A blog by an historian, Pagan and fanfiction writer, with left-wing leaning politics. In short, I could be waffling on about anything.

Wednesday 4 January 2012

2012: The Start of a Brand New Year

We've all done it - gone off on a rant to which there is no real response. I chose to indulge in mine on January 1st, after the fireworks were long since over and the wine bottles had been emptied.

It was a proper whinge. I told my friend all about Panda, Suite101, the patronising gits at the job centre, deafness, lack of time and stress, all of the burn out things that had been plaguing my life. I moved onto the fact that I used to be so good, so in control, back when I knew myself too well and the world was great.

He let me get it out of my system, then finally gave me his take on the matter. He played That was the River, This is the Sea by the Waterboys and grinned at me.



Perfect answer, Eric. Now let's get on with this 2012 malarkey.

As we kick off into the new year, I'd like to thank everyone who has been reading and commenting so far. It would be a lonely place here, if I didn't know that you were along for the ride.

So far, it's been me blogging about whatever occurs to me at the time. This is bucking the trend of all those experts who say that you should find a niche and stick to it. People don't come anywhere for a mish-mash of subjects, as they like them gift-wrapped in expectation. Is that true? Is anyone annoyed by the fact I leap from computer software to ancient history to modern politics without blinking?

I'd also like to ask what individual blog entries and series you have enjoyed most last year. Naturally this feedback will help me decide what to write about this year. You have influence!

I look forward to hearing your replies.

7 comments:

  1. I don't have a single interest. I have many. If I were to look for information on a certain subject I like, I could only read so many articles before I got bored. People like variety and I think writing variety is a good strategy because of that.

    As for my favorite articles by you, your ones on Suite 101 about the Gypsy Holocaust while sad, were very informative. I also liked that you were often the first to post actual articles about Occupy Wall Street.

    I think my favorite individual article by you was on Suite 101 about The Subversion of Guy Fawkes Via V for Vendetta (and Anonymous).

    You've done a great job writing, and I hope you keep it up :)

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  2. Wow! That was a quick response. Thank you very much! You managed to karate chop my anxiety-ridden worry that no-one is actually reading, and that I'd just set myself up to find that out. ;)

    I'm happy to see that we're of a mind on the subject of variety. I too prefer to read (and write) about a range of subjects.

    I know that variety is something that Google is trying to eliminate from the internet too. They're promoting niche sites to the extent that every freelance writer I know is currently clambering to find their own 'niche'.

    Personally I'm thrilled that the very first vote here is for the Gypsy Holocaust. I have a great many more articles to write about it, especially since I can see events lining up to cause a repeat of what happened in the 1930s-40s.

    My Occupy articles are what I remain most proud about for 2011. Now that the mainstream media are running with it, my contribution isn't so great. That said, I do have one or two more lined up, based on interviews with real OWS participants.

    The V for Vendetta one is a surprise, as I didn't know it stood out. A good surprise though! I will aim for more like that.

    Thank you very much for your feedback!

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  3. hiya,
    I love your history articles - your passion really shows through - and I know howw passionate you can be about history.
    I also thought the Gypsy Holocaust in particular was excellent.
    Needless to say, I avidly read your Occupy stuff - and from a local interest enjoyed the Landywood stones stuff.
    I agree with Kari - you are an excellent writer and have found your niche in the world!
    dont forget - any time you need a companion for research, Im in!
    xxxxx

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  4. Hiya Kaj! We seriously need to catch up more. Let me know when you're well enough for visitors.

    What's not to be passionate about with history? It's the world's greatest subject. :D (Not at all biased...)

    I'm loving the two votes for the Porajmos articles so far. I was worried that I was shoving them too hard down people's throats, but the subject is too important to ignore.

    Erk! So you wanted more Occupy stuff? I was getting it out while no-one else was interested, but with the flood of articles that followed a month or two later, mine slowly petered out. I do have an interview to write up. I'll get that done during the next few days.

    And yay on the Landywood Great Stones series. I loved doing that, because I didn't know where the quest would lead me. I could take an educated guess, but the conclusion was wide open.

    You and Kari are making me blush a lot. Thank you. <3 I'd certainly take you along as a fellow researcher any time you want to go.

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  5. I'm made of lazy so I normally just reply to things I've really liked on twitter. I know I've read the most on suite, and I like reading your book reviews on your other blog. I read things here occasionally, but I think that is because the subject matter is so variable, I read whats caught my interest.

    I know I loved all of your Occupy articles because of personal interest. There were a lot of other things I really liked, such the V for Vendetta since someone else mentioned it, which was really good. And the Sherlock Holmes one was really great. :D

    I had more to say but I've gotten really distracted because I'm watching a scary movie of scariness and its taken me like an hour or more to even get this written. So. Here you are! <3

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  6. I liked your Occupy articles the most and the recent one about firefox.

    It's good when a writer writes about more than one thing. Some people break up their twitter use into more than one account, or spread themselves by topic across different networks but I like it when people with diverse interests keep it all 'under one roof', or as you say, a mish-mash.

    Stuart

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  7. Ember - I pick up your running feedback on Twitter, so it's all good and thank you.

    Is it more difficult on here to follow the variety? As it's a straight list of blog entries, not categorised beyond the labels, I can imagine that would be the case.

    Thanks for your work with Occupy. <3 I'm seriously making notes here on the V for Vendetta one, as I hadn't realised it was so popular. The Sherlock one didn't seem to do very well on Suite, so I hadn't followed up on it. I will revisit that topic too.

    LOL Enjoy your movie and thank you for the feedback. <3

    Alternicity - The Occupy ones seem to be a firm favourite so far. It's good to see the Firefox one creeping in too. I was very proud of fixing that!

    That technique of splitting Twitter accounts is what is being advised all over the internet. No-one should be taking the 'box of chocolates' approach. It's niche all the way or else Google will punish you by not ranking you very highly.

    Thank you for your feedback. <3

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