single white paranoid nutball.

Posted on 4 September 2016 by what sandra thinks

vintage typewriter.

Have you ever happened across a blog and started reading and suddenly realize that everything you were reading sounded like you wrote the words yourself? Some of the posts even have titles close – nearly identical – to your own?

This has happened to me. And I come to one of the following conclusions:

(1) I’ve found a soulmate-like friend… or
(2) Someone has been reading my blog and stealing my life.

Oh yes, I realize that #2 makes me sound like a paranoid nutball. Or something like that. But this thought runs through my head (way more than option 1) and I start to freak out a little. In a Single White Female way. My life is not one to envy. It’s not 100% hell… but sometimes it feels like it is. Who wants that life? Fuck, most of the time I don’t even want it.

And then there’s reblogging. How do you feel about reblogging? My understanding is that it should be seen as flattering — someone thought a post was so great they wanted to share it on their blog. It could/would bring more traffic to my blog. And that’s good.

But… again, paranoid nutball. I get a sinking feeling… like someone is stealing my work… claiming it as their own. Isn’t this exactly the opposite of how I should feel? I really am messed up, aren’t I?

I imagine this is all yet another manifestation of my anxiety.

But I’m still curious what your thoughts are…

dots

About what sandra thinks

Sandra is a writer, sometimes blogger, poet, artist, emotional disaster. She thinks far too much and sleeps far too little. Sandra lives in the Northeastern U.S. but dreams of an oceanfront home in Italy, but she would settle for a non-oceanfront home in Italy. She loves books, brutal honesty, coffee, and the color black. She hates insincerity, beer, whipped cream, and facebook. And she is uncomfortable talking about herself in the third person.
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86 Responses to single white paranoid nutball.

  1. Al Lane says:
    4 September 2016 at 3:22 am

    Just because you’re paranoid, doesn’t mean they’re not after you… Wouldn’t comment further without seeing the blog in question. It is possible it’s a coincidence – it’s a big blog world, and lots of writers blog for the same reasons, living broadly similar (unhappy, often) lives. Perhaps you “inspired” them…

    As for reblogging, it depends how it’s done. If it comes from a place of “loved this and had to share”, then that’s fantastic. Wish it would happen more!. I do have one follower who reblogs most things I post, which they are clearly doing just for their own traffic. That annoys the shit out of me. Create your own content!

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  2. avinamdar says:
    4 September 2016 at 5:04 am

    😂😂😂 The comments here made laugh ! And it’s okay to be a paranoid nutball. Internet is full of pirates, so you have the right to be paranoid 👍😛

    Liked by 1 person

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  3. thesarahdoughty says:
    4 September 2016 at 5:28 am

    I’m curious about the situation itself. I wouldn’t necessarily jump to conclusions about a life stealer at the start. As for reblogs, it depends on the person. Sometimes they just really relate, and often come back for more reblogs. I don’t have it happening in the efforts of gaining more traffic on their end, as far as I know, but they aren’t trying to pass off the work as their own, and I am still credited with a link (otherwise there wouldn’t be a ping) so who am I to judge? Error on the side of caution if it bothers you.

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    • what sandra thinks says:
      4 September 2016 at 10:23 am

      I do tend to jump to the (negative) conclusion… I hate that about me. The weird thing is… the similar posts were of a personal nature… when I post about my real life of anxiety and other such matters. I’m sure tons of people suffer similar issues… but delivery was oddly familiar.
      The reblog thing… I know I’m paranoid there. But I just get anxious seeing my words on someone else’s blog. Something is wrong with my brain! Oh but if there’s a link to me, yay! Just a link… inside someone else’s post, but not with my post being there’s. That makes me happy. I am messed up!

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  4. Marquessa says:
    4 September 2016 at 8:07 am

    Wow! You won’t believe me but just yesterday I thought about writing a post about this very topic. Why? I have a new recent follower who reblogs (as well as others, its not just me) but he never ever writes anything to say why and I find myself annoyed, which is rare for me. When others do this, I don’t mind because 1. I follow them, 2. we are “friendly” and have exchanged thoughts 3. they say why they are reblogging and 4. their blog has a “purpose”. Yeah, I think that I’m annoyed because there seems to be no purpose to this person’s blog. All that to say, if your gut tells you something, listen to it. Maybe I”ll reblog YOUR post to see what happens!😉

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  5. Meg Sorick says:
    4 September 2016 at 9:41 am

    Oh that Al…. Such a kidder! I’d keep an eye on that blog just to see how creepy close it gets. Then you can let us all know and we’ll go troll them! 😈 Just kidding! (Sort of) As for reblogging, the one person who does that to me reposts a lot to promote other blogs too so I don’t object. Although, really that kind of blog seems weird to me. Why blog then? Right?

