Hello and welcome back for part 7 of this 8 part review of our first-year anniversary of travel and blogging.
On our first journey, we were averaging about 4 posts per day while on the road. We would stay up till early hours of the morn determined to share all we did that day and upload it. Thank goodness for the patience of those 3 or 4 initial followers. If we had the number of followers back then that we have now, we truly believe there would have been a barrage of e-mails to WordPress asking that our blogging privileges be rescinded. Since then we have learned from reading the posts of seasoned bloggers that less is better, in fact, much, much less is a lot, lot better! It is best to leave people wondering what you’re up to verses dreading the computer notification chime that comes when they hear or see another post from your site.
We learned there are bloggers out there with hundreds and even thousands of followers and they don’t have time to read lengthy post or see every photograph, from every angle, of that strange-looking bug crawling up the tree that looked so cute to us. In this age of digital photography, it’s easy to accumulate lots of pictures so we can look at them when sitting on the front porch at the retirement home. Not everyone, however, has the time or wants to see them. So here is where we pause and NOT do a photo grid of the 5000 images we took this past year. We bet you’re relieved aren’t you, lol.
We learned the importance of not posting just to see how many “likes” we could accumulate per day, as if we were in the running for some huge monetary award.
We realized the importance of really reading other people’s posts in effort to learn about them and what their goals and dreams are for having a blog site and then making time to respond about what they took time to share. Establish a dialogue and relationship with fellow bloggers and look at it as having a conversation with them over coffee at your favorite bistro. I’m sure some of you have had those experiences with people who talk at you without pausing to ask about you?
There is an “art” to blogging and, as we learn from following many awesome bloggers, there is technique of sharing just enough so readers hunger for more and want to follow.
We hope you return to see more of our year in review.
USA Through Our Eyes 
Amen to this.
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I hear you about the time spent reading. I’m cautiously getting back to reading others’ work but it can be a real challenge to find the time.
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LOL, LOL. It is so hard because there are soooo many wonderful post and we read each one and grow from them. There have been a few nights when we’ve been up hours reading post because we figured if the people worked hard writing them we needed to read and comment on them. Life is teaching us the importance of genuine relationships. You, Theresa are one of those very special people that has mastered this gift!!!!!
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“It is best to leave people wondering what you’re up to verses dreading the computer notification chime that comes when they hear or see another post from your site.” Hear you, hear you! It’s difficult when you enjoy another’s blog and want to be supportive, but, oh no, here comes another post, and by the way, you were hoping to get in some actual writing today not just viewing others’ writing … it can be exhausting. I love their impulse to share and to connect, but it’s a balance with one’s own activities and pursuits. 🙂
“We realized the importance of really reading other people’s posts in effort to learn about them and what their goals and dreams are for having a blog site and then making time to respond about what they took time to share. Establish a dialogue and relationship with fellow bloggers and look at it as having a conversation with them over coffee at your favorite bistro.” – Thank you, Tom and Audrey! Yes, I am engaging in blogging currently with a real value and lovely enjoyment of following along with a blogging friend’s ups and downs. I really love your travel writings for the encounters, the little occurrences that happen, and the lovely voice you put into it. 🙂
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