“Kids Don’t Try This At Home!” Do All “Good Writers” Make “Good Bloggers”?

Truth be told, there’s a bit of an exhibitionist in every writer.
(Wouldn’t you agree?)

No matter how private or reclusive we may be in our own personal lives,
I believe we go “public” because it’s inherent in our “wiring” to want to change the world, inspire, and “win friends and influence people.”
And for us it’s through our creative ability.

As such, many of us set our sites on becoming bloggers as a way to expand our platforms, our influence base, and our bottom lines.
We in fact are told through an array of sources that we must!
Blogging has become the “new black”.

SIDEBAR…

This kind of reminds me of how when a new, “popular” fashion or fad is introduced in the women’s clothing arena, many females will embrace it regardless as to whether or not it’s appropriate to their lifestyle, size, figure or age.
And some really shouldn’t.
Case in point?
(Spandex is not every woman’s friend!)
The point of this piece?
Not all writers should necessarily become bloggers just because it’s the “in” thing to do.

In other words, blogging should not be considered a natural “write of passage”.

This revelation came to me some time ago when I put out a call for bloggers for a creative project I was working on.
I got submissions from folks from all walks of life, with all sorts of degrees, awards and credentials.

And some, to be quite honest, with more impressive backgrounds than my own!

Unfortunately what I ended up with were blog posts that were too technical, or too cerebral, or too long, or too “vanilla” and bland in nature.

I hate to say it, but I was over worked and

underwhelmed.

These very talented authors were skilled in “communicating” but not “connecting”.
(Are you with me?)

Here are a few reasons that “all” writers do not necessarily make good (pro) bloggers.
They lack one or more of the abilities that fall under the categories I like to refer to as the 3C’s.

• Conversational tone-–Blog writing calls for an informal style, smooth flow, and brevity. Some writers, in their desire to impress, use hundred dollar words, uncommon acronyms, or technical jargon that is not easily grasped by the average reader. Don’t be one of them.
• Consistency—Bloggers with paid gigs, or those hoping to cultivate a solid following for their own personal blogs, must blog well and blog often. One has to produce with or without a “muse”.
• Creativity-–Gifted bloggers know how to take an old topic, theme, or event and give it new life in the way that they spin it. Like good chefs they take the same everyday ingredients and blend them together differently to yield “food for thought” for readers’ enjoyment.

Should blogging have standards?

Do you think that blogging calls for different writing skills than more formal forms of writing?

Are all writers “blogging material”?
What are your thoughts on this?