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26 Responses to “My Blog-Editing Philosophy”

1. Andy Perrin Says:
   May 14th, 2007 at 7:02 pm

   I think you’re being even more fair than the situation requires. On a blog, there’s always going to be someone to object to a particular wording. Unless it’s drawing complaints from many readers, I wouldn’t take it too hard.

2. Toby Getsch Says:
   May 14th, 2007 at 7:27 pm

   I don’t think your transparency theory is working. We can all see right through you.

   Actually I just wanted to comment as an affirmation regarding web updates. I’ve noticed and read many different ways of doing it. It’s your blog. You can do it however you want. I think if you feel like you should tell others about it, then do that. If you don’t think anyone will care, then don’t tell em. Err… don’t tell them.

3. IB Weblog » Blog Archive » Im Blog (und Landesrechnungshof) korrigieren, was geht und was geht nicht. Says:
   May 15th, 2007 at 11:04 am

   [...] der Herzen werden kann, plagen Matt Raymound vom Library of Congress-Blog ganz andere Sorgen: I labor over every word I write — within my time constraints, of course. Inevitably, I will [...]

4. K.G. Schneider Says:
   May 15th, 2007 at 1:38 pm

   Concur with Toby. Note that one reason I’m heartin’ WordPress is the editor builds in the “lined-out” font attribute, so I can easily “cross out” something I’ve written and place any updated text next to it. But really, don’t lose any sleep over how you decide to handle changes… and know your decision may change over time.

   Also, you write, “But such is the immediate and personal nature of the medium.” No, such is writing without an editor. I love the online writing environment, but it does a poor job of protecting me from myself, such as when I wrote on a statewide librarians’ discussion list that a committee was the “incubus” for a good idea. Ouch.

   Find your comfort zone with editing after the fact, and don’t let yourself get trolled into shame over a tweak here or there. You’re good enough, you’re smart enough, and doggone it, people *like* you.

5. Blog search guy Says:
   May 15th, 2007 at 8:22 pm

   It takes me a terribly long time when writing up reviews of various websites and weblogs. I am always afraid that I will come across in a way that I did not intend. It is good to know that I am not the only one who feels this way, even if the fear is unfounded.

6. HDR Says:
   May 16th, 2007 at 9:39 am

   Well, I welcome this blog. I actually heard about it through another government blog, and I am all too thrilled to read your posts. Thanks for opening up to a new generation.

7. John R Says:
   May 16th, 2007 at 9:49 pm

   I think this days blogging has become some kind of an art and like everything else there will always be two opposing groups. I personally like -some kind of personal touch into every post and it reflects the character of that blogger. I am a net journeyman and likes to visit lots of blogs and get the feel of each blog.

   I certainly like your writing tha contacins a personal element.

8. Albuquerque Real Estate Says:
   May 17th, 2007 at 3:49 pm

   It’s hard to predict which perspective a given reader may have when reading a post online or even an article in print. Therefore it is difficult to appease everyone because we all have different interpretations of the exact same words much like your post suggests. I wouldn’t have viewed it as “elitist” in the least, but who knows where someone else’s head is when they read certain things?

9. Dustin Brewer Says:
   May 19th, 2007 at 5:15 pm

   That is a great methodology for you to use in this blog. I’m happy to see your etiquette and blogging ethics are in line with most of the blogosphere. Transparency in blogging is extremely important otherwise you are just deceiving your readers which defeats the purpose of you having a blog.

10. Robert R. Says:
    May 21st, 2007 at 5:31 pm

    I think your transparency method will work definatly. Looking forward to reading more on this this blog

11. Sanjay Says:
    May 22nd, 2007 at 1:29 am

    I think this is very much important for a blogger.

12. New to blogs Says:
    May 22nd, 2007 at 9:46 pm

    This is very interesting and I would never have thought of that comment as elitist. To me it means that because it is open to the public it is not a perk of the job. Makes me feel better (maybe) about how things can be misinterpreted. And being new to blogs, I presumed they were not edited after being posted. Great post.

13. Web King Says:
    May 29th, 2007 at 4:43 am

    “open and honest nature” I really loved those words. I can understand those are not mere words for you. They must hold a deep meaning for you and us too. Very few people cares about them though. So if somebody like you talk about them, feels so good at heart. Thanks for sharing.

14. Abraham Says:
    June 3rd, 2007 at 9:35 pm

    Transparency is the key for blogger as it build trust among your readers.

15. Riya Says:
    June 8th, 2007 at 2:16 am

    Totally agreed with Abraham, transparency is always required. BTW i like the information.

16. Bruce Swedal Says:
    June 29th, 2007 at 3:39 pm

    There is no perfection. I like that you can go back and look at something. Then determine wording it a different way or doing it a different way might have been better. Learning is something we can all do more of.

17. web hosting blog Says:
    July 3rd, 2007 at 9:09 am

    It’s same with me Matt, no different story. I do have a blog and I do receive lots of suggestions and feedback. But I take in only those which are appropriate. [It's hard to define what is appropriate and what isn't though].

18. Sophie Salmon Says:
    July 6th, 2007 at 4:47 am

    It’s no big deal. People misunderstand and jump to conclusions. It’s good of you to clear things up for the public. I like how the Internet gives people their own space wherein they can express themselves freely. However, doing so makes one’s words at the mercy of public scrutiny. There are just such instances wherein a bunch of people will see things differently from how you intended them to. I applaud your efforts to enlighten us about this misuderstanding, and by the way, I believe you when you say that you’re not an elitist.

19. Furniture From Home Says:
    July 17th, 2007 at 2:47 am

    Ahh, the question beckons over and over again, ’shall I fix the blog… or shall I leave it be…’ It is a good question. My take on it is to fix it! and fix it again… Be it a grammatical mistake or a problem of interpretation, I think you can’t go wrong by fixing it. Funny thing, a good friend of mine in his own blog tackled this very question!

20. John Says:
    August 3rd, 2007 at 3:21 pm

    This is great infromation for bloggers. Thank you for sharing.

21. Grizzly Says:
    August 12th, 2007 at 3:39 am

    I agree with John. This is great for bloggers. From what I have seen this is a popular question as it allows people a chance to write a quick blurb and leave their signature behind. Thank You.

22. Blog Tweaks Says:
    August 24th, 2007 at 6:05 pm

    Very few people are honest in giving feedback. You have to choose it wisely. It’s same with my blog.

23. Okinawa Says:
    September 15th, 2007 at 1:09 am

    I agree, transparency is paramount, and I respect this blog for opening up to the people.

24. hdr Says:
    November 16th, 2007 at 8:23 pm

    I love the open communication around here, it’s not something I am used to from a government entity!

25. Discount Says:
    April 9th, 2008 at 11:22 pm

    WordPress is a good blog system. It even can help you to build a discount site~ http://www.techdiscounts.com

26. Bend Oregon Real Estate Says:
    October 12th, 2008 at 2:08 pm

    This just goes to show how much our tone of voice, gestures and facial expressions play into our communication. While the written word is extremely powerful, nothing will ever be able to replace human interaction for understanding what a person is truly trying to say.

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