What is it with online journals?

December 12, 2001 D. H. McKee

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So what is it with online journals anyway?

Why do so many people out there have online journals or "blogs"? Do they think that everyone cares what they’re thinking or feeling? Do they think that they are somehow influencing or directing culture by their reviews, opinions or rants?

Why do they say things that they would never tell their closest friends? What is that all about? Personal thoughts, stuff that would never be told in close quarters is now broadcast to millions of
people like a radio interview.

OK sure. Handle, this is Pot here. Dude, you’re black.
All I know is it’s a strange phenomena, and it’s getting really popular. Not sure what else to say. Can’t tell you why other people do it, but I can observe others (and myself) and talk about what I do see…. It’s another way to communicate, like art or music, or poetry. We’ve got another medium in which to release our thoughts or feelings. Journals, like fiction, can be spontaneous, introspective, or even completely overdone — so far removed from truth as to make it fantastic.
No doubt that, in some cases, online journals are there to give the person more life than they have — an attempt to make them more popular; make them larger than life. That’s my goal, at least.
This came out of a discussion with a friend tonight — about how everyone and their cat has a "blog". Luckily my cats don’t speak any English, so they can’t put anything on paper. Lucky for me. These guys have seen some pretty weird stuff.

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About This Site

As a guy who occasionally curates art shows and wrangles artists together, I often have to edit and post artist bios, profile pictures, and artwork images. This can be a problem, since many artists and writers aren’t used to selling themselves. Artists rarely know how to present their art for display in a brochure, and writers aren’t used to writing about themselves.

Writers often treat the bio like it’s an interview or something. Maybe like they’re having a conversation with you, the reader. While it may work sometimes, the most common way to write a bio is to write in the 3rd person.

I’m like those writers, and I’m talking to you directly, unlike the common way to do a bio. You should see my About page. It makes sense to me, since this is a bit which describes my blog’s website. When I get famous enough that I don’t have time to talk to you, I’ll have an intern write everything in 3rd person. Until then, you get to talk to me.

Like blogs of old, this one is a personal document of the comings and goings of me. Articles I’ve written, links I’ve posted, videos I liked, etc. Here, a first-person perspective is the way to go, at least for now. So, this is my site. I’m D. H. McKee, a sometimes artist, sometimes writer. Mostly just a guy on the internet.