reveal: i don't believe anyone reads this blog.ok, not anyone at all －
occasionally, someone will click over
from one of my facebook posts about my latest blog posts
& comment about it on fb.
or i'll run into a friend who says something nice
about my blog & how they enjoy it.
or once in a blue moon, someone will actually comment here.
a few times, it's even been someone i don't already know.
but i've got no evidence to date to indicate that
anyone really reads this with any sort of consistency.
maybe i've just got an audience composed of
thousands of lurkers.
but i think i'm mostly just out here on my own.
[cue anthem from fame.]
[god, i'm old.]
i always say this blog is a labor of love,
something i do just because i love to do it.
i love to write in my own voice
about stuff i'm interested in.
but to be real about it,
i want people to read me.
i want to create a blog that gives
information
inspiration
affirmation
confirmation
& little slices of everyday joy
[whew － i was beginning to sound
like reverend jesse jackson for a minute]
to readers.
so i'm exploring how to get there from here.
i'm boning up on blogging
& how the people who do it so well
do it so well.
& a couple of times already, i've come across
this piece of wise counsel:
thank your readers.
& i immediately realized i've never
ever thanked my readers
because i didn't believe i had any [remember?].
so now, here －
like the children of the book/movie
"the polar express," who can hear
the jingle bell ring only if they believe －
i'm choosing to believe you're there,
& i'm saying thank you for being there.
thank you. thank you. thank you.
& if i hear the faint tingaling
of a whispered "you're welcome,"
then at last, i might really believe
you exist.
& it will be like magic.
we're always proving who we are
always reaching for that rising star
to guide me far & shine me home
out here on my own
think pink:helzburg diamonds has designed a line of jewelry － called love, help & hope － especially for people connected to breast cancer [& who isn't somehow, nowadays?]. some of the pieces are quite lovely, & for the next year, helzburg will contribute $5 of every purchase to susan g. komen for the cure, with a $100,000 minimum guaranteed.
image source: funcards@etsy.com.
14 comments:
Well, I read your blog! Pretty regularly, too. And I comment. But that's cuz I have a blogger account. Many of my readers never leave comments, but they are usually family and friends who don't blog. But I know they read it because they tell me. To get blog comments, you basically have to comment on other blogs like yours. That's kind of how it works, like a network of friends with like interests. And when I don't have time to spend at other blogs, my traffic goes way down. I've given up on getting family to comment -- it's a nice surprise when they occasionally mention to me personally that they love my blog. But I'm never gonna convert em! AND, you have to answer yor commenters. Kinda rude not to because comments are supposed to be a conversation. I've never gotten any responses. Good luck to ya! Thank YOU. And you're welcome!
You're welcome
thank you, melanie! you just made my day! :)
No, thank you! And you're welcome!
diana ... thank you so much for your "tips" & your comments. you're right about my non-responsiveness -- my bad, & i hope to get better about it. & i will begin to take the time & make the effort to explore other "baby" blogs, & comment & interact much more. no wonder i feel all alone out here in the blogosphere ... i'm not holding up my end of the connection! enlightening, as ever, friend -- thanks again! :)
Well, I didn't know you had this..and now I do. It helps that I enlarged the scope of friends showing up on my newsfeed. And I didn't know you were a fan of "Fame" as well. "Out here on my own"...wow.
I started a blog a couple of years ago, mostly regarding nostalgia and old TV and Cartoons. Like you, I wonder if anyone reads it at all. I post on my FB wall when I write a new entry and sometimes comments come through there. But I find it to be great therapy to write it. It's almost like having a conversation with oneself. It's amazing sometimes how lonely social networking can be.
Hope you are doing well!
-Scott B.
My dear friend Kristen....I do read your blog...quite frequently actually, I am just one of your silent readers and I am so sorry for that. You have such a special gift in your writing and you do so with such elegance...me, I stumble over trying to get my thoughts down in a way that makes sense. Please know that you inspire and touch lives with every line you write. Much Love and Hugs!!
hi, scott - thank you for clicking through to discover my little "hidden" treasure [i hope] of a blog ... & i love your insight about how lonely social networking can be - so, so true! :)
& debbie - thank you so much for your kind words! you're such a dear friend ... which reminds me, the lizards are playing the cactus this saturday [& i've not promoted it - bad wife!] ... can you secure a sitter quick? let me know - we'd love to catch up with y'all!! :)
OK. I'm following now.
I've jumped around, and I really like your blog.
I like the looks of it, I like your pictures, your posts, your content, your style.
So, I am following now, and thank you for reaching out to me, so I could meet you.
Thank you so much, I can tell I'm going to like knowing you.
thank you so much, "empress" [love that, by the way ... i'm considering 'czarina' for myself ... ]! your feedback & your following is greatly appreciated ... & backatcha! :)
I love your blog, Kristen! Speaking as a web designer, I would highly recommend putting an email subscription form on your blog so that people who really want it don't have to remember and go and check your blog (or subscribe to a feed reader) to get your posts. I'm forwarding you an email right now that offers a few different options for doing this. Feedburner is a good free option that will email out your posts automatically. If you want to do feedburner and find it hard to install, give me a ring and I'll talk you through it (no charge).
aw, amy - i heart you! thank you so much for your kind word, & of course, for following me. i definitely will put an email subscription form on my blog ... & i definitely will call you if i can't figure it out on my own! i greatly appreciate your expertise, your input & your friendship. thank you!! :)
er, kind *words,* plural ... there was for sure more than one. ;)
For the record, they will never post a comment, but my mother and sister are often on the receiving end of my shares of your posts. They usually comment back to ME. Oh. Yeah, sorry. I'll forward those from now on!
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