I discovered this warning to writers about the perils of blogging to their craft and productivity and thought it worth sharing. Although “Vampires of the Internet” is a rather dramatic title, I think the author has some good points and the piece applies as much to nonfiction writing as fiction writing. Perhaps more, when one takes into account the research time necessary for historical writing.
Fortunately, I’m nowhere near the level of ‘writer’ as yet (though striving to leave the realm of ‘hack’), so this blog will go on.
Regular Cavalry in the Civil War 
Sure, the writer has a point. But only if you don’t consider blogging “writing”; only if you think of it as a distraction from the “real, IMPORTANT” work of getting print on bound paper; only if you think of it as somehow subservient to print media.Like it or not, Don, you’re a writer. A published writer. Just like every other blogger. It’s nothing to be ashamed of, unless you suck at it. And you don’t.
Harry,Thanks. I may not have explained it very well. The author’s use of “writer” was indicating those who make a living at writing, I think. I started to say professional writers, but if one writes and gets paid for it then I think that makes them a professional writer. Not necessarily a good one, mind you.I don’t think it was intended to be condescending toward blog writing. It was after all, posted on the author’s blog. Maybe my tongue wasn’t firmly enough in cheek, I found it humorous. But I could also see the ‘threat’ it would pose some of our fellow bloggers who write books as well as post prolifically.Hopefully the blog’s getting better. Writing, as you well know, is practice, practice, practice. Now if I can just change this Philip StG Cooke entry from something that looks like an encyclopedia entry into a story….
Yikes, didn’t mean to leave out the magazine article writers and book reviewers out there! At this rate, I’ll never break in.
Good post.