Why Women Blog

Catchy headline, but I don't purport to cover all the myriad reasons why women blog here. Simply thought I'd post an exchange (very lightly edited) with a reader to shed light on what motivates a lot of people - especially women - to blog. There's always a tension between being extrinsically and intrinsically motivated, and maybe just maybe more women are allowing the intrinsic to win out.

Or maybe we're all going through a collective midlife crisis, or so says Time magazine. (Or in my nomenclature, it looks a lot more like reclaiming our voice along the heroine's journey and the liberation our creative selves.) In the Heroine's Journey, author Maureen Murdock, says we take off on our quest because we've reached the bottom of our well. We wake up to our parched throat and eager thirst in a spiritually arid desert. Blogging and for that matter any creative endeavor is not simply an oasis. It is water itself.

Reader:

Many women, like me, [are] just blogging about their daily lives. Your blog is always so very interesting...and thought-provoking...

I did check out the blogher blog when I first saw it mentioned...

Like any other sphere, blogging has its cliques and hierarchies, etc. and truthfully, I'm wondering if blogher will be inclusive enough to welcome those of us who don't have blogging goals...who blog just because they love to blog (and read other blogs)...but who aren't necessarily out to monetize their blogs.

Me:

Good question on BlogHer. I'm a panelist and know the organizers, especially Jory and Elisa, pretty well - but I'm not on the board or anything. Basically I think the idea stemmed from the fact that A-List men were asking "where are all the women bloggers?" Elisa was trying to say "We're right here." Many female bloggers aren't necessarily seeking reputation, kudos, praise, fame - that was so 1999 for me - but are intrinsically motivated by sheer love of self-expression, self-discovery and shared community that blogging provides. That may make us virtually invisible if you merely look at Technorati 100 though. I wrote a while back:

The act of blogging is a communal act; sort of a breaking bread with others. Every day we make time in our hectic lives to eat. And I find I will make time for that which nourishes me. I am thankful for the bloggers that feed me regularly and the readers who write me (I savor everything even if I am not able to reply) and re-mind and replenish me.

But Technorati 100 barely scratches the surface of what drives and motivates us to blog and read blogs. That's the idea behind BlogHer - to be a fun, inclusive environment for all women bloggers. The thread that bonds us is our mutual love for blogging. (For the record, I make zilch dollars on my blog - it's a labor of love. And it hasn't to date helped me get any work - a few inquiries here and there, but nothing serious. But I've found a greater reward - my voice and many kindred spirits.)

Last week I wrote that we're all journalists in the age of ordinary art. I meant journalists in the sense of journaling, not Big-J journalism of CNN, MSNBC, NY Times. I think that's what makes blogs unique is talking about what we know, sharing our experiences as a real authentic person - not necessarily the ranting and opinion-raking and the globally newsworthy. I'd like to do more of that kind of "daily life" writing myself. Sometimes my ego gets carried away wanting recognition - links, comments, trackbacks. But ultimately it's NOT at all about that. That's not what keeps me coming back again and again to read and write - the daily bread and water that sustains me. I think this is true for many, many women. It's a liberating, refreshing media. And I think most women intuitivity grasp the greater power inherent in blogging. That's what I think BlogHer is about. That's what I'm talking in my panel...a citizen journalist is one who shares what she knows in her corner of world - from her vantage point in her extraordinarily ordinary life. [Flickr photo: Robbie1]

Comments

[Elisa Camahort]

Evelyn: thanks so much for articulating our mission so well. We figure that for whatever reason women blog, they may all want to learn more about it, be exposed to others blogging about what they blog about...and to meet them face to face, which I am just old-school enough to still think is different than online communication. Education, Exposure and Community.

I always bring up Michele Agnew's blog as a blog that has this huge, active community associated with it, where Michele is almost like the ringleader or master of ceremonies. She doesn't blog for business; I'm not sure she even blogs for self-expression. She blogs because it's like throwing a big party every day for her (my interpretation of course.) Check her out:
http://micheleagnew.com

We are just beginning to realize all the ways blogging can enrich our lives...personal and professional. I hope to get lots o new ideas from women nothing like me at BlogHer!

[Evelyn Rodriguez]

Elisa, Thanks for your comment. I'm totally stoked to meet people whom are blogging from all walks of life for all sorts of intentions at BlogHer. Self-expression angle is only one.

My MAIN point is I believe women tend towards the intrinsic motivation (unique to each) versus extrinsic rewards of blogging. I don't think the millions of women bloggers care one iota about making it onto Technorati 100. In fact, speaking for myself, I feel that it diverts me when I aim to please others, speak on "hot" subjects, and gain the "popular vote" rather than seeking to be true to myself and my voice.

[Elisa Camahort]

I know what you mean. I may care, but I have learned to discipline myself not to let it affect what I talk about. It's never as good when it does.

[Jory Des Jardins]

For the record, I blog because I can't imagine where else I can write what really matters to me. Sure, it's helped me build a writing platform for my book and magazine. But try pitching someone at a magazine a story about your insecurities, issues at work, etc. I imagine that I would get blown off, the editor's equivalent of saying who cares? To think that editors always know what matters is insane. Blogs put real life on the record; that in itself is worth something.