OK, When?
Recently, Meleah of Momma Mea Mea Culpa posted on Where Do You Write? I thought I’d continue the theme by asking, When? If you are a regular here, you know that Older Eyes is a bit of a split personality. There’s the creative, Left-Brained Bud who’s always writing in his head and will sit down at the keyboard whenever inspiration strikes. And there’s the geek-engineer Rational Bud who wants a method to this madness. He asks, Why are we doing this? … a lot … but this post is about When? not Why?
Since Older Eyes – Bud’s Blog is Left-Brained Bud’s sandbox, he gets to go first. To some degree, the answer to When Do You Write? is anytime. Since becoming Bud the Blogger, I’m always on the lookout for potential topics which I write in the margins of my notebook or record in my Blackberry, and once a topic is recorded, I’m usually mentally working on a post. When I was working, I had writing nights … Wednesdays and Sundays … dedicated to writing. As a Reluctant Retiree, I found that if I blog late into the evening, I head off to bed with posts still cooking in my brain, which means either temporary insomnia or blogging dreams (in which wonderful topics turn out to be nonsense upon awakening). So, these days most of my writing for Older Eyes is done late in the morning. Old habits die hard, though, so as a rule, Sunday and Wednesday are my most prolific days. Usually, I’ve got posts scheduled a day or two ahead but if I’ve got nothing ready for the next day, I may risk the dreams and write in the evening. I do, however, use the evenings to do the other half of blogging, catching up on the Blogs I Read.
I usually schedule my posts for 8:30 am Pacific Time which gives me time for one last read in the morning before they head off into the blogosphere. This drives Rational Bud crazy because he’s less interested in when I write than in when I post. Since he knows he won’t get a satisfactory answer to Why We Do This, he wants to know the BEST post time to maximize readers, maximize comments, maximize something, for Pete’s sake. He thinks about how long a new post shows up on page 1 of the Postaday2011 Latest Posts Page and if 
potential readers are more likely to look there at certain times of the day. At eight am, by the way, Tuesday’s post stayed on page 1 for an hour and a half. At three in the afternoon, a post stayed on page 1 for substantially longer. So, there may be a pattern there but I’d rather write than figure it out. If you are so inclined, there are numerous When to Post articles on the web. Here are some observations from Lorelle on WordPress:
- The highest traffic days of the week are Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Saturday.
- The highest traffic in an average day comes during 0800 – 1400 PST (1600 – 2200 GMT).
- Most comments are posted between 0900 – 1400 PST (1600 – 2200 GMT).
- People are more likely to comment on a post on Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday.
My instincts must be fairly good … I post my lighter, more popular topics on Monday through Thursday … Favorites, one of my least commented topics on Friday (maybe it’s the day not the subject) … and more serious stuff, like spirituality and perspectives, on the weekend. Yeah, I know. I will always be an engineer as well as a writer.
When do you blog? Have you ever tried timing your posts?
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May 18, 2011 at 8:44 am
I write all the time. Usually I try to post in the morning, between 10 and 11 Eastern, though this morning I posted the entry I wrote yesterday at 9:15 on my way out the door to my voice lesson. And it seems no one has read it. As opposed to yesterday, when I posted about an hour later and lots of people read it… and commented. (I say “lots”… four people commented.) Nobody comments on my Music Monday posts, but I’m choosing not to care and hope that at least one person listens and is touched by the music. But yes, I do try to figure it out. I just haven’t found a pattern yet. Interestingly, I have found that I most often get wordpress tag links from page 4 of the humor entries. Hmmm.
May 22, 2011 at 10:52 pm
I’ll make you a deal, you at least consider commenting on my Friday Favorites, I’ll make and effort to comment on your Music Mondays. The truth is, I’m a bit intimidated by posts on music that really KNOW about music, not to mention perform it.
May 23, 2011 at 1:01 am
OK, I realize you’ve been pretty good about your half of my deal already. I’ll do better with Music Mondays.
May 18, 2011 at 9:36 am
Well..thank you for all that advice but seeing we are in a different time zone(and I can’t be bothered to work it out)I will carry on posting when I find the time or the inclination.
I admire how disciplined you are.
May 22, 2011 at 10:54 pm
Some people call it obsessed
May 18, 2011 at 11:44 am
Even though I’ve had a few blogs for several months I’m only just now getting more committed to them. So I feel like I’m a fresh-faced newbie at all this. I’m still working on the discipline thing. I write when inspiration strikes, though I may mull my posts over (sorta unconsciously) for several days before I actually write them. I write in my head a lot, which is totally distracting when I’m trying to concentrate on something. As for when I post them, I’ve never stopped to consider the best time of day, although I have cued up a couple to post on a specific date because of the topic and its relevancy to that specific date.
Thanks for giving me something to think about. Especially since I really need to work on the discipline thing.
May 22, 2011 at 11:03 pm
I think I talk less since I’ve been regularly posting because so often I’m writing in my head. My wife is beginning to notice.
May 18, 2011 at 12:02 pm
Great Question, Bud!
When do I write?
Well, that all depends on WHAT I am writing. If I am working on a blog post, I usually write in the daytime. Sometimes I will get a flood of ideas, and write three or four posts at once. Then, I pre-set them to auto-publish.
But, if I am working on my book, I cannot have any interruptions whatsoever. And, I need complete silence. Therefore, I will write from Midnight until 6am.
May 22, 2011 at 11:05 pm
I do the three or four posts at a time thing, but heavens, midnight to 6 am? I’m too old for that.
May 19, 2011 at 5:25 am
I like to write in the morning since that is when my coffee is most effective
I agree that morning getting the post out early is best so folks can see it early in their inbox or before the lunch hour surfing commences. Ultimately, it must fit into family life around here, which means it is several notches down on the list in priority so it doesn’t always happen the way I’d like.
May 22, 2011 at 11:07 pm
Being retired helps with the priority list, as does having a wife who knows I’m less grumpy when I write.
May 19, 2011 at 5:53 pm
I am at the complete opposite end of the spectrum from you. I write whenever the spirit moves me. And if I am actually so organized as to schedule a post, I usually schedule it for 5:00 am, knowing I have several readers who will be reading near that time of the day.
May 22, 2011 at 11:14 pm
Before postaday, I could be more casual. After, I need the discipline.
May 22, 2011 at 7:08 am
I typically write at night, once my son has gone to sleep. Occasionally inspiration will strike during “work hours” and I’ll try to jot down as much as I can before my presence is required elsewhere. I like that you have writing days, in addition to writing other times, I’m sure it provides a structure while allowing some breathing room.
May 22, 2011 at 11:11 pm
I have schedules for almost everything but a natural tendency to do what I call free-running, which means ignoring my schedules. It is a continuing battle.