Diary Threads

[giselle]

I used to frequent a couple forums that had a subforum for "diary" or "journal threads" Where a member could start a thread where they could write down a daily/weekly post about their (in this case) composition/music life, to sort of keep track of what their goals are for the time being, what they are working on, what frustrates them about the process, whatever they want to write about! They are public threads, of course, so it would mostly be business - other people can respond in the individuals journal thread to relate with them, or just read the threads to see what other people are up to/working on.

I thought it was pretty cool...don't know if that's something that would work here or not. Sometimes people abuse the privilege by making a billion posts in their thread to up their post count. However, for those who want to use it to keep tabs on their work, it's kinda fun!

[johannhowitzer]

Hm, interesting idea. Of course, I already use my Xanga weblog for that... maybe I should just provide the URL in my signature instead. If you already have a Myspace or similar weblog account, this would be kinda redundant, unless you don't want people on the forum to see your weblog.

[giselle]

I used to keep one, sort of, but it didn't relate to music. This is the only place I sign onto regularly though, since I can only be on in short spurts during the day.

[cmajchord]

I think there is something terribly wrong with online diaries. Diaries are supposed to be private. I don't think it's that big a deal, I won't go on an anti-online-diary crusade, but I think there's something inherently wrong with ot. For one thing, it seems a little conceited that you (as in anyone) would think that others really need to know about their personal lives. I also think there's something voyeuristic about people reading about others' private lives. I also think that VERY often people put WAY too much stuff on these online things. Things that can be damaging to themselves or others. I don't think enough people right now understand that once you put something online you can't really take it back. I mean you can take it down, but people see, copy it, print it, it stays on servers....

I think diaries are best kept in closets, not online.

just my thoughts...

[johannhowitzer]

Diary is perhaps a misnomer. My weblog is more of an update - what I'd tell a friend if he asked me what's going on in my life. We did have some problems among friends at college when a few people posted things about other people in the group that would have been better said in person and not broadcasted, though. A few of our group swore off Xanga forever in reaction.

[giselle]

AHH!

I wait, I didn;t mean like a diary thread about ones love life or personal life - just something where we could keep a log of our compositional progress. sometimes I am curious about what people are working on and how they get through tough spots.

Here's an example - suppose someone here goes to a conservatory that is well known. I'd certainly be curious about what their musical goals are and what kind of stuff they are doing to accomplish them, especially if they talked about what they are doing at their school. I'm not in that position (at a fancy conservatory) so Id be curious about what it's like. I'm not saying people who go to fancy conservatories are BETTER, btw, I just mean that I'd wonder what it's like since I don't go to one!!!!

It would be all about music. No one even has to read each other's threads, it's really for the person writing them - others can comment if they want if they see something the person is struggling with and think they can offer some advice.

[cmajchord]

well...

ok, then...

lol. I still don't like those online diaries...

[giselle]

hahhaha :huh: yeah, I understand.

I just wanted to ensure that even though I am exasperating nosy, in this particular case I wasn't trying to wedge my nose into people's personal lives :mellow:

[Guest Nickthoven]

I love the idea. I have lots of stuff in the works, none of which I can post in the respective forum for that piece's ensemble(since they're not done), and none of which I really need to put in Writer's Block, since I don't have writer's block, I just don't have enough time to finish them all right now! So, I would like a way to keep anyone interested informed of what I'm doing.

Also, I'm on the same page as G is. I like to see how other people do it.

Also, I go to a conservatory and would be glad to share any experiences I've had. ;)

[giselle]

...and I would like to read it, fancy conservatory man!

[CaltechViolist]

Ditto... I only put stuff in Writer's Block because it doesn't fit anywhere else. (That said, I do have writer's block. I've had pretty much constant writer's block for years. But that makes it baseline rather than writer's block...)

[Mike]

There's now a newly-created forum named Journals which is designed to house the kind of thing being described in this thread. Feel free to go and start yours now! :)

[giselle]

That's awesome! yay! I just noticed it today when I got back.

[jacob]

How about a thread where you have to make progress on a composition as a pre-requisite to posting?

Not in a forced way - you don't have to prove that you did something. But perhaps you report what it is you did.

As a way to encourage the blooming of both creativity and discussions.

[Mike]

The diaries forum could of course be used for such a purpose, Jacob. Or, Writer's Block, if that is deemed a more appropriate place.

I'm interested to see what people do with their journals: what they write about, how much they use them, etc. I think such a commodity could prove very useful from a community-building perspective. Perhaps at some point a separate section for blogs could be created (i.e. a separate section on the site).