This post is about #WCV11 and offering some opinions about the event. There was lots of positive energy at the opening event and Paul Holmes was energetic.

Right now I am at a blogging panel and it’s great to hear seasoned bloggers talking about their experiences blogging. Glad to know that some schedule and others just blog when they get a chance.

I try to blog when I feel like I have something to say, but there are definitely other times when I will schedule blogs. For me, it’s a matter of organization and those epiphany moments. Then, there is also responding to politics, news, popular culture, or even something that might have taken place at work.

I also blog when I feel inspired about something and need to share it or perhaps just write about it. Learning lots from the three speakers–Lorraine Murphy, Mike Vardy, and Rebeca Bolwitt. I follow Murphy on Twitter and love her posts that combine commentary about Social Media and culture.

I appreciate the flow of the panel–definitely geared to discussion with the attendees. Smart to have a microphone for questions. That said, why does everyone seem to want to make money from blogging? Does it have to be monetized?

In response to the question about making money from blogging Lorraine Murphy explains, “Long form more thoughtful essays” are on the upswing.  I am not looking to make money from blogging, but rather make connections with people in academe, in my community, and in politics. To clarify, when I say community, I actually mean the multiple communities that I have: on campus, women, Latinas/os, Americans, feminists, etc. Lots of different communities.

Mike Vardy is speaking to the importance of making more connections–guest posting can be useful, as well as Tweeting in order to hit different groups and sites. Good point. Overall, enjoying Word Camp and like that there are three different streams to the conference: Beginner, Advanced, and Mixed Tape, which offer attendees different tracks.

I will make some suggestions, though, the panel sessions needed short abstracts to explain the presentation. I loved the coffee, rooms, overall location, free parking, and it’s been great to meet more people face to face, too. Without even asking, got offered notes from a great Nerds On Site employee! She took notes at a panel that I didn’t go to and immediately emailed me notes. How cool is that?!

There are still more panels to go, but wanted to share these preliminary comments about the event.