Recently I met a blogger friend and we were discussing about the Indian bloggers. She mentioned something that even I was feeling from a long time. It is all about networking and not quality of posts.
I have seen plenty of blogs who ramble about some or the other nonsense and get 100+ comments. Most of the comments will be “what a great post”, “you are so right”, “I liked your post”, “agree with you”, blah blah.
And then these blogs are featured as great blogs by blogging communities. Their interviews are taken and they are shown as the best bloggers there are. There are tons of likes and some 100+ comments on some horrible shaky blurred photo taken using a mobile camera. Some people use DSLR but do not even know how to focus on a bird or a tree. Everything will be out of focus and I see “wow”, “what a photo”, “you are a great photographer” and what not commented on the photo.
Most bloggers used to comment on my blog, only if I commented on theirs. So now I have stopped commenting completely, unless I really like the post. I recently discovered some obscure blogs which have 0 readers but have great content. These days I have been following such blogs and I feel whatever they write, they write after doing some research. I also like blogs by some foreigners which are so much better compared to what Indians blog about.
One thing that makes me not comment is when the person does not reply to my comment. I feel disconnected. Some people are so busy writing posts that they think commenting is boring or whatever.
There was this blogger who visited US for a short time and then blogged about how horrible India is. When I commented saying I do not agree, she gave a rude reply. When I stopped arguing, she wrote a post about how wrong I was. I came to US some 7-8 years back, so I do not think I need to learn what US is like from people like her. Some people think they are so popular and so used to “you are right” comments, that they cannot stand when someone does not like their post. So I politely unsubscribed from her feed. I could have commented again and picked a fight but I did not feel it was necessary to argue with her. Anyway I did not like most of her posts, yet I followed because so many people followed her.
I am now planning to edit my reader list to have more of good quality blogs, instead of these so called “famous” blogs. Because now I know why they are famous. They comment on others’ blogs and hence others comment on theirs. Most of them have made friends here and they keep commenting on each others’ blogs even if they write crap.
But I do like some famous bloggers whom I have been following from a very long time.
What do you think about these apparently famous bloggers? Do you think they are really famous because of the quality of posts?
Bookish Muggle 
Fame is always relative and depends on various criteria. A true talent sometimes goes unidentified..
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That is so true D. There are so many talented people who are not appreciated.
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I have felt this from a long, long time… once upon a time we networked with people whose writing we actually appreciated, do you remember? I still read them, if and when they write but the rest- the appreciation, the fame in most cases (not all) is fake or undeserved. I hunger for new blogs to explorers, news bloggers/authors to read but alas, they are few and far between. Similar case with commenting too… rarely a post comes up that compels me to leave a word.
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I badly miss those days you know 😦 there were so many amazing bloggers, out of which most of them have stopped or minimized blogging. I am always in search of good blogs with some interesting content or a great fiction but fail to find many. I miss your fiction too 😦
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There are a few blogs I visit regularly – to read posts and leave comments; but there are a few blogs I visit regularly – only to read. It is the second type of bloggers who are actually good in their craft. Irrespective of this, I visit the blogs of everyone who comments on mine, to read their latest post and leave a comment to reciprocate their gesture – a token of thanks for spending time on my blog.This is the policy I have right now, but I don’t know if I am right in doing this or not.
I feel that as a blogger, I might lose inspiration if my post goes without comments. So, I don’t think it’s wrong to have a few friends who can read my post and give a honest feedback. I can also do the same for them. I am relatively lucky because I don’t get many ‘Great post’ kind of simplistic comments.
But I restrict such blog-friends to a small number so that my focus is not on the number of comments, but on the quality of posts.
Destination Infinity
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DI, you are one of the very few who leave genuine comments.I have seen your comments on other blogs too.. you read the content and then comment on it. You do not simply praise someone for no reason. Wish there were more people like you.
I visit people who comment on my blog too and comments are definitely a sort of appreciation that every blogger wishes for. But most blogs have fake comments with people simply appreciating the posts, even if the posts themselves are not good. And I don’t feel good about blogging just for the sake of these fake comments. Also I feel the quality of posts is degrading because of these fake comments. People do not realize that what they are writing is junk, because they anyway get appreciation for anything they write.
