Not everyone likes the idea of others blogging about them so if you are considering blogging about your family or your friends then it's probably a good idea to get their permission to do so. If you only blog about family or friends then you might be limiting your readership, but then again anything made interesting enough might keep the readers even if they don't know who you're talking about.
I have seen a few sites that blog about specific groups of people and the activities they are involved in doing, but these blogs are often limited mainly to the readership that has some interest in these people. If you know a lot of people who are spread out over a wide area then a friend or family blog is better than a yearly holiday newsletter as you can keep up with the news and add photos or even videos on an ongoing basis and allow for your visitors to comment back.
Most of this sort of thing is done on FaceBook or the like, but a blog is a perfectly viable solution as well and has the advantage of being better place to catalog everything. If you don't want the world to read what you've got to say then you might consider a private blog. I suppose there are a few private people still left in the world.
Fiction is a natural topic for blogging, but it's so prevalent that not much need be said about it here. A good many of you reading now are already fiction bloggers in that you are discussing fiction literature, offering fiction writing tips, or actually presenting works of fiction on your blog.
Would you consider offering a personal newsletter format on a blog directed towards your family or friends? Have you seen blogs with this type of info and are there any that you read? What are some other blog topics beginning with "F"?
Some fiction blogs you might enjoy:
Story Treasury
Hi Lee, I have a writing blog which is where I post my A to Zed posts. Sometimes I mention my family as I write in a casual chatty way. I also have a blog about lifestyle (trying to be green etc...) that is called Living the so-called simple life. I might write more personally there and I definitely do on my blog about our family (of two) and our decision to move to Labrador. Our extended family is spread across Canada and at one point talked about a blog but fuhgedaboudid! Instead we keep in touch on fb and the phone....
ReplyDeleteI write about my family also about meeting you(hope you don't mind)
ReplyDeleteI am not on Facebook any longer so all my writing is done via my blog.
Good subject and interesting point of view,
Yvonne.
I've never seen a blog that is specifically about a family. Of course I've seen blogs that offer child-rearing advice and use their own family for citing examples or a blog about a particular kind of lifestyle but to see a blog that operates like a Facebook catalog I haven't yet run across. Interesting thought.
ReplyDeleteMichele at Angels Bark
Getting permission is only fair. I don't write specifically about my family because you do not know who you are sharing your blog with. I've read some mommy blogs who I thought gave too much specific information about their children.
ReplyDeleteSocial media is evolving. We have folks that have been publicly shamed for comments. People are beginning to realize their self-righteous indignation may be unfair. Most importantly, if you get mad at someone and you post it online. You may patch it up but your comments are there to denigrate your friend or relative and ultimately you as a person.
You know my answer to that! I'm still one of those private people.
ReplyDeleteI follow bloggers who touch on those topics often, but no one with a blog dedicated just to family and friends.
I've seen some of these friend and family blogs that I might visit a few times, but I don't regularly follow any as I'm not interested in what all they've been doing.
DeleteLee
I am drawn to humorous blogs on friends and family. I have separate blogs for poems, travel and personal stuffs.
ReplyDeleteWhen I do mention any of them it's usually only by reference or perhaps first name. When I have used full names it has been to their marketing advantage or with their permission.
ReplyDeleteLee
I never share anything that I don't want people to know, I even have two facebook pages, for both Jekyll and Hyde. I don't see many family directed only sites, though I guess if I did I would be part of that family...
ReplyDeleteI usually only blog about my gaming group. I tend to keep it all positive and keep from IDing anyone outright.
ReplyDeleteOther bloggers though? They are fair game! ;)
--
Tim Brannan, The Other Side Blog
2015 A to Z of Vampires
http://theotherside.timsbrannan.com/
I don't think most people mind positive mentions too much especially if it can help them in some marketing or PR way.
DeleteLee
I write personal stuff but usually leave out family. Hubs is often a humorous target but before I hit send I let him read it.
ReplyDeleteI add personal stuff now and then. It would be interesting to go back 9 years and see what I said.
ReplyDeleteI'm sure there's nothing there that you will regret having said.
DeleteLee
Our family is so large and far flung, we could actually do that. Maybe next time we get together, I will suggest it to them all.
ReplyDeleteActually a portion of my family has a public website and they invite interested people to join. It's about Stonewall Jackson and those who are related to him like I am or just fans and history buffs.
DeleteIf you have a lot of family who like to be on the internet I think it's a wonderful way to stay connected. Easy than letters and email and less public than Facebook.
