eclectic explained

When I wrote the recent post that promised a steady stream of writing from your favorite source of information (about the author of these lines, if nothing else), I had one subject matter already in mind that needed airing. The question begging for contemplation was, what is this blog for, what is it about, and where is it going?

This blog is approaching forty and still going strong. Looking back over the months, I see a cornucopia of topics. Cycling featured prominently because that's what I spent most time doing in Grenoble. Travel is mentioned but mostly related to leaving and returning. Art and books have risen to prominence recently. The exhilaration of London contrast with the daily grind. Friends get the short shrift because this is not their blog and I don't see how I can expose anyone else on mine.

Rarer than appearances of friends is only overall focus, found exclusively in the odd photo I upload. From the progression of posts over the weeks and months, it is entirely absent. Rambling describes best what I do. Listening to the speakers at the Source Event, I fell in doubt about this strategy – or lack thereof. In order to capture an audience, I should present coherent thoughts on well-defined topics. Readers will only return if they get what they expect.

My blog doesn't offer this, everything is random. It was started as a tool to sharpen my prose – with a repository of memorable events as a fortuitous side effect. A thoroughly self-centered and self-serving exercise, in other words. Readers were way out at the periphery of my radar when all began.

At some point I became aware of my audience. Officially anonymous friends told me they use the blog to keep up with what I'm doing, one in particular complained about excessive bike posts, Sean finally started his own after reading mine for a while, and GC is the only one to comment. With these people in mind, I pick stories that I think might be interesting, entertaining or engaging, but the topics are still all over the place.

I became skeptical that this would be sufficient training should I ever aspire to a career in writing. Full of motivation after the Source Event, I readied myself to ask my audience the question: What do you want to read about. What is most interesting to you? Pick any of the categories mentioned above or name your neglected favorite. I'm writing for you!

By a funny little coincidence, my question was answered before I even got around to posing it. Yesterday I received an email from a reader unknown to me encouraging me to continue writing as I have, telling me how I mirror her own experiences as a scientist finding her way, jumping from place to place, settling in, discovering, forming habits, moving on. It is apparently the lack of focus, the arbitrary choice of topics that is captivating because it puts in words what many are familiar with.

This email filled me with happiness. Someone unbiased by friendship or shared memories likes to read what I write, likes the way I write, asks me to keep up the work. I was dizzy with elation, but once this ecstatic feeling subsided, a heavy weight sunk down on me. Someone out there is finding a voice in me, expecting words that comfort and stimulate. I am writing for someone – you, the audience!

While the ecstatic feeling might have subsided under the new weight on my shoulders, it has certainly not faded. I'm suffused with motivation and ready to take this as seriously as I should. The promise made two weeks ago holds even firmer now. Expect more posts and more-regular posts, and expect more of the same. Whatever comes to my mind.