Gauravonomics Blog

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Diogenes at ‘Quasi Fictional Views’ asked me to contribute a piece for her ‘Fine Art of Blogging’ project. Blogging biggies like Liz Strauss and Chris Garrett have contributed to the project previously and I’m truly touched that Diogenes asked me to participate. Diogenes asked me to answer a few questions about my blogging and here’s the piece as it appears on her blog.

What is my blog to me?

At the simplest level, my blog is a repository of my thoughts and ideas. It is also a white board where I experiment with words and projects, a place where I try to find my voice as a writer, and a project that will become my purpose, my calling, or my legacy. My blog is also a medium to create new conversations with people I wouldn’t have met otherwise, and some of these conversations have already become entrenched into friendships.

Why do I blog?

I started blogging because I wanted to be a writer, to write for a living, but wasn’t sure if I had the voice or the discipline to shape it into literature. Blogging was one way to find out.

Quick Summary: Read about how I entered the Technorati Top 100 Most Favorited Blogs list.

Gauravonomics is a Technorati Top 100 Most Favorited Blog now!

A big “Thank You!” to everybody who made it possible.

A Little Background First: My 30 by 30 List

I made a little list sometime back - ‘Thirty Things I Want to do Before I am Thirty’ -

The interesting thing about my 30 by 30 list is that every single thing on it looks impossible today… But, if I do manage to do all thirty, what a story it will be! So, even though I know that the odds are impossible, I’m doing it anyway, because, never again in my life, will I be young enough, or foolhardy enough, to even try something as insane.

- and ‘Take Gauravonomics into the Technorati Top 100 List’ was one of the more ambitious items on my list.

My Technorati Favorites Exchange

When Dosh Dosh broke into the Technorati Top 100 Most Favorited Blogs list by running a Technorati Favorites exchange program I realized that -

Today’s Desi Blog of the Day is Random Thoughts of a Demented Mind by GreatBong aka Arnab.

Three reasons why I love Arnab’s blog -

- There are no sacred cows on Arnab’s blog and nobody and nothing escapes his razor sharp satire.
- Arnab’s headers are often laugh out loud funny.
- Arnab’s devotion to Mitunism is now legendary.

My tip to Arnab: How can I even presume to offer a blogging tip to the master himself? But, if I must, consider adding some navigation elements on the sidebar for your single posts.

So, why is Random Thoughts of a Demented Mind the Desi Blog of the Day? Because in the Hundred Must Read Desi Blogs list, he would define ‘Must Read’ for most desi blog readers.

PS: I just realized that Arnab has 1100+ feed subscribers; I’m not sure if another desi blog has half as many.

Also see - BlogTipping and Hundred Must Read Desi Blogs.

Today’s Desi Blog of the Day is Trivial Matters by Akshay Mahajan.

Three reasons why I love Akshay’s blog -

- Akshay has an amazing eye for finding a story in people and places most of us don’t even notice.
- Not only does he photograph people beautifully, he tries to really understand them, and it shows in his sensitive photo-essays.
- His photographs make Bombay look even more beautiful than it is.

My tip to Akshay: Consider adding a “best posts” section in your sidebar and check out Blogger’s custom domain name service - trivialmatters.org and akshaymahajan.org are still available.

So, why is Trivial Matters the Desi Blog of the Day? He converted me into a cameraholic.

Also see - BlogTipping and Hundred Must Read Desi Blogs.

Check out the new version of my Technorati Favorites Exchange which allows you to be automatically favorited and discovered by hundreds of new blogs across the world.

Dosh Dosh has managed to break into the Technorati Top 100 Most Favorited Blogs list at #31 by running a Technorati Favorites exchange program -

Create a post on your blog announcing that you are exchanging Technorati favorites. Prominently include a link to this post to indicate that there is a similar exchange going on at Dosh Dosh.

Once I’ve noticed the link via trackback or Technorati, I’ll include a link to your post on Technorati favorites in this post itself so readers here can visit your blog to participate if they want to.

While it is really difficult to break into the Technorati Top 100 Most Linked Blogs list, it is easier to break into the Technorati Top 100 Most Favorited Blogs list because you only need about 125 people to add you to their Technorati Favorites list.

Today’s Desi Blog of the Day is Sonia Faleiro’s blog.

Three reasons why I love Sonia’s blog -

- I love how Sonia mixes around well-written journalistic pieces with trivia about pop culture and humorous personal posts about her dog.
- Not only does she have a way with words, she also tells stories with her photographs - check out her photo essays.
- She’s perhaps one of the prettiest desi blogger-writers around.

My tip to Sonia: Ever thought about moving your blog to soniafaleiro.com/blog? I’m sure Blogger’s custom domain name service can handle that.

So, why is Sonia’s blog the Desi Blog of the Day? How many desi bloggers are that pretty, or write that well?

PS: If you didn’t notice, I have a small huge crush on Sonia.

Also see - BlogTipping and Hundred Must Read Desi Blogs.

Today’s Desi Blog of the Day is ‘Ultrabrown’ by Manish Vij.

Three reasons why I love Ultrabrown -

- Manish writes about desi popular culture with the depth and range of an insider - such a rare thing.
- He has an uncanny ability to find comedy in unusual situations and his humour is always spot on.
- He uses the coolest post-a-story plugin in his sidebar.

My tip to Manish: All the other Ultrabrown contributors have great blogs of their own, but they aren’t writing many original posts at Ultrabrown. Wouldn’t it be better to either have contributors who blog regularly without cross-posting (like at Sepia Mutiny), or have no contributors at all?

So, why is ‘Ultrabrown’ the Desi Blog of the Day? Have you ever wondered why Gauravonomics is so wannabe-Ultrabrown?

Also see - BlogTipping and Hundred Must Read Desi Blogs.

Today’s Desi Blog of the Day is ‘Jabberwock’ by Jai Arjun Singh.

Three reasons why I love Jai’s blog -

- Nobody else writes as prolifically or as beautifully about books and movies as him.
- His interviews are more personal and insightful than any other I have read on desi blogs.
- He manages to make even his rants read like literature.

My tip to Jai: Move to your own domain using Blogger’s custom domain name service; jaiarjun.com is available as of today (I checked).

So, why is ‘Jabberwock’ the Desi Blog of the Day? Because Jai makes me want to be a ‘writer’, instead of the ‘linker’ that I am.

Also see - BlogTipping and Hundred Must Read Desi Blogs.

Today’s Desi Blog of the Day is ‘Uber Desi’.

Three reasons why I love ‘Uber Desi’ -

- They discovered Sanjaya Malakar and Shyamali Malakar.
- They have the coolest rotating header images ever.
- Gauravonomics is one of the seven ‘Uber Reads’ on their sidebar.

My tip to Uber Desi: Think of what next after Sanjaya Malakar.

So, why is ‘Uber Desi’ the Desi Blog of the Day? Because they are the only other desi pop culture blog worth reading, apart from ‘Sepia Mutiny’ and ‘UltraBrown’.

Also see - BlogTipping and Hundred Must Read Desi Blogs.

Today’s Desi Blog of the Day is ‘The Chardonnay Files’ by Perspective Inc.

Three reasons why I love ‘The Chardonnay Files’ -

- I eagerly wait for her stories that always have a twist ending I couldn’t think of.
- Her measured pieces of poetry are often on my mind.
- She is funny too, when she wants to be.

My tip to Perspectives: The template! I totally hate it! Change it now! Please!

So, why is ‘The Chardonnay Files’ the Desi Blog of the Day? Because few bloggers write so simply and so well.

Also see - BlogTipping and Hundred Must Read Desi Blogs.