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Slow Activity On The WordPress.com Reader

Posted byRenard MoreauPosted inBlogging, PeopleTags:, , ,
Slow Activity On The WordPress.com Reader

I enjoy checking out the blogs of bloggers that I am currently following (This is done with the help of the WordPress.com Reader).

While I was perusing the contents of the WordPress.com Reader, I noticed that I stopped seeing posts from more than half of the bloggers I followed back in August 2022.

After some closer investigation (visiting their blogs directly by typing in their respective URLs), I discovered that their blogs have been inactive since late August this year.

What in the world happened to those bloggers?

Truthfully, a lot of things could have happened to them (Oh, I have lots of theories pertaining to their disappearance and I am going to share them with you).

They Are Suffering From A Severe Case Of Burnout

A lot of them were participants of the Blaugust challenge ― a challenge that involved publishing blog posts every day on one’s blog for the month of August.

The truth is that it is difficult for many newbies to keep up with the daily blogging pace.

As a matter of fact, there are many experienced bloggers who are unable to keep up with the pace of blogging daily and that is the reason why a lot of those experienced bloggers have chosen a less hectic blogging schedule for themselves; for example, one that involves publishing content on their blogs weekly, fortnightly, etcetera.

Daily blogging is for those people who have above-average physical and mental stamina.

By the way, if you happen to be one of those bloggers who would like to blog daily, I recommend that you read, How To Write A Blog Post Daily.

They Were Merely Doing Something Constructive For The Month Of August

A large percentage of those people who followed me in August were young; they were a combination of high school students and those who were attending university. Therefore, when it was time for them to regain schooling, they temporarily threw their blogs to the wayside.

So, that could be one of the reasons why I am seeing fewer posts from those that I am following on the WordPress.com Reader.

They were merely doing something constructive for the month of August (keeping their minds active via the creation of blog posts and having a bit of fun blogging) and August has passed.

Okay, fair enough. Educational pursuits come first!

They Do Not Have Internet Access

Not having internet access could have a part to play in their absence from the blogosphere.

Some of these bloggers relied on their parents for acquiring money for their mobile internet plan while others hunted down the location of free WiFi.

So, it could be a case of them not updating their blog until they can get money to purchase a mobile internet plan or until they make the time to hunt down free WiFi.

They Realized That Blogging Was Not For Them

The God’s/Goddess’s truth is that blogging is not for everyone.

Discipline is one of the main prerequisites for blogging (And, if one lacks it, they are not going to do well in the area of blogging).

Dear friend, a disciplined person (especially one who is in love with blogging) is the type of person who makes the time for blogging.

Final Thoughts

I truly hope that those bloggers that are currently missing in action are okay.

I hate it when people abandon their blogs (The feeling is akin to losing someone that was very close to me).

In the meantime, I will be searching the WordPress.com Reader for new blogs to follow.

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96 thoughts on “Slow Activity On The WordPress.com Reader”

  1. You forgot the possibility that some may have chosen to take a step back during September to regain ideas, motivation and/or momentum. Especially those who blogged everyday during August but are not willing to give up on blogging. 🙂

    Liked by 4 people

    1. 🤔 That could be a legitimate possibility, Merel. However, it is the fourth week of September (And, that, in my opinion, is a very long time for a blogger to regain ideas, momentum, etcetera).

      Thank you for participating in the discussion.

      Liked by 3 people

  2. Just on the off chance that I am one of the bloggers whom you found “hibernating”, here is my situation and explanation. I have been migrating several of my blogs from wordpress.com to self-hosting. Although I also moved my followers over, they will not see my new blogs in the Reader. WordPress works in strange ways. There is the wordpress.com community that self-hosted blogs just cannot join. Tags that I assign will not show up for the community. It is like I have disappeared. My blogs are no longer being read – because nobody knows that they are there.

    Liked by 4 people

    2. 🙂 I have read your blog post about that, Ludwig.

      Did you enable the Jetpack plugin on your self-hosted blog? The Jetpack plugin is responsible for likes, tags and for blogs showing up on the WordPress Reader.

      Liked by 3 people

      1. Oh yes. Jetpack is installed on all my sites. It may be “responsible” for blogs showing up in the Reader, but they don’t. Only if a follower adds my blogs to their “Followed Sites” will they show up. Even then tags don’t seem to work.

        Liked by 3 people

    3. @Ludwig This is why I’m so hesitant to go self-hosted. In November I won’t be renewing the Premium Plan. Have you tried installing Jetpack? WP uses Jetpack for connecting within the reader. I’m not sure about the tags though… that might just be a WP thing. I need to do more research on that.

