Style of Writing
March 22nd, 2007 by Jason Roe. Post is filed under Jason Roe.
I would like to clear up a few things regarding how people might perceive my style of writing. Most people who read this blog are first time visitors and come direct from search engines or via other Irish blogs and forums. As such, most of you have never met me in person or have talked to me outside of this medium.
A a few people have said to me that my style of writing can sound uptight, aggressive and at times makes me sound like a bit of a stuck up tit. Anyone that has met me in person knows that is really not the case. I can be opinionated about what I know, but in many cases I would be far from vocal about those opinions.
Its funny how people perceive a style of writing. Some might say my style is assertive and borderlines on aggressive depending on my mood. But at the end of the day it doesn’t really reflect who I am. I find that quite a scary thought.
Physiologists would tell us that most human communication is made up of gestures and expressions in the form of body language. Some might also say that the words that are actually used in this context only make up a small part of communication. I’m no psychologist, but when I was talking to a friend of mine who has studied psychology he found the whole idea communication through an online medium quite daunting.
This was also reinforced by a relative of mine who again also studied in this area. The conversation was in a different context and related to IRC and Instant messaging. His question to me was how do you know when someone is happy or sad or how can you know someone is being honest or dishonest. I thought it was an interesting question, my guess is that its in a humans nature to fill in the gaps. When we don’t have all of the information required we try and relate to something that we know or we create metrics to help guide us. I could go into a long rant about this topic but I may leave it for another post.
I would love for people to let me know what you think about this topic. I think its a part of the online condition that is rarely spoken about. So why not share your opinion.
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March 22nd, 2007 at 10:34 pm
[...] I have just finished reading Jason Rowe’s blog post about the style of writing he uses on his blog. It opens up a big question on how people might perceive his writing to be aggressive by not knowing who he really is. It can sometimes be hard for bloggers to convey a message which relies on tone, and it can even more difficult for readers to understand what is meant in a blog post by interpreting the atmosphere incorrectly. Jason says.. Its funny how people perceive a style of writing. Some might say my style is assertive and borderlines on aggressive depending on my mood. But at the end of the day it doesn’t really reflect who I am. I find that quite a scary thought. [...]
March 22nd, 2007 at 10:39 pm
Excellent post Jason. I have replied via ping in a hope to draw more attention to your post than just leaving a comment.
Have you considered video blogging and podcasting as mediums to bridge the gap between yourself and your users?
March 22nd, 2007 at 11:02 pm
Thanks for your feedback, great post Cormac!
I have strongly considered podcasting. I think podcasts are great to listen to and can be really informative as a whole. So what would hold me back? Well I don’t really have a great radio voice and I haven’t really had any experience in recording. That being said, when im in the mood I could talk for hours on end!
The blog seemed like the logical first step, I’m a developer/designer at heart .. I have things to say and I know how to stick them on the web .. so here we are..
The issue with a blog is spelling and grammer and the time to compose what your trying to say. If you went over every post that I have written, you could probably find one mistake or another (in the above context) .. Then again, I don’t want everything to be prefect. I’m not creating a masterpiece after all.. I’m just expressing my thoughts..
And for video cast .. Im not fond of cameras and I have a face that only a mother could love … Who knows!
March 22nd, 2007 at 11:08 pm
Podcasting does sound like the easier route alright.
Looking into a camera and talking to a virtual audience is a hard nut to crack. Fair play to all those on youtube who can master it. They’re brilliant. Some fantastic characters on there but it ain’t for me.
I might give a go at a podcast in the next few months…I’m going to have to find something interesting to say…mmm
March 22nd, 2007 at 11:16 pm
From what I have heard on webmasterradio.fm, all of the podcast involve two or more people .. Maybe this helps to overcome some of issues.
Give me a shout if you are interested and we can talk about this kind of podcast. It might work well over skype or similar.
March 23rd, 2007 at 1:22 am
That’s the first I have heard of WMR.fm
Sounds like a interesting concept.
If i ever delve into podcasting i will let you know
March 24th, 2007 at 8:27 pm
Your post has made me laugh.
I’m still so technologically challenged that pleasing the multitudes has not yet come over my personal horizon as a real problem.
Assertive? Well, why not?
I find your blog to be one of the most efficient, clear-sighted, to-the-point and easy to read. And I’ve read a lot of blogs in the past year.
Many thanks.
Regards,
M Buckley
March 25th, 2007 at 11:48 am
Thanks M Buckley, I like your photo blog.
Have you looked at setting up a wordpress blog on your own domain and hosting? A hosted blog has a lot of advantages and is failry easy to do. Most providers have a one click install on the control panel and It dost really cost that much.
If you ever need a hand setting one up (free of charge) drop me an email on jason@jason-roe.com
March 26th, 2007 at 3:55 pm
Many thanks for your helpful feedback, Jason.
I have thought about Wordpress and have started to look at its
features, but I actually like the Blogger system. I know that the pros and cons of various web publishing systems are being constantly debated. I even tried out the Hindi button on Blogger, just to see what it does.
I’ll certainly keep your offer of help in mind. I’m up to my eyes in gardening these days, but to have help to hand when I get back to making changes to my blog will be very reassuring.
Mostly I look for quick Geek tips in Techfocus The Lounge. Everybody is very helpful (and witty) theres. I also like Kiwirant a lot and the posters there have helped me to learn HTML.
Best regards,
M Buckley
(If you need tips on sowing seeds in March and April, don’t hesitate to post a question to my blog.)
March 27th, 2007 at 5:48 pm
Jason,
your writing style WILL give your readers an online persona of what they think you are.
If u don’t like the result then change the style/writing/topics or whatever it takes.
Maybe more ‘web design’ prettyiness might help!
Maybe u don’t care about those that complain and just either write 4 u or those fans that stick around. Really depends on why u’re doing the blog (extension of web design side or just a personal ‘dump’) …
My 2c
March 27th, 2007 at 8:37 pm
Hi Lal, Thanks for dropping by.
My blog is here for a number of reasons. I didn’t start this blog off in the hope of getting fans. The main reason was to be able to share my opinion with anyone who was willing to listen.
After putting an idea out there, it was nice to take a step back and listen to what people said. I was a bit taken back by some of the feedback and this is why we are here. While none of the feedback was bad, I did get some constructive criticism.
March 30th, 2007 at 11:12 am
Knob!
March 30th, 2007 at 11:22 am
Thanks “Tom” say it to my face please.
April 1st, 2007 at 5:07 am
Im not fond of cameras and I have a face that only a mother could love …
very funny…..