Are we writers or bloggers? My take…WHO CARES!

In the days leading up to and after the Wine Bloggers Conference in Penticton, there has been some…*ahem*…lively discussion amongst the ranks as to whether or not those of who write about wine are bloggers or writers, and if we’re professional about it or amateurs.

My take?

***CAUTION…THIS IS UNFILTERED AND WILL INCLUDE OFFENSIVE LANGUAGE***

Who really gives a flying fuck? Seriously. Why does it fucking matter if we’re writers or bloggers? We’re putting words on a computer screen, so we are, in a sense, writers. Our chosen manner of expression is through a blog, so we’re also bloggers. Right?

Bueller?

Bueller?

Bueller?

It’s not like we’re acting like a bunch of two year olds who are pounding the keys of the keyboard and typing in gibberish. A good majority (we’ll say in the ballpark of 98%) of the posts that I have read from fellow wine bloggers and wine writers are always well thought out, educational and comprehensive. Some are technical, some tell the story of the land, some tell the story behind the wine, some just tell a story of how the wine makes them feel. We see these kinds of stories every day in the media and no one takes them to task about their chosen piece, whether it be a fluffy piece of feel good news or an exposé piece on a piece of shit company with corrupt executives. Why drag a wine blogger over the coals for wanting to blog about every wine they tasted for a year straight? It’s our blog, not yours, so shut the fuck up, mmkay? You don’t tell us what we can and can’t write about, just as we don’t tell you what you can and can’t write about.

Now, I’m not saying that you should start a blog saying, “This wine is yummy!” for every. damn. wine. you. drink. Oh hell no. If you can put together a cohesive thought about the wine, give us a compelling story behind the wine/winery/winemaker/your doings with the wine, then fucking write it, for crying out loud! If all you can say is that the wine is yummy, then I recommend getting one of the many educational books on wine in your local bookstore or chosen method of electronic reader and educating yourself on the nuances of that particular varietal you find delicious and what makes it that way. If you continue to repeat that a wine is yummy all the damn time with no backbone (or adjectives) to describe why it’s yummy, your credibility is going to hit a downward spiral faster than a troubled Hollywood starlet’s career.

…and so ends my rant.

Let’s look at the Merriam-Webster Dictionary definition for both writer and blog, shall we?

writ·er
noun \ˈrī-tər\
Definition of WRITER
: one that writes: as
a : author
b : one who writes stock options

Okay…so I am an author of my posts, and I write, therefore I am a writer.

blog
noun \ˈblȯg, ˈbläg\
Definition of BLOG
: a Web site that contains an online personal journal with reflections, comments, and often hyperlinks provided by the writer; also : the contents of such a site
— blog verb
— blog·ger noun
— blog·ging noun

So I maintain a website that contains reflections, comments and hyperlinks that I provide, AS A WRITER.

So let’s see here…the term blog contains the word writer, so therefore, shouldn’t anyone, amateur or professional, who maintains a blog be considered a writer, no matter what the discipline they write about?

As wine bloggers, we’ve all found our niche and gained a following because of something our readers have found about us that clicks with them. Is it our style? Is it because they have a personal relationship with us? Is it the wines we taste? Is it our area of focus?

We may never know.

But for now, let’s just call it like it is. We’re writers who happen to express ourselves on blogs. We’re “writoggers”.