Plus, what a lot of people don’t seem to get is that it’s called a blog hop for a reason: it’s supposed to encourage readers to hop from blog to blog, sampling blogs they may not have otherwise heard of. At the very least, there needs to be a central popular blog where participants can register, and every participating blogger needs to link back to that list of registrants. Participants should devote a couple posts that month to linking to and discussing other participating bloggers, and the organizer ought to have a weekly round-up post. This pretty much demands that each participant only submit one to three posts, period. But no, we’re geeks, and we geeks don’t know the meaning of the word “restraint”! If one post is good, 28 to 31 posts is even better!
This month’s bloghop also happens to include a lot of dull questions. “What was your first character?” I think, like a lot of kids in the ’70s, my first character was named “Bilbo”, and I’m pretty sure I had a “Gandalf” and a “Doctor Strange”. Not interesting in the slightest.
But that’s not the worst of it. About half of the questions relate to commercial consumption. It’s another geek failing, particularly easy to see on the forums: too much focus on what you can buy, how much, what’s new, what’s being re-released. Certainly, we should expect some of this. An occasional review, or an announcement from someone who is generally excited about an upcoming product because they know something about it, more than “they put a cool picture on the ad and repeated a bunch of buzzwords I like”? Blog marketing is to be expected, but what I like to see is 90% “here’s what I’m doing/thinking” vs. 10% “here’s what I own or would like to own”.
Maybe we should tone down the gamer gluttony, just a bit?
Written with StackEdit.
There's another hop coming up next month?! Sweet!
ReplyDeleteIt's the March Madness Non-D&D OSR Challenge. Questions look even duller than this month's.
Deletedont forget this one following another one - i looked at questions and i pretty sure ive said it all - bring on the crystal chainsaw weilding unicorn beastmen killing reptilian politicians and make 2014 the year we stopped bloghopping
ReplyDeleteYour points are valid in that more organization and more interesting questions would make these 'blog hops' more worthwhile - you've inspired me to start tracking the participants of March Madness. Some of the older ones could do with archiving somewhere so that newbies could do them as a rite of passage, but having the same questions crop up becomes tedious and is why I skipped the D&D challenge. After I created March Madness, I realized I didn't want to do more than one hope every 6 months, and have started brainstorming content that will get bloggers creating usable material instead of just telling stories, which is fun but can become repetitive.
ReplyDeleteThat being said, not all bloggers are veterans or pundits and answering questions is a good set of training wheels to get the mind racing on to weightier stuff, in my experience. I am sorry you find the questions duller than the D&D hop (I assume you've read them) but I hope it won't put you off reading, as I expect at least a few of the questions to provide interesting introductions to unfamiliar games and styles of play.
Oh, don't get me wrong. i won't begrudge anyone's right to use a list of questions as a taking off point fo blog topics. And even a bland question might provoke an interesting answer, so i might glance at a post or two as I skim through my news feed. But these multiquestion blog hops tend to ask a lot of trivial questions no one really cares about. "When did you start playing? What was your first game?" It's like the crap interview questions people ask actors. "What's your favorite breakfast food?" Someone *might* have an interesting answer, but most of the times, the answers won't matter at all. They will fill space.
DeleteAnd I don't agree with Alexis, below. I'm in favor of community, and I think looking outside yourself for inspiration is fine. But that sort of inspiration ought to be more like the "Game Chef" ingredients, or a specific topic relevant to RPGs. "Elemental Week" or "Icy Wastes Week".
These things are for people who can't think of anything to blog. Moreover, I'm not interested in helping "noobs" get their blogs started. If they have something to say, then they'll be fine. If they need a crutch, or anyone's help, they should stop blogging immediately and attend to their hygeine instead.
ReplyDeleteWe need less 'training wheels' and more 'toss them into the pond and watch them drown.'
But then, that wouldn't let Tedankhamen and many others feel good about themselves for pointing and then gleaning off the self-important righteousness of 'finding new talent.'
Alexis - I don't know what you intend rightly by using the word glean (maybe you are switching from a 'pond' metaphor to a 'wheat and chaff' one maladroitly), but I can assure you this isn't American Idol and the only profit I make off 'new talent' is getting a few interesting posts to read. If that is below you than so be it, but if you change your mind you're welcome to join at any time.
DeleteTalyman - Fair enough, and trivial and repetitive questions was why I skipped the D&D hop. There is an unavoidable degree of triviality in all blog hops, I am afraid, as well as the one I'm fielding, but at the same time I am hoping to read a few interesting responses about games that deserve more attention. Seems worthwhile to me. Your suggestions seem to have some merit, so I look forward to your blog hop (hopefully in 6 months when I recover from this one).
Cheers
"glean"; to extract (information) from various sources. "The information is gleaned from press clippings ..." etc. Moreover, I think I described your personal gain accurately, Tedankhamen. You seemed to understand what I meant.
ReplyDeleteTo an outsider, one that isn't part of the 'community' (gratefully, given what the community stands for), the various blog events look like a sad stand-in for a reality show, sure enough.
If you really are going to 'build community,' then build one. Offer services, that can be availed of by members who contribute more than answers to ordinary, drab and unimaginative questions. Do more than describe the hobby, propel it forward. Organize events that ONLY new bloggers are allowed to take part in, then offer mentorships and round up volunteers to give advice and editing. Teach those that are part of the community writing techniques and contribute source material to a central pool that everyone can take advantage of. Build a consensus against abuse, establish unity in blog maintenance and design, and promote yourselves to outsiders in a smart, pleasant and encouraging manner.
This blog hop thing is a joke. If 'community' is the goal, then do what any neighborhood anywhere in America is doing, and make yourselves proud.
If I am not impressed, it is because you are doing very little that is impressive.
Talyman - Thanks and apologies for letting me use yoru blog to air my affairs. It is getting a bit silly so I promise this is the last of it.
DeleteAlexis - Those are some good ideas about events for new bloggers and materials, thanks. The rest is precisely a 'joke' (I prefer the term 'lark') meant to entertain, not impress, as I believe are the games we blog about. Blogging is my stress outlet during a hectic period, not my main drive like it appears for you. It is an amusement that keeps me mentally stimulated and healthy - I hope it does the same for you.
As for your comment "If 'community' is the goal, then do what any neighborhood anywhere in America is doing, and make yourselves proud," are you referring to meth labs, guns or obesity?
A very weak joke at the end there, Tedankhamen, and one that blatantly insults millions of hardworking mothers and fathers. Well done you.
Delete