BLOGGER-TUNITIES
Narrating the New Millennium
Today, it seems as though everyone, their mother, their sister, their grandmother, and their dog has a blog. Although it was written off as a hobby in the beginning, regular people now make a living off of their blogs, sharing their ideas and opinions on far-reaching topics from fashion to food, travel to DIY, with anyone willing to read.
It’s easy to see why blogs became so popular—given the opportunity to easily share and connect with the world, wouldn’t you? Everyone has a voice in our generation, and blogging provides a microphone to anyone willing to speak up. Naturally, many people have taken advantage.
Offering readers the chance to view opinions, the term “unbiased” has no place on blogs. Blogging makes it easy to digest the unfiltered opinions and ideas of people around the world.
From a reader’s perspective, following blogs offers a glimpse into the lives of other people in a much more in-depth and personalized way than other forms of social media. Lengthier than a tweet, more pixels than an Instagram, and more customizable than a Facebook page, blogs offer a much more intimate experience. Blogs become the blogger’s online home—domain, if you will—and their writing style, photos, and design all combine to communicate their personality and aesthetic.
The most successful blogs have a cohesive and consistent message, like my personal favorite, Leandra Medine’s The Man Repeller. The blogs with the strongest messages become great sources of inspiration.
Blogs are a two-way street. Gone are the days of the viewer being a receptacle for information from news sources. Though the blogger decides on the topic, readers have a chance to respond through the comments, and to continue the conversation on other forms of social media, like Facebook and Twitter. For the first time, the reader has a chance to interact with the person creating the content, and with other followers. The conversation that blogging opens up, I think, is one of its most valuable assets.
Although the blogging world has become a little oversaturated over the past couple of years, I think this is a good thing. It means people are actively participating in and contributing to a worldwide conversation, sharing ideas, learning from one another, and inspiring each other. And what’s more VERTICAL than that?
Becca Barton is a student at the University of South Florida studying magazine journalism and art. She enjoys fashion, writing and graphic design, and appreciates a well-designed ampersand. Originally from Maine, with a brief interlude in DC, she is excited to be a part of the Tampa Bay and VERTICAL community.
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