Discussion: Managing Long Distance Blogging



A discussion between P.E. & Mari.

P.E.: By the time this post is posted, Mari and I will be in university, but our blogging worlds will have changed. I'm moving away, and we're going to continue blogging. This means there have to be some changes though, and there will be some challenges. Mari, what do you think?

MARI: Eek, we haven't really spoke much about it mostly because we're both going into this new stage partially blind not knowing what to expect. I'm nervous but I think we're both quite dedicated so we will definitely try our best with time management. What I will miss is being able to speak to you directly about blog things. It's always great to be able to discuss things in person instead of over text or phone.  What are your questions and concerns?

P.E.: I guess I also worry about communication. I kind of hate texting after a while and I know that other people don't enjoy phone calls as much as I do. I would like to do some sort of video chat, but I don't know how to go about it: do you even have the software? Should we continue and be random about our interactions or should we have some sort of weekly run down over what's happening? I don't think it will be too bad because we haven't seen each other much this summer and we're doing fine, but I wonder what happens when we're not on each other's wavelength and we aren't exposed to the same culture and perspectives. For all we know, being in such different environments could be a godsend because it will bring the blog some fresh new perspectives?

MARI: There definitely are many ways. I think for the regular check ups and questions we can do what we usually do; text. But Skype is another option for when we have plans and ideas. I know we spend quite a few hours over the phone and in person, discussing some of our earlier ideas like The Perception Project that we did with Eden and some of the other features that have popped up on the blog (Best of Saturday, Thursday Thoughts etc). I think one of the keys to our success thus far has been organization and there are some tools that have helped us with that but nothing more than Google Calender. It's what I always check and it lets us know if were short on posts and such. In a way it serves as a communication device between us without us having to say much.

P.E.: Have you heard of Viber? I don't know the differences between that and Skype, but I know most of my family uses that instead of Skype, so it would be the one I would end up downloading. I do agree with Google Calendar being huge. The only issue with that is when we have posts we want to schedule a certain way and the other person doesn't know, and we go through this game of rescheduling posts all the time until someone gets fed up and explains why post B has to go after post A. :p

MARI: No I haven't. Most of my family and I included, use Skype. It's just been around longer or has been marketed to us and hence we know and use it. I think Google Calendar's pros outweigh the cons and the cons are not something significant that we have had problems with more than once. Communication aside, I think there is one more thing standing between us now; schedules. We may be both going into business schools but they are different schools and we have the demanding university schedules and work schedules as well. How do you think we will handle that, any plans or ideas?


P.E: Frankly, that's something I've tried to avoid thinking about. Obviously, life *always* comes before blogging, and I worry a little about what my life is going to become. I figure the best way to deal with it is to do what we've done so far: if we plan posts very far in advance and give ourselves time to breathe. I feel like preparation is key, and that's my solution. Also, we should let the other now that a certain time means we can't post, like how I told you that I can't do Friday nights/Saturdays. What do you think?

Mari: It's really hard to know, I think we have to be in the moment to know for sure. But to some degree, this summer itself has been practice. We've both been busy with life but have always designated time to spend on the blog as well, no matter how late (it's currently 12am on a sunday and I need to wake up early tomorrow). In the end, it's just going to be another experience, let's just go with the flow and see where it takes us?!

Thanks everyone for bearing with us as we go through this new transition. Do you have any tips or experiences to share with us?


-MARI

2 comments:

  1. I'm sure you ladies are gonna manage great despite now having to rely on other forms of communication than in person. Just think that if Meagan Spooner and Amie Kauffman can write a trilogy of books together, you ladies can manage this blog no problem!

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    1. That's a great booky example. We love Meagan and Amie and would love to be as successful as them in their partnership. We'll work hard.

      -Mari

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