On Blogging And The Mad, Mad Blogosphere

In case you're a regular stalker of my oh-so-majestic blog, I'm pretty sure you would know the real reason why I actually started blogging. 

In case you're just an innocent internet user who accidentally stumbled across this blog, let me tell you why I plunged into the sphere of blogging. 

I was a twelve-year-old girl, with the body of a seven-year-old and I had, very recently, been bitten by the writing bug. I'd just finished writing my first novel (which was the stupidest, silliest story ever yet I'm really proud of it) and I just wanted to write more and more and more. 

Then, one fine day, I came to know about the concept of 'blogs' because of my cousin. 

My cousin's really ancient (okay, about thirteen years older than I am) and the number of times we've conversed can be counted in fingers. By the time I'd be old enough to get married, he'd be old enough to have white hair and probably end up having a piteously poor eyesight. 

Anyways, so my cousin had a blog, where he'd only talk about technology and all things that normal people don't really understand. 

When I got to know that he actually ran a blog, I was impressed. 

No, I didn't give a dime about the fact that his blog was about technology. 

I became starry eyed because he actually had a blog. 

A blog, my ditzy twelve-year-old mind whispered, an actual blog - a blog which rhymes with a log and a blog which will be such a pretty place for me to write my poems and be happy. 

And so, after pestering my father for a long time, I finally got a blog. 

My first blog, titled 'Ordinary Yet Extraordinary' was a huge packet full of cheesiness, filled with an unnatural amount of exclamatory marks and dramatic poetry. 

Yes, it was a colossal disaster. 

So, in ninth grade, when my body started resembling that of an eleven-year-old, I decided that 'Ordinary Yet Extraordinary' sucked and I needed a clean slate. Thus, 'A Bundle Of Contradictions' emerged into the fray. 

Now, almost four years later, I like to believe that I have at least a fraction of idea on what blogging is really about and this is what I'm going to talk about in this post. 

I'm not going to talk about how to actually make a blog because truth be told, that's something one can Google up, for God's sake. Google has an answer to everything, even an answer to why some people can be colossally demented. 

1. MY THOUGHTS ON THE TYPE OF POSTS A BLOGGER WRITES 

The type of posts that you write are manifestations of what you truly are as a person and what your likes and dislikes are. You can write about anything and everything you want. You can write about a detailed thesis on x-y-z topic, you can write your anger/agitation/happiness towards the current political/sociological scenario and you can talk about your thoughts, feelings and emotions.

You can either write a blog filled with all things sundry or you can write a blog about a specific topic. But it is completely unacceptable to write stuff like:

1. I'm so awesome.
2. I'm so perfect.
3. I'm so flawless.
4. There's nobody in this world who hates me and everyone simply admires me.
5. I have a hell lot of fans. 

There's a really special place for people like that and it's called a mental asylum.

No wait, scratch that. 

A mental asylum is for people who need help and are seeking it. 

Such deluded braggarts do need a lot of help, but the tragedy is they aren't asking for it because they are so deluded about their abilities that they think that the rest in the world are only there to kiss their butts. 

If a blogger writes stuff like that, not only does it make me cringe but it also makes me shake my head sadly: 

NOT  MY PICTURE BUT IT EXPRESSES WHAT I FEEL. 

2. MY THOUGHTS ON MAKING A BLOG POPULAR

When I first started blogging, I used to eagerly check my blog daily to see if I got a new comment and when I saw "Zero Comments", I used to get super dejected, like my grandpa does when the T.V. Set-up Box stops working.

There were times, when I used to post stuff that I thought people would actually LIKE, not what I would like.

But as I grew older, I realized, one of the main aspects of blogging isn't just writing, waiting and thinking, "BOOM SHAKA LAKA BOOM BOOM, I'LL GET 100 COMMENTS!". It's also about actually interacting with people and getting to know how things are like everywhere 'round the world.

Now, when I don't get comments, I feel, "Okay, you know what? It doesn't matter. As long as I'm expressing my own opinions, that's utterly fine."

I strongly believe, especially lately, that to have a popular blog doesn't mean you have to write what's on public demand just so you can be 'cool' and it surely doesn't mean you have to share your blog link EVERYWHERE.

Sharing.

I'll agree, that I share the links of my blogposts frequently on Facebook, WhatsApp and other social media. Sometimes, I even make broadcast lists on WhatsApp to send my blog's link to everyone in my contact list.

Most people don't open because a) they're too busy and b) they think reading blogs is a sheer waste of time.

However, dear reader, I do know that there is a tiny breed of people who actually do tap their fingers onto the blue hyperlink and read the blog, see what I've written and then message me or comment about what they think. Sure, some of them don't laud me with praises and actually come up with critical counterviews (which aren't demeaning, but honestly quite interesting).

Yes, it really makes me happy that what I write does have some impact on a small fraction of people. It makes me feel like my opinions - which I usually don't VERBALIZE - do matter and they are making others think. 

3. MY THOUGHTS ON A BLOG'S DESIGN 

I've never been a particular observer of the way people design their blogs but it is indeed remarkable to note that there are so many people who look into the designs of their blogs to the minutest details. In fact, some of them even have their own logos! 

Isn't that the coolest thing ever? 

Some of my favourite blogs when it comes to a kickass blog design and content include: 

a) The Life Of Little Me 

b) A Sea Change 

c) My Mother Fucked Mick Jagger 

d) Wonderland

e) https://saber15marionette.wordpress.com

Personally speaking, I keep changing my blog design subtly but sometimes, when I'm in a particularly devillish mood, I decide to give it a drastic plastic surgery. I don't know why, but I like changing my blog design depending on the way things are going. Sometimes, my blog ends up looking disastrous but when people tell me that, it fuels me to work harder on the design (after I've stopped wailing about my pathetic existence) 

4. MY THOUGHTS ON THE RECENT "HEY, I WANNA START A BLOG!" BANDWAGON 

I honestly cannot fathom why there are so many people who have been bitten by the blogger bug lately. 

In the past one month, I've seen almost a dozen people come up with new blogs and let me just be really frank here - this recent trend doesn't please me at all. 

No, it's not that I'm jealous. Look, I honestly don't give a damn if the blog is a Pulitzer prize-winning-worthy blog. But it is really stupid that there are so many people who are making a blog just for the heck of it and not because they actually want to express themselves. 

Yes, I'm talking about all those people who think blogging is all about coolness. 

Well, let me tell you, it isn't. 

If you're making a blog just because you want people to think you're oh-so-intelligent and you're oh-so-cool and you're oh-so-opinionated, then sorry, your blog isn't a blog. It's the biggest manifestation of stupidity. 

Blogging isn't a cool thing like wearing your pants below your waist, having boyfriends/girlfriends at an early age and taking pictures of your oh-so-esteemed self (you know, the ones where your face resembles like that of a constipated monkey?). 

It's about taking off your masks and telling the world your honest views. It's about admitting your flaws and lifting the weight off your chest. It's about letting the world know that you have feelings too and they do matter. 

****

Now, with this, I'll stop ranting! 

Thank you so much for hearing me out. 

Stay awesome as ever,

Much love,

Archie <3