Full of hot air

Oh, I start out with the best of intentions. 

I’ll come up with a blog idea and I’ll start writing. At the start, I’ll pay close attention to length. I’ll lecture myself on keeping my blog short. I’ll remind myself to choose my words carefully, to be concise, and to use active verbs.

I’ll play around with the lede and come up with what I think is an interesting story to introduce the topic and the next thing I know I’ve flown past the 200-word mark. I’ll say to myself, “That’s okay, we’re fine, we’re still on target. It’s not a problem.”

Keep ’em coming

I’ll add a couple more points and before I even know it, I’ve raced past the 500-word mark. Now the bells and whistles will start to flash in my head: “Danger, danger, danger, we’re under attack.” But, of course, like Burt Reynold’s Bandit character in the 70s movie, Smokey and the Bandit, I’ll push down hard on the gas and speed by the police blockades and arbitrary word limits without a care in the world.

I’ll try to bring the blog to a close, but I’ll read what I’ve written and see that I’ve mentioned an American TV show or movie and feel guilty about creating potential confusion for my international readers. I include some background information on the premise of the show, adding to the word count.

Oh, that’s not all, I’ll feel a need to explain an inside joke that I’ve included in my text, something that my wife and kids make fun of me, and the word count will get even larger. Without blinking, I’m knocking on the 1,000-word precipice.

I’ll ask myself point blank, “Who the hell do you think you are? Do you think you’re better than Abraham Lincoln?” Lincoln needed a mere 272 words to write The Gettysburg Address, one of the most compelling texts in the history of America. “Are you better than him Brian? I think not!”

Time to get serious

The challenge stops me in my tracks. I can’t keep writing. I reread what I have written and get serious about editing. I read through the piece several more times, making cuts each time, finally finishing up with 800 or so words.

Oh, the piece is still too long, but I’ve cut all that I can cut. Oh, you poor reader. You face the consequences, having to deal with a blowhard, full of hot air!

Writers talk all the time about trying to “writing short” but I often wonder: How do readers feel about short and long pieces? Do readers care? I think it matters, especially since we live in a “give it to me now society,” but I wonder how much of a deal breaker is it?

How much is too much of a good thing? What’s your optimal blog word length? What’s you preference?

I’d love to know what works for you. 

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56 thoughts on “Full of hot air”

  1. I don’t care how long or short a blog is as long as it’s a good read.
    Sometimes you feel “cheated” if it’s too short and there are too many holes in the story, but then I have to realize not all bloggers are professional journalists and don’t always make sense. Some write as if you know them personally, but I write as if I’m creating an article. For example, I won’t just write my husband’s name; I’ll write his name and add, “my husband.”
    A reader should walk away from a blog feeling satisfied, not like “what did I just read”?

    Liked by 4 people

    1. You bring up a great point about the approach. I try to keep some anonymity for my family so I don’t use names, but at the same time I still approach each piece with a journalist’s mindset, lead with a strong introduction, get to the nut-graph explaining what my point is, and get out. I consider blogs to be the modern day version of the daily column. When I want inspiration, I go back and read columns/stories by Mitch Albom, Dave Barry, Maureen Dowd, Elizabeth Bernstein and many others. The good ones you can read a book and not mind. I know I’m not them . . . so best to keep it on the shorter side. Ha, ha.

      Liked by 2 people

      1. Oh, I’m all about anonymity. My husband is very private, so I only share tidbits of our lives — nowhere near all of it. And if you’ll notice, it’s rare his photo will show up in a blog, as I mainly write about my career, but I’ll throw in some of the stuff we do to promote bands we see or restaurants we love.
        And, yes, blogs are like a daily column, which is why I only follow so many. I’m not one to follow everyone just so they follow me. I’m a successful writer, the blog is more for fun. I’m not seeking a ton of followers, just people I connect with and like their blogs. Yours of course is one of them 🙂

        Liked by 1 person

      2. I can relate Maryanne. I started my blog eight years ago because I was getting pulled away more and more from writing at work and many of the reviews for that corporate work were getting harder and harder. I wanted something where my creativity could flourish and I could get back to what I love. So, I don’t get bend out of shape over word counts, but I still try to pay attention telling a good story that keeps folk’s interest. Thanks for reading!

