Three Years in the Blogosphere: Learning, Sharing, and Connecting

Three years ago, I embarked on an interesting journey after retiring from the military. I needed a way to keep my mind engaged after 26-plus years of doing just that on a daily basis. Blogging gave me that outlet. I have stayed very consistent with my blog’s purpose of offering my thoughts about leadership, history, and other subjects that interest me, such as politics, religion, and current events. I have expanded my horizons by reading and writing about poetry and philosophy, both of which were new to me.

The blogosphere is the best way to engage in meaningful discussions with a global audience. There is nothing quite like it, in my opinion. Social media can reach huge audiences, but I really doubt that there is much meaningful exchange of ideas and dialogue happening within those cycles.

So, as I reached my third year in the blogosphere, I find myself excited, happy, and energized, looking forward to more reading, writing, and engaging with my WordPress community, which continues to grow.

As the community grows, I have had to make some changes to the way I engage with it. I found that posting once a week creates the perfect balance between writing and engaging. I want to read, write, and share my thoughts about topics of interest that align with my purpose, but most importantly, I want to spend time reading what my WP community is publishing and engaging with them.

It is not an easy task, for sure, since my goal from the beginning has been to read the latest post from everyone I follow on a weekly basis, but that is now turning into almost a week and a half as my community continues to grow and I discover so many talented writers along the way.

I wish WordPress would change the way bloggers interact with each other by expanding beyond the typical “like” reaction to include icons such as “Insightful,” “Funny,” “Love,” etc. Of course, the comment section provides a great way to let the blogger know how impactful a post was or to provide input. But sometimes, when a blogger is going through a difficult time and you can’t find the right words to write, like it happens to me all the time, a reaction icon such as a “broken heart” or “support/solidarity” instead of a “like” would go a long way.

As I did last year, I found myself riding an Amtrak train to attend the Printers Row Lit Fest in Chicago and celebrating my third blogiversary among books. I also had the wonderful opportunity to talk with an amazing writer, person, and fellow blogger, Vicki Atkinson, author of Surviving Sue and Slivers. I also had the pleasure of meeting her husband, Paul, and other authors at the Chicago Writers Association table, including Rick Kaempfer from Eckhartz Press.

with my friend Vicki

As always, the Printers Row Lit Fest did not disappoint. Besides buying more books—like I needed more, but I couldn’t resist the pull. After all, it was a book fair, so you have to buy books—I also attended two talks.

I think I bought fewer books than last year. 😂

Those talks were very illuminating. Dr. Jeffrey Winters, a professor at Northwestern University, spoke on the subject of oligarchs, while Dr. Andrew Curran, a professor at Wesleyan University, talked about the history of race. It was interesting to learn that the use of the word “race” to identify human physical characteristics began in the 17th and 18th centuries as European colonization and the transatlantic slave trade expanded.

I’m really looking forward to reading The Blind Spot: How Oligarchs Dominate Our Democracy by Jeffrey Winters and Biography of a Dangerous Idea: A New History of Race from Louis XIV to Thomas Jefferson by Andrew Curran. 

Before I end this post, I want to thank all my WordPress friends for spending time with me and engaging in such good dialogue over this last year. Like I told Mike, a fellow blogger, the other day, my intent here is not to write extremely long posts like those you find on Substack. I just want to share what I’m learning along the way and hopefully start a good conversation.

I really appreciate all of you—your views, “likes,” and comments—and my hope for the next year is to continue to be faithful to my purpose of learning, sharing, and having meaningful dialogue.

46 thoughts on “Three Years in the Blogosphere: Learning, Sharing, and Connecting”

  1. Like, yes I like your blog. What I really appreciate is the way you seek and share knowledge, insight and wisdom, and how you use the comments section for correspondence.
    Thank you.
    DD

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  2. Are you sure it’s only been 3 years, Edward? For many of us, you ‘feel’ like a friend we’ve known for a long time, a cornerstone and connector in the blogosphere. I’m glad to hear you plan to continue blogging.
    I agree with your ‘like’ button expansion, there should be more options when we’re not sure what to say, or don’t have time to leave a comment that truly says what we mean.
    I respect and value your blog, it’s informative, educational, and engaging. You address difficult topics with kindness and a broad, knowledge-based perspective, drawing on personal experiences and research through reading books and articles. I’d love to see more blogs like yours – independent, thoughtful, open, honest, sincere, seeking solutions to the bigger problems in the world… It’s nice to read something from someone who shares genuine thoughts and is not trying to sell us something.

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    1. I really appreciate that, Rose. I know, it feels like I’ve been here for a long time, but I’m a three-year-old blogger. I’m still a baby. 😀 That’s true; sometimes we don’t have time, and all we can do is read, click, and go. I look forward to more discussions and to your posts, which always make me think. Your conversation with Copilot series was excellent.

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  5. I just finished Surviving Sue! It’s a sad but important story about recognizing mental illness and living with a (sometimes crazy) maternal figure. Parts of it reminded me of my own mother but she was no where near as unstable as Sue. I feel for her daughters.

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    1. I had the same reaction when I read it. I told Vicki that it would be extremely helpful to know not only how she survived but also how she was able to thrive and change the family tree. There’s a long story after Surviving Sue that I’m eager to read. Thank you, Kim.

