Blog to Book Questions

This is pretty common. My suggestions are to open up what you blog about. The 'how your progressing' might be interesting, but it not enough to hold interest. Take the topic of you book - say it's about a hippo that rules the world. Do some posts of different types of hippo, research notes, etc.

Make sure you take whatever blog template you use and make it you own. Don't use the default - put a hippo in the header.

When you first start, make sure you reply to comments, visit and comment on that persons blog, and visit similar blogs. Find ones your are interested in and comment. That will pull interest into your blog. I can't tell you how many people I found by following links in the comment section of someone else's blog.

Oh and don't overtax yourself. Posting once a week is fine. Some bloggers post everyday and burn out quick. And most people won't visit a blog everyday anyway.

Visit some of your favorite author's website, most have blogs now too, and see what they write about and how they set up there blog.

Forst, having a blog is fine, but I would suggest you not post details of querying, rejections, etc. Some things are better not posted online. Consider this, how might an agent think of your submission if they google you and learned that you have already queried a lot of their colleagues about the book, and got all rejections, or queried everyone under the sun, etc. Or if you get requests but they turn into passes. Do you really want prospective agents to know that?

Also, some agents (and editors) might be skittish about a client/writer sharing too much of the inside publishing info on a public blog.

Second, if you are writing fiction, a strong web presence can be a plus, but is far from necessary. And it will only influence the decision of whether to represent you if you have a huge presence -- like thousands, if not more, followers and a proven fan base hungry for your books. So, starting a blog now, as you are starting to query, likely won't really be a factor in the decision of whether to represent you.

And if you aren't really interested in blogging, don't do it. While some agents might see a blog as a plus if you have a huge following, few if any will see it as a requirement, or even a significant factor. It will really come down to the book. So, do it if you want, but not because you think it will push you over the edge.

So, if you go for it, have fun, but just tread carefully before posting info about your querying process, rejections, requests, etc.

~suki

There are so many blog about people who are trying to create and publish a book that this subject is unlikely to get you any traffic other than people who already know you.

Suki is so right. Writing about your revision process and putting together a query are good, but the amount, to who, and the rejections not so good. People don't like to read a lot of negative stuff either. And don't do it if is doesn't bring you joy. no joy, no blog

Vein-y is right too. I mentioned there were bloggers already doing this, but failed to mention they don't stand out. Kind of like same ol' same ol' stuff. You need to find your uniqueness.

Well, it is a good thing you have finally decided to contact those agent. And of a truth these agent MIGHT use your online presence as a gauge whether to accept you or not.
Here's what to do.

You first need to open a blog. For newbie and not-too-techy blogger, I always advise them to start their first blog on a free blog platform like Blogger or Wordpress.org (if you’re not that techy you should start a blog on a free platform first).
However, if you prefer to open a self-hosted blog, it’s all good. The bottom line is you can make it and garner a huge following online with whichever type of blogging platform you decide to use.

The most important thing isn’t your blog, it’s how you present the information to a “PARTICULAR PROBLEM”. So in essence blogging connotes solving a certain people’s SPECIFIC PROBLEM with a passion. If you don’t have any PARTICULAR PROBLEM to solve,

I can assure you that you won’t succeed.
Get one, and make yourself an expert in that “one topic”. That’s the fastest way to grow a following online.

But let truth be told: Every problem you want to tackle now has already been solved. Google gets more than 1 billion searches within 4hrs, and majority of these searches are people – or bloggers – who are looking for problems to solve online.

You mentioned something above: “I'd discuss my revision process, queries, inevitable rejections, and maybe a few non-writing/publishing things that capture my fancy” – these topics are too broad and not clear.
Bloggers have rehashed those topics long enough already, but that doesn’t mean you should give up on it.

What it means is this: YOU NEED TO IDENTIFY YOUR BLOG’S PURPLE COW.

Your content won't get noticed by Google or by your readers if it just rehashes everything else on the Internet. To stand out, you need to do something unique.
Do a thorough research on the top blogs that blog in your topic, and try to find the "thing" that each brand is known for, the unique element that makes them shine.

Your goal is to come alongside the competition and still offer something different. So look for something that none of them cover. This is the gap that you can fill to make your own brand unique. That’s your purple cow.

Without that “thing” in place you and your blog will be lost in the crowd. Something has to make you different in your niche. When people can link your content to some other blogs they have read before, it simply means you are following the crowd. But when you discover your purple cow, people will naturally listen and follow your every word – simply because they haven’t seen anybody present answers to their problem in that manner before.

Remember: Look for a specific people with SPECIFIC PROBLEMS that needs solving, build a blog around those SPECIFIC PEOPLE, research their SPECIFIC PROBLEMS and read answers that bloggers have written on those specific problems. After reading, sit down, craft out a solution to the problem, but this time, answer the specific problem in a UNIQUE WAY. People can’t ignore uniqueness when they see one.

Hope that helps.

Some resources to help you on your journey:

In case you decide to learn and start using Wordpress and you're not the geeky type – use wp101.com to learn everything you need.

In case you decide to start a free blog with blogger – Use this blogger tutorial to set up a responsive blogger blog.

If you want to learn how to make your blog popular from the beginning – Read and apply these tips in this Pat Flynn article titled: How to Launch a Brand the Website (with a bang!) Another from Blogtyrant, still on starting a blog and making it popular in few weeks.

If on the long run, you plan on monetizing that blog - read this post on BloggerAbroad. Also read this one on OnlineIncomeTeacher - it shows different way to monetize your blog.

If you want to understand your niche and REALLY know who you're writing for - read this Guide titled "The Advance Guide to Content Marketing" by Neil Patel.

P.S: I can go on and on. But I believe you now get the idea. Please let know where I can help you. That's why I am here. I'm the Geeky type.

P.S.S: Don't mind the typos.