Why I Should Have Influence...

People should listen to what I have to say about MMA because I know what I'm talking about. Simply put, there aren't many competent sports writers who fully understand and appreciate MMA yet. Being a fan of the sport for over 4 years and watching countless events presented by numerous organizations. I am well educated about the techniques and disciplines found in the sport, and have a great deal of knowledge and interest in the fighters as well. I know a wealth of reputable sites about MMA on the internet that I can base my posts around as well. My knowledge and understanding about the sport will shine in my blog.
People should trust me as a credible source because although I am a writer, I am also a fan. I wouldn't want to disrespect the sport by posting false information or be biased towards a certain fighter or organization. As, being trained as a journalist, I don't want to lose my journalistic integrity by not being truthful. This is why I should have influence in my blog.

My Enthusiast Blog

I have chosen the topic for my blog: Mixed Martial Arts (MMA). It is my favorite sport and I follow it religiously. It is specific enough because it is a specific sport, but its not too narrow because I can choose from a wide array of fighters and promotions (organizations) to write about in my blog. I would like to satisfy the stimuli of MMA fans and give them the information and insight they lack in mainstream sports companies (like ESPN).
That said, the audience I want to attract would be the MMA and combat sports fan. I think they would like to see an interesting MMA topic (ex: the newly announced headliner for the next fight card) posted, except with insight from a true fan and someone who knows almost everything there is to know about the sport. What I don't think they'd want to see is me half-assing this like many other online MMA publications do. What I mean by that is while some sites do provide new information about the sport, some of them are biased towards certain fighters and organizations, or post wild, unaccountable rumors. I would never do things like that.
I would try to write like a sports radio broadcaster talks. What I mean by that is give in-depth AND fair insight on a topic. Also, I'd inject my opinion if I feel it is applicable, or to get a few laughs. It will support my blog's focus because I don't think there are enough writers in the world who are as passionate about the sport as me, and I hope that my writing can one day help MMA get to the mainstream.

Potential Titles: MMA Madhouse, The Angry MMA Nerd, Cage Writing Fury (a take on the Cage Fighting Fury Championships organization)

Potential Post Ideas: Fedor fighting for Strikeforce, Randy Couture back to the light-heavyweight division, the rollercoaster career of Paulo Filho, the return of Ricardo Arona, Kimbo Slice on The Ultimate Fighter TV show

Ideas for My Clubhouse Blog

After looking through technorati.com and thinking about my own interests, here are the ideas I have for my clubhouse blog:

1. Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) - This is my favorite sport. I would make posts about news, upcoming fights and events surrounding the fighters and organizations of MMA, and give my take on them.

2. Heavy Metal - My favorite type of music. I would post news and information about my favorite bands and musicians in the genre and talk about what I feel about it, and I'd even posts some CD reviews if it were ok.

3. Anime - Anime is my guilty pleasure. I'd make posts about certain series and give my thoughts on them, and post and give my take on new series that would be released.

4. Freestyle Motocross - My 2nd favorite sport. I was thinking of doing things like talking about all the crazy new tricks and give my take on them as well as the riders who created them.

5. Bad Horror Movies - I was thinking of reviewing bad horror movies, not to show how bad they are, but base it on how funny they are because they fail so badly at being scary. I don't know why, but I like movies like that.

Response to Stefanac

Stefanac was a good piece to read. What it said made a lot of sense to me. He described enthusiast blogs very well and gave good examples, like car blogs. The biggest thing I took away from the piece was when he interviewed the main blogger from one of the popular car blogs. I like how he explained that most people do enthusiast blogs because they are passionate about something and want to share their passion with other people. I agree whole-heartedly with that sentiment because I find it is much easier and much more fun to write about a topic that I'm interested in rather than one I'm indifferent about. That being said, I also liked how he described how bloggers generally receive little to no money for blogging. Personally, I follow and enjoy a lot of clubhouse and/or enthusiast blogs, and I do like how passionately they talk about the subject. I share the many of the same sentiments that were described in this article, and I'm sure it will help me with my blogging.

Response to Rebecca Blood's "Weblogs: A History and Perspective

Rebecca Blood's essay about the history of blogging was an interesting read. It was interesting to know how few and far between internet web logs were ten years ago. Today, by comparison, anyone can start a blog about anything they please, which is something Blood also touched on in her piece. I liked how she explained what filter blogs were. Without even knowing it, I found out that I look at a few filter blogs every week. The key part of her piece to me was when she said that blogging can help a person become more intellectually sound. Being a journalism major, I consider myself a writer. From my perspective, I find it much easier to express my opinions, emotions, and critiques through writing rather than spoken word. I cannot agree more with her on these sentiments. When someone comments on my writings and critiques, I gain confidence not only in my writing, but my intellect as well, just as she suggested. Blogging is becoming more and more common with people writing about more and more things. I think it is a way of stimulation for the writer, and it can also be entertaining and even informative for the reader. I was happy to see that someone shares these sentiments with me.

I'd say I have some good experiences with blogging. As an author, I've never published a blog, but it's something I've always thought about doing seeing as it's a fun and creative way to express myself. As a reader, I have read and do frequent blogs on a regular basis. This is because of my interests in culture. I'm a fan of things like heavy metal music, anime (Japanese animated cartoons), and the sport of mixed martial arts. Much of the news that goes around involving these sports are what Rebecca Blood referred to as "filter news" in her piece. Much of the news about these things slips through mainstream sources, and are picked up by bloggers passionate about the topic. I find much of the news and information that I'm interested in about those topics from blogs. I find them to be a very resourceful tool.

What is Writing?

To me, writing is a way for people to express themselves the way they see fit. You can write for pleasure, to entertain or educate others, or simply to express how you're feeling. Writers are able to make words come alive in the minds of readers who are seeking to satisfy their needs, whatever those needs may be. Writers also may just be looking to explain their thoughts through words. Some, like myself, find it easier to explain my thoughts and emotions through writing rather than spoken word. My favorite writing environments are reading articles about my favorite music, sports, and shows. When I write, I like to be alone in my room or a comfortable space where I can write memiors of what's going on in my head.