Myth of “Blogging is a Marathon, Not a Sprint”
You’ve probably heard about a quote that says, “Blogging is a marathon, not a sprint”. I understand this as saying that it takes time to grow a blog, which is quite true.
Differences Between Marathon and Blogging
That said, marathon and blogging are fundamentally different. In the real marathon, you either reach the finish line or forfeit along the way. In blogging, while there are many bloggers quitting for various reasons, there is no finish line for those still continuing. 😅
Another difference between marathon and blogging is while in the real marathon, as long as you’re running, you’re moving forward, but in blogging, even if you’re running, you might not be moving at all. 😂
I started this website, LASTLIGHTS.NET, about a decade ago, but page views today aren’t very different from back in 2014, so in a way I’m running in the same place and not moving forward for all these years. 😅
Blogging Really Is a Race Without a Goal
One thing I don’t like about blogging is the short lifespan of a blog post, just like a news article. People read once, then never read again, and expect new post to be out. Good songs are listened to over and over again for decades, and so are good books and movies. Then, why not blog posts?
It kind of saddens me to think that even today’s most popular blogs will be deserted pretty quick if they stop posting new contents. In order to retain the popularity, they aren’t allowed to slow down, let alone stop. Blogging really is a race without a goal… Personally, I don’t even like the word “Blog” and never call my posts as “Blog”. I always call them “Posts”. 😅
Blogging is like a marathon, but not quite…
Passion Is Something You Carry on Doing Even If You Don’t Get Any Recognition
People start blogging, expecting to grow their readership, unless one is doing purely for self-satisfaction. I used to be a bit more ambitious and wanted my website to be a go-to resource for blue hour photography, but I’ve course-corrected in recent years after realising how hard to get to such prominence. 😅
So, nowadays I’m seeing this blue hour photography website as a passion project. Passion is something you carry on doing even if you don’t get any recognition. So, as long as I’m shooting blue hour photography, I’ll continue running this website, as photography and website always go hand-in-hand for me being a photography enthusiast and a casual web-developer at the same time. 😀
NEVER MISS A POST
About the Author: LASTLIGHTS.NET is a passion project of Joey J, a Singapore-based Japanese photographer primarily shooting cityscape photography with long exposure at blue hour. Visit his Home Gallery (30 most favourite photos taken) or download his free eBook, Getting Started with Long Exposure Photography.
11 Comments
Good points, Joey. We have a passion for travel and the US national parks, and we enjoy sharing with our readers. We’re not looking to make money from our posts, but it would be nice. It’s always nice to make money, right? Anyway, for some of our readers who can no longer travel, we feel that we’re letting them travel through our words and lenses.
Thank you for your comment. That’s a good purpose! I’m not expecting any money, but if I could cover the hosting fee, I’d be very happy. 😅
I agree about writing your posts because it’s your passion rather doing it for fame. I always tell myself I am posting to share with friends and family and for the tiny group of followers. You are making a difference to that group of people with your posts.
Yes, indeed! If doing for fame, I’d have given up a long time ago. 😂
I had similar thoughts when I started and now I just post whenever I feel like, no pressure of increasing the reach or readership and it’s not only liberating but also exhilarating! Thank you for sharing your thoughts and keep going!
Thank you, Deepak, for sharing! I guess this is a common topic for bloggers. To me, as long as I’m shooting photos, they’ll be shared here for sure. 😀
Joey, you’re doing great, all of us do.
But it’s just that we don’t always feel like writing, and I hate to think about this activity as a marathon.
For me, it is a great opportunity to write, to share views, to meet new great people, to evolve.
Thanks for sharing and have a great rest of your week ☺️🌱
Thank you for reading! 😊 Normally I just share a photo with a bit of writing, so it’s not very hard to continue. The harder part is taking good enough photos to share. 😅
Of course! I agree, that’s challenging. I know people who would take multiple foggy pictures in hopes that at least one could be great ♥️.
Excellent observations Joey. I started my blog because I like the long form compared to Facebook posts to share my new life experiences and photography with my city friends. It was also for university because we were required to write reflective posts. It wasn’t about the money, but it was always in the back of my mind it would be nice. Having a blog is like keeping an online journal and I enjoy looking back. I also love reading and enjoying the work of other bloggers – never knowing what I might find on a given day. Thank you for sharing your expertise with the rest of us. Lynn
Thank you, Lynn, for reading! Yes, looking back old posts is one of the fun things, for sure. 😀