#Oh and I ought to clarify I've specifically been seeing MORE activity on my blog recently...

[yvesdot]

I'm going to be the five-year-old lone voice to the contrary and say... it's always this way! I hear a "does writeblr seem less active lately?" every few months. This as, of course, writeblr maintains its top 10 spot in Tumblr's Communities list year after year after year. So, why does writeblr so often feel dead?

If you're following, say, twenty writeblrs, and one does each of the following:

deletes their blog because writing was a phase they're out of

deletes their blog because they're merging the content with their main blog

goes on temporary hiatus

goes on permanent hiatus (especially accidentally)

changes their icon and URL such that you accidentally unfollow them

changes what they blog about such that you purposefully unfollow them

doesn't post often, because they only post original fiction

doesn't post often, because they're not as into writing

has a drastically different time zone from you

has the same time zone, but uses Tumblr completely differently

...you might see, on any given day, only ten writeblrs on your dash!

That's just the nature of writing. People can't drop original writing daily, and most people aren't obsessive about The Discoursethetic of Writing. It's a difficult hobby to really sit down and do consistently, let alone also dedicate an entire separate blog to. Most people do not get invested in blogging-about-writing on a daily basis permanently. It is far more common, in my experience, for a blog to eventually go on extended hiatus than it is for it to stick around. I maintain this blog consistently, but very few of the people who were around when I got here are still here in the same way. I am a professional writer-- meaning, I get paid to do it-- so Tumblr is my professional social media. I'm not surprised most people can't dedicate that much time to what is often a thankless, effortful, and time-consuming hobby. (It's also, as others said, mid-"Holiday Season" and post-NaNo and mid-COVID and etc.)

Tumblr has many fandom circles, though, and there's likely a group of active writers right next door to you whom you haven't met yet. I'd never seen you around before, but Tumblr delivered me this post on Explore: Hello! Nice to meet you! So, the good news is that this problem is easy to solve. I follow the #writeblr intro tag, tag writeblrs in my activity for tag games, participate in events, chat in the Welcome to Writeblr server, and try to be loud when I like something. You can also always make a new writeblr intro/promo post and openly state that your dash is dry. Right now the Twitter Exodus is lending us a lot of new blood! If you keep reaching out, you'll build a circle that can last even when some of the fringes fall off.

I also want to add that, since I've just spent thirty minutes typing this out and I'll undoubtedly link back to it when future people pose the same question, I love everyone who asks this. I love the concern and support shown for other writers. I love seeing people express care for those around them. I think it's incredible that you're asking in the first place, and I'm so glad to see the response you're getting. I hope you've found some new folks this way!

Does writeblr seem quieter lately for others? I’ve never been “popular,” so I’m used to notes being small, but even other writer mutuals I’ve barely seen get active.