Why Blogger? 12 Reasons Why You Should Blog!

I started blogging for the main reason that I wanted a platform that forced me to write regularly, and gave me an avenue to research topics I found interesting in a format that forced me to be accurate and concise. So far at Itchy Quill we have looked at reading, travelling, gender roles in modern society, the history of symbols and the future, using this format.

Through my time in the blogosphere I have encountered other bloggers from many different backgrounds with many different motivations. My favourite blogs are a veritable mixed bag of randomness, from street poets to wannabe chefs, and travelling mums to deaf composers. There is a world of awesome out there to be explored, and so why not get a taste of it from the experiences of others? I’ve always believed reading is a gateway into adventure, giving you a unique insight into how someone else did something and this in turn gives you a grounding for your own escapades. Blogging is a microcosm of that, a peak into the unknown or a glance back at the adored. It’s a wink and a nod at life…

So, if you want to blog, but are not sure why, then let below be a list of some good reasons to try! If you already blog, but are stuck for ideas, then perhaps this list can help to inspire you. For the more advanced bloggers out there, where do you fit in?

Start your adventure today!

Take that first step… see where it takes you

Helping People

I put this as number one because I want to start on a positive note; the helping of others. The ‘helping’ type of blogs are normally written by people who fall often into two categories; those who are trained in a certain area and want to help those who could benefit from their training, and those who have experienced something and want to share their experiences so as to help others in similar situations. A common example would be some of the wonderful work being done online to help mental health. There are countless blogs here, but that is just the start.

There are many blogs that talk about the ups and down of parenthood, of moving to a new country, or offer tips on certain kinds of work (such as ESL Teaching and Bartending). Sharing is caring, people! Go ahead, right now, write a  problem of yours into Google along with the word blog, and see the links that come up. Within a few seconds, you’ve connected with a stranger whose reality reflects yours. You may not agree with them, but sometimes even seeing ‘how not’ can remind us of ‘how to’. It’s the global conversation, happening every day.

See, blogging is a community. It builds bridges between people from all walks of life and reminds us that we are not alone. Whatever may be happening in your life right now, there is always going to be someone online who feels your pain and has shared their experience. Reaching out to others can be hugely beneficial, and connecting with other people so as to unite against such issues can be a wonderful start on the road to recovery.

“Dr Blogger here, how can I help you?”

You Can Share Ideas and Thoughts

The creative mindset is one that is heavily represented in social media, especially within the realms of Twitter and Pinterest. Many creatives will have links from their social media accounts to their blogs, which are places that give them the chance to showcase their talent for the world to see. Seeing the work of others can be hugely inspiring, as can having a forum to share your own.

Blogging naturally brings people with similar ideas and hobbies together, as the best audience for your blog will be people who share your passions. This can start a snowball effect on your work as it builds steam and energy from feedback and collaboration.

Find your posse…

It’s a Place To Make Snobservations

That’s right, you snotty little tyrant, you. If silently judging from afar just doesn’t quite give you the satisfaction it used to, perhaps unleashing your poisoned vitriol upon the internet will take your internal bitterness to a new level?

Of course, not all of us have such negative energy to spread around the world. Perhaps you long to divulge some peace and love, or you have some whimsical outlook on experiences you feel the internet could benefit from. Go for it!

“How does KFC run out of chickeeeeeeeeen!!!”

Dear Diary… Reflection

These could be two separate ideas, as to reflect is not necessarily to diary. Using your blog as a kind of online diary is a great way to keep it accessible. I have some good friends here in Taiwan who use their blog as a way of keeping folks back home in touch with what they have been up to. There’s no reason why this can’t be the case for those living closer to their nearest and dearest too.

The act of reflection, for some such an integral part of why they keep a diary in the first place, is also something that blogging offers. See, when posting situations or experiences onto the internet in this fashion, you are putting it into a domain where anyone can access it. Sometimes, the impartial view of a stranger can help to give you fresh perspective, or give you feedback on something that may link to their own life and the two of you can both gain a mutual benefit from your shared story.