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Well, some “famous blogs”are pretty amazing. One of my favourite haunts is Forever Amber, because I just end up liking her posts.
And wordpress’ Like feature helps when I don’t want to comment.
But I wonder if this is only an Indian bloggers phenomenon? I’m not sure.
(Now, I feel like I’m rambling here; and that I shouldn’t comment, but oh well. Also, as Destination Infinity said, I reciprocate visiting a person’s page if they’ve commented; and read a few posts.)
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I do agree.. I have been following some really famous bloggers and they are pretty amazing. But yeah cant say the same about Indian bloggers. Most famous Indian bloggers are famous only because of networking and not content.
Hey you can definitely comment here 🙂 It is great to know what others feel you know. And thanks so much for letting me know about your favourite blog. I do not think I have read it before. Let me check that blog 🙂
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Thanks for visiting and leaving a comment AK(short form) :). ON your this post I can hardly comment as I just write for myself don’t get much comments or followers. But I have seen people who have formed quite a nice group and they do follow each others blog. The ones that I read are good 🙂
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Yeah some of the popular bloggers write really well. Even I follow a few whom I really like.
Thanks for visiting my blog 🙂
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I think once you are a little more settled into blogging, you become choosy about your blog friends. You know what works for you and what won’t. You stop following blogs for the sake of it. You stop commenting unless you really want to say something important. It happens gradually over time. I am pretty much in that stage now 🙂 So I can totally relate to it.
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yeah I think we are kind of veterans here since we have been here for quite sometime now 🙂 🙂 Probably like you said this is just a stage that everyone goes through after sometime.
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ha! I agree!!
I always wonder – whats so great abt XYZ blog?
and which blog post are you talking abt? Mail me na?! 😀
And I agree with what Ash has told above.. and having a smaller audience works for me 🙂
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yeah me too! I have often wondered why some blogs are so famous, even though the content isn’t great.
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Absolutely agreed with your ‘commenting frustration’. Sometimes I do small comments on the blogs which somewhat I liked but not so much that I can explain in 7-8 lines. So I think its best just to drop appreciable lines, but not always. I really explain my feelings about the post or the story which the author wrote with very interest and want feedback to know about others expressions. And let me explain you one more thing race of commenting is going not only in India but worldwide. I realize them in some international blogs too that’s why I am saying……..Really It’s bad if author will not reply our comment but its not possible for him always to or reply all of them…… 🙂
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Welcome to my blog.
Yeah if the post is good or atleast not bad, even I like to drop some lines to encourage the blogger. oh is it there in international blogs too? I always thought it was Indians 🙂
That’s true. it may not be possible for the author to always reply to comments. Thanks for visiting my blog Partha 🙂
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It is caleld you scratch my back I will scratch yours!! You know there were days when I don’t want to comment on XYZ blog but I do out of compulsion…but lately I have stopped doing that because I am not here to network but to write….I have been guilty of not replying to comments and am working on it.
This also reminds me of various blog marathons. I participated in UBC last month and by the end of it I was clear that I am not doing it again because it takes away the purpose of blogging.
But all in all each to its own. If you don’t find a blog genuine better stay away from it, hai na?
And u r so right there are such lovely blogs out there and we don’t even read 1/4th of them
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yeah can relate to everything you said about the challenges.. have been there earlier when I used to participate in blogging challenges. UBC must have really drained your energy and blogging everyday and also replying to comments is kind of too much to ask of you.
Yeah now I have decided to only stick to some of my favourite blogs and maybe some good ones when I discover.
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I too sometimes wonder how some people get so many comments but most of them would be one or two word comments. I would like people to read my post and then comment. It is OK if they don’t agree with my opinion. But I like frank, genuine comments. D.I. is one among them!
I always acknowledge comments. When they take time and have patience to read my post, I must definitely acknowledge them.
