To be blunt, I think I have been unhappy blogging about most of the things I used to for a while now and it has shown in how many posts I've been making since September 2011.
I've been watching progressively fewer movies over the years and getting invested time in fewer television shows, and I haven't been keeping track of modern music, so clearly I've let a lot of pop culture pass me by, and I've made my peace with that. The fact that I don't peruse as many sites about film and television anymore seems to reflect my changing priorities as well.
But for a "pop culture" blog, that does present a problem. Yes, I could go on mining nostalgia and panning for gold from my past with a lot of subjects, but I don't have the passion to do so anymore.
Then there is this whole Amanda Bynes thing. There was a time I would have been all over this situation and just ran with it for weeks, especially given the amount of coverage she is getting, and gaffe after gaffe she keeps making on Twitter, but a while back, ripping on celebrities stopped being fun anymore.I had thought about talking about it, but it just didn't seem right anymore.It doesn't interest me and to write about it would be doing both myself and you, my readers, a disservice.
But there is one subject which I've written about in the past that I have kept current on, even though I've been resistant to pursuing with the kind of intensity that matches my interest in it, and that is video games. There are so many entries over the past 7 years that I haven't written because I was afraid of alienating my readers by talking about gaming too much, so I tried to limit my posts on it, but as of late, it seems like it is the only thing I've really wanted to write about. It took me until this week to finally admit that to myself.
And I don't mean I just want to review games. I want to talk about them critically as a whole, and talk about my experiences as someone who plays games who has watched this medium develop from its early roots to where it is today in my lifetime. In the past, I expressed the feeling that the gaming industry and press needed to encourage more scholarship, more introspection about the work they produce and evaluate, and rather than sit idly doing little to contribute to those discussions, I could be starting some of my own. I've been a great fan of the Extra Credits have been putting out for a few years now, and they talk about a lot of the kinds of things I want to talk about.
I am not saying that I won't talk about television and movies on occasion, but I think the majority of my posts are going to be about video games from now on, and I think I am finally okay with that.
I guess I am just going to have to see how this all turns out. I haven't even decided if I am going to do a redesign or rebranding yet, but there is time to think about those questions as I work on refocusing this blog on the topics I really want to talk about in the future. Culture Kills has been around for 7 years now and I think I would have a problem totally abandoning the name though.
3 comments:
I'm more than happy with you focusing more on gaming and the culture around the industry.
You always have such thoughtful insights and your blog should reflect your current interests and focus.
As you know I went through a similar crisis recently and my blog has changed to reflect my way forward though I admit that I've got a couple of non-illustration posts on the boil.
Do it because you love it sir! Maybe we'll finish our Mass Effect conversation ;)
You are this blog, and if video games are where your passion lies, you should follow it. I'm interested to read about whatever you want to write about because I like your insight and I like you. And I think the name is part of that, by the way.
I understand where you're coming from. I've been taking a lot less of an interest in the things I used to blog ceaselessly about. Maybe it's this "growing up" thing I keep hearing about.
I just want to see you do what you love and talk about what you love.
Lee: I think this was a long time in coming too. Sounds like you are refilling the tank too.
I have to look over our conversations about Mass Effect again to remember where I was coming from in the discussion lol.
SF: You still write some amazing, insightful stuff.
I remember writing a comment on something Lee wrote a long while back comparing the blogging village to a forest, where a lot of trees get planted, but most of them don't last, and the ones that do become the old growth... and there are quiet a few redwoods in this neck of the woods. I've lost a lot of foliage lately, but I think I have solid roots and I think that EC does too.
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