blog questions challenge!
my friend Sage tagged me to answer these blog questions, and i thought it sounded fun.
Why did you start blogging in the first place?
during my time on cohost, i realized how freeing it felt to write as much as i liked. there was no fretting about character limits or splitting up posts into a twitter thread. and on tumblr, you can technically write longer posts, sure... but it always seemed passé to write about anything sincere.
a lot of people were enthusiastic about my longer posts, and it really caught me off guard. but not in a bad way! it's just... i had internalized for so long that i had to make myself funnier, more succinct, more palatable to an imaginary audience. so, i gradually began to "unmask" (neurodivergent kind) and let myself... be myself.
when cohost announced that they were shutting down, i knew i needed to find an outlet for blogging. if i had to go back to chopping up my thoughts to fit into 300 characters or less, i'd suffocate.
What platform are you using to manage your blog and why did you choose it? Have you blogged on other platforms before?
i'm currently using bearblog! i spent a week frantically asking around for blogging platform suggestions, and bearblog fit my needs the most. i like having tags (i am a freak for organizing), it's not bloated with scripts and addons i'm not using, and it feels more intuitive to me than using a static site generator. also, i liked the preset theme options, and it's not too difficult to modify them. which i appreciate.
as far as other platforms go: besides cohost, i used tumblr for around 12 years, but i'd usually only post art and lurk. not really much blogging going on there.
How do you write your posts? For example, in a local editing tool, or in a panel/dashboard that’s part of your blog?
i write in Obsidian using Markdown. for years, i'd just jot down notes in plain text files. most word processors just feel too clunky and bloated to me. Obsidian is a nice middle ground, though. i've been using it for a few years, and i really like it.
When do you feel most inspired to write?
sometimes there'll be a subject on my mind, or something i've been working hard on, and i want to share it with other people. honestly, it's as simple as that.
Do you publish immediately after writing, or do you let it simmer a bit as a draft?
i usually publish it immediately. otherwise i start to second-guess myself too much.
What’s your favorite post on your blog?
- travels, kindness, and hope - part travelogue, part reflecting on the power of community during hard times
- a ranking of iMac G3 colors - and on the complete opposite end of the spectrum: the post where i rate all the different iMac G3 color varieties
Any future plans for your blog? Maybe a redesign, a move to another platform, or adding a new feature?
i'd really like to add a "links" page. i am soooooo freaking shy about linking to other people, but i don't think it's productive for me to keep running away from it haha. also, i'd like to add an "ask" box. i really miss that about cohost and tumblr...
speaking of being really shy... normally this is where i'd tag people to answer these prompts. ...(covering my face) but i'm shyyyyyyyyyyy. so if this sounds fun to you, feel free to steal these prompts. and let me know in the comments if you end up doing this!! (unless you are also shy. which i understand.)