I used to get upset if I didn’t get few comments within a couple of days of my writing. Now, I feel ‘it is OK, I am writing just for records and for my happiness’!
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same here Sandhya. I like genuine comments too, even if the comment does not agree with what I have written. Even I feel I must acknowledge the person who commented on my blog. It is my way of thanking a person for reading what I wrote. I have also kind of stopped caring for comments now, since even I want to blog for the sake of keeping a record of what is happening in my life.
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We had discussed this over many a times at the IB forum, however the craze for comments fail to die. For some good deed I did, this has at least stopped for me, for now. Comments have to bring in feedback of what you wrote, at best a query and not really “visit my blog too” type comments
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yeah craze of comments never dies I think 🙂 Comments with some feedback are the ones that encourage you to blog more right? rather than the fake ones.
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I guess they have a phrase for it…you scratch my back, i’ll do yours 🙂
The problem with me is most of the people on my reading list have stopped updating their blogs :
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welcome to my blog 🙂
oh same here too.. most people have stopped updating their blogs, so I am always on the lookout for good blogs, which these days have become less in number. But still there are few really good bloggers out there.
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I have once received some feedback too, AK, that my posts are not funny anymore. I didn’t even bother to respond, because I write for myself, I don’t write to impress others. Writing really helps and so does sharing, when its the right people. I have followed the same thing of unsubscribing from posts that I don’t really like. Its not an obligation, right?
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Yeah that’s so true. I think some people blog just for the popularity they think they are getting. And even the comments are fake in such blogs. They are written just to impress the author and to get traffic.
Yeah unsubscribing from posts that we dont like is better.
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i have written the similar type of post so many times, as I like genuineness in everything.nothing fake..I prefer 2 comments but real rather than 100 fakes..But I am guilty of sometimes not replying to the comments or may be late reply, as I keep travelling.
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that is so true Renu.. even I prefer few real comments to 100s of fake ones.
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i agree with you…particularly in the Indian blogsophere. Community forums like Blogadda choose some posts for their top picks which make you question their sanity. I do look for content and like you, “I have stopped commenting completely, unless I really like the post” or have something worthwhile to say. I must admit I’ve been guilty lately of not replying to comments on my own blog. :shame: But I’m hoping to rectify that…life just gets in the way.
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Yeah the recent posts which were selected or the blogs and bloggers who win some contests really makes you question their sanity. I find very less blogs with quality posts these days. Can totally understand about replying to comments.
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Agree with you 100%. I am saying this after reading your post. I visit many blogs and read a lot. I comment if I have something to say. Also, I have problem with some bloggers who go out of the way to use bombastic words and flowery language to show their mastery over English language. I do not comment because I don’t understand those poems and haikus.
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oh yes even I don’t like bloggers who use flowery language or try to show off their English vocabulary unnecessarily. Me too! I can never comprehend these poems with deeper meanings in them. I have tried hard to understand them but can never understand the feelings behind those words.
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What is this quality you talk about? Is that even a word? 😀
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😀 😀
Quality: character with respect to fineness, or grade of excellence
😛 😛
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I read it as “character with respect to firmness, or grade of excellence” and got really confused…
🙄
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lol 😀 😀
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I agree totally. Blogging has become more of a show biz nowadays than actual self-expression. Even I miss those bloggers of days gone by.
As for the “I will comment if you comment” policy… yeah I’ve noticed it too. And I really admire the perseverance of some of the “famous” bloggers. They religiously keep up with so many blogs daily… comment on most of the posts on blogs they follow! It is amazing!
Leaving meaningless comments is just such a waste of everyone’s time, don’t you think? Especially when your comment makes it so obvious that you haven’t even read that post! Big turn off for me personally! For years now, I have made it a practice to comment only when I really feel like adding something to a post.
And yes, regular pruning of the blogroll is such a good idea. I keep doing it every month or two. But you know, I also have a folder called “Extinct” in my feedly… for those blogs that were my favorite once upon a time, but haven’t been updated for a looooooong time now. I still have them saved in my feed reader in the hopes that someday, they might be revived! 😛 😀
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Thanks Kaddu for taking time to comment, even though you were not well.
