Shouting Into the Storm

2018 has arrived and the usual thing to do for the first post of the New Year is to offer sober reflections on what has gone before and look forward to what is to come.

So, I could give a precis of what I feel I’ve achieved over the past twelve months and what I think I may achieve over the next twelve, but for those who follow and visit this blog know, I never quite do what is expected, so there won’t be any of that here.

If you want to know what I’ve done over the last twelve months, it’s all recorded here – literally in black and white, in some cases – so feel free to browse the back catalogue and as for the future…well, you’ll just have to wait and see.

So, what exactly is the purpose of this post and what does the title mean?

If you think about it, blogging about wargaming is a rather odd development of the wargaming hobby. Wargaming is, essentially, a hobby in which two (or more) people sit down and pit their assembled forces against one another, indulging in miniature conflicts that range across various genres and historical periods. In other words, for the most part, it is not a solitary pursuit. Now, before certain people start jumping up and done and telling me that solo wargaming does exist, I am speaking generally here.

Blogging is generally a solitary pursuit – one person, sitting in front if their computer screen, manipulating images and carefully crafting a post to release into the wilds of the Internet, never knowing whether anyone will actually read their post or appreciate the time and effort that has gone into preparing it. And as there is so much available content out there, it is like shouting into the storm.

A person’s blog is their personal expression of their way of pursuing their hobby. You may not like the particular genre they focus on or their painting style or the way they express themselves, but, for the most part, that person is not blogging solely for YOUR benefit. They are merely sharing what they are doing in the hopes that someone else will find it interesting or inspiring or entertaining. At least, that’s why I do it.

So, when visiting others blogs, if you see something you like, spare a few moments of your valuable time to tell that person that you like what they’ve done – not because you feel you should or because you want them to do the same on your blog, but because you genuinely want to acknowledge the time and effort that has gone in to doing it. 

And whilst everyone is entitled to their own opinion, think twice before deliberately being negative about someone’s efforts. Think how you would feel if you received a similar comment on all your hard work. I’ve known people who have given up blogging due to petty and vindictive comments made by small-minded people who derive pleasure from publically slagging off their efforts or them personally and I personally believe that the hobby is a poorer place for it.

Our hobby is a rich and wonderful thing, filled with talented people, wonder and imagination – the only trolls should be those fielded on tabletop.

The Crow has spoken. 😉