        Liked by 1 person

  2. So good! I can relate. I don’t know the answer. Is there a correct answer? You mention Tolstoy and Hugo with their lengthy works – that are masterpieces! And current day Kingsolver is maybe too wordy for some but others like myself, eat it up. Are you basing it on “likes”? Again, I don’t know the answer but it seems like the most important thing is that you like the piece you’ve written. Honestly, I’ve never thought any of your pieces were too long.

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Thanks, but I know I can get wordy. Most of my pieces start much longer. In 2023, I’m averaging under 488 words per article. Now my total is being helped by my regular Saturday pieces that have only a 100 to 200 words. But overall I’m pretty happy with that. Yes, I agree with you, it’s less about the number and more about how do they feel. That’s generally what I base my posts on, but I thought it wise to still ask!!!! Ha, ha.

      Liked by 1 person

  3. I really don’t have a preference — or really care, for that matter. As long as the writing is good, appealing, provoking, etc. I will enjoy it. As for my own writing, I also don’t think about it too much. I will try to edit it so it works, and… that’s about it.

    Liked by 3 people

  4. Writing is an art and a skill and on some days, it can feel like such a challenge – how to start it with an attention grabbing hook and how to end on a strong note. I think you captured the emotional journey, perhaps fueled with hot air!, very well Brian. I opt for the Harry Potter option. 😆

    Liked by 1 person

  6. Oh, I like this post, Brian. My husband invariably comments when he thinks I’m being too wordy, so I am aware that too long does tend to lose part of one’s audience. Consequently, I try to keep what I want to say in the 800-1200 word range. I do read very long posts when they’ve got interesting things to say, but in those cases I usually think they’d have been more effective splitting their ideas up into multiple shorter posts. Always easier said than done though.

    Liked by 1 person

    1. I think that’s a good range Jane. I’ve never shaken my head at any of your pieces. They all feel about right. My wife likes to tease me about the length of my stories too, but I like to tell her that I need every little word to make my fabulous points. She laughs at me. Ha, ha.

      Liked by 1 person

  7. I tend to have the opposite problem. Writing overly concisely and then needing to expand, flesh things out, and add detail.

    I don’t think about length when I’m readng, particularly a blog. If it is engaging, if it surprises or challenges me, no matter the length I enjoy it to the end.

    Great post! Thanks for writing.

    Liked by 1 person

  8. It all depends on what I’m writing about. Sometimes I want to start a conversation and get people commenting…those are short posts because they aren’t about the writing. When I write a personal story I try to keep it 500-700 words because I know if they’re longer you will lose people(I’m a big fan of very short paragraphs) when I’m doing a practical post like organizing, I go until I’ve finished. I figure the audience that likes those posts will keep reading no matter what.

    Liked by 3 people

  9. The only college level writing class I ever had was as an undergraduate at the University of Texas – it was business letter writing. I was taught to be brief, to the point and to sign sincerely yours.
    Alas, I’m afraid I’ve strayed a bit, but your brevity issue is not without merit.

    Liked by 1 person

  10. I think it really depends on the subject. Some short posts can be so powerful, but long ones can as well. You just have to ask yourself if you are repeating yourself or are you still holding your reader’s attention. I can enjoy short books and long books too. But if the long book could have said all it needed to in half the length that’s what bothers me. I try to keep my posts under 1500 words, but I am not always successful.

