The mommy blogging session of the BlogSavannah UnConference was very interesting. While all the women in the room shared two things in common – we have kids, and we write about parenting – there were also a lot of differences in our styles, motivations, and experiences with blogging.
One of the distinctions that stuck out to me the most was about allowing comments on blogs. I’m pretty sure I was the only one in the room whose blog does not allow them, and some of the other bloggers felt comments were really the heart and soul of their blogs.
When I first began blogging, I was still working as a reporter and every bit of my professional writing was subject to editing, critique and comment. I wanted my blog to be a place where I would write for myself and not invite feedback for once. And I’ve enjoyed that. I’m afraid I might further edit my own writing if I know people can comment (and criticize) at will. And if my friends and family members really want to comment on something I’ve written, they call me or email me.
But there have been a few times when I wanted the input of a wider audience of moms and dads out there. Like a few days ago, when our pediatrician said Camille really needed to get a little more sleep, and I was hunting for advice about helping her sleep later in the morning. If my site had comments, I could’ve posed the question to see if anyone responded.
So, I may choose a compromise. I don’t think I want to allow comments on every post. I don’t necessarily want people to weigh in on my monthly Letters to Camille, etc. But it would be nice to get some feedback from other parents from time to time. I’ll talk to my favorite, most handsome and loving web designer and see if we can make the change…