Julie Moos: For many mothers, reading and writing blogs is a great way to feel less isolated and to learn from the experiences of women you might not otherwise meet. They may be different from you in lots of ways and yet you find more common ground than you expect. Blogging is a great way to write publicly. There are many advantages for writers, like getting instant feedback. What I dislike most is getting nasty or spam comments. That can be disheartening.
 

Rachel: A disadvantage might be that you don't have a hard copy of this stuff. Some catastrophic computer failure at my friend's end, and it's all gone, forever. I like that it keeps me writing every day.
What I dislike is that there seems to be cliques and 'popular' blogs, and people referencing each other and trying to start memes and proclaiming each other 'Queen of the Blogosphere,' etc. I'm a naturally competitive person, and so the temptation to get drawn into that stuff and forget why I'm really doing this is there. It is easy to succumb to jealousy if someone's a better writer, or more popular, or when people get book deals. I really try to keep myself separate from all that. There are a handful of other blogs I read, and that's it.
 

Eve: I look forward to looking back and seeing what it was like now for us, for them.
 

Marcia Lynx Qualey: Certainly, I'd prefer to be remunerated for my work.
 

Susan: Advantages/Likes- 1) It is a record of my children's childhood 2) I's a great way to let long distance friends and family members see what is going on with us. 3) I really enjoy writing it. Disadvantages/Dislikes- 1) I sometimes feel pressure to post when I don't feel like it. 2) I have to be very careful because of privacy issues.
 

BusyMom: I think blogging provides a place to share and an outlet for writing. I have also 'met' some really nice people. I don't think there's anything I dislike except that it helps me to procrastinate sometimes.
 

Dawn Friedman: I blog because I'm a writer. That's the whole deal with me. Back in high school I carried a green steno pad everywhere; now I blog. As far as disadvantages, well, sometimes I feel the weight of my visitors and it gives me writer's block. But there, that's something to learn to muscle through.
 

Lizbeth Finn-Arnold: I've actually made a bunch of contacts including two newspaper interviews on my blog. Since I am a writer, this is a very easy way to showcase my style of writing. Blogging has also given me a built-in audience and helped me create a distinctive voice. Ultimately, for any writer, blogging offers instant gratification - it's great to have you readers respond instantly. I love the community of bloggers and I like the creativity that it inspires in me. I dislike the fact that I can get so caught up in it that I procrastinate on my other writing.
 

Emily Peterson: I can't think of any disadvantages, because you get to choose the content, and just how much you are willing to share. No one knows more than you are willing to type.
 

Jenn: An advantage to blogging would have to be the instant gratification of getting feedback immediately. Oh sure, you get your share of negative comments, but who wants to hear only the good stuff? I could go to my mom for that. I also love that I am challenged to write on a daily basis. I would write even if no one read it. It is my passion. It exercises that writer's muscle referred to as my brain. A disadvantage is also blogging daily. Sometimes it isn't there, yet you feel the pressure to come up with something. Anything. If you have set yourself as a humor blog, when you aren't feeling funny, you feel like you are cheating anyone who comes back to read you. And of course, there are the negative just to be negative comments. Although, those usually amuse me. I also dislike the pressure to be read, as well as people asking (or bragging) about stats and hits and who reads them. It just isn't that important to me. If one person enjoys what I write, that makes me happy.
 

Andrea: Some people watch TV to relax, but I like to write. For me there is some level of catharsis in this. I get a real sense of enjoyment out of the process. I like reading other posts on a select number of other sites. I am continually inspired and impressed by other people's efforts. That's part of the reason I really enjoy participating in DotMoms. It's a great group of women, writing about a topic that's close to my heart. I've also received paid work from my blog.

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