I was thinking this morning about what I should write, and I found it to be a bit intimidating. I am very used to writing academic papers and somehow I find academic writing very easy. Maybe it is because this type of writing has more structure, maybe because I have lots of practice writing “academics.”

But, I also suspect that there are a few things that are very different about blogs, and that these unique features make the experience so different. First, blogs are very immediate. When we write academic papers it takes a few years before they are published, while blogs are “out” the moment you press the submit button. Second, when writing blogs there is a chance that someone will read the posting (which is unlikely for academic papers). Finally, blogs provide other people an opportunity to to react, post and provide feedback and criticism.
I suspect that these three features make writing a blog feel as if the “audience” is much more real (whether this is true or not), which is both exciting but also intimidating, and somewhat stressful.

I am looking forward to getting better at this …