I've been meaning for some time to list the most popular entries in this blog, just in case people were interested, and because it doesn't hurt to dig up the archives every now and then. So, with a few thoughts on each, I shall list below, I don't know, the… let's say ten entries that have received most hits this year:
1) Black Rain
Most of the people who come to my blog, it seems, come by accident, Googling something or other that has nothing to do with Quentin S. Crisp. This is a case in point. There must be a lot of people out there Googling Hiroshima. However, I don't think the entry I wrote on Hiroshima is really of much interest. Oh, maybe the stuff about Article Nine is not commonly known in the West.
2) Gothic Literature – A Brief Outline of the Associations and History of the Word 'Gothic'
This seems to be a case of me inadvertently performing a public service by writing an informative piece on something that school kids and students are apparently being forced to write essays about. I hope that my name appears in their citations. I might just be influencing a whole Internet generation's perception of the Gothic – not that I've written anything very original there. It was only ever meant to be a 'sketch' of the Gothic.
Interestingly, this is also the entry that has attracted trolls like flies to the corpse of a coprophile. In fact, I was foolish enough to allow one comment to go undeleted recently, to lower myself and answer it, in fact, and soon afterwards there came another troll, which I wearily deleted. It seems that anything other than summary deletion only encourages them. I would therefore like to restate my policy with regard to anonymous posting. My policy may be read here and here.
3) Up Pompeii!
Another surprise, as far as I'm concerned. I'll really have to replace the images to which the hotlinks here (at the time of writing) are no longer working, to make the entry a bit more attractive. Anyway, in this entry I muse on Victorian morals, pornography and Frankie Howerd. What more could you want?
This is a very recent post, so it's done well to be amongst those that have had the most hits this year. I wonder if it's not because it's short and sweet, and because it's flattering towards women. I think there are a high proportion of recent posts in this top ten (probably). Does this mean I'm getting better as a blogger?
I don't know why this one is so popular. It's really just a sort of update post, a filler, you could say, about nothing in particular. Interesting.
6) Those who are capable of clear criticism most accept my opinion
This is a bit of a slow burner that has crept into the charts out of nowhere. I'm certainly pleased that an entry on Chinese landscape painting has made the top ten. There's hope for the world yet!
7) Slaughterhouse, supercluster, vortex and gross domestic happiness
This, as the title suggests, is another 'miscellaneous' entry, although with a bit more content than Fear of Removal. I suppose it's largely an anti-materialist, pro-environmentalist piece with a slight cosmic tinge to it.
8) Delusions
It had to happen. This is an entry about Richard Dawkins. One of the shortest and sweetest entries that I've written, which, again, might have helped its popularity. And it's probably all that needs to be said on the matter of Richard Dawkins, too.
Well, it's also nice to see that I make it somewhere into my own top ten. An extravagant, bitter-sweet (but perhaps more bitter than sweet) requiem to my second collection of short stories now (at the time of writing) out of print. Includes some classic passages of self-pity and misanthropy. Probably.
10) One of the beautiful people
A picture, said someone (Johnny Mathis?) paints a thousand words. Well, this is a photograph, but the principle is the same, especially in this case, as this elegant photograph is of Dare Wright, who shall be forever enshrined in the pantheon of my heart as one of the beautiful people, and who, rather wonderfully, has made it into the top ten, too.
Shall I go up to eleven?
Maybe next time.
(PS. If readers actually have such things as 'favourite entries' with regard to this blog, then it would certainly be warm and wonderful of them to indulge me by naming them, and perhaps even posting the links.)
Well, that’s that mystery solved then. I haven’t tabulated all the data, but… I can’t remember how I was going to end that sentence.
May I tell you something?Since I started to visit your blog I imagine that hits to your page had an increase. This is because every time you or any other people come here just to read your answers, to give answers or to read another’s answers is counted too.As I’m always here, so I guess the hits will increase each day. I’m sorry for my modesty. hehehehh
this one? “I haven’t tabulated all the data, but…”
Yes, that one. It was something to do with… but I can’t remember what it was to do with. Other factors influencing something or other with regard to this blog. My mind must have been affected by wibbly wobbly timey wimey stuff.
I think what it came down to was something like, “but there might be other factors involved”, and I was going to be more specific, but I can’t remember in what way.
heheheh… it sometimes happens to me. when I go to the kitchen take something and I get there and think… ‘hmmmm… what I do now?’yes, there are others factors too. visitors, first time visitors…