I am about to teach a course on “The Essay” and that leads me to ask what is a blog? I know that blogging platforms, like WordPress, can be used to share fiction, poetry, technical manuals, and more, but in its general form of personal reflections what is a blog?
It’s a journal or diary, I expect some to answer. Yet is a diary normally so public a document?
Could we consider blogs essays? I believe there’s a case to be made for categorizing most blogs as creative non-fiction, and as essays in particular. I’m going to be reflecting on this question over the weekend. I hope to offer a better answer in a few days.
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2 Comments
A blog is a chameleon – whatever color it wants to be. Some posts are essays, some are marketing tips, some are flash fiction or novel snippets, some are poetry, some are photography, some are political rants (and those can all be on the same person’s blog!) I’ve actually read very few that are straight diary or journal types, though some are that, too.
Blogs are designed for the writer/blogger to connect with others outside him- or herself, even those blogs that are limited view invitation only. Whereas a diary or a journal – ONLY for the author to reread at some future date (if ever.)
I read with interest your comments about a blog being an essay. I’m gearing up to start teaching a remedial English class for a local college to get their writing up to speed. It is all about writing a five paragraph essay. Maybe using a blog format to get them into it might be a way to spear their interest. It is worth a try and thanks for the idea!
Wendy
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