blog - Pitfalls of Academic Blogging

I am a junior academic (just finishing a PhD in computer science) and I'm considering starting an academic blog. My reasons for starting a blog are:

• Fun.


• Improving my visibility.


• The benefit of science.

… basically, the same reasons I publish papers. (In a sense, academic blogging, is just a 21st century form of academic communication to supplement journals and conferences.)

However, I also have concerns:

• Maintaining an active blog takes a lot of time and effort. (i.e. it may stop being fun.)



• Fear of failure - many blogs die. (Does an inactive blog look bad?)


• Being a junior researcher, I worry that people will not care about my blog or, worse, disagree with what I say.

So I want to ask for advice from people who have (or had) an academic blog:

Is academic blogging a good idea?
Does it become too much effort?
Is it worthwhile?
How likely is blog-death?
In general, what are pitfalls to watch out for when starting an academic blog?