Is Google Blogger considered spam?
Posted: January 16th, 2012, 6:37 pm
I'm starting to break down about this whole social media thing (a lot of folks here know how much of an introverted Luddite I am by now). Despite the fact that I haven't written much of anything "creative" since high school, I'm starting to reluctantly admit that some social media presence is better than none, which would include a blog or written outlet of some sort. I haven't decided where or how this will occur, much less when, but I'm coming to realize, albeit reluctantly, that it needs to. But being the perfectionist that I am (which is probably why I'm experiencing the troubles I wrote about after "Despite the fact that..."), I'd want this sort of thing to be as polished and professional as possible while still maintaining a modicum of personal engagement and "individuality" (the artist's signature stroke), so as not to appear "businesslike" (since writing is an art form unless it's dull, vague ad copy) but without appearing hideously amateurish and MySpace-y. (All of that for free, of course.)
Clearly I have a command of the English language and a unique personality. Despite my Salinger-esque existence, I care very much about people's interests and do want to respond to their comments and feedback, not just because the hypothetical "they" might translate someday into potential readers, but because I'm just not the kind of person who views people as page views or numbers at the deli counter, and besides, I'm in dire need of friends anyway. I have a moderate-level technical understanding of how to install templates and plugins and whatnot; however, I am undecided on what "platform" (site) to use as my "platform," since there is a possibility that a potential agent or editor may at some point search for my blog on the internet, and I'd hate for it to give off a pieced-together macaroni art project appearance, lest the potential representative(s) interpret the quality of my written work as much the same.
I was considering Google Blogspot until I read several articles, including one with a rant from typically outspoken Dallas Mavericks owner and "netrepreneur" Mark Cuban, about blogs on Blogspot being 75% comprised of tween-age "spamateurs" and unscrupulous linkbait. Wordpress.com is more "professional," apparently, but not as flexible for the user. Tumbler is sort of its own beast; self-hosting isn't an option because it costs money, and anything above $0 isn't an option at all. However, the most recent of these articles is dated about 2007, maybe '08 or so; I'm wondering if the site still carries that stigma despite everything Google being so ubiquitous nowadays, and the whole site and all its services undergoing a major upgrade as of last year or thereabouts.
Jennifer Weiner (who, IMHO, really should've considered a pseudonym), and Amanda Hocking both use Blogspot; obviously Mr. Bransford himself uses the Blogger software on a .com domain, while "White Oleander" author Janet Fitch uses the free wordpress.com. One could argue (and probably has) that Amanda's use of Blogspot ties in with the fact that self-pubbing is still considered unpolished (despite her unique success in her own right), and blogging itself is an unofficial form of "self" publishing, while the others are traditionally published and probably use the freesites for fun rather than an "official" platform. The gods of the bestseller-verse -- the Grishams, Pattersons, Evanoviches, etc. -- have a .com just like Google and Apple do; they're multinational conglomerates already, and anything "less" wouldn't even come into the realm of discussion. Diablo Cody is a very notable exception: she actually blogged "in character," as a naive Eastern European immigrant, and then as her exotic dancer self, but doesn't really even blog regularly anymore; she started on a local Minneapolis site before moving to Blogspot, and now the Blogspot domain is someone else's, written in Japanese as a poorly understood (possibly spam-harvested) pseudo-"fan page," at least last I checked. But for an otherwise unpublished newbie such as myself, with nothing of real interest (stripping!!!) to talk about, and unlike Amanda, not having written 17 novels while working at an adult day care facility (whew!), is "the G spot" considered too spammy for professional interest, i.e. guilt by association, even though I personally might be able to make even a Google blog look very professional and not spamateurish at all?
(I know, Charlee says "chillax." But I'm not ranting per se; I just can't normally express myself in 140 sentences or less.)
Clearly I have a command of the English language and a unique personality. Despite my Salinger-esque existence, I care very much about people's interests and do want to respond to their comments and feedback, not just because the hypothetical "they" might translate someday into potential readers, but because I'm just not the kind of person who views people as page views or numbers at the deli counter, and besides, I'm in dire need of friends anyway. I have a moderate-level technical understanding of how to install templates and plugins and whatnot; however, I am undecided on what "platform" (site) to use as my "platform," since there is a possibility that a potential agent or editor may at some point search for my blog on the internet, and I'd hate for it to give off a pieced-together macaroni art project appearance, lest the potential representative(s) interpret the quality of my written work as much the same.
I was considering Google Blogspot until I read several articles, including one with a rant from typically outspoken Dallas Mavericks owner and "netrepreneur" Mark Cuban, about blogs on Blogspot being 75% comprised of tween-age "spamateurs" and unscrupulous linkbait. Wordpress.com is more "professional," apparently, but not as flexible for the user. Tumbler is sort of its own beast; self-hosting isn't an option because it costs money, and anything above $0 isn't an option at all. However, the most recent of these articles is dated about 2007, maybe '08 or so; I'm wondering if the site still carries that stigma despite everything Google being so ubiquitous nowadays, and the whole site and all its services undergoing a major upgrade as of last year or thereabouts.
Jennifer Weiner (who, IMHO, really should've considered a pseudonym), and Amanda Hocking both use Blogspot; obviously Mr. Bransford himself uses the Blogger software on a .com domain, while "White Oleander" author Janet Fitch uses the free wordpress.com. One could argue (and probably has) that Amanda's use of Blogspot ties in with the fact that self-pubbing is still considered unpolished (despite her unique success in her own right), and blogging itself is an unofficial form of "self" publishing, while the others are traditionally published and probably use the freesites for fun rather than an "official" platform. The gods of the bestseller-verse -- the Grishams, Pattersons, Evanoviches, etc. -- have a .com just like Google and Apple do; they're multinational conglomerates already, and anything "less" wouldn't even come into the realm of discussion. Diablo Cody is a very notable exception: she actually blogged "in character," as a naive Eastern European immigrant, and then as her exotic dancer self, but doesn't really even blog regularly anymore; she started on a local Minneapolis site before moving to Blogspot, and now the Blogspot domain is someone else's, written in Japanese as a poorly understood (possibly spam-harvested) pseudo-"fan page," at least last I checked. But for an otherwise unpublished newbie such as myself, with nothing of real interest (stripping!!!) to talk about, and unlike Amanda, not having written 17 novels while working at an adult day care facility (whew!), is "the G spot" considered too spammy for professional interest, i.e. guilt by association, even though I personally might be able to make even a Google blog look very professional and not spamateurish at all?
(I know, Charlee says "chillax." But I'm not ranting per se; I just can't normally express myself in 140 sentences or less.)