This Press Release jogged my blogging block...
Nicknamed 'Blog Muse,' it solicits suggestions from a pool of prospective readers, proposes them to potential writers, alerts readers upon publication of the requested post, and encourages comment. Topic ideas can go viral and build audience interest ahead of publication, as prospective readers can see which suggested topics are the most popular. The tool can also generate topic suggestions automatically.
The cynic in me is having a party; "IBM is now gonna tell us what to blog?" However I can see the practicality of "Blog Muse", especially if you're taking a marketing view on the purpose of a blog. The idea of
crowdsourcing for blog topics to write about is pretty nested when you come down to it. I think the real value is the network effects of linking topics to people who would like to read bout them. Once things start rolling I suspect you'd get some stronger connections to readers. Then again, it could get too contrived, so I hope
bloggers don't forget their personalities, which is a huge factor in why people read the most popular blogs.
IBM Press room - 2010-04-21 Made in IBM Labs: Writer's Block? IBM Researchers Have the Cure - United States