    Liked by 1 person

      1. Yes, it is. For if we lose their interest, they aren’t going to bother to read more , whether the piece is short or long. Have a great day and your posts keep my interest. 🙂

        Liked by 1 person

  11. Wow Brian, that’s a lot to think about when you write a blog post! Apparently I am from a bygone blogging time in history when the purpose of a blog was simply to write what came to mind, what felt important or interesting and literally just write until you were done- no more words. This may sound naive but I really had no idea there was a perfect length, although I am aware of so many blogs that have very specific formats. Honestly- the worry and fear about what’s right or wrong or acceptable to a group of readers goes well beyond what I want my blog to be about and clearly I’m doing all wrong- one example is that I hardly ever use pictures but all that other stuff as well. I will now ponder how obsolete I really am as a blogger and where my concept of blogging for fun and connection should, or shouldn’t take me going forward 🙂

    Liked by 2 people

    1. You don’t sound naive. I’m just looking at it from a communicator’s standpoint and trying to do the best job I can to explain what I’m writing and not waste the reader’s time. I don’t think there’s a perfect length. I’m just aware when my pieces start to get longer, I might have more of a chance of repeating something or losing the reader’s interest. It’s putting the reader first, keeping them from paragraph to paragraph, all the while writing what I want to write. I use pictures to make my blog look aesthetically pleasing. I don’t get too carried away, just something to help make my point. That’s the great thing about blogging, we all have our approaches. My grandmother used to say “there’s more than one way to skin a cat.” It’s the same thing with blogging.

      Liked by 1 person

      1. Thanks Brian, I do appreciate the insight. Your post simply pulled to the forefront things that I’ve been mulling over for some time and all of the points go back to that quandary I still admit to feeling about labeling myself a writer. Blogging as I originally knew it has changed, not in a bad way but with much more purpose towards a specific end goal and how that fits me. There’s a lot to ponder 🙂

        Liked by 1 person

  12. Fascinating, Brian! I love the little tidbits of word length for those texts. 272 for the Gettysburg Address? Wow. I don’t pay attention to how many words I use in a post these days nor do I really focus on what anyone else does. But you make a good point about editing and shortening things. It reminds me of the quote from Mark Twain, “I didn’t have time to write you a short letter, so I wrote you a long one.”

    Liked by 2 people

    1. Mark Twain said it best. Oh, I don’t go crazy worrying about word lengths. I hope I haven’t give people the wrong idea. I focus on length, because it can be an indicator that you’re going to lose readers interest, but, at the same time, if I feel my writing is strong enough, I don’t give it a second thought. I just keep it in the back of my mind as something to strive for . . . to think about word choice and usage and be more like Lincoln than the the guy who spoke after him and rambled on for an hour. We don’t talk about his speech. We do Lincolns. Ha, ha.

      Liked by 1 person

  13. I look for an authentic voice rather than length. You have an authentic voice as do all your HotM friends. I love Cheryl Oreglia’s posts and they are lengthy. If someone is too wordy without saying anything or moving me emotionally, I’ll stop reading. I noticed on my posts, they’ve gotten shorter through the years. That was not intentional.

    Liked by 1 person

    1. I like how you phrase it EA, authenticity over length. I agree with you too Cheryl’s posts are definitely meaningful. I don’t check if they’re long or short, I’m reading. My post today was just meant to be a self check-in to see how I’ve managed and make sure I’m not too wordy. Thanks for the input!!!!

      Liked by 1 person

  14. Oh good golly — what a post! Now I’m going to be more focused on length than ever. You’ve given me a bunch of things to think about. I think I pivot from verbose to too concise…expecting people to crawl into my brain to ferret out what I’m trying to say OR I boldly repeat the same message ad nauseum. Oy! 🤣🤣🤣

    Liked by 1 person

  15. I’m always conscious of my blog posts getting longer and longer, but do I ever edit them with a view to shortening them? Nah! Just just a quick spelling and grammar check and I’m done. You’ve got me wondering though!

    Liked by 1 person

    1. I edit mine a lot. However, I’m not always editing to shorten them. I reread to make sure my post says what I want to say and to see if there’s a better way of saying something. We all have a to find what works for us . . . that’s the cool thing about blogging. Thanks for the insight!!!!

