My reason for asking is twofold. First, I hear so much about "you need to have a website, you need to have a blog to build up a fan base, etc. etc." so I started thinking about setting one up.
You do need some sort of an online presence, however, a blog may not always work for you.
I have to disagree with PinkAmy, one way to become a celebrity is through your blog. However, that takes time and years and the right exposure in order to make that happen.
I am a local celebrity, because of my locally-focused blog (it's weird having fans, but random people recognize me and stop me on the street and tell me how much they enjoy it). I've managed to parlay that local fame into my job at the paper and a social media consulting gig, so years of hard work has paid off for me.
In addition, my book is drawn from my blog as well as articles I wrote for the newspaper, so although it's not written as a memoir, my blog is the basis for my memoir.
But frankly, I have no idea what kind of content I would put on there that would be of interest to the general public ("I wrote another five pages today!" is not exactly the stuff people like to bookmark and return to). My book is about a career that has ended and took place mostly years ago, so its not as though I can post regular updates about the topic.
One thing to keep in mind is that few blogs are of interest to the "general public". Just as few books are. Almost all of them have a specific market. Your husband's book is going to be popular with a specific market. Identify that market, and find out what kind of blogs they read, and then determine your blog's angle from that.
Although I think you are doing a good job when it comes to that, by having the blog be an ex-cop's view of the world. I think the same people who would enjoy what he's got to say on his blog, are going to enjoy his book. I'm one of them. They probably wouldn't enjoy reading about the process of writing a memoir any more than i would.
It is important that you allow the blog to develop on its own, and watch your stats carefully. Those will tell you what stories work and what stories people are not interested in reading. Tailor your blog accordingly and don't be afraid to make changes as you go along.
I'm thinking that a website/blog without regularly updated, interesting content is probably worse than no website or blog at all.
Absolutely. A website is a static web presence that is occasionally updated.
A blog, on the other hand, is akin to having your own newspaper column. You need to set a production schedule-and keep it. The longer you do it, the more forgiving your readers will be. However, at first, you need to decide how much time you have for blogging and how many pieces a week. Daily's a killer, but you can go X times a week, or even once a week. As long as you are regular about it. One nice thing about Wordpress is that you can even write ahead and schedule it to post your articles on a certain date in the future.
My other reason for asking is that I would love to read the website/blog of some other memoirists to learn other people's perspectives about writing memoirs and such - do you have any recommendations, whether your own site or someone else's?
Personally, I'd gnaw off my own leg rather than read a blog about writing. And, I don't write about writing on my blog, except I mentioned that I was writing a book, and when I was finished with it, and once the attorney who is reviewing it gets back to me, I'll announce that it's available, but that is all. And that's just the marketing piece.
Focus
