The Future of SG
Feb 28th, 2008 at 3:24 pm by Susie
Okay, kids, here’s the deal.
I can’t handle this anymore - at least, not in its present incarnation. It’s too time-consuming and distracting, and my mental, physical and financial health is suffering as a result.
I have to tell you: This election is making me crazy. If I come back, I’ll focus mostly on the congressional races instead of the presidential. My blood pressure insists on it.
There’s pressure at work, too. Our lead salesperson is in the hospital and might not be back. That means I have to pull extra hard to pick up the slack.
So where does that leave SG? Well, I was thinking about turning the site into a community blog like Kos, etc. but there are a lot of administrative headaches that go with that, too. So then I was thinking about turning it into a site where I’d post once or twice a week and I’d sign up other people for once-a-week duty. The problem there is, not many people are able and willing to make the commitment.
I don’t want to put up posts just for the hell of it, either. I want to maintain a certain quality here.
But it occurs to me that I’ve never actually quantified what that is. So now it’s your turn. Why do you come here? What does it have that’s unique? How can it be maintained without killing me?
Suggestions, please.
I always liked your site.
Maybe you can “lease” some space at another site for a while.
I’m pretty done with the primaries, too.
what do I come here for? It’s the mix of tech and politic and softer stuff. It’s a good summary source, and I’ve come to count on this site as a place to get a quick, mostly factual overview,so that when I go somewhere else, I can decide if I want to wade through a lot of opinionating. I think this site is mostly bottom-up, not top-down - that is to say, effects on little people, not analyzing what he said/she said. Which is part of why everybody is going nuts these days.
I don’t have the self-confidence to volunteer, and I work an odd schedule - on 8 out of nine days, off four out of five.
Susie, I come here because I like your style.
Of course, I usually (but not always) agree with your politics too.
I like your style of “here’s something interesting to read–go read it” with minimal comments, mixed with the occasional long, thoughtful post of personal reflections.
As I told you last week at DL, your style has influenced mine (the difference, of course, is that you get hundreds of hits while I get dozens, but, what the hey! my blog is my hobby and I’m not competing with anyone). As you said to me last week, “blog about what you are interested in.”
My site was down most of last week because Wordpress had issues (Slackware was just fine, but Slackware is the Linux distribution of iron and never breaks, but I digress). I ended up rebuilding my server from bare electrons, because I figured that, in the long run, that was probably easier than trying to trouble-shoot the son of a whatchamacallit.
I decided NOT to stay up all night(s) to make it work and kept telling myself, “It’s only a hobby.”
No, I didn’t believe it then and I don’t believe it now. Even though I only have a few regular readers (and you have many).
It’s my baby.
I sit up with it almost every night.
I try to feed it nutritious stuff and keep it growing and healthy.
I know what a labor of love a blog is. I know how it seems to become a living thing.
I’m not sure I have any good suggestions for you, but I will hazard one:
Lower your expectations. Maybe set a goal of averaging two posts a day. And feel good if you manage more than that (and I do mean an average: miss today, make four tomorrow, and don’t feel bad about missing tomorrow).
Persons like you (and, he said, elevating himself to a level he doesn’t deserve, me) who do this as a sideline to living a life need to remind ourselves that it’s only a hobby. We need to remember that the computer is only ones and zeroes and we should tell it what to do, not let it tell us what to do.
So cut back, live your life, even if it’s a one post a day life, but, please, don’t go away.
I’ve been where you are.
My advice: pace yourself; be ok with short posts; be ok with posts that say “Check out what this person had to say!”; don’t force yourself to sit down and write “just because it’s been a day/hour/week/month”.
