A book about blogging? No, wait, a self-published book about blogging by a bunch of bloggers, many of whom are relatively unknown even in the blogosphere and none of whom are exactly rocking slots one through ten on the New York Times bestseller list?
Hey, they all laughed at Christopher Columbus (and probably, at some point, at the guys who wrote about it), too.
Intrepid business blogger Jon Strande hatched a stupid, ingenious plan for explaining blogging to the general (offline) public: collect a hundred, that’s right, 100, bloggers and see what they had to say about it. Seriously. At the outset, that was the sum total of the plan.
But then an amazing thing happened. In typical bloggy fashion, the bloggers he invited suggested others, which in turn not only suggested a great method of collecting 100 bloggers but a means of illustrating the connectivity, joy and power of blogging in the construction of the book itself.
Here’s how it ended up working: Jon invited the first 25 bloggers. They, in turn, invited 25 more. Their 25 invited another 25, and that 25 invited a final 25, for a total of 100 bloggers**, linked by blogging, just like…blogging!
Now that my little bloggy tree is established (me > half mad (former) spinster > Michael Nobbs > Trevor Romain), the next step is to come up with my post, er, chapter. I’d like for it to somehow reference one or all of my people, and at least a few of the other bloggers in the book, like Evelyn and Hugh, whose acquaintanceship was either directly or indirectly responsible for my participation. But that’s my problem.
The problem I’d love your help with is selecting a post, or even a style or category of post, since I’m kind of all over the map, for inclusion. “Why I Blog” is going to be a biggish topic in the book, but don’t let that stop you. If anyone out there reading this blog with any regularity has a strong opinion on which post I’ve blogged so far would be my best choice for this book, by all means, let me know, either in the comments section or, if you’re shy, via email. Don’t hold back, either; even if you think it’s an inappropriate post for inclusion in a generic blogging book, there may be some useful information in your preference. For instance, I’m probably not going to choose that perennial crowd-pleaser, the Mrs. Potato Head manifesto, but if it resonates with enough people, I will think seriously about incorporating the elements that I think make it successful, like the list format, the rapier-like wit and the wink-wink/nudge-nudge.
Thanks for playing, everyone! And remember, there are no stupid ideas. Even stupid ideas aren’t stupid.
xxx
c
*Words to live by from Callie – 1st grader, via Trevor Romain’s blog
**Well, we’re close, anyway. The math alone makes my head spin, so I’m leaving the collection process to John and other, sturdier souls.
Colleen, I think it would be great if all the posts were NOT about blogging as it’s certainly not the only topic we cover in our posts. That would be far more interesting to the average book reader. In fact, my invitee has been blogging so long that the whole blogging about blogging is a bit weary for him and he almost passed on the project.
For moi, I’d prefer it to reflect the diversity of voices and passions that are daily reflected in our posts. Recently, I thoroughly enjoyed your post on homestatis and learning to your new music lessons, and without going through your archives, is the one I still recall vividly with a smile.
I choose “I am Mrs. Potato Head.” Also, I would like to write a chapter for the book called “Why I Read Your Dumb Blog.”
I think this is my favorite: http://www.communicatrix.com/blog/2005/01/a_home_of_ones_.html
Though I really do enjoy them all.
Fan of “Joy = Work” and “How To Make a Happy Accident” too, but definitely think “Home… Own” did the most for me, personally.
Congrats on the inclusion. Have fun and inspire by being. That’s all you can do.
I’ve been reading your blog for about a month now and I really dig it. So thanks for writing. As for the book, I think you should write a piece on how blogging has made you feel, how it has contributed to your better mental health. (or, If Everyone Blogged, There’d Be No More War)
Hey, uh, Colleen? “Why I blog is going to be a biggish topic for the book”?
Damn, I wish someone had told me that. I thought it was about what Evelyn said, otherwise my post is gonna be really off kilter. Shit, so’s the damn design of the book. On second thought, tell Jon I quit. And I want my logo back!