I put a question mark in the title because I’m not sure there should be any. Maybe there should, but who’s going to care?

This post comes perilously close to another BTTH session, like 2 days ago. I’ve read a *lot* of blogs about blogging, and honestly, people need to relax about it. Check this out:

A Couple of Blogging “Rules” I’ve Read from Reputable Authors

• “Don’t post about too many different subjects; it will confuse/alienate your readers.” Nonsense. First, I think most of my readers (except maybe D***d S**l) have brains. Second, my stats show that the majority of my readers are repeat visitors. I can’t tell anything more than their ISP name (like comcast.net) and the city in which the ISP is located (or which country – I get dozens of hits a day from outside the US), but they do tell me how many are return visits. RtB always shows up in Google/Yahoo searches, so I’m being indexed. Why change what I do? I heart my repeat offenders.
• “If you don’t have anything specific to say, don’t post that day.” Wrong again, toots. I want to be a writer. I love to research. Love writing + love research = friggin’ FIND something to write about. That’s the fun of it for me. And when I don’t have any research handy, I think of something else. It’s amazing what the human brain can concoct when it’s called upon to think creatively. I used to think of myself as not particularly imaginative in the literary sense. I don’t think that anymore, simply because I’ve forced myself to manufacture ideas on demand over the last several months. Do that, and you get better at it.

Rat Fink’s Blogging Rules, or Advice from a Disreputable Author

• Who’s paying the hosting fees, doing the research, or keeping the free blog space looking nice? You are. So write about whatever you want, whenever you want. If people are interested in what you say, they’ll come back. And chances are they’ll bring friends via email and word of mouth.
• Give it time. I’ve written a blog post every day since 22 February. My hits started out around 5 per day. As of a month ago, I’m up to over 30 times that.
• You should be a decent writer. Either that, or you have to not care how your stuff looks. But what I’ve noticed over the last seven months is that I’m getting better at it. It’s like any muscle; you keep flexing it and working it, and it’s going to get better/bigger. If you’re not a decent writer, work on it! You could…I dunno…start a blog.
• To the people who say, “Who cares about what you write?” I say, “Um, I do.” ‘Nuff said. You’re worth the effort, so if you want it, go for it.
• You have to be disciplined about it. No doubt. If you say, “Eh…I’d never keep up with posting,” you’re not a blogger. It’s like brushing your teeth: it needs to be part of your daily (or weekly or whatever) routine. Pick a schedule and stick to it.
• Force yourself to research. I’ve heard the Internet is a cool place to find stuff. Learn what’s real and what’s bogus. Check and double-check your sources. If some guy’s blog says that the Wall Street Journal said thus-and-so, check it out before you link to him. Besides, research is fun.

Or…you could just read me every day to get your blog fix on. You could tell your friends to read me, too. Hey, Penguin Books! Simon & Schuster! How’s about a book deal? I’m real easy to work with and I don’t take up much space.

And now I’m really late. Arriving with no makeup on would be cruel & unusual for the 6th graders this morning.

Until tomorrow…and yes, Virginia, there will be another Finkpost. Gare-own-teed.