Remember, it’s your site and you can do it however you like. I’m thinking happy thoughts for you.
i read your blog because i like your voice, your opinions (even if they aren’t always exactly the same as mine), the things that catch your attention, and your writing style. it’s the same reason i like all the blogs i like. it’s the personalities behind the blog that make a site worth visiting.
which is why i don’t tend to like community blogs that much. the only scoop sites i do read have a core of people who i enjoy reading. and even then i never bother looking at the diaries.
here are my suggestions:
(1) continue blogging in whatever way you feel you can. i would really miss you if you stopped. if cutting back or avoiding some issues are what you need to do to continue, by all means do that.
(2) if you don’t feel like you can blog anymore, then stop. personally, i doubt you really can stop. i’ve heard stories about times when you have “stopped” you’ve ended up emailing stuff for your subs to post. i think blogging is just part of your life now. but if it’s taking a serious toll on other parts of your life and you decide it’s not worth it, then stop. i wish you would find a way to continue, but if you have to stop i’ll get over it. so will everyone else.
(3) i’m a big believer that people’s blogs should be whatever they want them to be, but i vote against converting to a scoop-style site. scoop sites make people crazy. or maybe they just attract crazy people. besides, the power of the blogging medium is the different voices of individual bloggers. that gets diluted in a scoop site.
(4) don’t listen to what i say. in the end you have to do whatever you have to do. and you should have (or not have) any kind of blog you want. but i’m sure you know that already.
Susie, the blog has to be something you enjoy. Post when you feel like it. Don’t even worry about other posters. Your only obligation is to yourself. If it’s not fun, you shouldn’t bother. I’ll be around to read you no matter how infrequently you wind up posting, because I like you and admire you.
Well, shit, Susie. I’ve read your posts for some time now. Drawn by what you say, the way you say it and your obvious passionate beliefs. I also understand that ya gotta do whatcha gotta do. Listen to the inner voice and keep to the decision you know is right for you. Re: what happens to the blog now? All credit to Maya Chris etc. I check your blog daily to see what windmill you’re tilting at today. Post if you want to, when you want to, but whatever it is, best of luck to you.
why do i read thee? let me count the ways …
you do good aggregation, like avedon, and duncan.
i value your writing, your sense of what is important, and what isn’t.
i value your voice, which i could “hear” long before the first phone call.
you’re one of the few who actually do paid political work. realism reads better than keyboard fantasy.
the only thing we’re doing up-ticket is either late work in FL/OH/PA, or something … alternative. for the rest, its down ticket and back to policy (if its O v M, auntie nuke is not going to be amused either way).
Speak when you have something to say. Not when others expect you to speak.
Ten posts a day when you feel you have ten things to say is much less a burden on your karma and your sanity than ten posts a day because you think your audience expects it.
General (7284)
Treat us like adults because we are. Whether we know it or not.
Susie, I have enjoyed your blog a great deal and was touched to read your entry on how difficult it’s become to maintain. I’ve often wondered how bloggers manage what must be a very demanding job.
I read your work because you’re interesting and varied and I never know what I’ll find. I’m most often pleasantly surprised. It’s you, your own style and personality, that makes it so enjoyable to read.
I’m new to blogging as a medium and don’t know much about how it works but perhaps you could team up with others so you don’t have sole responsibility for the operation and can post when you’re able?
Good luck with your decision. Do what you need to do to take care of yourself.
Damn, I just got here!
I like the things you think about, and I like the things you think about them. Your writing style is sharp, concise, witty, thoughtful, and personal, without making a great big f’ing deal about it. I never leave without a good laugh. Your taste in music is divine.
What’s not to love?
However…
Bottom line: you gotta do what you gotta do. Solo blogging is a drain, and it ain’t like most folks can quit their day job.
Whatever you decide to do, take care of yourself. If you take a break, don’t worry. We won’t forget you.
Best -
Susie,
okay, what everyone else said about your writing. Add to that, commenters interesting enough to be worth reading, and not so numerous as to fill pages and pages.
The fact that you’re a philly-area blogger resonates with me as well, particularly on those occasions when you’ve posted photos “out the back window” when I’ve been out of the country for a long trip. It’s a touch of home-like familiarity, and it’s appreciated.