Lee
Catching up with your A to Z posts, Lee. F is for films and football -I'd fail in any fact-finding quiz for those. Flowers would suit me better. Forests and fun-fairs.
ReplyDeleteSue’s Trifles
Some film trivia I might do okay with, but football would be a big dud for me since I know virtually nothing about the sport.
DeleteLee
My blog started as a diary with everyone in the family plus friends, and everyone else including those at work in it. But by changing the names, the locations, making sure the dog could talk Latin and adding Zombies and Aliens as well as turning ordinary events into slightly more interesting events few folk would even realize much of the first three years of the blog is almost entirely true. Only a few friends noticed and were always amused that they were eaten by Zombies or were part of an Alien invasion from time to time.
ReplyDeleteRob Z Tobor
That could work.
DeleteLee
Several bloggers of my acquaintance do feature their families, often in a humorous manner. My husband is mentioned on my blog too, especially around anniversary time. He doesn't mind, but has zero interest in anything computer-related. If I mention anyone else, it's generally anonymous and I wouldn't post photos of people without their permission. A personal newsletter for friends and family isn't something I'd consider, since most of them are like hubby and wouldn't read it, anyway. ☺ My favourite "F" word would be subject to censorship (which I despise), so I'm not posting that. LOL
ReplyDeleteSame here, Debbie. My family members and close friends rarely read any of my blogs now so I have no reason to believe that they'd read a blog newsletter if I did one. I could probably post something about somebody close to me with their full name, address, and phone number included and they'd probably never notice unless people actually started contacting them and telling them about my blog post.
DeleteLee
Hahaha! Yes, I know the feeling. :P
DeleteBy now Facebook has made everyone's lives so public it's hard to imagine anyone caring if you post their photo on your blog, but I'm pretty careful about it just the same. And since I"m so self-absorbed anyway I post more about myself than anyone else.
ReplyDeleteFacebook has turned privacy into a joke.
DeleteLee
I've encountered a number of blogs which focus on the blogger's family. They can be kind of boring unless the topics covered have appeal outside the family. Although I really dislike it when I've been enjoying a personal blog like that, and suddenly I get the message that it's only open to invited readers.
ReplyDeleteBefore facebook, I blogged b/c it was easier than sending out emails to friends/family with what was going on in my life so they could just read it there. I have pulled back a lot on how much I share, now that I'm living back here. Russell told me, years ago, that my putting so much out there would bite me in the ass someday and it did when his very jilted and angry ex came after us after finding and reading my blog, when I did a post about how he & I got together and that I was leaving my old life in WA to start a new life back east with him. She nearly broke us up. I had to take my blog private till I got back to the east coast.
ReplyDeleteI have seen some blogs relating to family and I did get some things from it. In Grammy's News, her grandchildren are quite gifts. One was a hopeful for the Olympics until an injury happened and her grand daughter has the voice of an angel. Of course I think of Film being another thing to blog about. French-anything or France. Finger foods. Just a couple off the top of my head
ReplyDeleteBefore the blogging world I used to mail out a newsletter a few times a year to family and friends. It was filled with all the normal family and friend kind of stuff. Then I started blogging (mostly my recipes) and most of my family and friends just stopped following or commenting or both. So I started a new blog (kept the recipe blog, but added another "just for fun blog" to see if I could get some of my family and friend follower's back. I actually started including things about them in some of the blogs. I find that people love to read things about themselves as long as it's in a good light. Say one thing off-color and hold on. This helped get some people back but it didn't last long. I wrote about them mostly because I wanted to see how many of my 'so-called' supporters actually read the shit I write. I don't get called out on the table very often, so I've decided to write whatever the heck I feel like writing and if someone's feelings get hurt, or they think I should have kept quiet about that, well, such is life. Sounds mean, but in a writer's life, everything is a story about something and you can always fall back on FABRICATION being the name of the game! ;)
ReplyDeleteTo be a writer you are probably going about this the correct way. The thing about those newsletters you can spend a lot of time compiling them and money sending them out and you often don't know if they got read, discarded or what. At least on a blog you have the comments and stats to give you an idea of how effective your communication is.
DeleteKeep on bloggin'!
Lee
If people don't want to be written about (in whatever format), they shouldn't hang out with a writer.
ReplyDeleteWriting can be a lonely profession.
DeleteLee
I talk about my kids online a little bit, but I'm careful about not using their full names.
ReplyDeleteI've seen bloggers mention their families before, but I don't think I know any that specifically focus on that topic.
ReplyDeleteA few have participated in A to Z in the past. There are some this year that I've seen so far.
