With our final Social Media class right around the corner, it appears that the final whistle will soon blow, ending what has been a great first semester of grad school.
In the three months since beginning, I’ve taken a ton of notes, written a dozen or so blog posts and even learned a thing or two about social media. Below are a few closing thoughts on my rookie season as a blogger.
If I had to isolate just one aspect of blogging that I’ve enjoyed most this semester, I’d have to say it’s the flexibility of blog posts and topics. I’ve found that, much more than in other writing styles, blogging allows writers to use conversational and often informal tone to relay their thoughts. While I’m not advocating against technical writing or even suggesting that all blogs are slang or casual or even loose, I’ve found in numerous blog examples that, as long as there is thought put into the writing, posts can start as rants but end up effective and appropriate chapters. I like that I can come into an entry and only know what I want to say, but not how I want to say it. After starting, the means by which I’m getting my messages across become clear and it all magically works out OK.
My biggest challenge in blogging, however, has most definitely been remaining consistent with a blog theme. I think because blogs are so free-moving, they often times encourage writers to become too inconsistent in their writing, ending up with random rants and posts. By focusing on a somewhat broad topic, however, I think I’ve been able to navigate within my theme without going too far away in any given week.
The semester is nearly over and it's time to celebrate; it's a shame only athletes get to use Gatorade.
Looking forward, I’m sure I’ll continue blogging after the semester is over. While I’m not entirely sure if I’d like to keep this blog going or start another, with a different underlying topic, I know that I do truly enjoy regularly writing and blogging is certainly the best way to do so. Before this class, I penned a few blogs, but none managed to reach its six-post birthday. Each died prematurely because I got bored and moved on to something else. Through this class, I learned how to adapt a blog to a number of seemingly separate topics and ensure the whistle doesn’t blow early with time left still on the clock.
Moving the Chains 