OK, that’s a bit facetious, but really, I think some of the same things apply, inasmuch as you’re dealing with people with a shared hobby and interests. (Can readership benchmarks be considered leveling up? I’m no good at this ego waving thing.) If you’re feeling obligated to perform in some way, maybe it’s time to tell “the guild” to lay off for a bit and do your own thing. Grind some trade skills, level an alt, go pet hunting, sightseeing, whatever. It’s your subscription money, after all.

(Is that stretching the metaphor too far? I’m still an MMO noob, for all the pontificating I do about game design, so I may be doing it wrong.)

While there’s something to be said for writing “through” the bad times, blogging is for the most part something we do for fun/information/hobby/entertainment/whatever. We don’t get paid for it, and we’re not usually trying to change the world with it. If RL gets big enough to impinge on the blogging (as my work has done for me lately), then that probably means the blogging *should* be impinged-upon.

@Jen — I started off as a WAR blog too. Oddly enough I have more readers now than when I was “just” a WAR blog. Sure, there’s a sense of commitment to those who are kind enough to come visit, but I don’t *owe* them any particular content (especially since I made no secret of my changes in focus). Most of my readers are bloggers too and I certainly don’t feel they owe *me* any content either. I’m just happy to read whatever rolls through my reader.

Maybe that’s one advantage of having stuff on feed rather than visiting individual sites by hand — if some of my BFF bloggers don’t post for a while, it’s not a big deal to me. Not that I don’t care about them — just that I’m not reliant on a single source for my bloggertainment.

To be frank, I’ve (e-)met some really great people these last few months and it’s more important to me that you folks be happy and fulfilled and whatnot than to make sure you all provide me with my daily fix of updates. Seriously. Some things are important, and some things are not. The good people know the difference.

@Ian, I had no idea you read this blog! Thanks for bringing up a good point, and that is the ‘snark quotient’ in both the gaming “press” and in a lot of gaming blogs. I’m naturally a pretty snarky guy, but I’d just rather not put my snarkiness down in writing. I’d rather celebrate the good parts of gaming just because there is so much negative (even if its often in a good-natured kind of way) stuff out there. So I *try* to stay positive, but I fail probably 30-40% of the time.

I also think that bloggers that limit their topic scope by stressing things like, ‘MMO blog’ or ‘WAR/WoW blog’ in the tagline, are asking for trouble when it comes to longevity & lasting enthusiasm.

I’ve also found that blogging evolves a lot over time, in response to personal changes and external events. I look at some of the posts I’ve written in various places over the years, and can hardly recognize that it’s me.

I’ve actually been reading Dragonchasers on and off for the past two or three years, and I can see that growth/evolution here, too. When I first started reading, you were spending a lot of time talking about a book-writing project and more general technology issues; now there is a lot more time spent on gaming. Nothing wrong with that at all — I like reading about your thoughts on all of these topics.

As for the tone, I actually didn’t notice a big change (or maybe I’m becoming more thick-skinned?). But that leads me to wonder — among gaming-related blogs and forums, sneering put-downs are the norm. When I look at the tone in Sarcastic Gamer or some of the stuff that’s linked from n4g, and then compare it to Dragonchasers, there’s a difference. Not like Pulp Fiction vs. Teletubbies, but it’s a pretty wide divide all the same. That’s not a limitation — I really think it sets Dragonchasers apart in a good way.

Ian

Now that I’m established and have a nice following of readers, I feel somewhat obligated to play WAR, despite what I may feel about the game. If I no longer play WAR (not necessarily something I am considering, but eventually I will quit the game and move on to something else, whether it’s next month or five years from now), then I will not only lose my host at blogwarhammer, but I’ll also lose my content. What will I have to contribute to the internet as a blogger if I’m not playing WAR? Will any of my readers follow me as I sample other games or, worst of all, discuss content other than gaming? Will I attract new readers from whatever blogging community I go on to join?

I really love blogging, and I love writing, but I’m not sure how long my blog will be relevant or what I will do once it isn’t.