Quote:
Originally Posted by Brutha  If you make the conscious choice to hide your identity that will make it harder for you to build relationships with your readers.
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That's simply not true. Most people online don't really care who you are.
While I don't doubt that it would be hard for someone to figure out who I am given the sheer volume of stuff I've posted online over the years, I've never openly shared my identity with anybody. And there are only a handful of people who know my true identity and they are mainly people that I feel I can trust.
However, I have built several close relationships with people online over the years. Most readers who comment on my blog (past and present) tell me that they appreciate the openness and honesty I share with them and that my writing makes them feel very comfortable. So much so that I'm constantly getting people in PMs on various boards asking my advice.
And really, I'm not HIDING who I am (I don't care one way or the other if people discover my true identity), but I'm certainly not the type of person who is just going to put it all out there in one neat little package for everyone to see either.
And that mindset hasn't hindered my relationships with people at all. Mostly because I make no bones about who I really am (i.e. I don't tell people I'm some wildly successful guru, but, rather, I explain that I'm just another fellow human trudging through life trying to figure things out).