Posted May 05, 2025

Blogging Questions

Long after the zeitgeist has passed, I’m upholding my link in the blogging questions chain. Thanks to Dave and Eric for tagging me in on one of my favorite topics!

Why did you start blogging in the first place?

I suppose it depends on how far back you go. The first blogging-type activity I can remember is getting on LiveJournal in middle school, at a time when the Internet felt (to me) like a quiet respite. This was back in the days that LJ was pretty exclusive, and I had to do some ~ creative internet sleuthing ~ to get an invite.

Jump forward quite a few years to college graduation, my first capital-B Blogging was on the portfolio site I made at the end of my graphic design degree. I added a blog section to it, with no real plan of what I’d put there. I decided to do a writeup on Fuzzco’s site, with commentary on how they’d themed each project page to the client’s brand. One of the studio owners saw Google Analytics traffic coming from my site, and decided to check out why. And that, kids, is how I landed my first job out of college!

What platform are you using to manage your blog and why did you choose it?

I use Eleventy and plain ol’ Markdown files now. I like how lightweight and flexible Eleventy is as a static site generator. I don’t need to over-complicate this site.

Have you blogged on other platforms before?

For my main personal site, I started with Wordpress, then used Kirby CMS, Jekyll, and finally Eleventy. I have a sneaking suspicion I’m missing something there.

For other mini-sites, I’ve used Eleventy + plain Markdown files, Eleventy + Contentful, and Webflow’s CMS. Disclaimer, I’m currently employed by Webflow, but I’ve found the CMS quite nice to use so far. Simple while having exactly what I need.

How do you write your posts? For example, in a local editing tool, or in a panel/dashboard that’s part of your blog?

I used to start from a kanban board in Notion, but I’ve started migrating my notes and such to Obsidian. I now use the Kanban community plugin for my blog posts, and for crafting projects.

I typically write most of the post in Obsidian, paste it into VS Code, and then bring images in at that point.

When do you feel most inspired to write?

In the past couple years, I’ve been gripped by a thought on weeknights, I’ll dash down some notes in the Notion / Obsidian mobile app, and then ultimately abandon it. Doesn’t Feel Great, but sometimes I just need to tell myself whatever’s on my mind.

I also have a monthly blog-post-writing group, where a few friends and I meet on a Saturday morning to discuss what we’ll work on that day. Nice bit of accountability.

Do you publish immediately after writing, or do you let it simmer a bit as a draft?

Yeet to production 🤘

What are you generally interested in writing about?

Web, accessibility, product management (now getting into a bit of people management as well), what I’m learning lately, crafts, journaling and stationery, any little hobbies and special interests.

Who are you writing for?

I find that when I write for my future self, I end up sharing something that resonates with, helps, or fascinates other people. Honestly, I don’t overthink this.

What’s your favorite post on your blog?

I’ll let the people choose! My most popular blog posts (or those that seem to continue to help folks) are:

I’ve also been leaning into my monthly Learning Logs over the past couple years.

Any future plans for your blog? Maybe a redesign, a move to another platform, or adding a new feature?

Not too much right now! I might follow Ethan’s lead and generate some more fun default blog post images.

Tag ‘em.

A keystone soapbox for me is that anyone even remotely interested in blogging should do it! I often notice that folks tend to filter themselves: they worry about not being original, or compelling, or the “best” at expressing what they mean to say. In truth, no one will handle a topic quite like you, with your particular histories and interests and ways of looking at the world. Just do it! *Nike*

So, dear reader, if these blogging posts strike your fancy: I choose you, Pikachu! ⚡ Please add your voice to the open web and share what blogging means to you.