Of course, don’t forget that as it’s online, people can read everything…

“Dear Diary, I’m still having that dream where I murder my friends”

Improve Your Writing

As a writer, what better practice is there to hone your craft than to write!? I mean, scribbling away odes and novellas is another way, of course, but blogging gives you regular practice that forces you to be strict on daily/weekly/monthly posts, and means you must edit and research it quickly. On top of this, just knowing that your work will be viewed by others means you will have to be more thorough and more appealing, giving you practice in the art of receiving criticism (or, sometimes, in receiving praise) and of marketing yourself through your words.

If you’re not a writer though, blogging can still help you improve your writing skills. I know many bloggers here in Taiwan who blog in English, even though their first language is Chinese, purely as a way of practising and feeling more confident using it.

Find out what your Words are Worth, understanding what the Dickens is so Austen-tacious about blogging. It really Shakes your Peares!

“Wordplay!”

Become an Expert

The word ‘expert’ gets thrown around a lot these days, especially on Twitter. Oh my, you can’t throw a digital stone without hitting a ‘Social Media Expert’ or ‘Marketing Guru’. It’s become rather laughable. The problem is, if you do have a skill, blogging about it is actually a wonderful thing to do! If you are one of the genuine few with something to offer, you should share it!

Fixing old bike engines? Pokemon collector? Butterfly circus? Whatever your poison, indulge your inner nerd and share your knowledge. You’ll be amazed how quickly you find a niche within a community and start to learn more and share more. Just by having a blog, you’ll be researching and learning, just for the benefit of your posts. This will translate to acquired knowledge and before you know it, you’ll be the paramount mind on contemporary dragon raising in the South of England! Boo yeah!

Find them a meaningful career, obviously!

The Blogo-Social Network

Ok, so we’ve already talked rather at length about how community is the foundation of blogging, and vis a vie you will encounter a myriad range of different people and blogs. Truth be told, a lot of the people you encounter will be into similar fields as you, as one of the soul reasons they will stumble upon your blog is that they were looking for something like it.

Using these connections wisely can build a truly beneficial network over time. Many authors, graphic designers and artists use blogging for this very reason, so as to meet others in their industry and connect for the good of both their careers. Being part of a community means being part of something greater than the sum of what is yours and only yours. Use the internet for what it was meant for; the coming together of humanity!

In a good way… coming together ‘in a good way’ (not pictured)

To Make Money

Making money from your blog is not as easy as simply wanting it, but it shouldn’t take long for the truly dedicated to start to see money coming in from advertising. It is very, very hard to make a lot of money form your blog. Those that make steady revenue tend to be people who are furiously motivated and committed to their blog. That said, it is totally possible to make the big bucks from your blog. To see a list of ways to ‘monetize’ (their words, not mine) your blog, visit this link on about.com for five tips to stimulate cash flow.

Don’t let it compromise your artistic integrity though…

It’s Easy

Really, it is. There are tons of places you can go to find free hosting, and most blogging websites now offer free design and layout templates, with themes that can be customized to fit your blogs vibe. What’s stopping you? Giving it a try gives you the chance to cross something else off of your bucket list, and slowly work towards your ultimate goal of being an awesome you!

You could spend as little as 20 minutes a week posting up some thoughts, and then watch as your circle of influence grows steadily over time.

Check out this post on stylecaster.com to see their choice of The 10 Best Free Blog Sites.

“Me done maked ma bloog!”

To Learn New Skills

Since starting my blog I’ve had to sharpen up on writing skills, practice harvesting research in a swift fashion, find out where to find free photographs, teach myself how to edit my own photography on Photoshop, and also polished up on licensing law with regards to the internet! All skills that are totally transferable to other activities of mine! On top of this, I’ve had to take my twitter game to the next level (follow us here) and master certain other media packages to help showcase my work.

Just from reading the blogs of others I have learned a bit about living in different countries, which non-European authors are worth checking out, how to stay fit, and countless other skills and tit-bits of knowledge.

Who knows what you’ll learn, and how it might change you…

“The greatest wastes are unused talents and untried ideas”. – Unknown

Elvis Kung Fu anyone?

It Builds Confidence

The internet can be a pretty nasty place at times, especially since trolls enjoy wandering from forum to forum, dropping racist, homophobic, sexist malevolence. At other times, people who are genuinely nice in the physical world can be right vipers when it comes to critical feedback and comments.

