A few weeks ago I mentioned I’m gonna dust off my blogging keyboard around here and start hitting publish on my own words again. But you know what else I’ve been doing more of lately?
Reading blogs. Remember doing that? Yeah… I’ve been doing more blog reading and less social media scrolling. And it’s been genuinely fun.
Something about the rhetoric and divisiveness of conversations via social media has pulled me back from the rabbit hole suckage of places like Facebook, Twitter, and even Instagram, and has drawn me closer to the old-fashioned art of reading longer form essays. It’s been a balm to my mind.
(Not to rabbit trail, but if you’re curious, I still subscribe to blogs like it’s 2009, using the free version of Feedly. It works like a charm.)
Because yes, even though people don’t blog as much as they used to, there are blogs out there that still publish regularly. I’m gonna be an outlier and say: not only do I not think blogging is a dying art, I think it’s actually making a comeback. Slowly and quietly, I see more people out on the internet picking back up the practice.
I think we long for more connection, slower (but deeper) thinking, and more soulful art. Social media is too rapid-fire, too limiting for this (Instagram excepting for the art bit). Reading a blog feels like visiting in someone’s living room over coffee or dinner. Scrolling a social media feed feels like walking through a crowded open-air marketplace with vendors shouting their wares.
Both have their place. But at some point, it’s good for us to slow down and sit awhile while we listen to each other. It feels like blog-reading is the digital equivalent of that these days, in an ever-noisier internet. (That, and books, of course. Always books.)
I’d love to know… Are you still into reading blogs?
And in particular — are you still into reading this blog?
As we make AoS more reader-focused over the coming months, we’d like to learn about you. It’s been ages since we’ve done a reader (and listener) survey — and we want to hear who you are, why you come here, what would make this space even better for you.
I plan to write more here again, yes, as well as make space for other writers, and as well as continue to publish the podcast. And in all this, I want to prioritize cultivating a community spirit, a likeminded place where we can interact about the things that matter to us.
(Sure, that’ll happen over on social media. But let’s make that happen here, too, where we don’t have to depend on ever-changing algorithms and powerful owners who see their users as data instead of customers.)
It would mean so much to us if you’d take some time to tell us your thoughts about AoS. It’s anonymous, it’s short, and it’s genuinely helpful for us.
We’ll take answers from you throughout October, and take to heart what you tell us. And we may even share some of our findings soon after, if you’re curious!
And up front: thank you. Thank you for continuing to read here over the years, or thank you for sticking around if you’re new. We couldn’t do what we do without you!
Kindly take the survey, but before you do, leave a quick comment below telling me two things: 1. Do you still read blogs? And if so, 2. What’s a current favorite?
