FlexRex: Fictional Blogger

Today I interrupt whatever normally goes on here to talk about blogging effectively. And while I may not be really qualified to do so, that hasn't stopped me from writing about living effectively for the last 56 days either.

Let's start by putting this blogging business in perspective with the biggest thing on the Internet--MySpace. And if you haven't browsed around in there, think of it as a place where millions of teenagers get to stick photos and bad poetry all over virtual bathroom-stall web pages. In large, it's hideous, lapdash, and highly effective.

Blogs on the other hand, are where we as adults write about the things that we thought were pretty boring when we were teenagers. So effectiveness then is something that only jumps out when it's totally lacking.

With that, here are the Highly Flexrex Habits of Blogging:

5. Be prolific. Try to blog every day. You'll miss once and a while, so what? But you won't get any better as a writer unless you do it. Tip: If it helps, try and write to an editorial calendar. My 101-day book report experiment is just that, but I don't have to come up with a subject every day and that is a huge timesaver.

4. Stay in genre. The java developers out there may think you're the god of code, but they don't necessarily care that your ran three miles today and got a blister.Tip: Start another blog that centers around your personal life or separate interests. Besides, Flexrex, I have an Overheard in PDX site that gives me my jollies.

3. Don't take yourself too seriously. Blogs are not the Bible and you are not Marshall McLuhan or a Supreme Court Justice. Tip: Try blogging in an altered state once and a while. Just reading what you typed after you came home from the bars can be illuminating.

2. Read other blogs. Tip: Keep a list of things that really annoy you about what other people blog about and adjust your writings accordingly.

1. Reward yourself. Remember that if you weren't blogging, you'd likely be surfing and would have nothing to show for it the next day. Tip: Find a tavern with Wi-Fi.