You’ve just got to find your own pace; if that means one post per day or less, okay. Fewer posts, scrolling off less quickly, with more time to talk about them, would probably be a benefit. In fact, I suggest just picking a posting rate (1/day? 2/day?) and trying to stick with it for a while. I have no idea whether that would work for you, but it might be worth a try (says the person that obsessively schedules stuff; so take with a big grain of salt)
I go to your blog because I like what you write and how you write it. I don’t always agree with your take, but I always value what you say. You’re a good writer. That bears repeating, you are a good writer.
Don’t stop (that is selfish on my part, you are free to stop, of course). Do what you can, don’t worry about what you can’t do, for whatever reason.
As others have said, you do this because you love it, you write because you love to do it and you want other people to read what you say.
Let us hear you, even if it’s just a little.
If you can’t anymore, we’ll understand. But, we will miss you.
Respect always, I wish you the best, no matter what you decide.
Go listen to some Shawn Phillips, it’ll make you feel better,
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=56fuSS24kaY
Peace.
Excellent filter. Pithy comments. Personal in a compellingly brief way. I’ll keep visiting whether you post once a day or once a month. Give it a rest when you need to and post when it’s a pleasure (or a need). Will still be here.
Like some others here, I would reccommend the Billmon model, by which I mean post as infrequently as you like. What’s unique here is you and your unique intelligence and personality. So don’t worry about quality- you owe your audience nothing. As the little girl said in Field of Dreams, “People will come”.
I do not support the above blogger who suggests you use the billmon model. That is only because I still miss him. The same would be true of you. Yours is the first site I check every day. Your colleagues are good, but they are not you. Your individual outlook on the universe is as dear to my heart as Digby’s( who now also shares her space). Do what you need to do, but don’t do a Billmon. Respectful of Otters hasn’t posted in over a year and I still check there weekly…
You are the first place I go everyday. I love the way your brain is greedy for information; I appreciate your class consciousness; I think you are an excellent writer.
This is a bold undertaking, and I get how exhausting and thankless it must seem at times. I will continue listening for your take on things-in- general no matter how infrequent.
I might be in a small minority in this view, but I’m not a fan of group blogs, at least the large ones, in general. Too many voices making it difficult to pick the ones out I enjoy most, too many posts - I like yours and Duncan’s pace of posting on a daily basis, Avedon’s also - and a tendency to go “me too” on the posts.
I like the individual blogs. If I want something more, I check out memeorandum, and look by story. But I keep going back to the voices I like.
If you have to reduce pace, I’ll still read every day. There’s a blog I check every day for a post, and she posts perhaps once a week, but it’s almost always an entertaining read. I’ve accepted that deal as a reader. And that’s the point - you’re the one doing the work, so you should determine the terms of “the deal”. Perhaps the real question you should be asking is not what readers expect, but what you expect, from this blog.
What do I like about your blog?
I love your style. I like the things you write about, your observations on life’s big (and little) daily dramas, your thoughts and views on politics and world events, your choices in youtubes and music, all of it. You make me laugh and think. I read you every morning over my first cup of coffee. Maybe sometimes we don’t always see things exactly the same way, but who cares?
It’s your blog, and you should do what you want with it. Selfishly, I hope you’ll continue, because I missed you when you were working for Knox last year, but I can also totally understand the stress and aggravation and 24/7 factors. Too well.
I hope you keep blogging, at whatever pace suits you. I think you have a unique, no-bs voice, you have wit (which others only think they do), and you give voice to down-to-earth liberal values. Plus it’s so neat that you’re in Philly so you talk about local stuff.
Like others have said, SG is the first blog I read most mornings. I like your style and often think, Susie said it perfectly again. Music is an important part of my life as it is yours, and I enjoy the song clips. BTW, did you get to listen to that new Ray Davies album I told you about? If you have to post less frequently, we understand. We’ll still check here often. Perhaps SG can include a FEW SG community posts (like DU), which have been reviewed and accepted by you or other mods. Just a thought.
