Shannon Stacey


Growing disconnections

I was part of a conversation the other day during which mention was made of how few people are commenting on some blogs nowadays.

I blame Giselle Google.

Okay, well to be more specific, I blame readers/feeds/whatever you call them. I started subscribing to blogs with Google Reader a while back and I love it. I really do. Especially when I’ve been up north and I’m way behind. But, because I’m not on the actual blog, I seldom comment because that would mean an extra click and I rarely have anything important to say anyway.

But I’ve started feeling disconnected—to conversations, to people, even to friends—and I can’t be the only one.

So I’ve decided to unsubscribe to the feeds from people already listed on my blogroll, go back to actually visiting them, and only read the feeds of the more informational blogs that I never commented on anyway (okay, and TGTBTU because a feed is the only way to control the chaos *g*).

It takes a little longer to bloghop the old-fashioned way, but it’s supposed to be more personal and interactive than reading the morning paper, isn’t it?

18 comments to “Growing disconnections”

  1. kate r
    Comment
    1
      · July 9th, 2008 at 9:58 pm · Link

    Yeah. What’s WITH THAT silence thing? Huh? :tomato: :tomato: :censor: Useful? You’re only going to go to useful places? Well. Nice knowing you. PPpfffffffffhhhhhhhhhtttthhhhhh :grouch:



  2. Shannon
    Comment
    2
      · July 9th, 2008 at 10:06 pm · Link

    Dumbass (she said with great affection).

    What I meant (and what I’m going to edit in) is that I’m going to go back to reading the other blogs by old-fashioned bloghopping from site to site to site, rather than by bloghopping.



  3. kate r
    Comment
    3
      · July 9th, 2008 at 10:11 pm · Link

    Informational Blogs, you said. :neener: You did, Yup. :rulez:
    Informational means got some content and not just babbling. :baby: :neener:

    :groucho:



  4. kate r
    Comment
    4
      · July 9th, 2008 at 10:12 pm · Link

    whereas :noevil: I :write: think :woot: I’m :popcorn: only :beam: going :censor: to :coffee: visit :hide: blogs :clap: with :lmao: :devil: :heart: :heart: :heart: :heart: smilies.



  5. Charlene
    Comment
    5
      · July 9th, 2008 at 10:17 pm · Link

    I never used a feed reader for that reason. I have to go there if I’m going to comment anyway. That’s the charm, being part of a conversation.



  6. Nicole
    Comment
    6
      · July 9th, 2008 at 10:43 pm · Link

    I know how you feel. Ever since I got Google Reader, my participation in blog commenting has gone waaaaaaaaay down. But it’s great for all the crafty blogs I like to check out.

    Don’t get my started on TGTBTU, I felt so lost going there when it started getting so bloated that I just don’t anymore. Makes my brain hurt.



  7. Shannon
    Comment
    7
      · July 10th, 2008 at 9:06 am · Link

    TGTBTU is actually the site that got me hooked on the reader. I love their content but couldn’t cope with the new format. Then somebody mentioned to me that in the reader I’d get a list of new content in order. Yay!

    Unfortunately I added everybody on the planet and quit actually bloghopping.



  8. Melani Blazer
    Comment
    8
      · July 10th, 2008 at 9:13 am · Link

    Feeds? It’s like twitter. :gaah:

    I’ve always blog hopped the old fashioned way (and I’ll admit starting here and using your grand list–because it encompasses a lot of my favorite stops).

    Often it’s on lunch at work and I don’t have time, or something profound to say in comments. Must make more effort, promise! But I hear ya, I see lots of good blog posts with no comments! I find it hard to blog and talk when the rooms so damn empty my voice echoes. :tomato:



  9. kate r
    Comment
    9
      · July 10th, 2008 at 9:22 am · Link

    WTF is TGTBTU? :coffee:



  10. Shannon
    Comment
    10
      · July 10th, 2008 at 9:32 am · Link

    Sybil & Co.

    The Good, The Bad, and The Unread



  11. Jaci Burton
    Comment
    11
      · July 10th, 2008 at 9:37 am · Link

    I’ve used Google Reader for awhile now. I still click onto the blog when I want to comment. I can’t survive without the reader because I’m too lazy to bloghop and the reader alerts me when there are new blog posts up. I love that.

