I see blogs as a conversation. There are some topics I love to talk about, like travel, and I love finding people who have similar interests. So it goes without saying, that I don't write about things that I'm not interested in or passionate about.
I've heard lots of people say "I could never have a blog". If you don't like to write, that's true, a blog is probably not for you. But if you like to have conversations with people you know, as well as strangers, I totally recommend it.
While I am far from a blogging expert, there are some tips I have learned and would like to share:
1. Write about what you love. Do you like crafting? Write about that. Love your family? Write about the kinds of things you guys like to do.
2. Be real. There's nothing more disappointing than reading a blog that you can totally tell is not someone's true voice. For me, if someone asked me to write a post about scrapbooking, I couldn't. It's not that I don't like scrapbooking, and in fact, I actually do some scrapbooking, but I fully acknowledge that I'm terrible at it. I admire people who have great looking scrapbooks. My attempts don't resemble much more than simply sticking pictures on some pages.
3. Blog regularly. In my opinion, this is one of the most challenging aspects of having a blog. In my every day life I have a full time job that requires over time and travel, I'm also working towards my MBA as a part-time student, and I'm a mom, and as my daughter gets older, her school and social calendars are getting busier, which often means I'm needing to get her places. Make a realistic schedule for yourself. Whether it be 5 days a week or 2, make the schedule and stick to it. Don't over schedule yourself. If you are a busy person, it's not realistic to think you will do it every day of the week.
4. Engage with people within your social media network, as well as other bloggers. This will increase your reach and give you more people to have your conversations with.
Do you have a blog? Share your link with me in the comments below.
Funny you wrote this, because I do have a blog and was questioning whether to keep it or not recently. I started it when I was on Maternity Leave, because I was heading back to work soon and couldn't seem to string two words together, when speaking or in writing. I also had the attention span of a gnat at that point, so reading short posts on blogs was the extent of my reading. I kind of felt like I could provide someone else in my state a little something to read.
ReplyDeleteI also felt like I needed some "cred" with writing. I teach it, but don't actually write. I needed to explore my voice when writing and learn to write with a purpose and a deadline. Like you, I also like the "big conversation" piece. I like the idea that someone else may read what I have written. They may not agree with my thoughts, but that's okay. I go back and forth over whether or not to un-publish it, because I don't update often, especially during the school year. When off on breaks, it keeps me fresh. Now, I treat it like a scrapbook of our adventures now... because I haven't updated a scrapbook in years! (Let's face it, I AM an admitted scatterbrain!)
http://adventuresofascatterbrain.blogspot.ca/
Thanks for sharing! And that's a great way to look at your blog "a scrapbook of adventures". I love that!
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