Got the Ray Davies CD, haven’t listened to it yet…
You write well, Susan, and from the perspective of one whose parents worked, say, as truck drivers or bank tellers because they were not Yale legacies. This perspective is scarce on the blogs.
But what I most enjoy are the tales from your life, the scrabbling-with-your-husband’s-ashes-in-the-trunk stories.
You relate these experiences with elegance and grace, and you never, ever make excuses for yourself. These are the choices you made, and if they later proved to be the wrong choices, you say so.
I have no advice. But if you cease to write in a public forum, I will miss you.
Go find Billmon and chain him in your basement.
Otherwise, just post at your own rate.
what everyone else says. As you’ve probably noticed my own blogging has tapered off recently: too much to do at work, too little interest in saying what everyone else already says.
I agree that setting up a kos-style site would be a headache. And worse it would end up with an exponentially larger number of strudel shitgun-types.
What I tend to do these days is blog at brendancalling when the spirit moves me, and supplement my time with diaries at booman tribune.
You are usually one of my first stops every morning, before the Times, Philly.com, and even talkingpointsmemo.
Yeah, it’s your writing, your perspective, your style, alla that — but mainly the sense I get that there is somebody out there making sense. Plus how else will I know when Mercury goes retrograde? Reading SG is, for me, a little like having a quick chat with a friend. But I don’t show up here (or anywhere) every day, and I totally understand that blogging is not all you do. Post when you have something to say and the time & energy to say it. Of course, that’s easy for me to say as I have a blog that does not have much traffic and does not host ads — in part because of the obligations that these entail.
I can’t really add to what everyone else has said - your style, your voice, your attitude. It’s your blog, your life, but you, Susie, are a part of our lives. I’d keep you on my Favorites list even if you gave it up and walked away. I hope you don’t.
I read your blog daily for your perspective. Also, you seem to find little nuggets in the news that I don’t see elsewhere. I am a daily reader & check you out several times a day!
I really identify with your dilemma. I don’t know the answers. I love to blog, but it’s incredibly time-consuming and basically unpaid. I just had to take off a week because of life issues, and got emails asking me, where are you?
Group blogs are just not quite the same. I guess the Hullabaloo/Skippy solution is as good as any; a very small group with the posts clearly identified as by the different contributors.
Selfishly, I hope you stay with it, but would understand if you hang up your keyboard.
Susie
I am so where you are (as you know) after nearly 5 years of blogging. I’ve taken the occassional few day break from my blog more often than I used to, and while I feel a lot better when I return I find myself slipping back into questioning why I am here and wishing I had more time each day to run both my business and my blog.
I have quite a few other writers but none post with the frequency I do and the bottomline is, this primary season is making me nuts too. As a writer it’s great to have an outlet to share your thoughts, when it consumes the rest of your life and becomes stressful it is not so great.
I’m cutting way back too, will probably just focus on issues other than the election - Congress, the environment, small business, etc.
One of the best things I have done for myself over recent months is unsubcribe from a lot of lists and groups and political action committees to avoid excess distraction.
Good luck… I’ve wondered if someone should start Bloggers anonymous. I really think somedays that blogging is addictive.
Susie: Take a little pinch of all the comments, add some salt/pepper to taste, and you have the recipe for a great night out. Most important though, is to take you time to enjoy cooking the meal and to sit down and enjoy it, whether you cook the meal for yourself or someone else. And since I am using the metaphor of a good restaurant, I will be back, because I really like to food you serve. Affectionately, Bb
Susie,
Know how you feel. With John Edwards withdrawing from the race I got into a funk that all but paralyzed me. Love your site as you know how to go for the jugular. Maybe just pick out a choice tidbit for us now and then until you get your energy back.
You have a real eye for the important stuff it would be a shame to loose you.
