blogging

Why You Should Blog, Be It 2006 or 2026 or 2046

The article explains the enduring value of blogging as a distinct and lasting form of content creation compared to social media posts, offering ten reasons to blog such as preserving knowledge, demonstrating expertise, improving writing, and recording life events. It provides practical guidance for starting a blog, especially using WordPress, and encourages writers to source ideas from social media, email, and personal experiences while emphasizing the personal voice over AI-generated content. The author stresses blogging’s flexibility in frequency and longevity, highlighting it as a creative practice that supports thinking, communication, and sharing useful information with others.

https://smartpeopleiknow.com/2026/10/05/why-you-should-blog-be-it-2006-or-2026-or-2046/

Why Personal Websites Are Coming Back

Personal websites are experiencing a resurgence as people seek greater control over their online presence, moving away from social media platforms that own and control users’ content and audiences. With stable domain ownership, simple hosting options, and standards like RSS, individuals can create personal sites that prioritize independence, identity, and lasting accessibility over algorithm-driven feeds or commercial metrics. This return to personal websites emphasizes the value of having a unique online home for writing, projects, or self-expression without needing to conform to platform-driven models.

https://deadparrotbbs.com/why-personal-websites-are-coming-back/

Why People Quit Blogging

The article critiques common online posts explaining why people quit blogging, highlighting that many such articles prioritize SEO and business motives over genuine advice for personal bloggers. It argues that blogging should be approached as a personal, low-pressure hobby rather than a commercial venture, emphasizing authentic voice, manageable expectations, minimal investment, and patience over time instead of focusing on statistics or monetization.

https://unattributed.cc/2026/08/27/why-people-quit-blogging/

Please Let Me Interact with Your Blog Post!

Michael Harley emphasizes the importance of enabling interaction on blog posts, highlighting webmentions as the preferred method since they allow direct engagement from RSS readers. He also suggests alternative ways like including reply email links in feeds or at the bottom of posts, sharing social media links for discussions, and, less preferably, using contact forms. Harley acknowledges varied preferences while advocating for easier feedback options to foster meaningful conversations around blog content.

https://michaelharley.net/posts/2026/08/22/please-let-me-interact-with-your-blog-post/

My Blogging Workflow

Gordon McLean describes his blogging workflow as an evolving, flexible process centered on capturing ideas quickly in draft form and allowing them to mature over time before editing and posting. He emphasizes the importance of a gentle posting cadence and minimal structural complexity to keep writing as the primary focus, using tools like Ulysses and WordPress for publishing while incorporating images for visual appeal. Ultimately, his system prioritizes simplicity and adaptability, enabling him to write without overthinking the process.

https://www.gordonmclean.co.uk/2026/08/25/my-blogging-workflow/

Blog About Things You Don’t Understand Yet

Sean Goedecke advocates writing blog posts about topics he doesn’t fully understand to deepen his learning process, emphasizing that writing clarifies thinking and often changes his mind. He views blogging as a disciplined research and reflection practice that benefits from taking clear, even controversial, positions and welcomes feedback—including from AI language models—to refine understanding and improve clarity.

https://www.seangoedecke.com/blog-about-things-you-dont-understand-yet/

Simon Willison on Technical Blogging

Simon Willison emphasizes the value of technical blogging as a means to clarify one's thinking, share practical knowledge, and contribute to the software development community. He highlights how writing about technical topics can deepen understanding and foster ongoing learning while building a public record of solutions and insights. This approach encourages a habit of continual reflection and knowledge-sharing integral to the creative and problem-solving process in technology fields.

https://writethatblog.substack.com/p/simon-willison-on-technical-blogging

What Happens to Our Blogs When We Die?

Michael Harley explores the challenge of preserving personal blogs after the author's death, emphasizing that digital content risks disappearing without proactive measures. He focuses on safeguarding the core—the written words—by converting his blog posts to standard markdown stored in a separate git repository and periodically generating EPUB and printed book versions for offline longevity. Ultimately, he prioritizes creating durable, accessible formats and a clear handoff to family over relying on hosting services or automated systems that may fail.

https://michaelharley.net/posts/2026/08/06/what-happens-to-our-blogs-when-we-die/

Substack Writers, You Need a Website!

Elizabeth Tai advises writers using Substack to maintain their own independent websites, warning that relying solely on platforms like Substack risks losing control over content and long-term online visibility. She advocates for a “Publish (on your) Own Site, Syndicate Elsewhere” (POSSE) approach, where writers anchor their work on personal domains and use platforms only for distribution, ensuring creative sovereignty and protection against sudden platform changes or policy shifts. Tai highlights examples like John Scalzi, who has sustained a consistent personal blog for decades, emphasizing the value of owning one’s digital home over becoming a “digital sharecropper.”

https://elizabethtai.com/2026/06/10/substack-writers-you-need-a-website/

Phoneblogging

Brennan Kenneth Brown discusses the challenges and importance of phoneblogging within the IndieWeb community, emphasizing that many personal websites are designed primarily for desktop use, which alienates billions of mobile-only internet users worldwide. He highlights the need for better mobile-first, responsive design and explores how writers often rely on phones for drafting but switch to desktops for publishing due to UX limitations, while also sharing anecdotes from various bloggers who incorporate phoneblogging to different extents. Brown argues that the IndieWeb must prioritize accessible, sustainable mobile blogging workflows to keep pace with global internet usage trends and digital inclusivity.

https://brennan.day/phoneblogging/

Scroll to Top