Yeah leaving meaningless comments wastes time for everyone and I don’t understand why people leave such comments. I usually read every new post but comment only if I have something to say, other than “good post” etc.
I think even I should regularly prune my blogroll every once in a while. I had not pruned it for a long time, but now I feel there is a need to keep pruning them. Me too! I do not remove my favourite bloggers even though they have not updated for more than a year or so.
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Your post is so true. There are many very random posts that get 100+ comments but really there is no discussion at all. It’s just blah.
And my next peeve is all these competitions – a blog post a day, a photo a day…it’s so random. You put up a photo or a meaningless blog post and comment on everyone else’s photo and get comments in turn.
It’s not like this doesn’t happen among non-Indian bloggers but the quality of the posts and the comments are better (I feel).
I do comment on blogs, but only if I really have something to say, or just if I have read 4-5 blog posts, then I feel obligated to comment on a couple and let the writer know I enjoyed the post.
And, about not responding to comments, I am guilty quite a number of times :(. What happens is that I usually queue posts in advance and don’t visit the blog for a couple of days or so, and sometimes older comments get missed. But I do always try to respond back even if it is delayed.
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yeah these blog post a day etc are so random and meaningless I feel. Some people do write quality stuff even if they take part in such competitions, but mostly it is random stuff. And mostly about commenting on each other’s posts. Just a way to get more traffic, but not quality traffic where people actually read what you write.
Even I felt that non-Indian bloggers had some quality, even though it may not be good.
Me too! I comment only if I want to add something to the post. I think it is fine if you are busy and are not able to reply to every single comment.
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Hmm.. You managed to create a race for comments by writing a blog named “race for comments” which is actually critisizing the race for comments. Wierd but nice tactic. :clapsmiley:
Rants aside, You missed some of their negative side effects on those 100+ comments blogs.
1. The topic gets derailed.
2. What you say might be turned into something else.
3. You might get stalkers. And attract trolls.
With the advent of facebook, people are advertising their blogs and I am not surprized by “famous” blogs.
My advice – Join the bandwagon and troll them :devilsmiley:
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lol.. that was not the intention 😀
I think lot of people were frustrated like me and they kind of agreed with what I thought 🙂
Agree with all the points that you stated. I have seen such people getting stalkers and trolls. Thankfully, I never had trolls/stalkers on my blog so far. Being not-so-famous has its own advantages.
These days I see every other person creating a facebook page for their blog and promoting the blog on every possible social media. I really don’t want to do that, because it is good to be anonymous 🙂 I can rant whatever I want here. Better to be anonymous than famous 😉 what do you say?
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You think you are anonymous, but you aren’t. 😀
Remaining anonymous is good. Being famous is bad. Being anonymously famous is worse. Not just ppl who comment, even bloggers seem to degenerate into jerkasses online if they have an audience, when they might only be mildly unpleasant or even polite in-person.
Well, as you said narcissistic bloggers always try to promote their credentials and knowledge/dumbness, but at sometime they got to shrugg it off. Even anonymous bloggers should get their moment of “being famous” once. You got to be famous for sometime to see how it feels. You don’t have to complain abt it. Different thoughts. A shitty product can be famous if marketing is good. You can give a quality product, and get satisfied that few ppl are really enjoying it.
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lol yep one can never remain completely anonymous, but thank goodness, I am not famous either 😀
There are so many bloggers these days. It is easy to kinda get lost in the crowd. I think I want to keep this place just for my rants and to record some memories. Dont really want to become famous since I am not writing for others. I am mostly writing here for myself 🙂
Fame can make even good bloggers turn into jackasses I think 🙂 I don’t want to turn into one for sure.. hehe
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Content speaks for the blog quality. There are so many little known blogs with great content, or content I can relate to. That’s important for me too. I agree!
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That’s true.. even I found many blogs with great content but hardly any readers. It is sad that many blogs which have no good content are more famous. This post came out of our discussion when we met.
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