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  6. ladieswholunchreviews says:
    4 September 2016 at 11:40 am

    Sandra, we never ever talk about you unless it’s to say how wonderfully fabulous you are, that your kids are adorable, you write and draw like a dream and we are all (especially Al 😉 ) jealous of your hair!! If someone reblogs things, I always go to the original site to read. But yeah, I’ve seen some that just reblog everyone’s stuff and that seems odd…

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  7. gigglingfattie says:
    4 September 2016 at 6:49 pm

    Ohh reblogging! I sometimes have a problem with reblogging. I’m following a blogger right now that reblogs a lot and I’m not sure how I feel about it. At first he followed me, and I try to give each new follow a month or two to see if I like their style of writing as well. But I’m really disappointed with the amount of reblogs.

    As for reasons to reblog: on the rare occasion that I do reblog, I never leave a reason on the main page. I like to write a paragraph or so explaining why I was reblogging but don’t want that to show up in the comments of the original post, so I reblog and then edit my post after with my own commentary on it.

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    • what sandra thinks says:
      4 September 2016 at 6:58 pm

      I don’t know… maybe I’m a weirdo… but I really just don’t like reblogging. I never feel good about it when someone reblogs my posts. It makes me feel violated. I guess maybe that’s crazy… I should be happy someone wants to share my writing… but it just feels wrong to me — it feels like they’re stealing it, not like they’re sharing it.

      I decided to disable it last night. If someone wants to share a post of mine, I’d rather they just link to it. I know that may not be all pretty with an excerpt of my post, but I don’t care. 🙂

      I think I’ve reblogged one post ever. And I definitely put a comment when I did it because I want the original author to know why I reblogged. Editing later wouldn’t notify the original author, I don’t think, so he/she may never know why I reblogged, you know?

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      • gigglingfattie says:
        4 September 2016 at 7:19 pm

        Yes absolutely! 🙂 I usually will leave a comment on their post before reblogging but try not to write a whole post in the “reblog” blox haha! And you have every right to disable it! It is your work (which is amazing btw) and you should be able to control it any way you want. I actually didn’t know that you could disable it lol but that is a very good thing to know. I don’t think I’ve ever had anyone reblog one of my posts….

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        • what sandra thinks says:
          4 September 2016 at 7:44 pm

          Thank you for the ‘amazing’ compliment! I wouldn’t want to feel like anyone is stealing my fiction or my poetry… but usually, what people want to reblog are my personal posts… anxiety, etc. Which, to me, seems really weird…

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          • gigglingfattie says:
            4 September 2016 at 7:49 pm

            Hmms – maybe they feel like they can relate to your experience? But I like how you are taking action on what you want. People can still ping you if they share the link and then you can see what they have written to know why they are sharing the post 🙂 that was a very smart idea!

            Liked by 1 person

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  8. D. Wallace Peach says:
    4 September 2016 at 8:21 pm

    I know there are blog post thieves out there and that kind of sucks. But it could just be a coincidence too. I’d just keep an eye on it, not that there is much you can do about it. Put a copyright notice on your posts, perhaps, or on the sidebar.

    Reblogging? I’m always happy when someone reblogs, comment or not. I think if a reblog sends a reader to my site (to finish reading), that’s the best. When they take my whole post but don’t facilitate a visit to my site, I’m not as crazy about it, even with a mention, But I also don’t worry much about it either.

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  9. mandibelle16 says:
    4 September 2016 at 8:47 pm

    I think people can have similar issues. I’ve read some blogs on health etc and found them to be similar to my situation. It its all exactly like yours worry. If there are things that differ, its just someone who probably relates to you, you might want to talk to them. As for re-blogs, I re-blog when I especially like what someone else wrote. It gets a writer/bloggers name out their to a new audience and new hopeful followers, but mainly I do it because I like what a blogger said and felt many people could relate. Have a great long weekend Sandra 🙂

    Liked by 1 person

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  10. Anonymous says:
    4 September 2016 at 9:42 pm

    I have been going through my followers list. I have come across about 5 of them that are marked as “private blog” and you have to send them a request to follow them. If this continues to cause you paranoid thoughts maybe you could do that but let us all know so we can send in our requests. 🙂

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    • what sandra thinks says:
      4 September 2016 at 10:12 pm

      I know that’s an option but I’d hate to do it. I think it’s possible that many of my followers might not request access. It’s another step… some may not want to deal with it and will just move on… and I’d hate to lose them. I’ve also considered password-protecting certain posts. Of course, followers would still have to request access to those… and I think it would be difficult for me to determine in some cases… I just passed 700 followers… I don’t know them all! 🙂

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  11. MLYGhost says:
    5 September 2016 at 3:56 am

    In my case, when I started posting I was hoping to find people going through the same problems as me and hopefully help them while helping myself.
    It’s really weird how the story seems to repeat itself, which seems to give me comfort as in ‘you’re not alone’ and ‘there’s nothing wrong with you and these things do happen to normal people’.
    I have found someone who shares a story that’s extremely similar to mine and we talk about it a lot. We have become friends and I say she should have been my sister.
    I don’t reblog often but I mention passages of things that have touched my heart, always crediting the author.
    I think you have to embrace it without being paranoid. You’ll be susprised at the results!

