tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1564859019305736550.post4033804032761270363..comments2023-07-22T15:44:42.859+01:00Comments on More about the song - rambling with Rachel Fox: About the blogRachel Foxhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11803852725693518924noreply@blogger.comBlogger12125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1564859019305736550.post-28820503627728881552008-08-13T15:40:00.000+01:002008-08-13T15:40:00.000+01:00I started my own blog as a way to compile scattere...I started my own blog as a way to compile scattered essays. It's become a bit more than that, but the back of my brain is still tickled to think that anybody but me reads those things. Someday I'd like to have the time (and the help of a patient editor) to sort through it all, find the common threads, and reorganize it into a book. As it is, it's repetitious, since like many I spiral around the same themes again and again.<BR/><BR/>Keeping a blog for me is different than keeping a journal. I've never kept a daily diary, but I've kept a journal for decades. My Road Journal on my main website has become my main journal, with the blog mostly sporting finished pieces. There is some overlap, of course. But you won't be reading my most inward personal thoughts anywhere but in the poems or in the Road Journal, if there. I allow the RJ to express what I'm feeling, but even that's a bit edited for public attention.<BR/><BR/>I've done writer's critique groups, and very good ones, with good people in them, for a long time. I've recently given them up, when I realized I was at a point where I'm not getting crit that's useful to me anymore. I'm just going to follow the inner compass for awhile. If in the end I get led astray, that's still a learning experience. Writer's groups do have some merits, but it really does depend on the right people being involved. Far too many groups go downhill because of the personalities rather than the writing.Art Durkeehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07463180236975988432noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1564859019305736550.post-15646110913230060602008-08-08T21:24:00.000+01:002008-08-08T21:24:00.000+01:00Smith - yes, I think I did hear her track was gett...Smith - yes, I think I did hear her track was getting used on an ad. I haven't heard from her for ages. Bloody pop stars.<BR/>xRachel Foxhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11803852725693518924noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1564859019305736550.post-35342317894002168452008-08-03T11:41:00.000+01:002008-08-03T11:41:00.000+01:00And is it really Ana on that Dove advert? Hurrah!And is it really Ana on that Dove advert? Hurrah!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1564859019305736550.post-35405923804750516642008-08-03T11:38:00.000+01:002008-08-03T11:38:00.000+01:00Thank you for the kind comments about Expletive Un...Thank you for the kind comments about Expletive Undeleted, Rachel. I feel pressure to be amusing now ..<BR/><BR/>Like Jim, I never really understood how important interacting with other bloggers and commenters was until I actually started blogging myself - and even then, it took me a while to get my head around the whole thing, as you know. <BR/><BR/>I still try not to get too involved though. I found myself on a blog the other day (led there by a post about the similarities between Chicago and Manchester, randomly enough)and ended up in a comment/email conversation with someone who tells me he writes about 'taboo' subjects like gangs, guns and Jews. I'm still trying to work out where he's coming from.<BR/><BR/>And my point is? I'm not sure. <BR/><BR/>The original idea was to write about stuff that nobody was willing to pay me to write about. The original writing I do for my blog is something I enjoy doing, just for its own sake. I can take days and days to write a 750word piece that I've been commissioned to write but I can dash off 2000 words about some daft old record in a couple of hours. <BR/><BR/>It's my edit, something that isn't mangled by commissioning ediots, subs, designers etc. It's very much like the punk rock fanzines I used to do - except the writing is better and the layout is nowhere near as chaotic. Although there's probably more swearing.<BR/><BR/>I'm still not sure what it is we're all involved with or how I fit into it - but it's fun trying to work it out. <BR/><BR/>xAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1564859019305736550.post-27902130107659521992008-08-02T13:50:00.000+01:002008-08-02T13:50:00.000+01:00I'm glad you did, Dave, as your blog is really int...I'm glad you did, Dave, as your blog is really interesting and varied.