07 | January | 2011 | The Dragonfly Woman

Lots of bloggers have summarized 2010 in the past few weeks, highlighting their best posts, photos, recipes, etc and pondering the past. I learn from the past, but I like to look forward too. Today’s Friday 5 probably won’t be that exciting to read, but here are 5 goals I have for The Dragonfly Woman in 2011:

1. Host a blog carnival. Every time I read about how the mega-popular blogs became so popular, one things crops up over and over: the top bloggers read a lot of other blogs. I read one statistic that said these bloggers typically subscribe to 100+ other blogs! I don’t know about the rest of you, but I don’t have anywhere near that kind of free time. I have to be a lot more selective, not to mention I have a lot of interests outside entomology that demand my attention. Blog carnivals are nice because they prompt me to read posts on blogs I don’t subscribe to. I love blog carnivals! It seems only fair that I pull my weight and host one.

2. Keep up with the twice a week posting schedule. Recently I’ve posted early in the week (generally Tuesday) and on Fridays. I want to keep this pace going, maybe even bump it up to three posts a week once I’m finished with my Ph.D. I wish I could blog every day, but as described in goal #1, I don’t have enough time to do the type of blog posts I like to do on a daily basis. This goal is more reasonable with my schedule.

3. Have more contests. I love entering contests on other blogs and, as I mentioned in the craft post I wrote a few weeks ago, I really like to make stuff. So, I’ll give away some of the stuff I make on my blog. I’ll shoot for, oh, once every two months. Look out for the first contest of 2010 in a week or two!

My favorite photo (not necessarily the best) from 2010: Palo verde beetle

4. Improve my photography skills. It’s beginning to drive me nuts when I can’t get quite the right shot of something I want to post on my blog. I think I’m a decent photographer at my current skill level (which is enough to put the camera in full manual mode and get a decent shot most of the time), but I am also becoming increasingly aware of my many limitations. I want to be more like Alex Wild, Jason Hogle, or Ted MacRae, all people who take great photos and put them on their blogs. To become more like them I must practice, practice, practice! It’s also high time I figure out how to use a flash. I have avoided using flashes for years because it seemed like too much work to learn how to use them properly, but I’m finding I need one for a lot of the macro shots I want to take. Wish me luck!

5. Keep the quality of content at its current level. My primary goal in creating/maintaining my blog has always been to provide information about insects, especially aquatic insects. I of course like to mix things up with stories and posts about artists and books, but it’s all part of the vision I have for my little corner of the internet. I am selectively perfectionistic about various things in my life and this blog is one of them. I might not always catch every typo (I do proofread, but things slip through now and then) and sometimes I go back and read something a year later and think to myself, “Whoa! What was I thinking?” when I come across a particularly poorly worded sentence. I’m okay with that. However, I do try to provide accurate information in a visually appealing manner to the best of my abilities. Even if I don’t get around to figuring the whole photography thing out, never have a single contest, or end up going weeks without posting anything new, I will avoid skimping on content.

So, those are my blogging resolutions for 2011! If you have comments, suggestions, or would like to share your own blogging resolutions for the year, leave a comment below. I’d love to get some new ideas and hear more about how other bloggers approach their blogging experience.

Here’s to a great 2011!

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