![Newsletter Header [#401436]
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This week: Edited by: terryjroo More Newsletters By This Editor ![](https://www.Writing.Com/nw.gif)
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1. About this Newsletter 2. A Word from our Sponsor 3. Letter from the Editor 4. Editor's Picks 5. A Word from Writing.Com 6. Ask & Answer 7. Removal instructions
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The abundance of contests and activities offered at Writing.com, help to create the most exciting and fun website for writers. The Contest and Activities Newsletter is provided each week to, not only assist you in keeping up with the latest and greatest items, but to help assure that, if interested, you have the tools necessary to run a successful contest or activity. Enjoy this issue and please feel free to comment at the bottom!
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Blogs – it seems people either love them or hate them! I’m on the love them side of the fence, and since Writing.com boasts over 1700 of them on the site, after a year of editing the Contests & Activities Newsletter, I thought I could focus one issue on blogging. I’d like to thank fyn ![](https://images.Writing.Com/imgs/writing.com/writers/costumicons/ps-icon-owl-60.gif) for suggesting this topic.
Let’s start with a look back on where blogging originated (with a little help from the Internet and Wikipedia). On December 17, 1997, Jorn Barger created what is considered to be the first weblog on his own web site Robot Wisdom by creating sections such as “Fun” and “Art,” etc., that included comments and links. It wasn’t until April or May of 1999 that the portmanteau “blog” using the combined words web and log was coined by Peter Merholz in his web log peterme.com. He claimed “I've decided to pronounce the word "weblog" as wee'- blog. Or "blog" for short.” Well, it stuck and the world has been “blogging” ever since. Yes, it’s not only a noun, but it’s a verb as well!
Now, here’s a little Writing.com blog history. I did some poking around through the Writing.com News & Announcements and discovered that “book” items were introduced to the site on September 24, 2003. The journal was one of the types initially offered. Then, on January 25, 2005, the blog format was introduced. Finally, on February 28, 2005, the comments feature was added allowing people to leave remarks on individual entries, thus making Writing.com blogs like the blogs seen all over the Internet.
So, what motivates people to blog? There are as many different answers to that question as there are types of blogs. Here are a few answers to that question:
From Tigger thinks of Prancer ![](https://images.Writing.Com/imgs/writing.com/writers/costumicons/ps-icon-regular-10.gif) ![](https://images.Writing.Com/imgs/writing.com/writers/icon-mail-off.png?i=2) : “I blog to reflect on what's going on in life.”
From raeni: “The reasons I blog are mainly to deal with Mom's illness and to help others learn about mental illness. Not only does it help me out in understanding, but hopefully it helps others to learn to appreciate the gift of their own families.”
From Black Willow ![](https://images.Writing.Com/imgs/writing.com/writers/costumicons/ps-icon-regular-10.gif) ![](https://images.Writing.Com/imgs/writing.com/writers/icon-mail-off.png?i=2) : “I blog because I want to share my thoughts, get things out through writing is what I love to do best. I also blog to show people that there is an ordinary girl behind all the drama.”
From SueBear ![](https://images.Writing.Com/imgs/writing.com/writers/costumicons/ps-icon-regular-10.gif) ![](https://images.Writing.Com/imgs/writing.com/writers/icon-mail-off.png?i=2) : “I started to blog to share my life's experiences with my friends and family since I was living overseas. I continued to stay in touch with family plus all the friends I've made here. I've been a journaler all my life, so this is a natural extension.”
From AntiBarbie ![](https://images.Writing.Com/imgs/writing.com/writers/costumicons/ps-icon-regular-10.gif) ![](https://images.Writing.Com/imgs/writing.com/writers/icon-mail-off.png?i=2) : “It a therapeutic release for me to be able to work through negative emotions and daily stressors.”
From welkerdeb: “Blogging for me is a way of opening up and putting a part of myself out there that I once tried to conceal. Ever since I started blogging my self esteem has improved and I get so much support on issues such as marriage, my addiction, work, children, etc.”
From darkin: "I blog to release steam, entertain friends, and be creative. I rarely blog my real life, but more a view of my life. I'm a pretty private person, so giving even my real first name is off-limits in my blog."
From Melissa is fashionably late! ![](https://images.Writing.Com/imgs/writing.com/writers/costumicons/ps-icon-regular-10.gif) ![](https://images.Writing.Com/imgs/writing.com/writers/icon-mail-off.png?i=2) : “I blog because I like to be able to talk about my life and sometimes get a different perspective from my readers. I also blog because I like to share my views on different subjects that are on the forefront of my mind.”
So, how do you know if your blog is blogtastic or blogorrhea? As you might have guessed, these are a couple more portmanteaus that cropped up due to the blogging craze that doesn’t seem to be disappearing any time soon. You can probably discern their meanings without a source, but in case you’re interested, you can check out http://www.blogossary.com/ which will give you definitions of all the latest blogosphere terms. Back to the question…is your blog good or bad? Some will tell you that you can determine the quality of your blog by the number of views you receive, though others will argue views can be based on your overall popularity. Does popularity equal quality? Ahh, a topic for another time, I’m afraid. If you’d like to comment on that, feel free to drop me a comment below.
I know I enjoy reading blogs. Most of the ones I read give a little personal insight that reading a piece of poetry or short story doesn’t offer. They provide a connection to another person that I might not otherwise find. In a nutshell, they often make a large world feel a little smaller and a lot less lonely.
I hope this issue has been insightful!
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Subscribe to the unofficial newsletter about blogs and blogging!
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Read some terrific blogs from around the site!
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To find more blogs, follow the Site Navigation menu of Item Jumps to the Books listings. Then slightly down from the top of the page find “Narrow Listings By Specific Sub-Type:” and click on Journal/Blog. The default sort option is by “Recently Modified First,” but you can resort by several different options according to your needs.
You can also click on the “More Blogs” link located at the bottom of the blogroll from any blog you may be viewing.
Other fun items around the site!
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This contest runs periodically – it’s good to put it in your favorites and watch for it to pop to the top so you know when sign-ups begin!
Something new from me!
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Have you received an anonymous gift?
Stop in and say thank you here!
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Have an opinion on what you've read here today? Then send the Editor feedback! Find an item that you think would be perfect for showcasing here? Submit it for consideration in the newsletter! https://www.Writing.Com/go/nl_form
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ryanpie writes: “Very true, I got a lot from this. I really want to have a contest for nonfiction articles, but I'm trying to do something creative. . . And I think this newsletter just gave me an idea! Thanks again and keep up the good work!”
holly1993 writes: “I like this newsletter because you see some great contest in here! You guys do a wonderful job! Holly”
JudithJean France ![](https://images.Writing.Com/imgs/writing.com/writers/costumicons/ps-icon-regular-10.gif) writes: ”This is the kind of news letter you want to copy, go to the favorite chair by the window and mulch over.”
Thank you for the feedback, it is greatly appreciated! Please let me know if you’d like to see a specific topic covered in this newsletter.
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