“I blog daily and love it,’’ says 27-year-old Sakshi Juneja, who started only to counter a blogger who had run down her favourite star Salman Khan. Before she knew it, she was hooked too. “What gives me a high is the interaction with users from all over the world. It’s great fun to have people responding to your writing—even if it’s hate mail you invariably get from men when you write on contentious women’s issues. But then there are as many people appreciating your point of view,” says Juneja. The vivacious Mumbai-based marketing executive also dispels the notion that a blog is another version of the lonely-hearts club. “I have made lots of friends through my blog but that’s because I am that kind.’’

For Melody, a freelance writer in Mumbai, her blog, Voices in my Head, was a logical extension of what she had been doing since the age of seven—writing a daily diary. “Only this is more fun because it’s interactive,’’ says the 28-year-old who says that the biggest plus is that many online friends are now friends offline too. In fact, she and Juneja have been organising a regular Mumbai’s Bloggers Meet for a year now. “We’ve already had four meets,’’ says Melody. And how does it feel putting your life on public display? “You need to get only as personal as you want to,’’ says Meghna Bhat, a senior copywriter with Wizcraft.

However, stalkers are a big worry for women bloggers. “Many women do not use their real names,” says Juneja, who had a tough time shaking off a stalker from Hyderabad who had even started to post her pictures on his blog. Recently Melody also gave a presentation at the All India Bloggers Meet in Pune on how to handle stalkers.

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