Living Your Life vs. Living for Blog Fodder

We food and fitness bloggers are often the butt of non-bloggers’ jokes because of our chronic picture-taking habits. Many of us always have a camera on hand and tend to take tons of pictures of things in our everyday lives — and usually things that “normal” people might not find interesting. Our blogs are an extension of ourselves, and when we come across good content, we have to be ready!

However, because blogging is a mixture of journalism, information dissemination, and a sharing of the blogger’s life, The Line between “living your life for yourself” and “living your life for the blog” is very easy to blur.

You establish The Line when you decide what you will and won’t blog about. If a blogger establishes early on if he or she will exclude photos of family members and friends, The Line serves to protect those people. The Line also serves to protect you. If, during the first month of your blog, you post pictures of yourself perched on the edge of a gynecological exam table (legs closed, of course) — gearing your content toward younger women and thinking of it as “I’m setting a good example” — then it might be harder to go back if you decide later you don’t want to get so up close and personal.

You should never feel guilty about leaving something off the blog; even if you tend to be a major lifecaster who documents the minutiae of everyday life, not everything needs to be on the record. You as a blogger have the right to exclude certain events or details from your posts.  You’ve got to decide where you stand on the continuum between complete anonymity and inviting voyeurs to see your life’s every event.

When you attend events, do you do it for yourself or for the blog? This is a hard question to answer since events are usually a blogger’s ace in the hole, but it’s worth considering. Are you thinking more about “Ooh, the lighting in this corner of the room is better for taking a picture of my hors d’oeuvres” or “Wow, the conversation in this corner is better than the conversation in that corner”? Are you missing out on singing “Happy Birthday” at your grandma’s 95th birthday party because you’re so busy trying to frame a perfect shot of the cake? If you realize you’ve forgotten your camera, are you angry about the missed opportunity to document memories or to create blog content? I’ve been to a few events where I was more concerned with taking awesome photos than having an awesome time, and while it makes for great blog fodder, I wasn’t being fair to myself or the people I was with.

As bloggers collect more readers and are offered more opportunities, they might be expected to cover events as a journalist would. The Line and the blogger’s principles get tested here, as the blog goes from hobby to job. There’s nothing wrong with treating your blog as a job, but if everything in your life is fair game for blog fodder, I imagine it can be hard to ever relax. Constantly composing shots or dictating to yourself can be anxiety-inducing! I’ve heard several people say that when you blog, YOU are the commodity; once you’ve made your life available for blog fodder, there’s an expectation to continue. You’ve got to decide how much you’re going to put yourself out there, because it’s hard to re-draw The Line once you’ve crossed it.

While you’re doing your day-to-day thing, think before you compose a shot or start writing content in your head.  Do your readers want — and need — to see the thing you’re seeing, however mundane, somber, personal, or joyous it might be? Are you compromising yourself or the people in your life by offering up a certain subject for blog fodder?

What do you think about living your life for yourself vs. living it for your blog?  Does thinking about blogging during an event cause you stress or anxiety?