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    • what sandra thinks says:
      5 September 2016 at 4:17 am

      I think you’ve misinterpreted my entire post. I have made amazing friends who are going or have gone through many of the same things I have. I do embrace it. I am not ‘surprised by the results’ of embracing it because I already live those results. I’m so glad to have found people who understand me and what I’m dealing with.

      I’m not concerned that people who have the same problems I have are “stealing” anything from me! Not at all. They have posted about similar things and the story was clearly their own. What I came across was something very different.

      So many details and choice of words and very specific post titles and content the same? That’s very weird… and that’s not just someone ‘going through the same thing’. Every life is different… Sure, people go through similar things, but lives are not identical.

      It looks like your blog is new… that’s amazing you’ve found a “sister”-like friend in such a short time. Glad you connected with someone so quickly.

      Liked by 1 person

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      • MLYGhost says:
        5 September 2016 at 4:32 am

        Sorry to hear that then. I did misinterpret the paranoid stuff! 😳😳
        Yes, my blog is new and I have already met wonderful people. It is special when someone sends you a message thanking you for something or sharing their experience surprised at how similar the stories are.
        I want to keep doing it as it makes me happy.

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  12. VictoryInTrouble says:
    5 September 2016 at 12:40 pm

    That’s weird about the other blog so similar to yours. I don’t know, I’d just watch it.
    As for reblogs, I rarely do it, but I have always asked if I could. Or if I could link to someone’s blog. Except in the case of collaborations, because it is expected. But I can see you not liking it. If it comes out of the blue, it’s odd maybe. Especially if you have no friendly relationship with the blogger. Anyway, it’s your blog and you can do what you want! 😀
    (Now…how do I get into this Sandra Club…)

    Liked by 1 person

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    • what sandra thinks says:
      5 September 2016 at 1:58 pm

      Yes, the other big thing is definitely weird! What’s the point, you know? Any likes or comments aren’t really real. They’re truly for someone else… Weird.

      Yes, about the reblog… This is what I’m saying… People should ask. I know it’s not required, but it’s respectful. The linking is cool with me. I think what I’m uncomfortable with is the pieces of my post elsewhere with no comment indicating why they reblogged it, even if they link to me. I wish WP had an option for reblogs to require approval. I thought that’s what happened, but I haven received approval notifications….

      LOL Sandra Club. Maybe there should be a membership card? 😃

      Liked by 1 person

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  13. InkingOutLoud says:
    6 September 2016 at 2:29 am

    Option 2 is possible! You are not being paranoid.. if it is any comfort! 🙂 And congrats on the 700 followers.. it is a big deal! 🙂

    Liked by 1 person

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  14. Miriam says:
    6 September 2016 at 5:31 am

    Hey Sandra, yeah no 2 is definitely possible, which would bug me too, but I’d try not to stress too much about it. We’re familiar with your great writing style, there could never be another you but I do understand how you’d be peeved.
    As for reblogging, I do it very rarely but occasionally when I come across a post that really resonates with me I’ll share. But I’ll always ask first.

    Liked by 1 person

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  15. sirensong1208 says:
    7 September 2016 at 8:58 am

    I understand this oh too well. I have had many things I posted on my blog stolen in a thinly veiled way. Not word for word but the whole theme, title taken from the guts of my post and it is a disturbing thing to read. Especially when you know it is not accidental.

    As for reblogging, I don’t do that very often and depending on the blog I have occasionally asked permission and at other times have gone ahead and reblogged it but with a note pointing comments to the original in the desire to turn a reader of mine onto someone else’s words. Even when it is reposted on twitter I try to make sure that it is clear that it is not mine. That is never my intention. Just sharing something very special.

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  16. KatieComeBack says:
    17 September 2016 at 11:33 pm

    I have reblogged a couple of times – it’s usually when someone’s said what the voices in my head have struggled to say. when I just nod and say, “YES. THIS.”

    I don’t mind at all being reblogged, but that’s probably because I’m hoping for a similar reaction….Or maybe they just thought it was funny. I’m down with that too.

    Copycats suck though. There’s a ton of really good stuff online – give credit where it’s due!

    Liked by 1 person

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    • what sandra thinks says:
      17 September 2016 at 11:43 pm

      I think what you’ve said is what reblogging should be — reblogging for a reason! I’m not a fan of someone just reblogging without explanation, though. At least make a comment with it… even just “Yes!” Without explanation, it’s like they’re just taking your post for their blog. I know there is credit/a link but what’s the point of the reblog? I think rebloggers should have a reason… and mention it.

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