Tanya is the host of Blogging Insight series.

Her Question this week;

Do you think that reading is an important prerequisite for writing well? If so, what kind of reading material inspires or affects your writing?

~*~

I think reading helps us tremendously if we want to write well. Some people instinctively have great writing skills and don’t need to hone it by reading.

But for most people, reading not only adds to their vocabulary and expression skills but also introduces them to different styles of writing. It also inspires them with ideas of a storyline or topics for prose or poetry.

For myself, I love reading a wide range of books. I would pick up a work of fiction over a real-life story but there are exceptions. There are bios that I found fascinating.

My first love was murder mysteries from Agatha Christie. Then I started on historical romances by Georgette Heyer. I think my first love was all the British writers whose books I found in my grandfather’s library.

While writing for my blog I take inspiration from all that I have read to date. I also find inspiration from all the blogs that I follow.

In short, for me reading is essential for my writing!

Thank you Dr. Tanya for hosting this series.

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Tanya is the host of Blogging Insights

QUESTIONS:

1. What is your passion with regards writing genres?

Like you, I started with totally different ideas as to what I was going to write on my blog. During the last 22 months, my writing has progressed on totally different lines.

You can say that my writing is geared towards spreading awareness and positivity. My poems and stories are often written with that aim in mind.

2. What is your chosen genre?

Poetry seems best suited to my style of writing. I love to write poems because you can say things more effectively in fewer words. And perhaps it also has more impact. I can and do write prose, and short stories but I would choose a poem over that any day.

3. What is the genre you might like to write about but lack the confidence to start?

Right now, I think I am in my comfort zone when I write in any genre. Fiction is perhaps the weakest and poetry is stronger. One thing that I would like to write is humor. I loved reading PG Woodhouse and would love to write something in his style but I don’t think I have the flair to do it.

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Tanya is the host of Blogging Insights

QUESTIONS

How often do you visit the WordPress reader?

Daily! As I have mentioned previously that I blog solely on my phone. When I open my WordPress app, I get notifications of new posts from the bloggers that I follow. But not from all of them. I get notifications from the blogs that I interact most with. After I am done reading these posts, time permitting, I would visit the reader and read all the other posts there.

What kind of blog posts are you more likely to read?

I like to read all sorts of posts. Poems, stories, political commentary, and informative posts. I like posts that make me think and inspire me. Very long posts are usually deferred until I have more time to catch up with them.

I very faithfully read all the posts of the bloggers who are a part of my blogging family. These are given priority over others. But I like variety so I read most posts.

~*~

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Tanya is the host of Blogging Insights

Posts about the pandemic feature prominently on many (if not most) blogs these days. In today’s Blogging Insights we discuss how it has affected our blogs and blogging.

QUESTIONS

1.

How frequently do you post about the pandemic? Please share links to a couple of your “pandemic posts” that you particularly like. If you have not written anything about Coronavirus/COVID-19 (seems unbelievable) what are your reasons for this?

I haven’t written anything directly about this pandemic. Though I have tried to make people see the lesser negative impact of this crisis.

My reasons are simple;

• With so much information available about this on the internet, I don’t see any need to add my blog post to the tally.

• The topic has lots of negative impact on people and on my blog, I try to create positivity, so I avoided writing about it.

• I don’t consider myself an expert on the subject and would defer to the experts for authentic information about the disease, it’s symptoms, and its treatment and prevention.

Having said that, I did try to boost the morale of my readers by posting uplifting posts during this time of crisis.

2.

What kind of “posts about the pandemic” do you like to read? (If you don’t, then pleasetell us why?)

In the beginning, I sought to know all I could about the symptoms of this disease. What to do to avoid getting sick and what are the treatment options available in case one does get it. I turned to authentic news articles and medical information journals for this knowledge.

As far as the blogging world is concerned, I loved to read the stories of courage of the frontline workers, and how they are standing in face of the danger of getting sick themself, helping others, doing their duty, and being there for us. These stories were inspiring.

3.

How have you and your blog adapted to “the new normal”?

My blog and its schedule are pretty much the same as they were before this crisis. I post the same number of posts and follow my regular routine.

4.

Have you seen any change in your blog stats during the pandemic? Also, are you posting more or less than you used to? 

I think since the pandemic, there has been an increase in the number of people who are following my blog. I guess the reason is that now more and more people are turning towards blogging, having more time on their hands. The number of comments however had decreased. I am also missing a few of the regular bloggers that I used to follow. I guess the pandemic has made them either too busy or has sapped their desire to write. I am hoping to see them back when this situation resolves to some extent.

As for posting, I am posting pretty much the same number of posts daily.

Thanks Tanya for another very topical and interesting set of questions.

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