Responding to these, and developing the thick skin needed to tolerate it without lowering yourself to it, is a self-empowering and rather fulfilling part of blogging. Knowing that you can air your view, and then face down opposition to it in a mature way will help you feel much more at peace with yourself. Most of all, just taking the steps to put yourself out there, about whatever it is that you feel inspired to do so, is a genuinely fantastic experience.

Let that confidence flow…

“Take that, society”

It Might Change The World

Can blogging change the world? Of course it can! If you are someone writing about the impending doom of a zombie apocalypse, why not make the most of it and establish a blog on how to survive? You could go as far as offering tips on negotiating with zombies, finding an antidote in a crisis, and how to out run the undead. These are all fun to read now, but in the future they could very well change the world!

On a smaller note, know that sometimes your blog could be the inspiration someone needs to change their life, and that could be invaluable to a stranger in the trajectory of their personal success. Just look at this story of how two school girls changed their school life.

That’s the point. Blogging puts people around the world in touch with each other on such a potentially detailed and personal level that genuine bonds can be made, and why wouldn’t these change the world?

Who knows what may come from your words…?

The best part; comments! Feel free to comment below and let’s get a conversation going about blogging!

If you know of any great examples of different blogs that are worth checking out, please leave a link in the comments below too!

Special thanks to 1shots, artur84, David Castillo Dominici, holohololand, imagerymajestic, phasinphoto, Photokanok, siraphat, stockimages, vectorolie and winnond @ FreeDigitalPhotos.net for use of their photos in this blog.

© Itchy Quill and ItchyQuill.WordPress.com, 2015

The Art of Writing; Practising Plagiarism (or rather, Copywork)

Let’s begin by re-assessing the nature of the title. Of course, this is not going to be an article from a writer condoning the use of another’s material so as to further your own financial and critical success.

Wikipedia defines Plagiarism as: “…the “wrongful appropriation” and “stealing and publication”of another author’s “language, thoughts, ideas or expressions” and the representation of them as one’s own original work.”

We are not here today to try to claim that the above would be good behaviour, not least the behaviour of a true gentleman/gentlewoman! In fact, we are more interested in the practice part.

The method is called Copywork. In its purest form it is just copying or writing out by hand from a written model. The focus is on improving your own writing by imitating other writers who you deem to have a style or ability worth trying to emulate.

Once upon a time in America, this was the way that children were taught to write. Even though it has now been replaced by more productive and child-specific methods, there is still very much a place for it in the advancement of writing ability in people of all ages. Before the invention of the computer, or even the printing press, anything that you wanted to keep, you would have to copy by hand. This meant that many great authors were forced to copy work, regardless of choice. Therefore many greats, as we shall see, were champions of copy work long before it was in vogue.

“Why should I do this?” I hear you cry. Well, I think you might be surprised. Here’s the Itchy Quill run-down of the benefits of Copywork, from children to adults.

Don’t start kids too young though…

Demonstration of Structure

Many different styles have been introduced throughout the long history of the English language, from Gothic to Post-Modern, Romantic to meta-fiction, and they all have their own unique traditions and subtleties that can sometimes not appear obvious. The best way to learn is by doing, and so transcribing examples of them will give you a much greater understanding of the relationship between form and Lexis in a specific writer’s work, so that the mysteries of literary customs will be yours to harness. Will you use this new found power for good or evil?

Evil… Always evil

Stylish Pro’s(e)

If you have the drive and motivation, there really is no limit to what you can try to copy. With a wealth of wonderful prose in the English language, you are positively drowning in a vast ocean of words and stylistic whales.

For a greater understanding of the ‘Western canon’, you could try your hand at imitating some Austen. Are you more of a 20th century reader? Dabble in some Woolf, Kerouac or  Vonnegut. Prefer contemporary fiction? King and Adichie are but a start. Some writers write with simplicity, some are long-winded and majestic, some just blunt and crude; yet they all have their merits and their conventions.

The point is that each author has a style that fits a greater period of writing, and to truly understand the subtle intricacies of such a writer and the style they set themselves in you can take a punt at mimicking their wordplay. We always encourage that you should try to find your own ‘voice’ in writing, but that doesn’t mean you can’t get an understanding of another’s voice beforehand. Politicians the world over utilise tried and tested speech-giving techniques to make themselves seem more caring, passionate and in control. They imitate others, often citing great speech givers like Winston Churchill and Martin Luther Kind Jr. and attempting to emulate their most effective mannerisms. Rarely would we connect politicians with positive life choices, but in this context they may be onto something. Take that mentality to your writing, and watch your words burst forth as you become a prose pro!

