I have made a discovery: no one is reading Clio Confidential anymore. At least, not according to my sitemeter. Of course, I have only myself to blame. I stopped posting parenting content these last few months as I got waylaid by design. Then, when there was new content, I stopped sharing it to facebook because I've been posting the design blog posts over there to scare up some readers, and didn't want to overload my FB network with blog posts. So perhaps no one knows that there is new content when there is new content. This realization about my readership raises the latest in a long string of questions about what this blog is supposed to be. I thought I had come to the conclusion that it is for the girls, but then really, why do I feel sad that no one is reading it?
These last six months have been tough for me. Things are not working out quite the way I expected since our big move, and I am nervous about the future. For the first time since starting this blog, I have chosen not to process my fears and all the changes we are going through here, partly because....well, I don't know why exactly. I didn't want to publicly admit defeat? I was scared of how I was thinking? I understood that this wasn't the place to feel sorry for myself? Probably all of the above, and then some.
I recently had to write a bio, and I found that, without a job or a clear sense of where my career is heading next, I didn't know what to say about myself, or how to define myself. It's funny, I know that I should say I am a "blogger"; it's something I love to do and have been doing regularly for a long time now. But "real" bloggers have readers, and are part of a "community of bloggers" and write guest posts on each other's sites etc. And to be honest, it feels a little late in the game to get in on all of that. I did make choices along the way that kept this blog personal, more of an online journal than a blog as it has come to be understood, and I'm okay with that. But I don't want to write into the void, or into a future where my girls can know too much about themselves from these pages. I do want readers, even if they are all people that I know. Maybe especially then.
So, I would love your input. Because I do know all (or most) of you, I'm not going to make a survey and ask you to fill it out, as professional bloggers sometimes do. But if you do read and enjoy this blog, and have stuck with me through the years, please leave a comment here, or email me, to let me know what kind of content you like and would like to see more of. I am terrible at asking for help, or putting myself out there, but I would so appreciate your thoughts!
Thanks, in advance.
Oh, and I'm thinking I'll repeat the February Post a Day Challenge, to get back on the horse. Although I am off to a slow start!
12 comments:
Lady, I'm a happy reader of everything you post. For me, parenting and interior design are exotic and educational subjects. ;) And for what it's worth, I like hearing what you're up to.
hi heather! i've been tuning into clio confidential since its, and clio's, infancy. i always enjoy reading about what's going on with you and the kids. your new blog is great too. it's one of many decorating blogs that i look at, in lieu of doing anything around my own house. so keep it up!
by the way, those baby pics of clio gave me flashbacks to our perch days.
--jennifer
Hi Heather. I had to get to the library here in Az.to have internet access to check e-mails and of course to read your blogs. I have always been grateful for the blog and check it daily to see what my darling granddaughters and their parents are doing. It was a lifeline when you were in N.Y. and Boulder and still great now that you are in Minnesota. Whatever dorection it takes, I will always be eager to read it. xxoo mom
I honestly don't know what I would do without reading ClioCon. You know that I sometimes miss large chunks of time but when I get to stop working or enjoy my time at the computer, your blog has always made me feel closer to you and the girls. I think that if it makes you feel good to keep it up, it will make a lot of people, myself included, very happy!
Hi Heather,
Remember when we discovered, in the hall of Knock Knock Day Care, that we both had blogs? To be honest, I thought "Oh gosh, Heather's already been doing this a while. I hope I don't come off like a copy cat." I've enjoyed the chance to keep up with you and your family after you moved away. You have great insights into parenting and how it changes your life. Your art projects are very inspiring. I think it's hard not to feel pressured when you've started something as public and visible as a blog. I get horrible guilt when I haven't posted for a while. But, I trust that people will read as they need and want to. I think you'll always have understanding readers out there. Whether public or private, writing your way through tough times can be enormously therapeutic.
Hi Heather! I know we're (sadly) not in touch at all anymore, but (confession!) I love reading your blog. You're someone a little ahead of me in life and a whole lot wiser, and I have enormous respect for you -- I've always appreciated your insights and thoughts on all of your adventures and choices along the way, and it makes me think about my own. Also, of all the hundreds of feeds I follow, you're one of my absolute favorite writers, and I think that's why I've kept reading all these years.
First of all I think blog identity crises are all part of the package, and I can totally relate. I've often asked myself many of the same or similar questions: Why am I doing this? Will Future Me and Future My Children be totally embarrassed by all my sharing? Does anyone really want to read this? Am I being "real" enough, funny enough, writerly enough? and on and on...
Heather, your blog is what inspired me to start one of my own and I still read Clio Con regularly. To answer some of your questions, personally I am interested in reading about whatever you want to post. A personal blog, even if its only read by a small group of friends and relatives, is if nothing else, an excellent way to stay in touch with people, especially when you've moved around a fair bit as you have.
Every blogger has her own rules and boundaries about content, and if you do not feel like posting about your struggles, don't. If on the other hand it would help you process I know that there are likely many who could relate. ME ME ME.
You mentioned facebook. Funny how that has changed things since the earlier blogging days? I have my blog set up to automatically post to facebook, even though doing so always gives me pause. I fear overexposure, coming across as too self-promoty, etc, but ultimately I do it because I want people to read my blog and I know that for at least a small group of my regular readers facebook is a really convenient way for them to know when new content is up. I will admit that with CC, I sometimes get lazy about checking because I have become accustomed to the convenience of facebook alerts. I know with your blog(s), when I see the name come up in my newsfeed my reaction is always "oh yay!" never "ugh, not again". One thing I have thought of doing is setting up a facebook page for On Being Blythe, that way those who enjoy reading it can "like" the blog and get all the posts, and I can regain some separation between me and my blog. Its a thought.
One last thing, I am beyond impressed that you have started a second blog. I dream of doing the same with a food blog, but it may have to wait until a time when I am not also the full time mom of 3 children under the age of 5.
I'm also a regular reader. I like keeping up with you and the girls. And I like the design posts too--much more budget minded than some of the other design-y mom blogs out there.
i still read you!
i check in. let's chat soon.
I still do a perch kids round up every couple of weeks and really enjoy reading clio confidential no matter what you post. Your posts are insightful and funny and poignant and often seem to tap into something I'm feeling at the moment in my mom/family life. I hope you carry on!
jenna
I love reading about the activities of Clio and Eleri. It helps me keep up since we don't get to see them as much as we'd like to.
Grandma Barb
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