Blogging and Concealing One's True Self

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I've been thinking about writing a blog for ages now. I don't do anything very well, but I have a head bursting with ideas and opinions. Opinions that are more or less impossible to air to those around me for a variety of reasons. From lack of understanding to finding my viewpoint excessively negative of the greatness of human civilization. Probably many AS people can understand that a lifetime of being on the receiving end of contempt can make one rather bitter....

A blog would seem a good solution to this. However I have two major worries that have caused me to become stuck in procrastination. Both to do with hiding one self away for protection. Firstly, on the surface level, I must admit to being very critical of my employer and the whole system of big corporations pillaging the planet and it's people for their personal profit. So I'm worried that I'd destroy my employment chances. It's not that I'm purely critical. There are loads of ideas for constructive criticism and ways to run a business in a more enlightened manner. Ideas that the majority of employers totally ignore for reasons I'd like to explore.

The other worry is that of hiding my self on a psychological level. At some point I must have decided that it was not safe to show my real self, so for protection have hidden away. I am not comfortable with saying what I really think or feel, as it seems to trigger displays of contempt in 'the others'. I'm scared of putting my head above the parapet and becoming a target.

So my question really is: "should I blog in my real name or a pseudonym?".

depends. If your employer has your handle, they can get quite upset. I have to have a training course each year (Powrpoint presentation) explaining what you can and cannot do online vis a vis your own company.

For legal reasons, if you attack your own company, you are putting their reputation in jeapordy. They may terminate you (well, in the right-to-work state here in the US) for things like that.

Also, if you list your youtube or facebook site, they can and will look at it. Some people (looking for jobs) have found they didn't get them because of something they said.

By all means always use a handle. There's a bunch of crazy people out there (present company excepted, of course). Spammers, con artists, the usual suspects. If you're very concerned, there may still be anonymous sites out there that don't have a direct link to your IP address.

Start out anonymous. If you feel comfortable revealing yourself, do so.

I agree with the other two replies. Stay anonymous if you need to.

Pick a pseudonym , use a different one from your other online efforts and anything people call you in real life - that way you have freedom to go crazy in blog form.

Yep, another vote for anonymity here too! I'd do that for the reason that I don't have much natural 'armour'/persona/mask, whatever you call it. Also, maybe it helps to express yourself using a pseudonym. Liberating!

Pick a handle, don't list any contact methods that can be traced to you, and use very vague details in your blog (for example instead of saying you work for a large newspaper in Seattle you'd say you work for a newspaper in a mid-sized U.S. city).

I find that it's not that easy to remain anonymous if you have a natural tendency to be honest and are not usually deceitful or find it hard to lie or deceive. You may end up giving yourself away.

Also, if you write about controversial topics you may get nasty comments, which can be hurtful even if the person making them doesn't know who you are.

I have blogged under pseudonyms and my real name.

Stalkers will follow your real name.

They can't follow a pseudonym.

That's the quickest answer to the (+) and (-) analysis.

The more elaborate answer is something you already realize -- with a pseudonym you don't have to worry about revealing your true self, you can write honestly and not have to worry about someone tracing those things back to you.

Of course all that changes if you are seeking fame or a career in journalism/writing and you are doing a blog to promote yourself. If that's the case it probably would help to be up-front about your identity.

Here's my take on blog safety:

I think it's always best to pick a pseudonym you have never used before. Make it something that could not be used to identify you. For example, if my pseudonym was the name of a rare dog breed that I like and the small town I live in, that could be used to identify me. When you set up the blog, you'll probably have to provide an email address. Use one that does not contain your name and is not associated with your job, school, location, etc. And try to omit any identifying details from your blog - things about you or your interests that are so specific, they could be used to identify you. Think of it this way: If a close friend or relative randomly found your blog, would they know for sure that you were the author?

Of course you can publicly identify yourself any time you want, but it would be safest to wait to do so until you've been blogging for a while and have had plenty of time to think about it.