Politicians = Trustworthy (citation needed)

The Devil in the Details

This forces you to pay attention to details. Perhaps it is the original author’s use of a specific element of punctuation that you aren’t sure about the use of (such as the pesky semicolon), or even their ability to cite academic works in their text (a la Malcolm Gladwell). Forcing you to focus gives you great practice at using yet more elements of the English language in a context that will help you to produce it again at a later time.

“Oh right, you mean ‘figuratively’ a devil… I see”

Self-Directed

The whole purpose of this exercise is to make it as easy to check as possible. After you have finished transcribing a piece, it takes a few quick minutes to see how much is accurate and correct. It should really become a ritualistic event, much like keeping a journal, but that doesn’t mean you need to dedicate more than about 20 minutes a day to start seeing the results. It is important though that it is done by hand, as there are a lot of studies linking handwriting with cognitive recall. It’s like magic.

Expelliamus! Only joking. Come back…

Launchpad

Every great writer has a technique to help them get the pistons firing in their head before settling down to enjoy a productive session of writing. Think of them like warmers, small activities designed to get your brain functioning in the correct context, and giving it focus on the area of itself it will need to utilise in the near future.

Blast Off!

Literary Legacy

It is claimed that this technique is nearly as old as education itself, with clay tablets discovered in what would have been Mesopotamia showing evidence of scribes copying down proverbs and sayings. This tradition continued into the Ancient Egyptians and was also practiced by Jewish kings of old, as they were expected to “make their own hand-written copy of scriptures” according to wonder.riverwillow.com‘s introduction to copywork.

It is also true that many of the historical greats of written English would practice this technique, as before the invention of the printing press, much of what people wanted to create a copy of had to be hand-written. William Shakespeare, Robert Louis Stevenson and Charles Dickens are some key examples, and Benjamin Franklin even taught himself to read and write by utilising copy work techniques!

Reading is fun

Vocabulary and Grammar

That’s right; it can help you level up your V & G game. Even those of you already operating at a near Wordsworthian height can benefit from seeing both of these elements of written language in context.

I’m sure many of you have at different times thought about expanding your vocabulary, whether it be with a word a day app/calender, wider and more diverse reading or even just using a thesaurus when writing. A wide and varied vernacular is crucial for a writer, and to help understand some more advanced texts to be read for pleasure. Different genres often have their own specific lexical sets too. This technique gives you real time vocabulary seen in context, and produced in such a way by yourself in parroting that you  literally see the word fall in it’s correct place in a sentence.

The whole ‘place in a sentence’ thing is extra crucial when we consider grammar. IQ has many grammar gnomes we keep locked away in our basement ready to proof-read our posts, but not everyone can be so lucky to rely on the bookworm-readiness of fantasy creatures.

English is capable of some truly bizarre grammar rules and structures, and a great way to learn these naturally (and not with mind-numbingly boring grammar books – unless that’s your thing, which is fine) is to use them in context. A whole industry of English teachers exist around the world, qualified by and large by the fact that they know the native use of language by heart, without any real formal training. It’s this ability to ‘feel’ what is right that will be one of the greatest benefits of copywork.

The great masters of literature perfected their grammatical cohesion and word choice; let their example set you free!

“I’m so (adjective)! I (verb) (nouns)!”

Need further motivation? TheWritePractice.com has a wonderful blog giving advice on further reasons why imitating your favourite authors will help with your own writing.

This doesn’t just have to be for the fiction writers out there; copywork can be hugely useful for anyone studying or practising law, medicine, history, or any of the other writing heavy subject areas, especially those with specific academic jargon (I’m looking at you, law).

Visit TheArtOfManliness.com for their blog post on copywork, with instructions on different ways to attempt copywork, from smaller work to larger, more intricate texts.

Go forth and imitate. It might be the best thing you do today!

Special thanks to bulldogza, digidreamgrafix, Feelart, hyena reality, imagerymajestic, khongkitwiriyachan and stockimages @ FreeDigitalPhotos.net for use of their photos in this blog.

© Itchy Quill and ItchyQuill.WordPress.com, 2015