Blog Questions Challenge

Hey there!

So, I’ve recently started using FreshRSS and today, when I checked it, I saw a trend going on - Blog Questions Challenge.

I always tried to not write posts about blogging, because it feels like there are enough, and people explain stuff so good that I don’t have anything to add. But this one looks fun, so here you are! Enjoy :)

Why did you start blogging in the first place?

Well, I fell in love with the idea of personal web. I had bought this domain to set up a personal email, and probably to host a CV-like page for myself, but then I got to know the IndieWeb stuff, and started going deep into the rabbit hole. I discovered a humane side of the web for the first time, and decided to give it a try.

Spoiler - It turned out great. I am loving the experience since the Autumn of 2021.

What platform are you using to manage your blog and why did you choose it?

Because I was into Golang at those times, I started with Hugo. Picked a random theme, and hosted it at Vercell to give it a try. Then I moved it to my own server, and set up a CI/CD flow. It has been great since.

I keep using it because it allows me to tweak everything. It works with golang templates, and gives me a kind of a framework, or an environment to make my blog. Having that degree of control is nice.

Have you blogged on other platforms before?

Yes, I have. I have played with BearBlog, Micro.blog, Wordpress, Write.as and Pika.page, but none of them sticked with me, because I loved having the full control.

I’ve been changing a lot of hugo themes tho 😂. But seems like I’ve finally settled with a theme inspired by BearBlog, but modified a lot.

How do you write your posts? For example, in a local editing tool, or in a panel/dashboard that’s part of your blog?

This is a great question! Currently I am using Typora. It is a great app. My journey was like:

VS Code -> Typora -> Apastrophe (Linux app) -> iA Writer -> Typora

Apastrophe and iA Writer are great native apps. I love iA more, as it has a better feeling editor. But then I got bored of text only blogs, and adding individual images to my blog via iA Writer was difficult. I had to upload them to my object storage, copy the link, and do the markdown to show it.

And that was the reason to go back to Typora. It has automatic drag-drop image feature, which can be extended infinitely! So, Typora it is. I am happy with my setup right now, which you can also feel from the change in frequency of my blog posts :D.

Nowadays, I write them in Typora, commit the changes to my git repository, and CI/CD does the job to deploy.

When do you feel most inspired to write?

Ha! In the late evenings. And I usually have two kind of inspirations.

First kind is, sometimes I want to think about something I haven’t made my mind on yet. And I have realized that I think more organized when I write what I am writing about. So, those posts usually feel like my inner dialogue - saying arguments, opposing them, defending them, and trying to find a conclusion. For example, my post titled “Alternative Social Media Platforms and Right Wing”. And in those posts, there might be thoughts that I don’t fully agree today; after all, they are just dumps of my thought process.

And the second, most frequent one, I simply share what is on my mind. These are beautiful, they act like a snapshot of my brain, and writing them feels great. I feel relaxed at the end.

Do you publish immediately after writing, or do you let it simmer a bit as a draft?

It is almost immediate. I proof read it, add photos (if I haven’t done along the way), and publish. I like my posts raw. When I go over them a lot, I end up ruining the personal feelings of it.

What’s your favourite post on your blog?

Ah, this is a tough one. Let me think… I will have to put three :( sorry.

Personal: Social Media VS Friendships and Jealousness - I share my thoughts and examples from my life - which felt cozy.

A recent, with all the images: Four New Vinyl Records & A Great Saturday

Where I rant passionately about all the freedoms we’ve given away (in Azerbaijani): Birinci Dünya Problemləri (english: First World Problems)

Any future plans for your blog? Maybe a redesign, a move to another platform, or adding a new feature?

Hmm, I don’t have any urgent plans about it. It is quite good as is. I sometimes think it would be nice to have some webmentions, fediverse interop, but I don’t think they are that crucial.

One thing that I usually think of doing is a status banner at the top. For example I’d love to quickly compose and send a small sentence via some kind of an app, and it appears at the top of my page.

Wow this turned out lengthy :D.

Thanks for reading this far. Please don’t hesitate to respond with your version :). (Contact details)

Bye.