Week 1 – Blogs: Blogging is a great way for genealogists to share information with family members, potential cousins and each other. For which blog are you most thankful? Is it one of the earliest blogs you read, or a current one? What is special about the blog and why should others read it?
If the measure of a blog’s success is sharing information with family members and finding potential cousins, then Jollett Etc. has been a complete failure. I’ve abandoned the notion that my blog will be a resource for other researchers whose lines intersect with mine. Thus far there have been no Jollett / Davis / Rucker / Eppard / Frazier / Shiflett / Sampson / Marsh researchers sniffing around here.
I’ve found a new direction thanks to a couple blogs.
1. The Scrappy Genealogist Jennifer Shoer woke me up to reconsider what I’m doing with my research. Does anyone in my family really care about these mounds of photos and documents? Probably not. While I am not part of her group who are creating traditional and digital scrapbooks, I’ve been looking at what they are doing and imagining my work as a coffee table book one day. One day.
2. Sepia Saturday by Alan Burnett is probably my favorite “non-teaching” blog. Even though the goal is to use photographs to tell one’s family history, not all participants are family researchers. Some are artists and photographers. We get a weekly photo that inspires a theme on which we base a blog. This appeals to my creative side because I can use photos that otherwise make no sense to me when I’m in my get-the-facts-make-it-logical-close-the-gaps researcher mode.
I think people in our family care, but are young and don't "get it"
ReplyDeleteFor me, seeing pictures of our relatives makes it real for me. They also didn't have Violetta who was an important force in talking about the Jolletts. Maybe we don't talk enough? Maybe next Christmas we can come dressed as our favorite Jollett! LOL
I think they need a reminder of your blog every once in a while. AND I would have never known there are genealogy bloggers if you hadn't found them.
Your blog should be whatever you want it to be.
ReplyDeleteMine started as a conversation with myself because my family was bored with my genealogy stories.
Thank you for participating in the Abundant Genealogy series. I hope you enjoy it.
A coffee table book sounds like a great idea! Good luck and remember to enjoy the process.
ReplyDeleteColleen
http://www.pasqualefamily.net/web/
Although I have not yet found any 'new relatives' as a result of my blogs, I will keep writing them. Other people have had success, and I believe that in time I will too. But even if I don't, my blogs will (presumably) be available to everyone for as long as Google exists. They will still be there when I am no longer on this earth. Someday the information I share will be helpful to someone. I have nothing to lose and (with a bit of luck) much to gain!
ReplyDelete