It was a near thing. There were some days I had to post my updates in the wee hours. But we soldiered on together, and learned a lot.
In the past, I've examined Facebook likes. Not this time. This time we're looking at views per post, which seem to be pretty reliable, somehow. I used to be weirded out by the fact that I had readers apparently in Russia, which could only mean some bots or other person not actually reading any of it, but they represent only 5% of my total views, and at least 92% of from America, so I think they're trustworthy enough.
My views aren't included, of course.
The numbers tell a story.
It's a story of gradual disengagement! Not what I was hoping to see, but I'm not that surprised. I could feel myself losing steam as the month went on, and there were more and more late-night posts, which tend to get a much lower response. The lesson is clear: target people when they're at work! That's when everybody is camping out on Facebook and looking for blogs to read.
My least popular post was light in dark corners. It was a non-poetic stream-of-consciousness-type meditation on where I am in life right now. It's a low-context post, which seem to be among the least well-received (except by some very vocal individuals). It was posted September 29th.
The most popular was the road of savvy thorns, a more traditional narrative interwoven with comparisons between fixing machines and helping unhappy people. It was high-context, had references to Shakespeare and Melville, and nobody spoke up about liking it especially well, but it was very well-received by these general measures. I don't do a lot of this kind of post, but maybe I should. It was posted September 2nd.
But I don't think what I chose to write had all that much to do with the popularity (with notable exceptions like my drunken post, which I find to be utterly hilarious despite its absolutely shameful admission). I think people just get a little overwhelmed with seeing this stuff every day, and they think "oh, I'll get around to it", and then they don't. I think this because that's what I do, all the time, except when I set myself a specific challenge, and let the sense of competition motivate me. Well, I'm motivating you all right now. Go read my stuff! You won't regret it.
Mainly, I am excited that I was able to accomplish this challenge despite having a daughter to care for. My wife deserves much of the credit for that, because she was understanding and accommodating of my desire to write. But my friends have assisted as well, and I thank you all.
It's reassuring to know that my favorite people will always be there to support me in my favorite activity. I only hope I can do the same for all of you.
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