I interrupt your usual TMP programming to take a poll!
As some of you may remember, I’ve started second blogs before. They’ve all failed, because they’ve been about things that required extra time on top of my existing commitments — reading more non-required books, testing out products and beauty tips, etc. Most recently I was considering starting a second blog for my old magazine collection, but have decided not to in favor of just adding more posts to the “Historical Context” series here.
…but I’m still tempted to start a second blog, and I’d like to do that by making use of something I already spend my time on: modern films!
Here’s where your input comes in. Would you read a second, NON-daily blog, written by me, focused on post-’70 films? This would entail a discontinuation of the “Modern Movies” posts every month on TMP. If I were to start this second blog, would you rather me start doing ALL post-’70 reviews (Classics of the Corn, Childhood Favorites Revisited, Period Films, etc.) over there, or would you like to see some of those features continue on here?
Basically, my options are:
A) Keep one blog, continue the daily schedule, incorporate modern films more frequently*
B) Keep this blog pre-’70 focused, start a second blog and keep ALL post-’70 films over there from now on
C) Keep this blog, start a second post-’70 blog but keep certain post-’70 features going on TMP**
*I would probably do two posts on some days — one classic, one modern — if I went with this option, in order to accommodate the volume of reviews I’d be writing. There would still be classic content on the blog every day. This blog will always maintain a classic majority no matter which option I choose!
**If you’re interested in this option, tell me which features you’d like to see stick around on TMP
Please leave a comment below and let me know which of these three ideas you like best!
The Motion Pictures 
Hmmm and double hmmm. On one hand, I think it would make some sense to have one blog classic and one blog modern…but then again, I like what you have going now, so why mess with something good? Personally, with my blog, I’d like to keep all my work on one site, yet…I’ve been tempted over the past year to start a side-blog that centers on a particular micro-specific film genre, so…I guess I’m not helping you much, am I?
Okay, here’s my final thought: keep what you have now, and keep it basically just the way it is. I like it, I enjoy it, and in the end, that’s all that really matters, right? Besides, as far as staying caught up with your posts and commenting goes, a second blog would only put me twice as far back as I am now! (Of course, if you choose to run two blogs, I’ll of course stay tuned to both!)
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Oh, good point about people being able to keep up with all of the posts haha! To be fair — the second blog wouldn’t be daily. I’d probably post to it twice a week. So it wouldn’t totally double your reading load. :P But that is definitely something to consider. Thanks for sharing your thoughts!
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No problem! And just to be clear from my end, I love reading your work, and if you put out ten movie blogs (somehow), I’d read them all. I’ve always been an organized person, though, so having everything neatly contained in one blog is just more my style. And don’t worry, I’ll get back to caught-up status with your posts soon!
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I like having everything in one place, too, especially since I’ve already got an Index and categories set up here. I just don’t want to alienate any of the people who visit specifically for classics by doing full-length reviews of modern films more often… but I really want to write them, haha.
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And I hadn’t realized until after the fact that I was recommending modern Westerns to you as well as classics, and wondered then if I’d compromised your site with a few of my picks!
And on’t worry, I think your 2,200+ non-alienated followers are enjoying your site just fine! :)
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For stuff like the Western project and CotC, I don’t care as much about the classic-modern ratio. People seem to read them because of the theme of the series rather than the year the film was released. Expanding to post-’70 reviews in general worries me more for some reason though, haha.
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My advice: sleep on it for a night or two, and if the prospect still worries you, stick with what you’ve got now. And if I make any more bonehead typos in future comments, feel free to fix the stupid things!
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Lindsey #413 in our Comment Proofreading department has been slacking. Tsk, tsk… someone will be getting a demotion this quarter!
I will definitely sleep on it, and see whether I get any other feedback. I wasn’t planning on launching the second blog until January anyway, so I’ve got plenty of time to decide.
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Yeah, and with my luck, I bet she gets demoted to proofreading duties on MY site!
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I agree with Todd. I like the way you have things structured on this website, and adding more modern films would be just fine. Besides, all classic films were new once upon a time. It would actually help me to appreciate cinema, as seen through your lens, even more because the evolution of storytelling, techniques, and so forth would be documented in one place, making it much easier to connect everything.
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Thank you for sharing your thoughts!
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I think you’ve got a great blog going here Lindsey. I’ve only been at this for just under a year but I already know how much work is involved just keeping on top of one blog, let alone two. But my thought is just a simple one – you should do whatever you want so long as it stays fun to do and doesn’t become a chore. I personally can’t see how adding reviews of modern films here would detract too much from your focus on the older stuff.
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It definitely wouldn’t overtake my coverage of older films, simply because I watch a larger number of oldies most months. I already review some modern films for Classics of the Corn and other “special” series, so I guess if those haven’t scared readers away a few more shouldn’t be a problem either, haha. Thanks for sharing your input!
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Just sharing my opinion here, but I am not a fan of 70s and onwards films as much as I am a fan of classic films, so if you write about modern films, I’d probably skip those articles.
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Just out of curiosity, do you currently skip over the posts covering modern films in Book vs. Film, Period Films, Classics of the Corn, etc. posts? Or do you like those, but would skip standard reviews of newer films? Thanks for sharing your input — I knew there’d be at least a few people who wouldn’t care to read about post-’70 flicks, which is completely fine!
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There are some 70 films I might read about,,,,probably the more recent movies, from 1990 on that I just don’t get into all that much. I
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Okay, thanks for sharing! If I decide to expand the blog’s focus, the majority of my posts will still be about old movies. I wouldn’t write about post-’70 flicks more than twice a week.
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Hey – your write it, I’ll read it : )
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Thank you! :)
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I prefer mixing the reviews in a single blog. I mostly don’t watch “modern” movies, but like to occasionally read about them. If you had two blogs, I wouldn’t see any of the “modern” write-ups since I wouldn’t be inclined to subscribe.
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Thanks for sharing your input!
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I would like to add my $0.02 and vote for option A. I like the idea of your site focusing on classics but also adding some notable modern films into the mix. I do enjoy the post-70’s features that you already have on the site and would not mind seeing them expanded or more features added to the mix.
For what it’s worth, the not-totally-silent features that I have on my site (Silents vs Talkies, Silents in Talkies, After the Silents) are often my top posts. I think many readers enjoy a change of pace. I know I do!
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I think I am going to go with A — keep the post-’70 features I’ve got going now and post full reviews of modern films that don’t fit into those categories whenever I’ve got a lot to say about them. Thanks for giving your input :)
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Looking forward to reading what you come up with!
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I have to say I would not follow a second blog, due to time constraints. I like your blog the way it is now because you offer a lot of variety. :)
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Thanks for sharing your opinion! I do realize after giving it more thought that a lot of people probably have trouble keeping up with my daily posts as it is, haha. I think I’m going to stick with this blog and just allow myself to do full reviews of non-CotC/period/adapted post-’70 films when I feel like I have a lot to say about them. :)
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