The original objective was a daily post achieved by each of the 31 authors committing to post on a particular day of the month. In 2015 most authors followed a bi-monthly posting schedule, with a few sticking with the original monthly schedule. This change allowed 41 authors to contribute from the UK, USA, Canada, The Netherlands, Germany and Australia. 216 posts were published in 2014, but the number of posts dropped to 159 in 2015. I wonder if the less frequent schedule is harder to keep to.
Collaboration has certainly helped Worldwide Genealogy build an audience, but now is not the time to be complacent. Reasons commonly given for bloggers giving up include lack of:
- commitment - making time
- patience - not expecting instant results like a large audience or profit
- persistence - most bloggers give up too soon
- writing skills - requires practice
- passion for the blog topic - motivation
Passion for genealogy certainly is not lacking for this blog's authors. Posts cover a variety of genealogy-related topics. The most popular posts include discussions of technology, tools, resources, research methods and telling of family tales:
Digital preservation, or why I worry about Evernote
Using Time Lines as a Family History Writing Tool
My three Rs of Genealogy
Criteria for Assessing the Quality of Genealogy Websites and Online Data
Use FreeBMD postems to find new relatives
A Transcription Toolbox
Why the Genealogy Do-Over is not for me
Al Capone’s bullet proof car and my great-uncle
Saying Goodbye Too Soon
For anyone who would like to join in, the resource links in Want To Be A Geneablogger? are a good starting point.
Get Blogging!
Thanks for highlighting the issues Sue. While 2016 was a demanding year for me at a home level - interstate shift, retirement, Internet challenges, etc - it wasn't the only reason I failed to deliver. I actually found trying to do it bi-monthly more confusing than monthly.
ReplyDeleteI chose to go to the bi-monthly contribution for two reasons: 1) to give others an opportunity to participate and 2) I write mostly family stories; I was a relative genealogy beginner when I asked to join this group of bloggers and had very little of interest to convey to other genealogists.
ReplyDeleteDuring 2014 I would post my monthly blog here and then write a "teaser" post on my blog with links to this website. In 2015, I was worried I might forget to post so when the year started I simply created posts on my blog with the title "DRAFT -- PLACE HOLDER POST FOR WW GENEALOGY and scheduled it for my day. I had no idea then what I would write about; I just knew I had committed to write something on that date.
Those prompts worked great. As I would see them, I knew I needed to get busy.
I enjoyed my second year of contributions. I felt like I was finally able, albeit occasionally, to convey things I had learned from my genealogy journey!