Wednesday, June 06, 2007

Same old song

I hate when I hit a lull like this. It happens every June just after the frenzy of upfronts. For a week, I am firing on all cylinders, posting three or more times a day, keeping up with the news. It's heady and fun. My web traffic spikes to levels I never see the rest of the year (well, unless some show like 'Smith' gets cancelled, and brings me three thousand people looking to find out why).

And then...nothing. Summer movies, which I generally don't have any energy to blog about. Besides, what else can I say?

And that question then starts to apply to everything. What am I adding? What value does my voice have? Am I just a broken record? Sound and fury signifying nothing? White noise?

I come back to WHY I STARTED. I started an online journal on my old website (still up and running though more a place holder than anything useful) because I just had to vent. Then I felt like I had nothing else to say. So I stopped.

I started this blog nearly three years ago (3 years next month in fact) at first to start venting about random stuff, and then just to warm up for my screenwriting. Then it evolved into TV news, writing links and other randomness.

At some point I took my soul out of the blog. Part of the reason may be that I already feel that there is far more information about me on the web than should really be there. I suppose I feel like keeping some of who I am out of public eye.

Again, I don't know what I'm adding to the conversation. Would you really want to hear about what I do when I'm not writing (day job, watching too much TV, playing Guitar Hero, or finding reasons not to go to the gym). And really, what more is there?

I guess I feel a little like Tony Soprano these days... "is this all there is?"

I need a nap.

5 comments:

Tom Myler (scoodog) said...

Shawna, this posting itself is awesome! I look at someone's blog as being like a painting done by the person. Over time, the blog postings accumulate like brushes of paint on a canvas. What the picture is evolves as the blog evolves. It may about the person's thoughts, the person's interests (e.g. TV!), what the person sees as interesting or humorous in the world, causes the person stands for -- you name it! I have a blog of my own, and friends sometime ask, "Who is your target audience? What is your criteria for posting something?" I hesitate to answer either question. Any answer I may come up with is likely to be NOT the answer in 6 months! And so be it.

I think that blogs are powerful in ways that published autobiographies are not. And vice-versa, of course.

My suggestion is to keep your blog going, and let it be whatever you feel like it being!

Tom Myler (scoodog) said...

One more thing: CBS is doing an about-face and bringing back Jericho!! BIG NEWS in these days of the summer TV doldrums! I look forward to your slant on that.

Tom

Tracy said...

I read other screenwriters' blogs for a few reasons (information, entertainment, procrastination, etc.), but the main reason is for the proof that I am not alone. These blogs are communities that I don't think many realize.

As long as you keep posting, I'll keep lurking - maybe, I'll even post a comment every now and then.

Michael said...

You are part of my daily blog check. I love your commentary, and if you want to let us in more to your personal life, great, if not, that's fine too. Just stay true to who/what you are and keep posting and I will be happy.

Thanks for all the great posts so far!

The Film Diva said...

Shawna, I'm sure you'll be back up and running once you recharge the batteries. I always try to remember the blog is for *me* as much as for the readers -- so there are runs when it's nothing but news about the dog, then others when I actually remember folks read the blog and I share what I know, or ask questions about things I don't know.

You do a great job blogging for your readers, but I think it's okay to blog for yourself, too. Just my 2 cents -- worth what you paid for it, less depreciation. :-)~