If your blog could talk, what would it have to say for itself? How
would your blog express itself in its author bio, if granted the qualities of
consciousness, for a few minutes?
The blogger has got to regard his blog the way a reader approaches
a book. Sometimes, (and much of the time you’ll find this is true) the book in
question might lead off the trail to explore strange routes by the standards of
a real book. But I guess that's alright if it keeps the blogger’s nose to the
grind; keeps him doing what he set out to do in the first place that is, keeps
him blogging.
The issue is not how much you ramble in your posts, but there’s
got to be a way, a term, if you please, that breaks up the rich brew into distinctive
parts. And the good thing about this is it doesn’t have to be summed up in one word. A phrase might do it, maybe a
sentence or better yet, a paragraph.
Theme is the apparel your blog wears. You see a guy kitted up in a
soccer jersey, feet spotting spiked footgear standing in the middle of a pitch
and your mind yells ‘game on!’ You
see a form in swim trunks bouncing on a board and you know what’s about to go
down even without spotting the pool. That same form in a different garb say, a
three piece suit, for instance, bending over on that same board and you scream suicide! Having a theme ensures your viewers
are aware what your blog is about.
Back in ’09, my writing instructor had said, “start a blog. Write whatever comes to mind—concentrate especially, on your
personal experiences.” You could say my blog theme at the time was as long
as it was broad because my instructor had thrown the door too wide open. But I had
something going for me and it was the fact I had been keeping a journal ever
before I knew there was a thing called a blog. And much of the stuff in my personal journal was ‘personal.’ I had written up some
poetry, stuff on writing, and short personal essays. In a sense, I had a
foretaste of blogging before I went online. It somehow drew a fine line between
‘whatever comes to mind’ and ramble
on.
You’ve got to create a ledge to cushion the effect when you hit
bottom; when the ideas quit flowing and it seems you’re only passing time on
the www. Having a theme gives you focus—a sense of place when your mind is
fogged up about what you were really after scribbling all those words in the
first place. Another subject worth considering when making a choice of theme is
your readers.
Who’s your target audience?—what sort of folks do you want
swarming over your blog? And I don’t mean in terms of locality unless of
course, your posts are localized. (This is the internet after all.) What’s
their story? What’s the reaction you intend to get? How important is it to you
to get your message across to them?
Theme is probably, the most significant topic to consider when
setting up a blog besides the fact that you got what it takes to keep the pump
gushing. If you’re new to blogging or maybe you’ve been around a while but your
blog didn’t pan out, maybe, it’s not your theme; maybe, it’s the way you present your theme. That’s definitely, a
topic for another post but meanwhile, is
your blog dressed for the occasion?
Keep your pens bleeding.
Akpan
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