Over the next few days, I’m going to catch up on my meme homework by answering three memes. All three of them are something more than link farms. Like Dawud Miracle said, the best memes…
create engaging conversation that leads to dynamic and lasting relationships.Â
In fact, the best ones are creative games that get the juices flowing by answering composition questions for the writer.
1.They provide an occassion.
(I’ve been tagged.)2. They provide an audience.
(Every meme is read by the tagger at least.)3. They provide a simple purpose for a post.
(Answer the question.)
And they provide all kinds of questions. What makes you think? Why are you productive? Why do you blog?
The only thing a blogger has to do is come up with an answer. That’s the subject of your meme post. The trick is to make the subject fit with the content of your blog. I’ll do my best over the next few days.
If you’re like me, you have conflicting emotions about memes. When someone tags me, I think: “Cool! Someone thought of me. I’m not alone in this deep dark cyberworld after all!” then “Darn it! I have to participate in another stupid meme.”
What do you think of memes? When someone tags you, what is your honest first response?
{ 9 comments… read them below or add one }
I used to think, “Oh no!” because I have this vision of myself as an author who will be taken seriously (after the book comes out). And memes seem, well, so meme-ish. (They make some people squeamish.)
But now, I totally take the opportunity to have fun in a way I don’t otherwise do on my blog. Check it out, playing at Seedlings RIGHT NOW.
Could you define Meme for me? There are quite a few definitions out there and I’d like to now exactly what your talking about (that blast in the last post left my brain reeling
Is LL’s four sythia post a meme? If so have the same mixed feelings as you do, Mark.
I fluctuate between “I’m loved” to “groan, more work” to “do I really want people to know me that well online”.
Hi Marcus
I have mixed feeling about meme’s. Especially when it ‘involves’ ranking efforts. Only if a meme is about generating conversations I will ‘take-it-on’.
Robert Hruzek has done something else: a group writers project, would you consider that a meme? It was great fun participating, as was with the ‘Gotta-get-goals’ meme and the Ultimate Guide to Productivity.
It does give you the chance to ‘meet’ other, new interesting bloggers.
I agree. Ideally, memes should be selected that fit your blogging goals and, ideally, add as much benefit to your readers as to your traffic.
There’s something sort of e-mail-forward-ish about memes, but truly, I’ve only been tagged twice so far, and both times I was kind of flattered.
glad that someone is reading enough to think of me – and then a slight panick as to how to tell the truth and edify at the same time.
Mark, TAG, you’re it! (of course, ignore this tag if you’re too busy
I didn’t realize what a “meme” was until reading this post. I have the same sort of schizophrenic thoughts about them as others who have commented. I am always flattered to have been tagged, but I rarely tag others because I’m still not sure of the etiquette in the blog world. How well do you have to “know” somebody out here before tagging them? What do you do if they choose not to “play”?