I almost forgot to post! Thank you, Life Means Books, for reminding me!<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Congratulations to those of you who raced with NaNoWriMo! How did it go? Please tell us your challenges and triumphs and what you learned along the way.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
On November 20, 2020, Christie wrote, I recently picked up your book, Writer to Writer, for my daughter during the pandemic home time. I recently realized I could use a little inspiration as well. I started a business last year that has now moved completely online. With that comes the blog\u2026.for me\u2026the dreaded blog. I was wondering if you may have some suggestions for a person new to blog writing?<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n I wrote back and asked Christie what kind of business hers is, and she hasn\u2019t answered, but I moved her question up in the queue anyway because it seems urgent when so many enterprises are struggling. I hope the post will interest others, too, and I hope those of you who write a blog will offer your ideas.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I also hope Christie isn’t relying only on me for information. I\u2019m sure there are more knowledgeable sources. I\u2019d suggest googling and searching online bookstores. I\u2019ll bet there are books on successful blogging.<\/p>\n\n\n\n This blog was sparked by an email from my publisher to all its authors, urging us to become more active on social media. I considered the options and decided a blog would suit me best, although since then, I\u2019ve posted as well on Facebook and Instagram. I have eschewed (a word I rarely have a chance to use!) Twitter, because I\u2019ve heard things about it that make me shudder.<\/p>\n\n\n\n So the impulse to blog came from the marketing side. I figure that the blog does have a small positive effect on sales of my books, and I hope that, as well as the blog, blog readers read my books, which I sometimes mention while I\u2019m writing them. (As an aside, if you are more of a library-book reader than a book buyer, you can encourage your library to acquire my books, and I will be grateful.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n However, as the blog accumulated readers and writers started commenting, and because writing has my heart, creating it became a joy. And continues to be. As I\u2019ve written many times, I love the helpful exchanges that take place here.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The blog has a voice, which is my voice at its most positive\u2013but it is genuinely mine. If you met me in person, I think you wouldn\u2019t be surprised at what I say and how I say it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n So that\u2019s one strategy: we want to be ourselves on our blog. To achieve this, it may be helpful to look not only at my posts but also at the comments, because the comments are also written in a natural style that reflects the writer. I haven\u2019t tested this, but I suspect I\u2019d recognize the voices of several of you if I closed my eyes and someone read to me.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Write a page or two. Your blog posts don\u2019t have to be long! As you write, imagine that you\u2019re telling whatever you\u2019re saying to a friend. Then show what you\u2019ve written to a few supportive people. Ask them if you sound like yourself or if you\u2019ve gone all formal. If you sound like a technical manual rather than yourself, edit for shorter words and shorter sentences. Include your own opinions about the topic, especially your enthusiasm.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I\u2019m assuming that Christie is passionate about her business. We should make sure our readers know we care, which we can say head on. We can say, I love toenail clippers! Imagine life without them! I have devoted myself to them in all their variety, which I bring to you in my shop and now in these posts.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n If you can, incorporate a little story in your post, because people are drawn to the shape of a story. Above, I gave this blog\u2019s origin story. You can do the same. You can begin the blog with its origin story or with the origin story of your business.<\/p>\n\n\n\n As the blog continues, don\u2019t worry about repeating yourself. I think of this blog as the writing analog of a wedding magazine. The topics are limited, but there\u2019s always something new to say. Wedding dresses, for instance, are endlessly fascinating. Likewise, in writing: villains, plot, character development, and so on\u2013but there are only so many.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Some people read all the posts in the blog, which is an undertaking by now. But others read just the latest one. I\u2019m happy with either way of experiencing it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Think about the audience you want. What will interest them? If you want to promote something in particular, consider why your audience will enjoy reading about it. I\u2019d suggest not marketing constantly. You might give readers an insight into why you chose a certain item as something you wanted to sell. Is there a story behind it? What adventures has the business brought you to?<\/p>\n\n\n\n If you can persuade people to ask you questions, everything will be easier. (Thank you, everyone!) You\u2019ll be certain that at least one person, and probably many more, wants an answer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I don\u2019t use images, but you may want to. Feel free!<\/p>\n\n\n\n My blog readers found me, with the help of NaNoWriMo. You may have an email list of customers. Let them know you\u2019ve started a blog. Let family and friends know. Put a sign in your window. There must be other ways too that I don\u2019t know.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Here are three prompts:<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u2022 Write a post from Rapunzel\u2019s blog, which she writes in her tower.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u2022 Your MC\u2019s enemy writes a gossip blog, which is widely read. He posts viciously about your MC. Write his post. If you like, continue and write what follows.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u2022 Your MC is a spy behind enemy lines. She writes a well-known cooking blog in which she conceals info for the intelligence service at home. When she realizes that her cover has been blown, she writes a final post, knowing she can\u2019t use the usual code. Write the story and the blog posts. If you can, make the recipes part of it all.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Have fun, and save what you write!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" I almost forgot to post! Thank you, Life Means Books, for reminding me! Congratulations to those of you who raced with NaNoWriMo! How did it go? Please tell us your challenges and triumphs and what you learned along the way. 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