Languishing

I have a hard time coming up with posts for my blog. I agonize over getting my ideas polished enough to put out there for my wide (hah!) audience. What I do, then, is tell myself that I’ll wait until I have plenty of time to compose something acceptable. Well, as one can see, that leads to a languishing blog.

What I have noticed is that I am not at all reluctant to *respond* to other blogs. Two of my last three posts have been responses. Somehow, I have no reservations about posting off the cuff responses (although I resist composing posts for my own blog on the fly).

What to make of this:

Part of me wants to start quoting Berlin and Bakhtin and talk about how all knowledge is socially constructed and that I do my best thinking in conversation. And, let’s face it, my blog is a monologue not a conversation. I post far more than I receive comments; the reverse is true on most of the blogs I admire. So, of course, I am more inspired to write by an ongoing conversation than I am by a blank, audience-less screen (duh!).

Another part of me has a more practice-oriented, less theoretical response. Many bloggers read widely on the internet, find links and snippets, condense and compile them on their blogs and post said compilations with some commentary. They are glossing conversations, not creating them whole. So maybe every time I feel like I need to post to my blog, I should use my time to start popping around cyberspace, reading and compiling interesting bits.

The whole of me thinks both of these are relevant. (Bill and Erin and other 220Cers who struggle with blogging, I hope you are reading this!)

Kosher in the Blogosphere?

It is kosher to post a comment on another blog and then turn around and use it as an entry on one's own blog? I hope so because that is what I am about to do.

I have been trying to read Kairosnews more regularly (I have made it the default page on my Mozilla browser--a browser that I learned about from my students David and Michi).

A few minutes ago, I read a post with a link to an article by Derek Powazek that argues text is as important as visual design is to the electronic interface.

I was struck by the article, and posted the following at Kairosnews:
What a fine, fun, succinct read! I’m going to have my Advanced Comp students read this when I ask them to compose websites that are supposed to be re-visions of previous traditional papers they have written. I find that they get so excited about being able to play with color and image that they often gloss over the writing – both in terms of volume and quality. This article seems like a fun little reminder to attend to quality, without being all alarmist about it (i.e. the-web-is-ruining-reading-and-writing-and-the sky-is-falling).

I’m also teaching technical and professional writing next semester—which I have not taught for a long while—maybe this will find its way onto that syllabus too.

My reaction to this article is completely teacherly right now. I wish I had a brilliant philosophical reaction in my head at the moment . . .maybe something tying together Powazek’s claim that “text is interface” with Steven Johnson’s claim about how electronic interfaces shape and are shaped by culture (from Interface Culture) . . .but, alas, brilliance escapes me.