Why Do Women Blog Video

I have been fascinated by the explosion of blogs written and read by women.  It lead to a year's worth of research and many questions.

What's going on here?  Why are so many women flocking to the Internet?  Are they getting something in blogs they aren't getting elsewhere?

In today's society, where we move around, stay home with our kids, often don't have family nearby - are women feeling isolated?

Is there a void in our media?  Is there a lack of women's stories being told unfiltered? 

Do women have a unique sense of humor?   Let's find out.

Disclaimer:   The filming was done at women blogging events and I'm sorry, but ya'll are LOUD.   There's some background noise and some poor camera work which are totally the fault of the crappy videographer (which would be me).  My super woman editor Jennifer Takaki did an amazing job of assembling and improving the material.

Oh. And there are poop jokes.  No video is worth its weight without a good poop joke.

I'd love to hear from you.  What's your answer to, "Why do women blog?"

Comments

[Carissa]

Thanks for the interview and the reminder of how much fun I had and why I really blog, for the community! Great video!

[Bucksome]

Great video. I wish I could have been there at the premiere.

[adelaide dancing]

personally, i love the fact that blogging has become so popular, it's a great medium that allows everyone to be a publisher of content, only wish i had started doing it sooner!

[Kelly Watson]

This is such a powerful video -- thanks so much for sharing it.

I've been blogging since I was 14 or 15. It was the one place I could explore my feelings about sex and gender without having people look at me strange. The thought of a teenager blogging about sex would probably terrify most parents, but I had a ton of older women readers who offered their own perspectives and cheered me on. It was very empowering.

Today I blog from a woman business owner's perspective, and I have the same great community of readers who remind me that I'm not crazy for thinking the way I do.

What about you, Holly? You didn't mention why YOU blog.

[ds r4]

Hello
I have just watched that video and its really good.Women blog as they enjoy and exchange new information.Now in this time women are independent and equal to men.Thank you very much for showing us this video.

[YoShI]

Great Blog. I am definitely looking forward to more. I have a question about email marketing vs social marketing, twitter followers, RSS subscribers ect. Is a Facebook Fan more or less valuable than a Twitter follower, email subscriber, blog subscrber, or RSS Reader. I belive it depends on the niche or market.

[Maria]

I LOVED this video. Thank you. You almost made me do the ugly cry in that panel. :)

[jenn]

great video! i blog for several reasons- i blog for my kids, because if i didnt get some of my fears, frustrations and insecurities out id go insane and who wants their mom showing up for a field trip in a straight jacket? i blog because its nice to be heard, i think most days we are taken for granted and are so busy doing for others, there isnt any time left in the day for someone to listen to us! even if it is just one person.

[tena]

This was great. It's so good to know we're not alone in the world- we're all crazy.

My life is surrounded by people that just don't get it and feel threatened by my blogging. It's painful that they don't recognize it as growth and a positive force and outlet in my life. A life that, for so long, has NOT been about me.

Thanks for sharing.

[Anna Lefler]

Holly, this is fantastic. Thank you for creating this and for putting it out there. It was an honor to be included!

Hope to see you again at BlogHer '10!

:-D Anna

[Jenny, bloggess]

So proud to be a part of this. Thank you!

[Cydney]

This was great. Thanks for doing this, It's important. Women sharing stories is part of all cultures, and I think we started to lose that in ours, for many reasons. By telling our stories, it will be harder to type cast and it's powerful!

[emvandee.wordpress.com]

This is awesome - thanks for this! I am sending it out to my coworkers, most of whom are women who blog.

I started up as an excuse to keep writing when I knew I wouldn't do it otherwise - it's something public, and it keeps me accountable.

I read blogs, especially by funny female writers, because there's a type of humour that doesn't seem to exist in mainstream media - people like The Bloggess, Allie Brosh of Hyperbole and a Half, or Avery Edison are funny in a way that women seemingly aren't on TV or in movies. There are very few women in comedy or on television who I think are outright hilarious, and I think that's partly because mainstream writing for women is skewed toward a certain demographic, though I don't know who that comprises. On the Internet, women are able to be uncensored, gut-busting hilarious, as absurd as they want, because there is no "norm" dictating how they should self-present, and the result is that they are really funny, and relatable. Intelligent, funny women have taken to the Internet, and they have made it appealing for other women to join in the fun.

[laura]

love it love it love it!! did i say that i love it?
so many faces and voices matched to some of my favorite reads. i hope to see y'all at Blogher '10

[Dallas Diva]

Ok, so I have a question, and this seems like a good place to ask it. Regarding blogging manners: when you see a grammatical error or typo, do you let the person know so that they can fix it or do you keep quiet?

Oh, and I started blogging because I was selling a house and going to Japan. It was a fun and easy way to keep people current, I kept blogging because I always wanted to have a journal and never kept it up until I started blogging, something about it kept me writing...

[Jess]

Button Button Button! I think we all need a button that reads: I blog. Therefore I am.

This was great and inspiring and made me feel yet that little bit more safe to be exactly who I am and that there is a woman, somewhere who will hear what I'm putting down.

[mrs.notouching]

That was AMAZING! Thank you!

[TheBakerTheChef]

I agree that we need that button! Fantastic article and fabulous video! I'm sending this on to some friends that also blog.

[abbey]

Great work! Thanks for sharing!

[Haley-O (Cheaty)]

Thank you so much for this.... Someone sent me here after what was a tumultuous blogging weekend! And it's helped immensely. My HEART! ;) THANKS again!

[Michele Miller]

FINALLY! I get to see the finished product! And it's nothing short of AWESOME. Way to go - you really captured the heart of these women and it must have been so powerful to share it with the audience.

WOOT!

[Holly Buchanan]

Why do I blog?

Because I get to put together and share stories and videos like this.

[linda sueLinda Sue]

I blog because my nest is newly empty and because I can talk with out somebody saying "shut the fuck up!" I can post art and photos that i do without someone saying "that's shite!" Everyone is so nice in blogland and I flourish. Connections made have been unbelievably astonishingly fabulous!PLUS I learn so much and feel wealthy from all of the other blogsters out there- so giving!

[Helena]

For me it's a combination of feeling isolated (having just moved across the country), a need to express myself and feel like people are listening, and the heady freedom of saying whatever I want to a computer screen without having to censer it.

[Jen]

My BFFs and I started writing to get each other through some rough times. The universe dealt us each some bad cards at exactly the same time. I couldn't have made it thought the last few months without them. http://www.3pinkdrinks.com/3pinkdrinks/our-story.html

Thanks for putting together the touching video ... I wept. shhhh... don't tell anyone. I'll chalk it up to PMS...