Q&A:Mark Patterson :
Blogger (Blogger handle: DBS)
Q: Why do you blog?
A: I think it has to be the frustrated author within me looking for a creative outlet. Writing a book or short story and getting it recognised and read is a very long process. Using a blog makes it very quick and easy for me to get my point of view published and pass on some information. It’s fun too!
Q: What do you blog about and why?
A: Any subject, really. I have written about how I got started in computers in the 1970s, politics and political figures, donating platelets, finding a new job, personal memories of departed relatives and even my experiences at a 46664 concert, although I was pretty drunk at the time I wrote it. Why these topics? I find a topic just pops into my head. I don't sit down and say today I am going to blog about whatever. It really is something that is burning inside me to get out that I blog about - the sort of thing that you want to share to get your point of view across.
Q: What tips can you give someone who wants to start blogging?
A: Just decide what it is you want to write about. Maybe it’s something sparked by a car cutting in front of you and you want to talk about good rather than bad driving manners. It really doesn’t matter. If you consider yourself a knowledgeable person in a particular subject, then blog about that. Just remember that people don't always read your first blog so expect few hits to start off with. Blog regularly and people will be begging to follow you. Tag your blogs and the hits increase. Link the blog to other sites and they increase more. You have to be prepared to market yourself.
Q: What tech, if any, do you need to blog?
A: An electronic input device is all that's required. Your PC or even the PC at the local internet cafe will do. It could be your cellphone or your PDA.
Q: Do you blog from a PC or your phone?
A: I have used cellphone, PDA and PC, sometimes all of them on the same day. I prefer the PC as I can type faster on that. But hey, you use what you have available. I wrote one of my best pieces - "Amos you made me smile" - from the international departures lounge at OR Thambo. It took me 30 minutes of thumb work but I had nothing better to do at the time.
Q: What's your opinion on micro-blogging, i.e. Twitter?
A: I really only use it to promote my blog. I don't have time to tell the world that I am going out to lunch or that I am stuck in traffic. But I can see use for it in a commercial world to keep in touch with your clients. |