    And yeah, there’s TGTBTU. :wink:



  12. Alison Kent
    Comment
    12
      · July 10th, 2008 at 10:51 am · Link

    I’ve noticed the same thing, but I’m not sure it’s feed readers at fault as much as just ennui. In fact, I’ve recently added about 5 new blogs to my reader. (I use NetVibes.) Erica Orloff has some awesome posts, and I found her through Mark Terry, who I found through Lee Goldberg who I’ve followed since the beginning of blogging time. But I have promised myself to comment on at least five blogs a day. Your Thursday’s first, heh.



  13. Ann
    Comment
    13
      · July 10th, 2008 at 11:12 am · Link

    I haven’t been blog hopping as much lately as I do usually, not so much a case of ennui as exhaustion, but things are slowing down a bit at the dayjob so I hope to be around and commenting more (provided I can think of things to say) :coffee: .



  14. Lynn
    Comment
    14
      · July 10th, 2008 at 4:54 pm · Link

    There’s another way to read blogs other than just going to them? I didn’t get that memo. No, I’m kidding. I’ve heard of the bloglines thing, but it was ANOTHER internet thing I’d have to research and learn and I’m old and cranky and tired of doing that. I want to be _done_ learning the internet. Plus I just like visiting one blog at a time.

    I know I don’t comment as often as I’d like to because I’m only online about an hour a day, and I spend most of that time reading the blogs I follow or doing research. Also, most comment boxes and my Dragon don’t like each other (the weirdest thing is when I’ve tried to make a couple of comments at Monica Jackson’s blog, and her blog logs them, but it won’t post them. Then I get a whole screen of garbled HTML.)



  15. Lori
    Comment
    15
      · July 10th, 2008 at 6:16 pm · Link

    You’re so right! I hardly ever comment anymore. But, notice… I clicked through to comment on your blog about never commenting :lol:



  16. vanessa jaye
    Comment
    16
      · July 10th, 2008 at 7:55 pm · Link

    I’m lurking more partly because after you’ve been online for awhile, the same topics/convo come round and round and round. Or someone has already said what you were giong to, or you’ve already said it, last month/last year on some other blog/messageboard.

    Or I’m just too damn tired to think up/type a response.

    Also, for awhile there, there seemed to be a trainwreck/flamewar breaking out every week–rubbernecking became a drag and you commented at your own peril in some cases. :-P

    There’s several authors (Tess Gerritsen for example) who have said they’ve closed their blogs or who blog infrequently , but I enjoyed their posts so much I have them on Feedblitz just in case they come back. It was just recently I finally removed Maili from my sidebar. I think she’s gone for good. :-/

    Alison, I agree, Erica has some kick ass posts.



  17. Shannon
    Comment
    17
      · July 11th, 2008 at 8:22 am · Link

    Love Erica. Not counting my usual cohorts in crime, she’s probably #2 on the list of authors I’d like the chance to sit down with for a few hours.

    And it’s always a comfort to know I’m not alone in sufferering whatever blog malady I’m suffering—probably a combination of Reader and ennui. And nothing drives me off the internet faster than another shrieking round of “OMG, someone has disrepected our genre!!1!”

    So what?

    I don’t write for that person, that person hasn’t bought our books anyway, and (s)he certainly won’t after being shredded by a few dozen romance authors.

    See? I already would rather be scrubbing my toilets than talk about that anymore.

    And, Lynn, I hadn’t really thought about Dragon commenting. It must be a pain in the ass, especially since only a couple of blogs I can think of have an “edit comment” function.

    Another problem with Google Reader? They look at your feeds and the feeds of the people you’ve subscribed to and offer up suggestions of more you might like.

    :doh:

    Yes, the list grows and grows.



  18. Natalie J. Damschroder
    Comment
    18
      · July 11th, 2008 at 8:23 pm · Link

    I’ve resisted using a feed just because I like the LOOK of individual blogs. It adds to the voice of the content. I just add stuff to my Bookmarks, then go to that folder and Open All in Tabs, and it’s not cumbersome at all.

    There are some days I comment on everything, and some I don’t comment on anything.

    I find it amusing that you got so damned many comments on a post about not commenting. :)







  • Get my latest news straight to your inbox!

    I'll only be sending newsletters when I have news to share, and I'll never share your information. You'll receive an email asking you confirm your subscription (so please check your spam box if you don't receive that). You can unsubscribe at anytime.

    Search

  • Affiliation

    Shannon Stacey is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com. Amazon and the Amazon logo are trademarks of Amazon.com.

    If you purchase a book listed on the site from Amazon.com, she’ll earn a small commission. Thank you!