      Liked by 1 person

        1. @Ludwig @Renard I did some research and found that while WordPress.com plans have Jetpack fully loaded, self-hosted plans have the free Jetpack plugin. It’s the WP reader that I want, which is only supported by wordpress.com. The issue I’m having with self-hosting is that they are associated with WordPress.org, so the WP reader isn’t available nor are tag/category options that are included with the WordPress.com interface. Not sure if I’m making any sense, but I don’t want to have to pay for a paid Jetpack plan plus self-hosting 😓 And I don’t want to pay for an overpriced WordPress.com plan either (I currently have the premium plan and it’s SO limited and overpriced for what it is). Only thing I like about my current plan is the WP reader when it’s not glitching and causing problems. Ugh. 😓

          Liked by 5 people

          1. 🙂 Yes, Hilary. Jetpack is fully integrated on both the free and the paid plans on WordPress.com.

            In regards to self-hosted blogs (Those that are over on WordPress.org), a user will have to install the Jetpack plugin.

            Liked by 1 person

          2. The Reader is there for self-hosted sites, however, it requires that followers take an active step to “subscribe”. Tags are available but their use is limited. They are better viewed as another way to categorize one’s own site. The WordPress plans are way too expensive. Self-hosting can be as cheap as $1 per month.

            Liked by 3 people

            1. Interesting. How does one “subscribe” to the reader? I couldn’t find an article about how to do this anywhere. Good to know that the reader is available to those who use WP under a self-hosted site. Yes, the plans are way too overpriced for what they are. There’s so much I still need to figure out before renewing my hosting plan in November.

              Liked by 2 people

              1. It seems that WordPress is constantly changing things. Anything I describe will likely not work that way tomorrow. But some things are bound to stay the same. To do a self-hosted site that works well with others you need several things:
                1) A WordPress account – that is free. This is also the way to set up a free WordPress.com site, but a site is not required.
                2) A registered domain name. Lots of registrars out there. You can register with any of them. You do not need to get hosting from the same provider.
                3) Hosting service. A “home” for your site. WordPress provides hosting at rather high prices. Other providers typically have an array of “plans” – from $1 / month up. For a simple blog, the simplest “shared hosting” will do just fine. Providers have “come-on” prices, dirt cheap, that then roll over at the end of the first year to higher prices. Around $5 to $10 / month.
                4) You need to install “WordPress” on your website. Most providers make that rather easy. Many like to hook you on a more expensive plan.
                5) Once WordPress is installed it works similarly to WordPress.com. Similar dashboard, similar way posts and pages work.
                6) You need to install the WordPress Jetpack plugin. That makes pretty much all the WordPress.com features available – they don’t necessarily work exactly the same, however.
                Hey, this is turning into a blog post – I better stop and move to a blog ….

                Liked by 2 people

                1. You summarized this so well! Thank you for taking the time to reply to me. Yes, I think you should turn this into a blog post lol 😆 Your advice is super helpful and I’m sure this would help a lot of ppl.

                  I’m thinking about going with a site with less hype and will try to avoid sites with steep price hikes. If a price is too good to be true, then it probably is.

                  Liked by 2 people

  3. I guess, like you say, Renard, there are a range of reasons why people may stop. I guess all we can do is support and encourage those who are here in the hope that they will continue. I know from reading other blogs; its good practice to say you’re going to be absent if you’re taking a break. sometimes life just gets busy and it becomes difficult to prioritise blogging time – that’s what happened to me a couple of years ago but I hope this time will be different. I may be doing some of the same posts, but the reason and my focus for blogging this time are different and by posting to my blog I’m keeping myself accountable. Maybe some bloggers need to find/understand why their blogging – maybe they’ll be back.

    I think I understand where you’re coming from with bloggers “disappearing” – you’re spending time getting to know them, encouraging them and then they disappear. This happens with students too – I spend time trying to help them settle in, develop relationships with them, give them tons of support and encouragement and then they leave – and its sad to see them go; sometimes you even think they’re making a mistake, but its their mistake to make.

    We’re still here and we love you Renard 🙂 hehe

    Liked by 4 people

  4. Hi Renard, I think some people are emotional bloggers who write at certain times and not at others, happiness writes white they say. Some blog when feeling low, others when happy. Suspect lots of people when happy are too busy doing other things to blog… For me blogging is therapeutic. Writing therapy. It helps my spill my innermost conflicts and anxieties on to the page. I don’t see my self stopping for some time!

    Liked by 4 people

  5. I started a blog at the end of July and I’m still going! I’m a complete newbie and slowly learned WordPress with YouTube videos and trial and error.

    I’ve been posting just once a week. I try and do one good post that is useful to my target audience of property investors.