DeleteLee
Usually if I have family things to blog about, it's pictures to share and I don't show a lot of family members. There are pictures of my nephew I will never blog because they are pre-surgery and don't need to be online.
ReplyDelete~Patricia Lynne aka Patricia Josephine~
Member of C. Lee's Muffin Commando Squad
Story Dam
Patricia Lynne, Indie Author
hehe " a few private people left", I really agree with the fact that there is toooo much personal information floating around out there. But yes, there are still a few of us "private" people left.
ReplyDeleteVisiting A to Z
Dale Morris
www.chicaincuenca.blogspot.com
Glad you at least caught that little side remark.
DeleteLee
Very few of my friends and family read my blog anyway. Never really understood why. Especially the ones who spend a fair amount of time on the computer.
ReplyDeleteA few of mine started out reading it but then drifted away. Then there have been those who've surprised me by mentioning about something I wrote and I had no idea that they read my blog. If I do have friends or family reading then they are quietly lurking and never commenting.
DeleteLee
I do blog about family at times but don't use their first names and change the situations around just a bit for privacy. I know specifically of some people who just blog to keep in touch with their families but then have found over the years families are not reading the blogs, but by then they have enjoyed blogging so much, they just keep on doing it.
ReplyDeletebetty
Sometimes I blog about family and friends, but then it's usually childhood stories of all the things we got into as kids. I did that on my blog last year for the A to Z. This year I'm mixing it up. I usually use FB to correspond with family.
ReplyDeleteThere are many letters I can think of for the F in the challenge, such as fruit and flowers where there are lots of choices.
Sunni
http://sunni-survivinglife.blogspot.com/
Thanks for the link!
ReplyDeleteAnd I have to say, I am not sure I would enjoy other people blogging. I mean, if I didn't know. Depending on the topic. Maybe. Hmm.
Yes, it always depends on the topic. I've tried to get family and friends to blog. A few have for a while then they don't stick with it. A real blogger has to have a passion for the blog.
DeleteLee
I've never encountered a family-oriented blog like that! Of course, if you fictionalize the characters it could make for some interesting blog posts, and VERY interesting family gatherings!
ReplyDeleteMee
Thanks Lee, I wouldn't dream of writing about family and friends on a public forum. In my own writing I may mention a brother or sister but not by name or circumstance. Both my adult sons have FB profiles (is that the right word) and I enjoy seeing what they're up to, down south. I sometimes share one or two of their posts.
ReplyDeleteSometimes I blog about my family as part of reporting in weekly for A Round of Words in 80 Days, but FB is my primary connection for personal stuff. I've seen a few blogs (cooking blogs?) which highlight family events, but never have read any consistently. Some blogs do serve as platforms for grieving or living with a child with special needs, and I do believe these serve a larger community as well. Interesting post and comments!
ReplyDeleteI blog a lot about my mom, and she likes getting star treatment. I have to be more careful when I tell stories about my sons, or other family members, though they're usually good sports. Some of my friends have even asked me to write stories about their experiences.
ReplyDeleteThanks for hosting another fabulous A to Z, Lee!
Julie
This is great advice. We don't realize how small the internet can really be. It's one of the reasons I'm posting under a different name.
ReplyDeleteYou can find me here:
ClarabelleRant
I would never blog about someone unless I had only good things to say, and I wouldn't even then put their full name or any 'identification' details. But I suppose even only having nice things to say about people, they may not be comfortable with you putting that out there in the public eye.
ReplyDeleteHi there - Sometimes I'll mention my family for one reason or another on my blog, but I don't mention their names -- only their relationship to me, i.e., my daughter, my granddaugher, etc. They are both big readers and my blog is about books. :)
ReplyDeleteI'm careful about what I write about family and friends. My husband is usually fair game, but I don't say much about the rest of my family. I want to be considerate of others' rights to privacy.
ReplyDeleteI'll mention my friends and family once in a while, if it comes up. But no, I can't imagine a whole blog dedicated to the topic. Nor can I imagine an audience that is dying to read about it, even if I have "diversity in the bag" on my side.
ReplyDeleteOne of the first blogger friends I met started Friday Fragments. It is a list of what happened during your week that was important but not important enough to warrant an entire post. I take April off because of the A-Z but I still enjoy participating!
ReplyDeleteThere is a vast number of Family History blogs out there, with www.geneabloggers.com a vital network site that provides daily prompts, friendship and support.
ReplyDeleteFrom: Scotsue of Family History Fun at http://scotsue-familyhistoryfun.blogspot.co.uk.