      Liked by 1 person

  16. This is such an interesting topic, Brian. I enjoyed reading it and reading all the comments from your readers—plenty of food for thought here. I admire that you can sit down and think up a topic to write about. I really do struggle with this and find that the ideas have to come to me – I can’t go out and search for them as nothing seems to come that way. Perhaps, that’s something I should try and work on. I often sit with a Word document open with the heading ‘topics to write for my blog,’ but I never seem to come up with anything that way.

    I admit that I find a very long post challenging to get through – I think, partly because I follow and read work from so many people that I just don’t have much spare time to read a very long piece, let alone write my own posts. I do make exceptions if I find myself getting totally engrossed in what I’m reading, though. I think your posts are just the right length.

    I don’t count the words in my work, although I usually write them in Word first, which automatically tells me. Like you, I also edit my writing for spelling, grammar, and content. I think it’s different with poetry. Because I write about my feelings, there is only so much I can write. I do occasionally produce a long poem, but more often than not, I try to keep them to five to six lines. Any tips you might have would be welcome.

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Thanks Ellie! I have problems thinking up topics too. Something that helps me is to first think generally about what I want to write on and then find an individual story that tells that larger issue. For the hot air story, I was having problems coming up with an blog idea. I asked myself if people even read my blog. Is anyone out there kind of question. From there I started writing about the process and the idea for focusing on word counts came to me. I’m not sure that helps, but fyi. The writing will come again!

      Liked by 1 person

      1. Thank you very much for the tips on blogging, Brian. I think you have a far better imagination than I do. I have to wait until something has happened in my real life to be able to write about it, or I write about how I’m feeling but that can get tedioius for others to read if I do it too often. I love how you came to write your hot air post and love the title you chose, too. I really hope I can find a way of blogging about something other than my thoughts and feelings; otherwise, I’m going to run out of material to use. That would be a pity, having blogged for nearly ten years now. Mind you, I did take a break for three years in the middle of that time, so it’s more like seven years, really. I do hope you are right about the writing coming back again. Thank you for your encouragement. Hope you are having a good day.

        Liked by 1 person

  17. Good question, Brian! Knowing the time it takes to read the posts of our followers, I think if a blog post is too long, it shouldn’t be expected to be read. Maybe skimmed over. I don’t have a word count, but my last post was longer than normal for me, which is why I added that if my readers don’t have time, I understand. So, too long can take too much time when someone is trying to read all the posts in their inbox. But I also believe that content matters. If an issue or subject entices or strikes a chord in a visitor, then the time it takes to read through will be irrelevant. My two cents. 🙂

    Liked by 1 person

  18. What an interesting post which has generated lots of discussion and some questions. I’ve not really given much thought to word count in my posts. Like others have said, including yourself, I focus on the message I want to get across, then edit for flow etc

    Liked by 1 person

  19. This is so interesting. WordPress put this post of yours at the bottom of the one I published today, which asked many of the same questions. The comments I’m getting are similar to those which have been written here. I don’t see anyone, on your post or mine, saying anything about how word count affects SEO. Do you happen to have any insight on that?

    Liked by 1 person

    1. I’m fascinated by SEO, but don’t really have a lot of insight into it. I’ve always been told to “write content for what it’s worth: and that padding could hurt relevancy but would only play a minor role. The comments to my story made me think most other folks haven’t been paying attention to word count. It seems like you’re getting similar themed comments. While I say that, I still at least look at my length, because I know that when I read, I tend to be a skimmer. I figure other people are too. I want to make sure I keep folks reading as long as I can. If my blog starts to get lengthy, then I want to make sure every last word is needed and doing a job. I think the use of bullets, imagery, and white space play a role in readability too, but I’m not sure how they play in SEO. Hope that makes sense.

      Liked by 1 person

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