<BR/><BR/>I've been thinking about what you wrote in that last comment too, Colin. You said 'I like reading opinions that are very different to my own - that makes me think.' I think maybe you are a saint! I really TRY to think that way but I find it REALLY HARD not to get irate and crazy when, for example, I read people being dismissive of others for (what seem to me like) badly thought-out reasons. Likewise snobbery or bitchiness about different types of poetry (from any direction) makes my blood BOIL!! Why can't poets just write and let write a little more (and that doesn't mean no criticism it just means not expecting everyone else to think or write or be like oneself - poetry doesn't belong to any one faction)? We've been talking on Jim's blog about poets and sensitivity and I don't think I'm particularly sensitive about my own writing (like it or don't like it, read it or don't read it...heavens, there's plenty of other poems to read in the world) but I do hate small-mindedness dressed up as intellectual debate. <BR/><BR/>See, Colin...I tried to remain calm...didn't work! I'm off to do some deep breathing...and listen to some music probably! <BR/><BR/>xRachel Foxhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11803852725693518924noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1564859019305736550.post-14363707865665175682008-08-02T11:48:00.000+01:002008-08-02T11:48:00.000+01:00Like you, I don't do writers' groups and such-like...Like you, I don't do writers' groups and such-like, but I did begin to feel the need for contact with other writers, which is why I started my blog. I was not at all sure I would go on with it, but thought I'd give it a whirl and see.Dave Kinghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08430484174826768488noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1564859019305736550.post-66909929730773134272008-08-01T20:45:00.000+01:002008-08-01T20:45:00.000+01:00Colin - I've written diaries on and off (more on t...Colin - I've written diaries on and off (more on than off) since I was about 11. I've thought of burning them all once or twice (some of the content is a bit...lively and varied...) but I never do. Now and again I read bits back and it's so bizarre to see things from different ages and angles. Did I really like that person? Did I really write that sentence?<BR/><BR/>I know some people get a lot from writing groups but so far they have not been for me. Mainly I love just getting on with writing on my own. I see a lot of people and friends in other ways and writing is one of the things that I do quietly and on my own - that's why this blogging was something new and different for me. I think what I like about blogging (as opposed to a group) is that it lets you choose the writers you communicate with rather than just having to deal with whoever happens to be in your local area. Plus if you fall out or disagree it doesn't have to get so personal (I hate fallouts...they really upset me!). With this you can just switch off the PC. At least I've heard that's possible.<BR/><BR/>I did try a writers' group once (twice in fact) but some of the 'guys who know everything' just put me off (and there were a couple of those). I'm sure they were decent people really (somewhere deep inside...) but I just didn't have the time or the inclination to hang around and find out at that point in my life. I went back home and wrote about the experience (poem called 'Writers' groups are not the place for everyone' - writing section on website) and then I got on with everything else (writing and all). <BR/><BR/>And Jim, yes I would have to say that this blogging has made me think about what I write and why and a lot of that is down to you and the writers who visit your place. A lot of people think they are intellectuals but only some of them, for me, really open their minds and think. All the blogs I like best are about thinking hard...seeing the whole picture, hearing the whole sound, trying to understand and write about the whole experience. We're all trying in different ways. Ho ho.Rachel Foxhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11803852725693518924noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1564859019305736550.post-16050523047280085322008-08-01T19:15:00.000+01:002008-08-01T19:15:00.000+01:00Three names checks. No bad. No bad at aw.I was jus...Three names checks. No bad. No bad at aw.<BR/><BR/>I was just writing about this to someone else today – where and when I've forgotten – and I was saying how I started my blog as a means to promote my writing. And in that respect it is serving me well, well enough. The interaction with others came as a bit of a surprise to me. I expected the odd comment – I saw them on other sites – but not the deluge some of my posts have resulted in. At time I find that a bit of a burden. I try – I <I>do</I> try – and say something constructive to each commenter but I'm really not a very sociable guy. I can do it. I can turn it on whenever needed but the misanthrope in me has a good grip.