Sorry. I havent’ been keeping up with my nightly blogging. 
I’m working hard on getting Catching Caroline ready while simultaneously working on a new futuristic that I’m enjoying immensely. I’m working off a critique now and once I’m done I’ll be able to share more nonsense. 
I put up a password protected post the other day and since then, pp posts have come under question as the use of them becomes more common. This is not a blatant attempt to make any visitor feel unwelcome or left out of any inner circle. Anyone who e-mailed me for the password received it. My blog has a steady flow of lurkers with only a set few number of visitors who actually comment. I’ve been amazed by the people who have contacted me by e-mail and said they read my blog–editors, agents, bestselling authors. Because of this some of my more personally sensitive posts will be protected and available only for those blog visitors who care enough to inquire. I saw no reason to start another blog, when this blog could do the duty of both personal and public. The simple fact is only those people who are comfortable contacting me outside of my blog are the ones who would be interested in listening to my more personal musings. 
I understand, Monica. After the number of e-mails I received asking about the password I felt rather sheepish about the content of my post.
It wasn’t meant to seem special, in fact, I protected people FROM the post. Not the post from the people.
on March 15th, 2005 at 10:22 am
I decided put up a second personal site rather than password protect posts on my blog. The main reason for this is that I would feel that I’d need to live up to the protected posts and write something suitably scandalous with lots of juicy cuss words.
on March 15th, 2005 at 10:11 am
[...] ut on the flip side, what’s not enough? Recently Sylvia password protected a post. Then blogged about it. I already posted my response to this over there, [...]
on March 15th, 2005 at 9:00 am
Oh! I had the same reaction as Màili
I thought it was for a certain circle that likely already had the password, and although I was curious, I felt with my mostly-lurker status I might have been seen as really nosy to ask for the password.
Ah, heck, I’ll be nosy
on March 14th, 2005 at 4:32 pm
Thank you, Saskia. Food for thought, definitely. Perhaps simply adding a category (like “Of a More Personal Nature”) and adding the “read more” link will be sufficient warning to readers without making anyone feel excluded, which was never my intention.
on March 14th, 2005 at 11:23 am
Okay, you asked for reasons
I mailed you for the password after debating with myself whether to do so for ages, but I only did so because we’ve exchanged email in the past. If we hadn’t, I wouldn’t have let my curiosity get the better of me (and would have felt excluded in a special, lovely place where I’ve previously felt very welcome…)
I guess I don’t see the purpose of posting more private stuff in that way on a blog. It feels like its just for a certain crowd to see and, if so, my instinctive thought was: why not just email it to them and not risk alienating the other blog readers? Nothing personal, its your choice, just my opinion. Since you’ve asked.
on March 14th, 2005 at 10:50 am
It’s very interesting to read the thoughts on this. I wish the people who did e-mail would comment and explain their side. Why did they ask? Most of the people who asked for the password are not close acquaintances, some I didn’t know were even stopping by. But then perhaps they were familiar with Laurie Gold’s posts. Or maybe curiosity got the better of them.
Alison was worried that she might come across as elitist with her pp post, although I felt she had valid reasons for protecting her comments from certain eyes.
I’ll continue to use pp on posts where having that extra step would make me feel better. The password won’t change. For those of you who have it, you don’t have to ask again.
on March 14th, 2005 at 8:50 am
I had “If it was any of your business, you wouldn’t have to ask” drummed into my head at a very early age, too. But I’ll be a nosy parker and email.
on March 14th, 2005 at 4:45 am
You have to care to email?
When I saw the password-protected entry, I was *dying* to know what’s behind that ‘locked door’ [I won't do well as Bluebeard's wife! :D], but it’s not occurred to me that you’d welcome an email, asking for password.
I thought the opposite - that if I did, you’d be annoyed by my rudeness and for putting you in a position where you would have to say no. It’s a bit like going up to someone and ask for an invitation to her private house party.
I’m quite sure that I’m not the only one who thought this, being torn between curiosity and a fear of being rude/nosy [well, yes, I'm nosy, that's true - but you know what I mean! :D].
So I find it interesting that you feel that one has to care to email while I thought it’d be too rude.
I wonder if it’s to do with cultural differences or I’m from a nutty family who taught me to never ask for things that I wasn’t invited to take.
Anyway, thanks for the clarifications.
on March 14th, 2005 at 2:02 am
I hear you, but as I said, anyone who asks will be sent the password so technically everyone can read it. They just have to show the inclination to want to.
Some things are personal, not for drive by entertainment, and I think there are some things people don’t want to read on a blog.
Take the author who described a day in her life when she forgot to take her mental medication. She has the right to post that on her blog, but I wish she would have password protected that post. I didn’t care enough to have asked for the password and could have cheerfully went on my way without that highly personal knowledge. Instead it was out there for public consumption and I’ve never bought another book of hers since.
on March 13th, 2005 at 3:32 pm
My two cents doll….I’ve got lurkers too, though I doubt any are agents and editors LOL…But I completely (and respectfully) disagree. If I can’t post something on my blog for everyone to read, I don’t post it and/or turn on my IM program or open up Outlook Express and shoot an email off to my crit partners…….:roll:
on March 13th, 2005 at 3:18 pm