    I’ve been surprised how long it takes. Not the writing as such, but the imagines, SEO, meta this and that, planning content on Instagram to dove tail with it, and then my weekly newsletter. I’m also publishing a free ebook (a practical manual on how to be a landlord) this week for my subscribers.
    I’m really loving it though and have started getting nice comments and the subscribers to my newsletter are growing.
    I’m glad I found your blog. It’s really useful and I set up my Gravatar today. Thank you!

    Liked by 3 people

  6. I hope they’re ok too. It wasn’t long ago that I saw that a YouTuber that I enjoyed had passed away suddenly. I turned on his video and his wife was trying to tell his fans the terrible news via live stream. It was heartbreaking- hopefully this folks you follow are all ok.

    Liked by 3 people

  7. Thanks for thinking about this and posting on the topic, Renard. I can see all of the possibilities you mentioned and like you, hope that those who’ve stepped away are doing well, overall.
    I appreciate what Brenda mentioned, too — how helpful it is to see a post indicating that a blogger’s taking some time away if that’s the plan.
    Appreciate you creating a supportive atmosphere for all of us, Renard! 😊

    Liked by 5 people

  8. Interesting Renard. In my seven years of blogging, I’ve found that it’s been best for me to be flexibly consistent — if I can make up a word. There have been times when life has gotten too busy or the ideas don’t come fast enough and it’s been best to slow down my pace of writing. I’m up to three days a week right now and envision it staying that way. If I have slowed things down, I have tried to let my readers know. What trends have you seen with posting dates? Do you see any connections with days/hits. For example, I tend to post right now m/w/f, giving myself a break on the weekend. In the past, I’ve posted m/th. I’ve seen different data on the best days. For me, I think the big thing has been the consistency and keeping to a schedule my readers can expect (especially since I don’t do a lot of other social media.) Anyway, thanks for the insight.

    Liked by 3 people

    1. 🙂 In regards to days, it does not matter which days I post. The important factor is maintaining a high quality where blog posts are concerned.

      There is certainly nothing wrong with taking a break.

      Thank you for voicing your opinion.

      Liked by 3 people

  9. I’ve been on holidays for the past month. While I scratched out a single post in that time, it was something of an effort. While I’m home tomorrow, I’ll be having back surgery on Monday, so things may be a little quiet on my front for a while.

    Liked by 3 people

  13. Sometimes Hibernating or finding a means of a new topic is needed. But, I did notice that the reader is not as hectic as other months. Maybe people are taking it one post at a time?

    Liked by 3 people

  15. Good share. Short story. There was a blog I followed for years, was a big site with high rank and a ton of content. It’s completely gone now. No one knows what happened to the owner. Hundreds of comments on social media about him. Now, it’s rerouted to a completely different url, 1 page, strange ad. No content. Hopefully he’s okay, website helped me tremendously when traveling. Moral of the story, I agree with you, hopefully they’re all doing well.

    Liked by 3 people

  16. I noticed that the WP reader only displays up to 100 blogs in the newsfeed. So if we are following >100 blogs (most of us are), the remaining blogs aren’t going to show up in reader. I often miss new blog posts based on what WP chooses to show me in the feed. I have no control over which blogs WP shows me. I’m guessing that WP chooses the most active ones to show but this is just a theory.

    Every so often, I will thin out the list of blogs I follow. I noticed that many ppl randomly stopped blogging without notice (there were at least 80 inactive/dead blogs out of the 450+ blogs I was following. It’s sad.

    Liked by 2 people

  19. I agree Renard and sometimes I reach out to them if I’ve been corresponding with them on a regular basis. Also as you say they have nothing more to write about, like me sometimes that’s why I love these challenges. The ones that blog everyday or more!! Well it’s hard to keep up with them

    Liked by 1 person

  22. My friend “Keachfan” just came to feel as though his blog had “run it’s course.” I don’t quite know what that means, unless he has simply run out of things to say that he hasn’t already said, probably several times. But much of what he has written bears repeating anyway in my opinion. I “guest posted” there for quite a while. But I guess there’s a point where you think you’re just repeating yourself and nobody is listening anyway. That and failing health has brought my friend to basically hang it up. I wish I could talk him out of it, but that’s probably unlikely to happen.

    I get super busy with stuff and either forget to post or just get too overwhelmed with real life to sit and write. Especially since my promotion to Lieutenant Commander in the Confederate Space Force! No, that’s a joke, something I’m thinking about adding to my own blog. But September is a very busy month for this ol’ boy.

    Liked by 1 person

  24. I appreciate the subject you choose to blog about, sincere post and great effort to make fellow bloggers aware about their presence and that their absence is being felt.

