As I sit in on the BlogHer '08 panel entitled "Pursuing Your Passion Never Gets Old", I'm struck by how much the bloghersphere has changed in the scarce three years since the first BlogHer gathering. Then, it was a room full of techies, early adopters, and activists, with vehement discussion around establishing a voice for women in the blogosphere.
Today, I'm listening to Maggie Mason (whose bangs look lovely), Melissa Summers, Evany Thomas, and Sarah Brown talk about how they manage to maintain an interest in their aging blogs, keeping their content fresh and managing their changing relationships within their audience.
This has me wondering...now that every age, interest, and technical sophistication is present, and the feminine voice is loud and clear in social content, what's it like to start a blog? As it happens, I'm here with my 15-year-old stepdaughter Katy. Katy doesn't yet have a blog, but she has had a great time steeping in Web 2.0 this summer via her community management internship with Amy Muller at Get Satisfaction. (Disclosure note: I have a relationship with Get Satisfaction.) Katy's planning to start a blog - probably about music - and as she reads over my shoulder, she's discovering that during a break today, I'm going to make her write a few lines about what BlogHer looks like through newbie eyes.
