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Blogging Do's and Don'ts As a writer, blogging can be one of the greatest ways to
connect with readers of your work and other writers. But blogging can be a
tricky task if you're interested in building a great readership that lasts. To
make the most of your blogging, use the following tips: A blog without a purpose that people can recognize as soon
as they enter is a blog that probably won't hold long-term interest for any one
reader. Although you might think that writing on various topics and subjects
will hold everyone's interest and make them wonder what's coming up next, that's
not to be said for the majority of readers. Readers choose to read a blog
because it is targeted to their area of interest, whether it's animals, science,
health, parenting or writing. You are a writer, hoping to connect with other
writers, therefore you want to appeal to them. Forget making the world your
audience and stick to writers. Blog for them. Especially not when you're first starting out in the
blogging world. Again, as mentioned above, the world will never be your
audience, but you can surely build a group of readers that grows over time.
There are very few bloggers who have the attention of all in their field. You
want readers, but if your goal is to simply have more readers than everyone
else, you probably won't succeed. There are also few, if any, blogs that do well all on their
own. With the amount of active blogs, you have to do what you can to advertise
your own. A great way to do that is to comment on other people's blogs,
preferably those of other writers. Commenting on their blog allows you to leave
the link to your own. This doesn't mean that you should post on someone's blog
if you really don't have anything to say simply to get yourself noticed. Be kind
and thoughtful in your comments and that blogger will likely check out your blog.
Don't be afraid to have a list of blogs that you enjoy on your own blog; most
people do this and it doesn't take away from their own readers. If you're lucky,
other bloggers may add you to their list of blogs as well (but don't ask them
to). This is better kept to private conversations. Remember that
anything you say in your blog can be read by anyone, including the person,
editor or publication you are criticizing. Although what you say may be
completely true, it can come back to bite you in other ways. For example, if an
editor comes across your blog and notices that you are very open about voicing
your complaints whenever something comes up, word could get around that you're
not the best person to work with. Editors and publications wouldn't want to take
that chance just to work with you. You also wouldn't want to get into a
situation where the things you say could get you into legal trouble. An infrequently updated blog will get read less and less
until readers simply give up. You also don't want to update too often because
people don't have time to read that much. Every day is probably not a good
choice, but a few times a week or every other day might work better. You want to
make sure that your blog posts are interesting. Don't write about anything
simply to get people to get to your blog. It's not the number of people who are
stopping by your blog (because they might only stay for 10 seconds before
leaving), but the kinds of comments you are getting. Not everyone can spend the
time commenting, but some will and those comments tell you a lot about what
people think about your blog. Make each piece interesting, a good piece of news,
something thought-provoking or a question for your readers. Blog entries don't
have to be long; vary them in length. Sometimes a small paragraph works.
Sometimes a longer piece might be called for. |
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