Dear Readers,
My audience is all over the map, but I know that my intended audience and my actual audience differ, with a few notable exceptions. I know this because there are a few blog related questions that keep popping up. Sometimes in comments. Mostly in emails or private messages. They specifically pertain, as I understand it, to other bloggers trying to find more exposure, and wish to use my blog to do it. This is fine, but rather than answer the same questions over and over again, I've opted to write this post instead:
1) Whom does your blog serve?Excellent question. My blog has two primary foci. The first, which it has been heavily tilted towards since my return to Texas, is the American style associated with the labels "prep" or "ivy." I've been described on other blogs as a "prep blogger" or an "ivy style" blogger. I set out initially to document my own style after a project in social networking lead to comments "you should start a blog!" I did not, however, set out to become a "prep blogger." That just sort of happened based on my own style choices and the blogs I ended up reading after starting my own. It is my intent to document examples of others when I come across them. I am not a photographer, however, and this is not an online "portfolio" of work.
The second focus is Japanese street style. I love Japanese street style. I, myself, would never wear most of the things I see in Tokyo, Osaka, or Kyoto, but I also happen to love snapping pictures of these people and sharing them with others. Kyoto Maiko was originally established as a Japanese travel blog that went absolutely nowhere. Rather than start a new blog, I simply recycled the one I already had. This focus will feature more prominently in the future when I return to Japan. You will see some of these subjects in October.
Sometimes these two foci intersect. There is a very real Japanese fashion subculture associated with the "prep" and "Ivy" styles, and I thoroughly enjoy finding these individuals, photographing them, and sharing their stories. The Japanese have a significant stake in Ivy (they even own J. PRESS). I believe my travel and history posts are very relevant to the first focus, although much less relevant (aside from Japan pictures) to the second focus.
2) Are you or do you wish to be a professional blogger?No. Most emphatically no. This is a hobby, a leisure activity. I do not want it to become a job. Therefore, I have opted, at this time, not to allow advertisements in the header, footer, or margin areas of my blog. This will only change for exceptional reasons. I do not feel that I have the time to devote to maintaining the blog in such a way as it would be profitable for permanent ad space. I am very involved in my MA program, I am coaching speech and interview at my former high school, and I'm involved in various clubs and activities. I have been on vacation the last few weeks which is largely why my posts have been every day or nearly every day. They will not be updated so frequently during the regular school year, but I will try to keep a fairly decent schedule. I do intend to continue doing reviews of essentials, and my "no advertising" rules do not apply to reviews.
3) Will you follow me? Will you follow me if I follow you?Maybe. Probably not. Despite what you may think, followers (like pageviews) are a very inaccurate and indirect way of gauging readership. I only officially "follow" a blog (in the blogger.com sense) if it is a blog I read every day. These are typically the blogs on my blog roll, and I do not just exchange blog roll links either. I think following and blog rolling say quite a bit. They tell your readers that those bloggers you follow or blog roll produce content that you are really, really interested in. By following or blog rolling you are making a claim that their content is relevant to your foci, and therefore relevant to your readers.
Even blogs I read every few days or once a week don't merit this. I may still mention them in posts. An excellent example is V of
Grit & Glamour, whom I've mentioned before. I enjoy her take on blogger ethics and issues in blogging in general, but she's not a blogger I read every day, and she's not a prep/trad/ivy blogger. This isn't to say she's not a great writer, it's just to say her foci are different from the foci of my intended audience. My followed blogs and my blog roll represent my intended audience (after all, given my personal style, I am my intended audience, so I should know!).
I suppose my one exception is Tavi over at Style Rookie, who personally, I just adore and have adored since she started blogging (that she has recently argued with me over the marking of books is just a bonus). She reminds me of myself in some ways (although I didn't blog, I wrote kooky pieces of fiction, and wore outlandish outfits to conventions, very "un-prep"), and she also reminds me of what I love most about being a teacher of that particular age group. If you don't get it, you probably shouldn't teach. So, in her case, I'll break my own rules. All rules exist to be broken- presuming they're broken under the right circumstances. Tavi is just such an exception.
The Sartorialist needs no explanation.
4) Will you visit my blog if I leave the URL in my comment?Yes, but you don't need to. I usually check the blogger identity page of every single person who comments. That means placing your URL in the comments is unnecessary and redundant. I'll visit your blog anyhow. Especially if you leave a relevant and well thought out comment. However, when included after a two or three word comment that is very generic, it can come off as tacky. I'll still check it out, and I won't delete the comment or block it, but it will get a frown from me when I see it. Something to think about: the comments I get like this are from bloggers with content that is pretty much irrelevant to my foci. I doubt this is coincidental.
5) Do you allow guest posts?As long as they are relevant to my foci, absolutely. Get ahold of me by twitter to get my attention, and if you send your email address, I'll respond. Now if you want to blog about something entirely unrelated to the areas I usually cover, then perhaps my blog is not the best place to be submitting your guest post. I don't expect guest posting status in return, but if you wish to offer it, that's cool too.
6) Can I use your pictures?Are you an individual? Non-commercial purposes? Sure, just make sure to include an attribution and a link. Something along the lines of "photo by" or "courtesy of" with a hyperlink attached. Are you a business? Planning to use my photos for commercial purposes? Are you a professional blogger? If any of these, get ahold of me on twitter and we'll talk. Confused by this? Read the IFB Fair Compensation Manifesto linked in the right hand margin.
7) Will you do product reviews?I already do, if I own the products, or want to own them. Do you mean will I do them for commercial entities or brands? Yes. However, I expect full editorial control and by law am required to include a disclosure. These are non-negotiable. Again, refer to the IFB Fair Compensation Manifesto. I'm not looking for brands to work with, this is, after all, a hobby, but there are certainly brands that I would work with if approached. Again, reviews only. No ad placements.
8) If I write a negative comment, will I be censored? Rarely. Unless you are blatantly offensive, as in the case of racism, sexism, religious slurs, etc. These types of comments have no place in civilised dialogue, and they are not appropriate here. However, if you disagree with a review or a behavior post, or you just dislike what I happen to be wearing, as long as your criticism is written politely and academically, there will be no censorship. Not everyone is going to agree, and I'm secure enough in my style to accept criticism from those who have different opinions. Keep it the tone you would use in a university classroom, and we're probably going to be fine.
If you have any questions after reading these answers, feel free to leave a comment about it.
