What enables someone to fling themselves into the Blogosphere, pushing past fear of failure in a very public way?  I think it’s a combination of knowledge, chutzpa, and knowing they’re not alone.  I salute these brave souls.

I’ve talked about “launching a blog” for several months, studying books and websites which espouse the rules of creating a web log.  I lurked, strategized, planned and started listing out my tasks.  But I like to get things right.  And the prospect of baring my soul before being completely ready – much like many writers – turned me into an immobilized skydiver, quivering at the open door of a plane, staring down at the world of WordPress below.

Today, my internal pilot took control.  She accused me of wasting precious fuel and pushed me out of the plane.

So here I am, hurdling into this aspect of my online journey with what I’ve learned to date.  Successful bloggers note that the best blogs serve to educate their readers.  They communicate in a way that’s consumable, entertaining, and they inspire people to connect.  Kristen Lamb, in her book, Are You There, Blog?  It’s Me, Writer, explains how blog postings should be true, helpful, informative, necessary and kind.  I plan to take these teachings to heart.  And since I want to enjoy what I’m doing, I hope the things I’m passionate about can be made of service to my readers.

I own a small plaque painted with a quote from John Burroughs, “Leap and the net will appear.”  I guess it’s about time to dive into the discussion.  Maybe, my followers might want to come along?  I just hope that, like me, they don’t take too long to jump in!