a few days ago i gave a friend the link to my blog, and she said, “i’ll check it out, but i tend to think of blogging as pretentious.” i responded, “i’ll admit it–it is pretentious and attention seeking, but i can only write when i know i have an audience.”

the whole exchange stuck with me for awhile. how is blogging any more pretentious than playing guitar and singing at the local open mic? than displaying photos at the local coffee shop? than submitting a manuscript for publishing?

presumptuous, maybe.

the artist who displays or performs presumes that someone out there wants to experience their art. they hope to be seen and to convey some sort of message. some might be more pretentious than others in their artistic intentions, but i don’t know if the mere act of displaying their art is in itself pretentious.

i don’t blog to feel important or to magnify my self-worth. but the fact that i know that (at least three) people will read what i write brings mission to my writing. knowing that someone out there is waiting to read what i write gives me a reason to start and finish. it gives me a reason to edit and polish.

when i know someone else will be looking, i have to be totally accountable for my words.

i don’t think art created with the audience in mind is any less pure than that which is created never to be seen or experienced. i think it’s just different. once an artist decides to create for an audience, the audience immediately becomes part of that art, long before anyone actually experiences the piece.

i would never claim to be an artist, or even a writer. but i see a lot of things that i want to share, and i have a lot of questions to ask and a lot of muddled thoughts to sort out.

i put it all out there, here, in hopes that someone might want to walk beside me for a paragraph or two, silently or not. you bring me comfort and inspiration, even if you’re not really there.

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