I received a question on my Tumblr about whether or not I censor posts… like do I decide to post things only because I think it will be popular or interesting…
The answer… Yes/No. However, the reason why I would censor something has nothing to do with popularity. Instead, I don’t share some information regarding my personal life. Although, I do try to balance fun preppy material things with my ridiculous life stories/freakouts, I have a life outside of the internet!
I remember a day in elementary school when I came to the realization that teachers didn’t live in their classroom. “What? Mrs. Behnke has a house? She doesn’t live here?” I knew my teacher and loved her. She wore dresses that with pleats and matching belts (think Mrs. Frizzle). She knew everything about science and did the best hands-on projects and demonstrations.
Was the magic of teachers gone after realizing they didn’t live in the school? No. In fact, it made me appreciate them even more. They were people! They had families, and pets, and interests. Fast forward a few years, and my family was invited to Mrs. Behnke’s farm. Instead of dresses, she wore jeans. She showed us her extensive collection of Broadway posters. She drove us to visit the cows in a huge truck.
I saw a whole new side to her.
Back to the question. Yes, I do “censor” posts. I don’t blog about just anything that comes to my mind. And I don’t blog about things that I don’t feel belong on the internet (namely: boys).
At the same time, I am 100% myself on here. I don’t blog about things to be “popular.” I blog about things I like, in the context that this is a blog. Does that make sense?
Bloggers, do you censor posts?
xoxo
Carly, I think you are wise. Your blog is much more than a "journal" of your life. It's become a business for you and an example of your work for employers. We all need boundaries in the things we do, and you are mature to be setting them now.
I censor some. I speak in ambiguities about things and events for which I don't want to share details. It took forever for me to talk about the ending of my engagement. I have a few things in the works that I might post, but might not. I think it's a great idea not to post absolutely every thought in your head, not because of popularity, but because of discretion.
I totally understand. I blog content that people will want to read, but at the same time, I love to write that sort of content. I'm totally myself, but I don't feel the need to get super detailed about certain aspects of my personal life.
I agree with this post! I feel like as I grow up, everything seems to change. And ofcourse I have my times where I break down, but those experiences are personal and they're things I go through with my family and friends, so I want to keep that to myself. Maybe i'll share a hint of that on my blog, but it'll just be a small post or a little sentence. I feel like I dont want everyone to know everything, because then I wont really have a sense of me. But then I want them to know things about me, so its a tough struggle. You never know if you're personal enough for readers to connect.
I think this is a great topic to bring up!! I do talk about my boyfriend and certain struggles such as asking for prayers or rejoicing when a situation turns out good, but I dont share personal details and I definitely dont "air my dirty laundry" on my blog. I think you can be honest and be yourself without doing so.
this is a great post! actually my friends have said to me "you seem so normal on your blog." haha. but i don't censor out of popularity either. there are just certain i don't think belong on the internet.
http://lachapstickfanatique.blogspot.com
This is a great, honest post. It's good that you're not using your blog as a ranting place about your life (cough, Taylor Swift via songwriting, cough). It's quality stuff. That's what being an author is all about!
I have to agree, recently my brother died, and I felt I owed it to my readers to say why I hadn't been posting. But I do not see the point to going into detail about anything, no good would come of it. I think that if you do post too much personal stuff it does become less interesting because no one's life is that exciting.
Blair
This is interesting because I struggle with what I should and shouldn't say on my blog. Recently I had an experience with a friend where I had to tell him "i wasn't interested in him in that way" and it brought about this realization that "bad news doesn't get better with age" and I wanted to write about how i've learned it's better to be honest and upfront about something-regardless if it's a romantic situation or not- because you can end up doing more harm than good if you prolong the truth. Obviously I would never use his name but I know he reads my blog so would I be invading his privacy by sharing this experience? I'm trying to figure that out. I'm the type of person who has a tendency to just say how I am feeling- though I do try to be tactful- but the internet is a funny place and I haven't fully figured out what I want shared with the world and what I want to keep in my inner circle.