Walter Hutchens’ Blog

Today I am releasing a number of posts and some additional pages I’ve created about my personal history with computers, digital cameras and PDAs/smartphones.

This prompts me to think a bit about my blog’s focus.

Originally my blog was almost exclusively about the regulation of financial markets in China. I continue to follow that area and write about it. It’s the dominant theme of my blog—at least a major theme of it. I expect that to continue.

But my interests are broader. For example, I’ve recently been looking into China’s regulation of foreign participation in higher education. I’m also interested in media in China and the development of the Internet here. More generally, I’ve been passionately interested in information technology for at least 16 years, since I began using computers in college.

So the question arises: what topics should I write about for my blog?

One approach would be to keep this blog narrowly focused on PRC stock market regulation. That’s an attractive approach for several reasons. It gives the blog a clear niche. Having a tight focus would help readers know what to expect. Probably that is the best strategy for building and maintaining readership (however small). Plus, PRC sec reg is something I’ve chosen to work on as an academic; relentless focus could benefit me professionally.

Although the discipline of covering a single area would be good in some ways, this is a blog. Why should I artificially narrow my interests?

I started this whimsically and for myself—as a place to keep up with links to the online material that I read every day. Only writing about one dimension of my life means the blog is less interesting or useful to me, even though writing about more areas may dilute the blog’s interest for (some) other people.

I think the best approach is to give myself permission to write about whatever the hell I want. Imposing a duty on myself to write about only one thing is actually counter-productive. Literally: I produce less when I try to limit myself to one topic.

From October 2004 to July 2005 I posted almost nothing. During that time my attention was wandering “off topic.” I felt fatigued with keeping up with PRC stock market regulation. It was a duty I wanted to escape from, and I did. I simply neglected the blog.

A dead blog doesn’t seem preferably to a topically promiscuous one.

Categories and the magic of search engines and permalinks (specific URIs for each post) will alleviate some of the harm of my going off message.

Perhaps later I’ll publish separate blogs for subsets of posts (first I’ll have to assign posts to categories, something I’ve not done heretofore).

Right now I’m in fact working on a site about PRC education law; maybe later I will create a stand-alone site on PRC securities regulation.

Most personal interests wax and wane over time. One’s personal blog should allow for that.

So, I’m releasing this series of posts about my personal history with personal technology. Apologies to those who could care less. Writing this stuff has helped me maintain my interest in blogging, which over time will I think help me produce more that others (who don’t like this stuff) may care about.