Sara Soueidan recently wrote a blog post about blogging. She was tagged by someone else into a chain of blog posts, and by the end of her piece, she nominated everyone who read her entry. So out of obligation (*wink* *wink*), I decided to craft my own entry as well. There are a few questions to answer in this post, and by the end, I am also going to nominate someone else into the chain (spoiler alert: it’s someone you know).
Why did you start blogging in the first place?
I was a high school teacher, fresh out of college after getting myself a degree in Computer Science. That path is what a lot of people would call a career suicide. That brief stint in teaching is something that really called to me and I just couldn’t wave it away, but also gave me a lot of anxiety around my career. So I figured if I am not going to do any real coding, I might as well just start writing and blogging so recruiters and potential employers can at least see I am doing something. So initially, I did it as a career move, but now I’m just doing whatever.
What platform are you using to manage your blog and why did you choose it? Have you blogged on other platforms before?
I use Eleventy. Before that, I used Jekyll and Hexo. I chose Eleventy because it really doesn’t care much about how you structure your code files. It just lets you do whatever. And even then, there are a lot of templates online you can start with.
How do you write your posts?
Recently, I just write within my code, so I use Visual Studio Code. I just create a new Markdown file somewhere in my repository and start typing. But I used to write stuff in Notion or Samsung Notes, whichever I was comfortable at the moment, and then transfer them over to my code editor.
I considered setting up a headless content management system (CMS) so I can just start blogging anywhere without having to touch my codebase. But I figured I keep wanting to customize stuff in my markup that using a CMS wouldn’t be sustainable, or it might break things.
When do you feel most inspired to write?
I don’t know if this is weird, but I visualize the inspiration to write like the dove that came down on Jesus when he was baptized, so when it comes I have to entertain it. Otherwise, it would just leave and never come back. So really, it’s whenever. I do find that it happens more often when I have a lot of free time, though.
Do you publish immediately after writing, or do you let it simmer a bit as a draft?
It depends on the type of writeup I am doing. I mostly write about stuff that’s personal to me, so writing about it is more akin to posting on social media but longer. In such cases, I just type away without a care about organizing my points. I just let my stream of consciousness go.
But if I am writing something technical, that’s a different story. Suddenly, I care about tone, voice, literacy level of the reader, and other stuff. I follow a series of steps (i.e. brainstorming, outlining, first draft, second draft, nth draft, etc.) then I run it through a grammar checker. After each draft, I run it through the Hemingway Editor just to check how complex it became and maybe adjust it from there. Only then do I publish it. That’s why you won’t find a ton of technical stuff on my blog; it takes up too much of my time. And in a lot of cases, someone somewhere had already written something about the topic that I could never write about any better.
What are you generally interested in writing about?
My life. Mostly. Stuff I experience, whether joy or pain. I recently started considering travelling more, so I’m gonna write about my trips. Annual retrospectives. If you go through my blog posts, it’s more like a diary than a blog. And it checks out because I actually see my blog as like a magazine about me, as narcissistic, conceited, and self-centered as that may sound.
What’s your favorite post on your blog?
This one: A Canvas Painted Dull and Bright.
I wrote that piece out of pure joy; it was the first time that I genuinely loved celebrating my birthday. And I think it seeped into the writing too. The post turned out to be more of a literary piece than an average blog post. And I keep coming back to it thinking ah, this piece is going to be the summary of my entire life one day. And I wrote that post in ten minutes! It’s one of those rare moments when my stream of consciousness just went ham and put out something good.
Who are you writing for?
Mostly myself. And I mean mostly as in 99%. I’ve always had this fantasy of being a celebrity, a superstar that’s being interviewed everywhere. That’s mostly the context of my posts. But also, I think I’m writing for my friends, family, and future partner/s. It’s so convenient to have something to point to and you can just be like that is where I poured my heart and soul, if you care. If you want to know something about me, it’s there. Read me like a book, because I literally wrote myself into a book.
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Any future plans for your blog?
By the time this is published, the latest major redesign has just come out, so there are no new things to do. However, I plan on writing more technical stuff, mostly for Antares Programming. I also plan on documenting some weird stuff I came across in software development during my work.
Next?
So this is the part where I am supposed to tag someone into the chain. I actually had someone in mind, but I am going to decide against it and instead pass along the grace that I received. So like the Sara before me, I am also inviting you, the reader, if you want, to join in the fun. And don’t hesitate to mention me on the Fediverse! I would love to read your blog, too!