Today is a slightly different post to my usual history posts. I’ve had several people get in contact with me via email lately- what’s interesting about that is that they are entirely initiating the conversation. When one owns and runs a history blog, you understand that it is a very niche site and that not everyone will be interested. (Alas, I’m not particularly interested in sports but there are many popular sports blogs.) With these emails though, people have been reaching out to tell me that I am “doing history wrong”. And to that I say… okay and?
Invoking Professional Scholars…
What started off an unholy train of bizarre and rude emails? An email from a gentleman I have never met who emailed myself, Mary Beard, and several other academics with a link to one of Beard’s think pieces from The Guardian and one of my History Bites on Hampton Court Palace. No explanation whatsoever, just a snarky subject line, and two links. I tend to ignore these types of emails, but Beard chose to respond.
While senior scholars can absolutely respond whenever they want, I do wish that they would understand the weight behind their response no matter what they said. The original emailer then chose to respond to Beard and myself again (and added a paper editor and a few other academics), and noted that I “could take notes” from Beard’s analysis. (Reader, it was then that he was blocked.) The one line almost-immediate response encouraged him more than you would think.
Again, I’ve never spoken with this person. I have no idea who they are- they didn’t introduce themselves. They don’t appear to be found on Google or social media. And the highlight of it all? My History Bites aren’t meant to provide in-depth analysis, but rather to draw attention to something interesting that might be otherwise missed. I don’t disagree with her opinion piece in The Guardian; I think she, as always, makes some fantastic points. However, my 350 word mini-blog post is not a think piece, and I did not intend for it to be.
“Casual” History
Another one of my recent emails criticised me for making “history too casual”. While I am fortunate to have many lovely readers, there are people who take issue with my blog. Namely, people like this who don’t like my lack of upper level research/analysis in blog posts. I would like to think that I’ve made the goals of this blog fairly clear- my goal is to get people interested in history and culture, to provide an introduction for those who are new, and to offer something to think about for those who aren’t. And given that my traffic continues to rise and Google Analytics gives me evidence to support this, I think that that is working for me and my readers.
As someone currently applying for their PhD in history, I do very much enjoy doing academic research, but understandably, it’s not popular in blog posts. I try to provide further resources-in the form of books, podcasts, and online posts- if people want to look into something further. In my full blog posts, I try to give a bit of introductory analysis without overwhelming readers- my blog is in no way meant to be a textbook or academic article! (Though if you do want to discuss academic sources, I would love to receive those emails.)
History Should Be Accessible
Last week I tweeted about the “casual history” email, and I must say, I was not expecting the response that I got. With nearly 500 likes and over 50 retweets, it really touched a nerve for a lot of people. Again, I am hoping to pursue a PhD in history- I am in no way against academic study. However, I think that if we want history to survive as a discipline and for people to be at all interested, history needs to be accessible.
I am going to guess that at least 90% of us did not come to history through academics. Perhaps you went on a field trip to a local historic site or museum in primary school and you couldn’t read enough about the Romans. Or you grew up hearing about your family history and wanted to find out more. Or maybe you are like me, and saw Anastasia in the late 1990s and started reading Royal Diaries and the rest is history.
Windows and doors to history are often incredibly “casual”, and I personally think that is a good thing.
The Emails I Like To Receive…
I do now feel like I need to say, I in no way dislike receiving blog emails. I’ve had many people email me to recommend more sources on a particular topic or help them understand a specific topic. While I’m not a professor or teacher, I’m happy to help point people in the right direction! (We all need to start somewhere, and sometimes there is a mental wall- it happens to all of us.)
I’ve also received a lot of emails from people letting me know that they’ve seen a certain ballet that I’ve discussed or a museum exhibition that I’ve recommended, and nothing makes me happier. I love hearing your thoughts on what you’ve seen and experienced, it is a true highlight of my blog.
Book recommendations, period drama reviews, travel highlights- all wonderful! If you aren’t reaching out in an attempt to chastise me or “educate” me on something that I’ve not asked to be educated on, I’m probably going to be thrilled to hear from you.
A Sidenote:
Unfortunately, typos and grammatical errors happen on the site. I try my best to avoid them, but I have a full time job, a second job, a dog, am applying for my PhD, and usually publish between 2,500-4,000 words a week on the blog. I do appreciate nice (keyword: nice), quick emails or messages letting me know that I have a typo. (Regular readers will often send these, and I have no issue.)
However, bitchy and snarky emails from people I’ve never interacted with on a typo are never appreciated- I would rather have the typo than have someone insult me(which is common). Seriously- be kind behind your keyboard.
What are your thoughts on “casual” history?
Cheers,
The Historian
Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | Pinterest
Now your twitter thread makes sense! While I know this guy got blocked (good for you!) that you got put in with Mary Beard is just cool. Seriously though, good for you for drawing lines on what you will and won’t accept.
I know I was already interested in history a bit (museums, historical fiction books, even fantasy books had elements of history in it) but The Tudors got me more into the specific time periods to study. And I have gotten a few suggestions on more historical fiction books off your recommendations.
Unfortunately I was only grouped with her to point out how “wrong” I was, which is slightly less cool.
I am so glad to hear that I have been helpful with book recs, you can never have too many! (Or at least that is what I tell myself…)
I’ve taught history for 17 years, and personally, I enjoy your casual approach to history. It’s nice to not read yet another academic paper or textbook. Also, my specialty is United States history, so I feel like I learn something new from each of your posts which typically leads me to do further research. Keep doing what brings you (and the majority of your readers) joy. This is YOUR blog with YOUR thoughts and opinions, no one else’s. Perhaps the critics should start their own blogs.
Oh, I am so glad to hear that you enjoy it! My blog is meant to be exactly that- a doorway to a new topic, not a textbook for a specialist. We need all kinds of history to stay afloat!
I think your experience just highlights how much we need ‘casual history’. As you point out for many people history comes from actually engaging with historical sites or references through cultural experiences such as films or walks. They don’t want complex political arguments just points of interest., which is exactly what you’re doing backed by a wealth of research I’m sure. Ignore the naysayers and keep doing your own, very good, thing!
That’s just it- I have done my research but overly formal/academic blog posts do NOT perform well for me! I would rather publish a post that more people are interested in/find useful than an academic post for the sake of. There are countless academic outlets for people who are interested (I pursue them myself), but that’s not what this is meant to be!!