On Blog Fatigue

In the last couple of months, I've seen a LOT of bloggers suffering blog fatigue: that thing where they lose interest or don't know what to write about or feel like it's all been said, and consequently they stop blogging (or at least cut back significantly).

Ain't nothing wrong with that. Blogging's hard, and the benefits are often nebulous. Often, I find myself hating every topic I've thought of. I can't speak for anyone else, but these are the things I tell myself when my motivation starts to wane.

"I have nothing new to say."
Seriously, how many posts are out there about prologues and chapter titles? Does the world really need one more?

Well, yes and no. Even assuming I have nothing unique to add (a big assumption, cuz hey, it's me), just because I've read ten posts on the subject doesn't mean you've read any. Much as I hate to admit it, blog posts are transitory. Even the almighty Google can't stop millions of them from disappearing everyday.

And we forget things. Think about church for a sec: billions of pastors preaching trillions of sermons over two thousand years, but are they successively unlocking new, hidden depths of the Bible? Mostly, no. We go to church and hear the same truths over and over, not because God demands it, but because we need to hear them again.

Blogging's exactly like that, just less . . . holy.

"I don't know what to blog about."
 Happens to me all the time (seriously, have you seen some of my posts?). I mostly stave this off by keeping a list of ready blog topics, but also by giving myself permission to:

"I should be writing instead."
I've got no good answer for this. My excuse is that I find it really difficult to write when my kids are around, but for some reason I can blog just fine.

It may be that when I have deadlines and book tours and all the other fancy stuff that best-selling authors have to do (IT WILL HAPPEN), that I'll have to stop blogging entirely, or at least cut back. But for now, so long as my writing isn't suffering, I'm going to keep figuring out what works.

What about you? Do you blog? Have you ever thought about quitting?

12 comments:

Susan Kaye Quinn said...

Holy Blogging, Batman! (sorry, couldn't resist)

I think about quitting, then have a good laugh. AS IF I could stop. Seriously. The challenge in cutting back for me is stopping myself from posting more.

However.

I think it's important to be challenged on what to blog about (I went through this a while ago, but it hasn't hit me in a long time). It forces you to dig deeper, to get creative, to think of your blog audience. All these things spur creativity and force discipline - two key factors in writing success.

Plus, you know, I always like your posts. :)

Christina Lee said...

Yeah, sigh... I go through peaks and valleys (going on four years)as everybody does. But I don't complain about it publicly and I don't like when I hear others doing it, either.

Because when I click on a blog I don't want to see someone apologizing for being away, for not posting, for this or that. I guess that's a turnoff for me (maybe b/c if feels so...blah).

SO I like your suggestions, esp. revisiting something from the past!

E. M. LaBonte said...

I know the blog fatigue well, so I either just don't blog for a while, or I do something random. But I don't apologize for it in my blog when I've been away.

I've never really thought about quitting, but taking a long break. Yeah. Thought about it, but didn't do it. I never really know if any of my followers care what I write. I still write, and when I get the blog blahs, I take a break.

Thanks for the post, I don't feel as bad or as alone having the blog fatigue. :D

vic caswell said...

heeheehee... less holy. :)

Victoria Dixon said...

Yes, I'm actually in the process of building a new website (including links to the blog) because I simply don't have time to do it all. And the one thing that's suffered the most aside from my house cleaning is my writing. That's counter productive, so I'm looking for alternative ways to have an online presence.

Matthew MacNish said...

It comes and it goes, I think. I was totally over blogging, then I finished my revisions, and voila! Blogging again. I'm kind of addicted.

Laurel Garver said...

Yep, I'm with you. I at least have a medical excuse (anemia). So I'm going to be a super lazy gal and link your post!! ;-)

TL Conway said...

I think about quitting blogging a few times a month. But then there's always another milestone I want to reach. I want to hit my 1-yr blogging mark... I want to hit x-numbers of followers... So I continue to blog.

Thankfully for me (and perhaps, unthankfully for the readers), I've found that I can blog while watching tv at night whereas I need a solid two hours of "concentration" time to work on my story.

Nancy Thompson said...

Whew! What a relief! I thought you might be taking a break, not that you don't deserve one, but I've come to depend upon your bloggy advice. As for me, I cut back to once a week & concentrate on my novel the other 6 days. I do get tired of blogging, of dreaming up new topics. And I'm only 15 months in. *big sigh*

Steve MC said...

I'm still in the "keeping a list of things I'd like to blog about whenever I get around to it" category.

And I had to laugh at your church analogy - I was reading a book on mindfulness that I read just a year ago and I was like, "Why do I have to keep reading this over and over before I get it?"

Sarah Ahiers said...

yes and yes. I honestly have no clue how i managed to fill last year with blog posts. WHAT HAVE I BEEN TALKING ABOUT?

Peggy Eddleman said...

Agreed, agreed, agreed! I've never thought of quitting, but JUST TODAY, I went from posting five times a week to three times a week.

... but just for the next three weeks. I worry that I will love it, though, and have a really hard time going back to posting every day.