    Liked by 1 person

  25. There are a few bloggers that haven’t posted anything for months and I became concerned something may have happened to them. These are bloggers that have posted consistently for months and even years. I have touched base with them via email to be sure they’re okay. I know one blogger who became very ill and another blogger where his mother is very ill.

    Also, my blogger friend who is a photographer just gave up. after posting for 11 years, with 6500 photos on his blog. He doesn’t like the new editor and feels WP is going to do away with the Classic editor forever. Then he got locked out of his blog and that was the last straw. Both the WP support team and I tried to help him get back into his blog but he’s an older man and said he’s done with it. He has given me permission to use his photos as long as I give him credit, which I have downloaded and compressed many to my computer.

    I would like to blog every day but I need a free day in order to draft new posts and also, catch up with those that participate in my prompts. My prompts take a lot of time but I find it fulfilling and time well spent.

    Liked by 2 people

    1. 🙂 It was rather nice of you to check on those missing bloggers, Eugenia.

      I am aware of bloggers giving up on blogging when the Block Editor was announced as the official WordPress Editor.

      Being locked out one’s own WordPress account is unacceptable (Thankfully, that has not happened to me).

      When you log in and out of your WordPress account regularly, you tend to remember your login credentials.

      There is no rule that states that a blogger should blog every day (Daily blogging is one of those choices that is made by the blogger).

      Thank you for your valuable input!

      Liked by 1 person

  26. Maybe the zeal and fire for blogging died down. It’s hard to be motivated and WordPress is quite glitchy. Besides, it’s good to take break to replenish ideas, don’t you think?

    Liked by 1 person

  27. This is interesting – I was offline for a while and now realise you have been super busy this past month. Good for you. The wordpress reader is great for catching up on those you follow – especially if you’ve been MIA for a while. Nice to be back

    Liked by 2 people

  30. I started blogging again just this month following a 17 month hiatus. I stopped when I was living and working out of my home country for 5 months last year. The work involved live-in Caring and was pretty intense, including commuting between different assignments every few weeks. In the evenings when I finally had some time to myself I would flop down with my laptop and Netflix! I just didn’t have the energy or motivation to think about blogging. And when I returned home last year I completed a TEFL training which, along with other daily demands, left me without the inclination to want to blog. But here I am again, somewhat out of practice, but getting back on that horse🙂. Thanks for all your work Renard- always helpful and inspiring

    Liked by 1 person

  31. “Blaugust” always takes a toll Renard!!
    I missed a week this month….
    And sadly our next post is from THEE Farm where ‘angel’ Purrince Siddhartha Henry was born & will bee a sad update.
    I have lost a few friends here due to them getting very ill. Alot of ‘my crew’ are 60+ & so we lose a few every year…
    I hope people who have burned out will rest & come back!
    Sherri-Ellen the BellaSita Mum & **purrss** BellaDharma who miss her friends Shoko & Tyebe in British Columbia, Canada…….

    Liked by 1 person

  32. I did a daily post for my first month just to get my blog out there. Now I’m doing 5 posts a week (Tuesdays and Thursdays are the only days I don’t have a scheduled post) to focus more on what I love to write about, one of which is my series on writing as a whole

    Liked by 1 person

  33. Honestly, since the WordPress changes, those links are broken. If you search a blogger, you can find them.

    And, many of us are now rolled into a different program. I think the new WordPress plans have destroyed the users who made WordPress what it is.

    I believe it accounts for the low views everywhere and is not accurate.

    I’m locked in a WordPress plan under what they call a “legacy account”.

    The algorithm turned into narcissism capitalism espionage.

    I’m still around tho even if my links are broken – like the many active users I have found (but had to go out of my way to do a search)

    Just an FYI as my views dropped significantly too

    Liked by 1 person

    1. 🤔 Hmm. So, WordPress and its changes have wreaked havoc on searchability?

      Okay, that is something to look into.

      From what I have noticed is that people who are on the paid plans tend to have a lot of problems with WordPress.

      Thank you for participating in the discussion.

      Like

  34. Hi Renard,
    You’re right about how almost all the high schoolers and university students put away blogging when it comes to academics and related stuff.. You see, I’ve a list of blogging topics to cover up, but I haven’t got the time to blog about them. It amazed me how accurate your blog posts are..

    Liked by 2 people

  36. Okay Renard Thank you for pointing out which bloggers are MIA(Missing in action) and why they have vanished into thin air. As for myself, I barely disappear for that long, if I happen to take a break from blogging it is normally 2-3 weeks but not an entire month. Right now, I have decided to take a break this whole week from writing a blog , I will continue this October first week, sometimes a break is needed to get the creative juices back again because if you overdo it a burnout will happen.

    Liked by 1 person

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