If you don’t have an exit plan you are asking for trouble. Trust me.
I’ve been writing here at mmusgrove.com since around 2016; before that, I had michaelmusgrove.com since 2008 or so. I let that site go. Just let go of the rope and said goodbye to years of writing, ideas, illustrations and Lord knows what else. I’ve done that many times now. Domains worth tens of thousands, mind you, like wdp.io. I’ve come to be able to let go of such things through necessity and the unavoidable condition that everything changes, no matter how much we humans resist that fact. I’m a stoic. And I’ve become a cynical stoic just to compound things. If you hold onto things too tightly, they’ll inevitably be taken away has been my experience. And I’m a sentimentalist to the core, which is why was so incredibly painful. At first. I’ve said goodbye to some very nice, meaningful items I’ve lugged around for over 4 decades. And I still have a life for which to be grateful.
And I have lots of profound ideas here on this site that are meant specifically for my sweet little daughter as she goes through life. And it’s written for her whether I’m neither here nor there to help her if it’s physically impossible for me for some terrible reason. But if I’m not around to pay the hosting bill and the domain name, the site is deleted. And I don’t think I’m living forever.
That’s the main problem since we’re all still mortals.
I’ve researched a lot of the online “writing places” to see what the deal is and what’s becoming more important, what I think the deal will be heading into the future. I really like the writing experience at Medium, where I have several low-activity publications. But Jack Dorsey’s crazy and he’s already messing with it non-stop. I just don’t feel it’s very steady or has a plan. And if Dorsey doesn’t have a plan for @medium, then I certainly won’t if I’m dead.
So for no Substack seems like the best bet. I have a “permanent” URL, and what I like currently: a way to record video right there as a post. No fuss or muss. I don’t know what the SEO value of that is, however. It’s a trade, of course. But I want to MAKE videos, not EDIT videos. Editing is the worst. A good editor is worth their weight in gold. Just like a good CPA.
So I’ll be transitioning to Substack, at The Writer’s Block, my publication. (https://musgrove.substack.com). I’m considering setting up a separate one to go over personal finance and business affairs that kids lack. Neither the parents nor the schools teach it, and they rightfully complain about that. I have an MBA after all. I should put it to some good use. I was taught that by lots of people growing up, which obviously is a rarity and can really help a lot of people, at any age! So I’m thinking about that, too. That’s also something my daughter needs to know and no one’s capable but me.
So it looks like SubStack’s going to be the offramp for https://mmusgrove.com. I have this site until March 2023, so no hurry, and I may well hold onto the domain name just in case. I’ve culled my collection to over 100 at one time to just this one, amazingly.
Incidentally, if you’re looking for another good CMS, I’ve tried Ghost, which I like also but it’s not for the faint of heart, still. In my opinion. It’s a lot of work to set up and maintain unless you’re a programmer. At least it was when I set up my sites on it and had Digital Ocean hosting, which is DIY. I went deep down the CMS and coding/design rabbit hole, believe me.
More to come!