Ten Years of Blogging - A Couple of Thoughts

The secret of getting ahead is getting started.

Mark Twain, American writer

I realized the other day that I started this blog ten years ago!

My first post was on September 2, 1997.

My wife was the one who encouraged me to start a blog, she thought it was a good venue for me to become known as a guitar maker, to sell my guitars and to connect with others in the woodworking world.

I have met several wonderful people who are professional woodworkers through the blog, but I am still waiting for my first guitar sale because of the blog. All of my sales have resulted from people actually seeing and playing my guitars, either at guitar festivals, lectures I give at universities, or when players stop by my shop because someone told them I make wonderful guitars.

The Internet has done much to disseminate woodworking information, it's a little scary to see how much information there is online! When I started woodworking, if there was anything that I wanted to know I had to go to a library and look up the technique in a book or woodworking magazine!

Now, all one has to do is to surf the plethora of YouTube videos and websites to find the woodworking technique that you want to learn.

One thing I have noticed lately is there doesn't seem to be as many people blogging about their woodworking experiences and adventures. I find it a little sad these days to go to my favorite woodworking blog aggregator and see only three or four new postings. Maybe no one cares to write a full sentence or paragraph anymore because stringing together 140 characters is the most anyone can do. Instagram is a very easy platform to display yourself on.

Or is it that people just want information, but don't want to share it?

I know that it can be hard to write a weekly post for a blog, making time to do something can be a hard thing to do and accomplish.

In my experience, not knowing if I am reaching/connecting with anyone on Internet can discourage me from writing more posts, I don't get many comments about my posts these days, nor does anyone engage me in some kind of text dialogue. I stopped offering how-to information on basic woodworking several years ago because teaching online through my posts is not my intention. I noticed that when I stopped the how-to no one commented.

That said, visitation to my blog is up this year and I think it is because people want to learn more about the guitars I make. This is great for me, because if there is one thing that I will talk about passionately is making beautifully voiced guitars that will play beautiful music, that in turn will encourage young people to take up the classical guitar.

I will offer this advice about blogging -- don't be afraid to use what you learned in your college freshman English composition courses! Start writing today about what it is you are doing! Make stuff and share it and don't think you have to be the next Roy Underhill or Charles Hayward.

Get into your shop, make shavings and blisters!



Comments

  1. Well congratulations on the blog anniversary!

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  2. I'm guilty of reading your blog posts and not commenting. I especially like the guitar playing snippets you put in them. Until I saw them I never knew what classical guitar music sounded like.

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  3. Hello Wilson,

    reading your sentences, I´m with you. Blogging is a oneway direction. Most of the post don´t get a respond, never mind. But it´s very nice to see what you doing. God luck and the a lot of nice projects in the future,

    with the best wishes

    Uwe

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  4. Wilson,

    My blog has been running for 12 or so years, like you there is little to no instruction or technique but it is a journal much like the paper ones I kept before blogging

    I would love to have one of your guitars but sad to say as hard as I've tried to learn I can't play but I enjoy the beauty and passion of your making.

    Ken

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  5. Thanks for the advice. I love the blog.
    Chris Barnes from Florida.
    Check me out if you're board ;)
    http://senrabc.wordpress.com

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  6. Wilson,

    I've been reading for a while now and have commented very, very little; twice I think. Love to read all of your posts. As an aspiring hand tool luthier it's encouraging to see your work and read your words.

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