Susie,
I love your blog and will continue to love it whether you post once a day, once a week or once a month. You are a terrific writer. I also love your take on the issues of the day. Living in the Philadelphia suburbs I really enjoy reading your posts on Philadelphia and the politics of Philadelphia.
All that said, I agree with everyone else that you need to do what is best for you.
Jennifer
Your blog tells me what the most far-left liberal Americans are saying.
You tend to link to every article you find that foretells diasater for this country. And you rarely question the accuracy or consider the source. You are like the Paul Revere for the far left’s “chicken littles”.
You almost never post about good news or success stories or happy times. That is too bad.
I think you post too often. The posts disappear off the page, which kills any conversation in comments. Too many links are not worth the time spent loading (on dial-up) and have no commentary at all in your post.
Two of your great strengths are a working class perspective and a lifetime of work. Cut the number of posts you make by two-thirds, and balance them, half positive and half negative. This recipe should reduce your workload and increase your satisfaction in contemplating your posts.
Just my two cents.
Well, I came here originally because you were linked on every freaking blog on the planet. I was simply curious.
But then I realized we were a lot alike. Our political differences on the Big Picture were remarkably small, and I liked your straight-up style and subtle snark. The tunes you posted were mostly great in my world.
Then you posted about some financial hardships, along with a later one about the $25 you had received, and coupled with the number of bloggers who link you, the combination sort of irritated me. “Friends” my ass.
I just like the site, and the content, and you, and will miss you if you go. I get it; I personally have skipped days, have no back-up, and have recognized some of the negative impacts of being a news and political junkie. I think maybe I’m able to detach better, is all. As I age, I realize there isn’t so much in my control, and I like to blog so I can say “I told you so” later, and vent my spleen on some particularly egregious issue.
Whatever you decide, all the best.
John O
There seems to be a pretty broad consensus that your blog is compelling because of how you write. You’re a VERY good writer imo. Which doesn’t help your dilemna, because writing is hard and there’s no way to change that, other than by doing less of it. Which we’ll all just have to accept.
Another reason I read your blog is because you have “taste” in linking to stories which are interesting, important, humorous, etc … more so than any other blogger I can think of right now. Not to even mention the music links … ok I’ll mention ‘em: Great music links, too.
In other words I dig your blog a lot, and like others I’ll most certainly miss it if it’s gone or changes radically. But I’ll live. I don’t really have a good suggestion as to which direction this blog should take, but I do want to join the chorus in singing your praises, for all you’ve done here over the years. Be well. Post when you feel like it. And … Brava! Brava!
I’ve RSS’ed you for a while and have come to wonder how you know so well what I want to read …. But if your blog’s not fun, why bother? How about if you simply become a “news aggregator”? A list of headlines and hyperlinks to stories that interest you?
And, I’ll forever be in debt to you for my biggest hit-day ever, a whopping 195. LOL.
At least until someone kind enough beats that.
Don’t take it so seriously, SusanM. Control what you can, cry when you have to, feel you must, that’s a part of the plan. But don’t forget El Photo Grande, which in the end tells me, at least, that we didn’t mean a hill of beans outside our own circles of love, family, and friends.
And sympathetic bloggers and readers of blogs.
What I like is your voice. I like that you have more awareness than other blogs of the intelligent life of the not-quite-so-middle class.
I like that you write well.
I hope you keep writing in whatever manner works for you. If that means less often, OK.
The campaign rhetoric has been disheartening, esp. hearing slams from other so-called progressives… I can certainly understand the need to take a break!
RE-generate and RE energize and RE couperate and return…in whatever (new?) way.
I think that in her usual bass-ackwards way, Wendy Whinner
(does she mean Winner? or does she mean Whiner?) has
pointed out the power and importance of your blogging work.
Ramp down to the extent you need to — we’ll be here when
(if?) you ever decide to ramp back up.
