Raven: "I hope we're not getting too competitive"

Christian Crumlish

Being Judgemental.

What I like to do is look around at other people's blogs. Since my blog is here at Salon, I tend to look at salonblogs at least as much as I check out other people's work elsewhere. Sure, I'm a bit critical, but life is short and you can't read everything. So I read what I like, and pass on the rest.

Maybe it's the Fried Green al-Qaedas blog with the "Quality Tour," but I hope we're not getting too competitive. There are a few exchanges going on out there along the lines of "this blog is no good," and I'm wondering what that's all about.

It's fun to write, and enjoyable to comment on other people's work, too. This is, in a very literal sense, a writer's salon. If you think your work is valuable, then it is, and no one can take that away from you. Yet I can't help but feel that a "10 worst blogs" posting targeted at writers here is trying to do exactly that.

Should we expect to like everything we read here? I don't. Not any more than I expect my newstand or bookstore to enchant me with every selection.