<BR/><BR/>Self-promotions aside what I have to admit is that blogging is good for me. It forces me to think and, because I hold myself to high standards, it stops me from becoming sloppy in my thoughts. It doesn't matter how groggy I get or tired or depressed I have to get my act together and produce a thoughtful blog every 3½ days and I have to respond to each comment made. If I do nothing else – and I rarely do nothing else – that I have to do. As you said: No pain, no gain.<BR/><BR>Jim Murdochhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12786388638146471193noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1564859019305736550.post-36333103192751830712008-08-01T18:19:00.000+01:002008-08-01T18:19:00.000+01:00My main concern when I started blogging was that I...My main concern when I started blogging was that I'd never kept a diary or written up a journal before. Ever. So why would a blog be different? Dunno, but it <I>feels</I> different, and it now seems natural. If I've got something to say, I'll blog it. If not, I keep quiet. No pressure.<BR/><BR/>I've met so many nice people through blogging, real people as well as virtual ones, and they're not all long-time friends (although some are). And I like reading opinions that are very different to my own - that makes me think.<BR/><BR/>As far as writing groups go, I was a member of Edinburgh's School of Poets for many years, and I started the Dunbar Writers group when I moved here. I've seen the demand for peer group criticism and support from fellow writers, and if my experience helps the less experienced, I'm happy.Colin Willhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15627539650929533832noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1564859019305736550.post-22567735512197413742008-08-01T07:47:00.000+01:002008-08-01T07:47:00.000+01:00Thanks Hope. Yes the optimism is here to stay...an...Thanks Hope. Yes the optimism is here to stay...and so's the pessimism. I alternate between the two on a regular basis. As for shrinks...never met one I liked (though I'm always optimistic I might). Met some nice counsellors though...and some terrible ones...<BR/><BR/>And Sorlil...I know what you mean about people feeling like friends. It's weird and it shouldn't feel like that but it does. In Jim's recent post about sensitive poets (or not...) people were writing about how you can (or can't) hear tone in posts and comments. I really can...completely. My visual sense may not be up to much but my 'knowing what people are thinking/saying/meaning' sense has always been one of my strongest areas/curses! Sometimes it's annoying and I wish I could turn it off but when it helps me recognise potential new friends (on or off line) then I don't mind it so much. Friends (along with humour and music) are up in my top ten 'can't live without stuff'.<BR/>xxxRachel Foxhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11803852725693518924noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1564859019305736550.post-49797159231093352872008-07-31T23:45:00.000+01:002008-07-31T23:45:00.000+01:00nice post! as for the funny girls - well that's yo...nice post! as for the funny girls - well that's you, most of your posts make me laugh or at least raise a smile! being rather isolated from other writers and writing events the internet is my link to the poetry world and finding a blogging community of writers has helped me no end. it's a strange thing 'making friends' online', I've even lost touch with online friends then 'met' them online years later, the funny thing was they really did feel like old pals!Marion McCreadyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04657757253873577465noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1564859019305736550.post-50911484582687782942008-07-31T23:19:00.000+01:002008-07-31T23:19:00.000+01:00When someone who knew I wrote [mostly for fun] egg...When someone who knew I wrote [mostly for fun] egged me on to start a blog, my reply was, "Why? Does the world really need another opinion? Especially mine?"<BR/><BR/>Truth was, I needed a place to air my opinion without getting interrupted in mid-sentence. :)<BR/><BR/>I'm on my second blog actually... in the first one I hit one of those crossroads in life where nothing is fair and I was the only one playing by the rules. My entries were starting to depress me, ever the optimist [by the way Rachel, that's incurable] so I deleted it. Then I missed it.<BR/><BR/>Trying again led me to you wonderful people whom I've never laid eyes on but whose words I visit daily. Shug even has the same format as my first blog, so it was like coming to sit on a familiar front porch. I was truly enthralled to hear him read his poetry on another site, which led to his blog...then Rachel's, who led me to Ken and on and on and on.<BR/><BR/>Keep going girl. It's nice to know that what we find mundane in daily life is interesting to someone else. And it keeps us all human when the world has other plans. Plus blogging is cheaper than a shrink. ;)hopehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03306622656461205674noreply@blogger.com