Hmm. If Wendy Whinner thinks this blog represents “what the most far-left liberal Americans are saying,” then she doesn’t know any of the most far left liberal Americans. People in the Noam Chomsky sort of realms would actually strenuously object to being called liberals, viewing the word as something that has become a pejoritive term - associated with “neoliberals” and war-enablers such as Tony Blair etc. (I’ll still own the word “liberal” for myself though …)
But Izquierdo (speaking of “leftitsts” ^_^ …) is correct about Ms Whinner’s theme, that SG is bountiful source for links to articles of interest to liberals - even if not for those of the “most far left” variety.
Susie,
I haven’t been reading your blog for very long. I found it through your info page at BT. I;ve always enjoyed your front page guest posts from there because, for one thing, they were usually about subjects that weren’t otherwise covered there anymore, and BT’s front page has been missing a female voice for a long time. I’ve also appreciated your take on how the primaries have been conducted, the mass media coverage of them, and the ugly banwagon aspect of most of the bigger blogs and their contributors,.
You’re pretty prolific here at SG, with lots of shorter type posts, which go a long way, I think, in keeping your blog interesting, with a wide variety of subjects. The recent lunar eclipse and the excitement it held for you is a good example :o)
Also, I used to enjoy Chris’ front page blogging at Booman’s place. Especially his Sunday morning jazz posts. So, to find him posting here was a big plus for why I would like to continue reading here.
And lastly, but most importantly, I love your taste in music and how you incorporate it into this blog. It’s something I tried tp do with my own blog because I think music better conveys ideas and emotions that words can only sometimes convey.
Whatever you decide, I wish you great success.
Just wanted to add my thanks for all you have given thru the years with this blog. I, very selfishly, want you to keep posting, but of course I also want your to be healthy,mentally and physically. I remember when your dad had the whipple—we need to live the way we want to because who knows what will happen next. Best of luck(I still REALLY miss Billmon)
Susie, I don’t know what the answer is, all that I know is that this is the best web site out there, and I am not just saying this to convince you to keep on going. It is balanced, informative, entertaining, and one of my few escapes when I feel like the world is upside down (which is almost all of the time anymore). I absolutely understand burnout. Maybe you could take a break and recharge your batteries.
Just so that you know your demographics - I am a white, male, 54 years old college professor. Thank you for what you do.
Ray Taylor
Why do you come here? What does it have that’s unique?
Yours is always the first newsblog I turn to — and if my time is limited, the only one.
Hard to articulate, but it comes down to being a really excellent filter.
In the book “Interface Culture,” Steven Johnson spoke about how people use trusted filters to cope with information overload. Used to be the national news was a shared filter, but nowadays individuals are finding their own, and you have become one of mine.
The site doesn’t overwhelm me with too much information, but you manage to hone in on the most important stories in the news, quote the most relevant bits, and then bold what’s truly crucial to know.
You’ve got an excellent eye for catching what’s most newsworthy, and are capable of concisely explaining it. You provide a good spread — a smorgasbord of topics — in contrast with other sites’ narrow single-issue focus. And, I like your voice — in your own essays and your selection criteria.
The guest bloggers you’ve used have been fine, but be careful of following Kos’s route. His site has grown too large to be terribly useful to me. [What's the Yogi Berra quote? "No one goes there any more, it's too crowded."]
Would it be easier for you to linkblog pointers to good articles without doing so much editing and commentary? More twitter-like posts? I would find value in that. But as others have already responded, you need to take care of yourself and do what’s best for you.
PS: I sympathize re:election coverage making you crazy. I’ve stopped much of my political blogging because I find it all so depressing. If you just want to leave off the news coverage altogether and journal occasional pieces about how your life is going, I’d read that too.
PPS: Just found a 2005 post recommending your blog. At the time, I described your site as “a quick one-stop catchup with current events,” praising you for your “astonishing skill in extracting the most relevant two paragraphs out of multi-page articles — and if you’re in too much of a hurry for that, she bolds an even tighter executive summary.” So, I guess it wasn’t that hard to articulate.