tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13609842.post8934943062094615732..comments2023-10-30T09:26:32.732+00:00Comments on Now's the time: company why good morningAnonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06972049290586377462noreply@blogger.comBlogger8125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13609842.post-84160015271900378122011-12-06T10:49:58.732+00:002011-12-06T10:49:58.732+00:00R Thank you for reminding me of the name of the g...R Thank you for reminding me of the name of the garden in Kyoto. It is the garden with a stream and the manicured trees and moss beneath them that surrounds the rock garden which remains most vivid in my memory. But it was a long time ago and memories can be misleading.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06972049290586377462noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13609842.post-59668948994693661492011-12-06T01:57:55.554+00:002011-12-06T01:57:55.554+00:00Good morning! And long live blogging! Why do I sit...Good morning! And long live blogging! Why do I sit now and ponder the rock garden at Ryoanji?Rouchswalwehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01393987883437907945noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13609842.post-1820290783428796932011-12-03T16:23:37.851+00:002011-12-03T16:23:37.851+00:00Thank you for that. It should be turned into a pos...Thank you for that. It should be turned into a poster and pinned up above every blogger's computer even if every blogger doesn't agree with ever word of it. I am glad that I should have prompted it.It wasn't my intention to pre-empt your 1000words, by the way.<br /><br />You and and Barrett Bonden meanwhile have a lot to answer for as ripple move out into cyber space.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06972049290586377462noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13609842.post-73482651179258034412011-12-03T13:34:10.946+00:002011-12-03T13:34:10.946+00:00A shrunken version of the 1000 words I proposed.
...A shrunken version of the 1000 words I proposed.<br /><br />Why do I blog? Because I want to be read. But it's a competitive world. There are thousands of professionals out there. And millions of amateurs. How do I set myself apart, muscle my way to the front?<br /><br />Some no-nos. I won't win by splashing down the first thought that comes into my head. By letting punctuation go hang. By running on and on. By being lazy and turning the post into a host of links. By starting with "There are..." By telling someone else's funny stories. By being wilfully extreme. By being cruel - ah, yes - not by being cruel.<br /><br />Some yes-yeses. Being observant at the micro/macro levels in all things: the structure of a flower, human behaviour, the pretensions of statesman. Thus: not all trees are lovely, not all nurses are honourable, not all statesmen are crooks. Distrust adjectives and adverbs because they can often be made implicit in the better-chosen noun or verb. Sounds like primary school, doesn't it, but these defects weary the reader. If it's easy to write it's probably unattractive (at least) to read. Don't have fun yourself, provide fun for the reader. Copy people who are recognisably good. With each post decide between instruction and entertainment. Clichés are things that have been said a thousand times before; do you want to be the thousand-and-first? Send yourself up a lot but not too much; it's a tactic that's easily seen through. If the empty screen looks menacing, go for a walk.<br /><br />The perils (all of which I've been guilty of - probably somewhere in this comment too). Extreme views can amuse but make sure you know where the off-switch is. Don't use foreign words or long words unnecessarily. Make sure you know the frontier between teasing and insulting. More people have been criticised for over-writing than for under-writing. Don't repeat yourself.<br /><br />Remember: Blogging is not serious for most of us; only merit can create a sense of obligation. Are we asking to be loved? If I blog because I want to be read (and I do) what does that make me? If I don't care whether I'm read, what does that make me? Consider this: the friends we make from blogging are often superior to those made by more conventional social means. That's a heck of bonus. Take care!Roderick Robinsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16828395545197001637noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13609842.post-38598862765230951042011-12-03T11:40:56.509+00:002011-12-03T11:40:56.509+00:00L d P You prompted it. I was attempting to answer ...L d P You prompted it. I was attempting to answer your question. I still am.<br /><br />Lucy Certain things which you see every day, you either take for granted or allow them to flow into and become part of you. I think I can say that of the tulip tree which when I raise the blinds greets me every morning.<br /><br />Thank you, CC. I greatly appreciate your visits.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06972049290586377462noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13609842.post-57288679025030879142011-12-03T00:17:15.082+00:002011-12-03T00:17:15.082+00:00I, for one, have grown fond of your blog, and look...I, for one, have grown fond of your blog, and look forward to your pictures, both visual and written. <br />I too have grown to love blogging, receiving as well as posting and for my own version of the reasons you mentioned.<br />I love good writing as well as good art and the exchange of ideas and stories.<br />Delicious inspiration and entertainment.<br />Its a pleasure to know you, though we are<br />3500 miles give or take distant and have never met in person. Keep up your good work, Plutarch! Your best fan in Philadelphia.CChttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12653106775702366387noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13609842.post-46802641227800839932011-12-02T21:40:44.725+00:002011-12-02T21:40:44.725+00:00'the tulip tree through which at this time of ...'the tulip tree through which at this time of year the sun climbs like a silver monkey'<br /><br />that alone would have stopped me short, confirming why I love blogging in general and yours in particular. The rest is gravy.Lucyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09764296105901909328noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13609842.post-70053678059442933252011-12-02T17:58:46.254+00:002011-12-02T17:58:46.254+00:00I'll get back to this in a moment, As you know...I'll get back to this in a moment, As you know I had something like this mind.Roderick Robinsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16828395545197001637noreply@blogger.com