What's it all about?

After much confusion about the purpose of these blogs to the point where I felt my head was about to explode, I decided it was necessary to listen to the Jamaicans and "Just Breath". Funnily enough, oxygen is really handy in getting the brain to think harder! Who knew!?! So, with this new found attitude, I decided to find some inspiration by working my way through the entire Networked Media Blogging Assessment Outline (yes I know, it's only 2 pages long but I still couldn't get my head around it).

What I concluded from this were that there were a number of things I needed to be doing in order to get a HD at the end of all this palava. This included:

• Producing regular blog entries (at least 5 per week)


• Writing blogs that critically engage with the course content (i.e exploring different viewpoints and methods for the topics we cover each week)


• Engaging with the course content in a way that discusses any problems or ideas I encounter along the way and why this was the case.


• And finally, the blogs should be a documentation of our learning progression throughout the semester demonstrating how we have overcome problems in order to move our education further forward.

To add to this, I checked out one of our first NM readings, Blogging Thoughts by Torill Mortensen and Jill Walker. In the article, Mortensen and Walker quote one of the Blogger creators, Evan Williams who says

the blog concept is about three things: Frequency, Brevity, and Personality

Frequency is self-explanatory. Basically that you keep up regular blog posts preferrably daily. The aim of this I believe is to assist bloggers in developing a consistent tone and style which is important in setting yourself apart from the millions of other blog invaders out there.

Brevity is the concise and exact use of words in writing I.E no warbling/waffling/long-winded speeches about cats. This writing style is what sets blogs apart from other written documents like essays or thesisses.

Finally, personality is the ability of a writer to express their views and beliefs through their writing in an individual and original way. This too is important in distiniguishing yourself from the rest of the blogging population. It is also necessary in creating a bond between you and your readers. Whereas other pieces of writing may be presented in an objective way, the blog should be entirely subjective so as to entice your target audience in and invite them to agree or disagree with the ideas and thoughts we present.

SO, with all this in mind I definitely feel much better about the direction that this blog is heading. Be prepared to read something tomorrow that is short, sharp, witty and full of personality. Until then, don't worry. Be happy!