Thinking Blogger or Writing Blogger

I mull over ideas for quite a while before writing. However, sometimes it takes just writing to help extract those ideas out of my head. Other times I can just start writing and its very easy to express a concept. I agree with Kevin that sometimes you just have to Write It and hope for the best.

Now the next question should be: do you edit or just hit publish?

I’m both, but more often I blog in the “think” style, as defined here (I agree that it is an oxymoron, in that blogs, and least for me, are intentionally informal).

I have posts, or post ideas, in the queue almost at any time. While working on (and thinking about) those, I may well spew out a few “write” style posts (or “write” leaning anyway) before one of the “think” style posts is done (some, well perhaps many, never make it to the blog).

I envy those that can apply the “write” approach to good effect.

I’m both, but more often I blog in the “think” style, as defined here (I agree that it is an oxymoron, in that blogs, and least for me, are intentionally informal).

I have posts, or post ideas, in the queue almost at any time. While working on (and thinking about) those, I may well spew out a few “write” style posts (or “write” leaning anyway) before one of the “think” style posts is done (some, well perhaps many, never make it to the blog).

I envy those that can apply the “write” approach to good effect.

Thinking blogger. Many potential posts have been discarded because they have been taken over by events as I am still thinking about the topic.

Thinking/Freaking out. I think, change my mind, and then freak out about all the other things I could have gotten done.

Maybe vaporware…

I tried a strictly “thinking” approach at one point. I still have those drafts in WP a year and a half later!

I tried a strictly “thinking” approach at one point. I still have those drafts in WP a year and a half later!

Writing blogger, with one caveat.

Frequently, I’ll get an idea for a blog post while walking or driving, and so I’ll “pre-write” it in my head due to lack of computer at hand. Otherwise, I just start typing and see where it goes.

That’s how I give live presentations, too. Come to BootCamp and marvel at my off-the-cuffery.

Writing, with occasional thinking. At first it was hard to come up with post topics but now it’s so easy that I keep a list of interesting subjects for future posts and try to space them out. Otherwise I could spend hours every day writing blogs. In the beginning the writing was difficult, but it became easier with each post, once I found my conversational “voice.” The more I do, the easier it gets, as with nearly anything else. That being said, the content of each post kind of rolls around in my head for a while. I read somewhere that for nearly anything we do, we’re only using about 30% of our brain power. What do we do with the other 70%? “Noodle.”

Writing, with occasional thinking. At first it was hard to come up with post topics but now it’s so easy that I keep a list of interesting subjects for future posts and try to space them out. Otherwise I could spend hours every day writing blogs. In the beginning the writing was difficult, but it became easier with each post, once I found my conversational “voice.” The more I do, the easier it gets, as with nearly anything else. That being said, the content of each post kind of rolls around in my head for a while. I read somewhere that for nearly anything we do, we’re only using about 30% of our brain power. What do we do with the other 70%? “Noodle.”

I think about what I’m going to write ahead of time- I collect a group of thouhts in a separate file for future posts- quotes I like, things I don;t have time to express fully at that moment; but when I sit down and write, I pretty much write with little editing. (Thankfully, Stu edits over at GNM to make sure I am not too scattered about anything). But many times, when I write about something I really care about, it’s like a river that’s hard to stop in the process. Sitting on some stuff before I post would probably be a good idea, though.

I am a little bit of both. I decide what I want to write on. Then as I sit to write my post, I think about the topic, try to analyze it from different perspectives and then decide what are the key points to emphasize and what will be the clearest, most organized way to express them. I don’t over analyze it though because I think that over analyzing hurts the writing process in the end. I find that usually I think better as I am typing. I usually write a first draft, go over it another few times, only making minor changes. I find that the first draft contains the most “passion”.

I am a little bit of both. I decide what I want to write on. Then as I sit to write my post, I think about the topic, try to analyze it from different perspectives and then decide what are the key points to emphasize and what will be the clearest, most organized way to express them. I don’t over analyze it though because I think that over analyzing hurts the writing process in the end. I find that usually I think better as I am typing. I usually write a first draft, go over it another few times, only making minor changes. I find that the first draft contains the most “passion”.

Thinking.
In fact, change that to obsessive.
I keep a notoebook for ideas in my purse, plus a folder on my laptop of ideas. Things I have seen in my life, or read that I would like to let percolate for a bit in order to maybe comment.
I generally write my posts on the train, and then when I get to work (connected), read them again, fiddle with them and then copy into my blog.

Definitely a writing blogger. I write it, review it, then post it. And never look back :-)

Definitely a writing blogger. I write it, review it, then post it. And never look back :-)

Thinking blogger – actual make that an OVER thinking blogger. Sometimes I edit so much that I finally just decide that what I was going to say wasn’t that important a topic for one of my blogs. So I don’t publish anything.

Both… but primarily a “writing blogger”. Like Stu Mark, I’ve been writing since I was very young (although not as much professionally like Stu) and words just generally flow. I am a writer… therefore I write. As others have mentioned, the act of writing is often my tool for clarifying thinking.

However, like David Beckemeyer, I’ve always got longer posts in my queue that I keep stewing around in my brain waiting for the moment when I have the time to write them all down. I do pretty much all my blogging using an offline editor (either MS Windows Live Writer or the open source Semagic) and so it’s very easy for me to have drafts lying around of longer pieces. Unfortunately, like Aswath, sometimes those longer pieces never see the light of day because they are no longer relevant.

But probably 90+% of the time in my blogging, I simply pop open an editor window, write the blog post, read through it to see if I can tighten it up or make it read better, preview it to make sure image links work… and then hit Publish and go on to something else.

Both… but primarily a “writing blogger”. Like Stu Mark, I’ve been writing since I was very young (although not as much professionally like Stu) and words just generally flow. I am a writer… therefore I write. As others have mentioned, the act of writing is often my tool for clarifying thinking.

However, like David Beckemeyer, I’ve always got longer posts in my queue that I keep stewing around in my brain waiting for the moment when I have the time to write them all down. I do pretty much all my blogging using an offline editor (either MS Windows Live Writer or the open source Semagic) and so it’s very easy for me to have drafts lying around of longer pieces. Unfortunately, like Aswath, sometimes those longer pieces never see the light of day because they are no longer relevant.

But probably 90+% of the time in my blogging, I simply pop open an editor window, write the blog post, read through it to see if I can tighten it up or make it read better, preview it to make sure image links work… and then hit Publish and go on to something else.

I’m definitely a writing blogger. I don’t even do rough drafts for my papers! I hate the damned things anyways. I just write. My views most likely will not change within the next 24 hours or so.