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  6. It was SO good to see you in person, Edward! Thank you so much for your blogging efforts — enlightening and educating your followers here. Truly inspiring. AND — I’m so excited about what’s to come based on the great books you discovered at Lit Fest. Appreciate you, my friend! 💝😊💝

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    1. You’re so welcome, my friend. It was so good to see you and spend a little time talking with you on Saturday. We definitely need to get together with Mary, maybe for lunch or something. What I really wanted to say was “for coffee,” but if I’m driving to Chicago, it has to involve a full meal. 😂

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  7. Congratulations on three years Edward, and more importantly having a clear vision for your blog and how you want to engage. I like your more meaningful “like” buttons, and meeting fellow bloggers would be fun, but I haven’t done it.

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    1. Thank you, Brad. Yeah, I hope WP comes up with better reaction icons. The “Like” button is okay, but there are times when a “Like” is inappropriate. Meeting bloggers in person is fun. Hopefully, you’ll have a chance to do so one of these days.

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  8. Congrats on a successful blog and Happy WP Anniversary Edward! So happy to know you here and call you my friend (actually it’s usually you calling me “my friend” lol) but I love it and appreciate it!

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  9. I look forward to your always thoughtful and sometimes candid posts, Edward. You obviously carry a great deal of insight, knowledge, and wisdom into what you read and experience. I appreciate you as a person and a gifted blogger and congrats on your 3rd blogversary!

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    1. Thank you very much, Terry. I really appreciate your comments, and I truly enjoy your stories. I’ve mentioned your snowbirding experience to my wife on a few occasions. I’m learning from you, and we’ll probably do the same in a few years, once she retires.

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  10. I’m impressed with how many comments you have on each post. You must be writing about exactly what people are craving. I enjoy your blog because you’re so thoughtful. A lot of book bloggers out there are pretty shallow, writing about what they liked or didn’t like and that’s it, ignoring the larger conversation and the context in which a book sits. I also have feelings about the like button. I started my blog in 2013, and it was just a couple of years in when I decided to disable the like button. I found that I kept getting likes from people who had zero engagement with my blog, and I started to get the feeling that they were just clicking likes that I would also follow them. That’s not the kind of blogging relationship that I’m looking for, so I’m especially grateful for all the interactions that you and I have had. I know I’m new around here, but I appreciate you.

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    1. Thank you so much. When I write a book review or commentary, I do my best to think about what might interest others, with the hope of starting a conversation. I try to treat it as if I were having a conversation on the street, in a restaurant, or in some other public space. I’m an introvert, and I hate small talk, so blogging gives me the ability to express myself freely.

      I have a love-hate relationship with the “Like” button. I think I’ve mentioned on a couple of occasions that I decided to use “Like” as a way to tell bloggers that I’ve read their posts. Sometimes I read a post but don’t really have anything to say, so at least “Like” gives me a chance to let the person know that I was there. I really appreciate our interactions, and I hope to have many more with you in the future.

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      1. I got the same feedback; that people wanted to click the like button to show me that they had read the post but didn’t have anything to add. The issue is, though, they’re an awful lot of bots out there doing the same thing. There’s one blog, and I can’t remember the name, but literally within 30 seconds of me publishing a post, it likes it. They must have some kind of automatic thing set up.

        I love that idea of thinking about your blog post like having a conversation. Maybe I’ll consider that for some of my future book reviews. Every once in a while I feel like I start to sound a bit stiff and I reel it back.

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        1. I also get those likes five seconds after I publish something, but I don’t pay much attention to them. Surprisingly, I’ve noticed that a handful of those people actually come back and comment later. So I’m thinking that maybe they get alerts when people post. There is one individual who not only likes my comments but also the comments of everyone else who comments on my posts. I swear, one day I opened Jetpack and saw 100 alerts, all likes on comments from the same person. Insane!

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  11. Thank you for this uplifting post, Edward! It was a bright spot in my day. I, too, much prefer WordPress to share my writing and engage with others. It fosters friendships and community in a way that social media, including Substack, just doesn’t. In addition, the blogging community has expanded my reading horizons and given me ideas and inspiration for my fiction and poetry (not prompts, just conversation.) It’s hard to believe that I’ve been blogging on WordPress for ten years now!

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    1. Thank you, Liz, for connecting with me and for all your great recommendations. It’s incredible how quickly time flies. Ten years of blogging is amazing. You make a great point about getting ideas and inspiration from other bloggers. I completely agree with you.

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  12. Your blog is truly one of my favorites, Edward. You consistently offer solid, insightful content. I need to meet you and Vicki! I wasn’t able to get to Printers Row this year, but we Chicago area bloggers must connect in person one of these days.

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  14. I like the way you think about blogging Ed. I think that WordPress has done a good job philosophically of allowing each blogger’s own charter to be set and allowing the blogosphere to group itself accordingly. it does strike a very delicate balance doing this but I can see that the tension is constructive and I wouldn’t mind if WordPress continues on this way. keep up the great work Ed, it’s great to see your journey as it unfolds. Mike

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      1. When I stop breathing lung searing gasses every time I sing, I’ll be back with melody. When I stop hearing ugly little teansceivercsqueaks making fun of my most intimate moments night and day, I’ll be back with poetry and prose. Until then, I look forward to reading your thoughtful and well expressed observations 🙏

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