”, le journal intime de bobo à baffer et l’auto-satisfaction gratuite. Concernant l’actualité du net, la plupart des bloggueurs français vont piocher leur news sur les sites américains. Bref, la même info en différé. J’avoue, j’ai en horreur les blogueurs hexagonaux.
Donc, non, moi pas écrire en Français. Il faudrait un jour que je fasse un petit florilège de leur cuistrerie.
Ceci étant, il y des exceptions, et je t’encourage à continuer.
Quand aux choses politiques, c’est un bon filon, mais tu sais comme je déteste la polémique… Je ne voudrais froisser personne, moi, en bon couard planqué derrière son écran…
Mais ça me donne une idée…
Merci pour ton commentaire.
March 3rd, 2007 at 4:43 am
What’s the difference between having a conversation by email or chat instead of blog comments??? i think that’s the question you have to answer …
I just found your blog because the 2000 bloggers faces project … just like other people .. surfing on internet … i choose read this blog because it’s interesting to me.. it’s simply like that …
PS: I don’t read or speak french
http://www.jorgecaceres.cl
March 3rd, 2007 at 11:36 am
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