I am having lots of thoughts today, some of which are appropriate for posting on the interweb and some of which are not, so let's talk about the ones that are, shall we?
VEDA (Vlog Every Day in August) starts up again in two days - appropriately enough on August 1. I have participated and succeeded in vlogging every day in August for the past two years, so I signed up again this year and am hoping I can keep my streak going. It's going to be a challenge with all of the other things I have going on, but I'm going to try for it.
For those of you who don't know, a vlog is a video blog, usually posted on YouTube. That's it. People talking about stuff in video form, and they post it and we all comment on each other's vlogs and it's an interesting way to make friends in this crazy cyber world of ours. The last person I tried dating, I met through VEDA.
The thing about VEDA for me, though, is that I want to make fun videos. I want to make content that is engaging and entertaining and maybe has some production values not found in some other vlogs. I try not to shoot them on my phone if I can avoid it, I try to make sure I am audible and properly lit. I even make the occasional parody video to avoid being just a talking head all of the time. It's fun. A lot of other vloggers look for the real, intimate connection that comes from being a talking head talking about your most intimate moments - fears, hopes, dreams, whatnot. Last year, I felt I missed out on some of the community that forms around VEDA since I was focused on my own content and since I didn't necessarily have a weepy connection video where I poured my heart out. I poured my heart out in other ways, which spoke to a different audience. Which is fine.
So I find myself in the position of wanting to keep myself entertained making these videos as much as I want to keep my audience entertained and engaged. But how much of the community do I sacrifice for the sake of creative content? How much creative content do I sacrifice for the sake of community? I don't know yet. We'll see where the month takes me.
Oh, and if you want to check out the videos I'll be making, you can subscribe to my YouTube channel here. Subscribing ensures you won't miss anything. If you want to check out the other vloggers or join the fun, you can sign up here.
See you on the interweb!