CensoredMost of us start our blogs as a way to speak our minds and share with the world what we really think about a subject in our language.  The restrictions placed on the mainstream media do not apply to us, and the internet has proven time and time again that those who freely speak their minds are often the most popular.

So what happens to your blog - your freedom of saying what you want, the way you want - when you are looking at the possibility of large scale syndication?  What happens when you add advertisers?  Is your blog still yours to do as you please?  If you’re writing about a topic that upsets you, is it still okay to drop the f-word, or should you find a polite way of showing disgust and disrespect?  Can we stay true to ourselves without limiting our chances of success?

We write because we want to entertain, inspire or share information with others.  The more readers we have, the more people we are entertaining.  But with that increase in readership and notoriety, do we change the way we write?

I’ll be the first to admit that there have been several times I’ve taken posts off this site because they might have been too inflamatory.  More often than not, this involves scheduled posts that have not yet made it to the RSS feeds, but there have been two published posts that I have later taken down because of their tone.  Why did I do it?  Because the posts were phrased in such a way that I could have lost readership.

A prime example is a post that was written a few weeks ago about Zimbabwe’s ongoing problems.  I had some very strong words about Mugabe’s decisions and piss-poor planning capabilities and wanted to get them off my chest.  I’m an idiot.  How I manage to walk and chew gum without falling over never ceases to amaze me, but even I know what happens when you destroy your agricultural industries and make decisions based on revenge rather than rational thinking.  The post was entitled "How to Kill A Country in Only 8 Years" and, after reading it several times, it was taken off the scheduled release and sent into the dark recesses of the database.  There wasn’t one positive thing said in the whole article.

Rarely will I use profanity on this site because it detracts readers from the point I’m trying to make (when I actually have a point to make).  The same is true for spelling errors, poor grammar, and over-biased opinions.  It’s been said time and time again that I can write some incredible articles when I sit down and put my mind into it, but the first thing people will critique above all else is how the language was used.  This can be frustrating, but it comes with the territory, I guess.

What about you?  At what price are you willing to alter your writing?  Or do you refuse to change how you write for anyone, regardless of the consequences?