Blogging Tips – Day 11 #30DBC
Everybody has blogging tips, but mine are unique and go along nicely with my blogging course. Enjoy!
Read Blogposts Everyday
Use Google Reader to subscribe to a variety of blogs and visit your Google Reader page to catch up on your daily reading. Reading new blogposts keeps you up to date in your niche and keeps you in your favorite bloggers. Reading daily also helps you stay sharp and very often helps you inspire and polish your upcoming blogposts.
Write Everyday
Even if your blogging schedule and editorial calendar don't call for daily writing, you should write every day. When you write, you practice. Writing develops the creative part of writing as well as other important skills, like using your blog, typing faster, searching better in Google and more.
(notice the previous two items both say: EVERYDAY, not whenever you're up for it)
Observe Things With a New Lens
As you go about your day, when you become a blogger you will notice new things. You'll notice something about your granddaughter that you never noticed before; maybe you'll pay more attention to the different restaurants in your city because you want to blog about food. Take time to notice these subtle differences about your daily life, your hobbies, your family, your friends, your work. As you blog more, you'll observe more, develop an insightful eye. Everything is bloggable (yes, I think I just made that word up).
Talk to People About Your Ideas or Discoveries
When you write a blogpost, or you have an idea or discovery, share it with friends or family. Try to find friends and family that you trust with this information AND that will be supportive of you and your efforts to develop your blogging voice. Tell them how you're coming up to your current train of thought and see if you make any new discoveries. Sometimes it isn't the feedback that they'll give you that will be important here, instead the clarification of your own thoughts as you try to put them into words will be refreshing.
Find Other People That Like Your Topic
Once you have a few blogposts published under your belt, you need to find other bloggers that write about similar topics and that may be interested in what you have to say. Go out and search for them, sometimes you'll need to go beyond the traditional search engines. Look in forums, social networks and even amongst your friends, family or even co-workers. I've discovered that people I've known for months or even years have a blog and they just don't talk about it much, but once I bring up the topic, they open up. Instant blogging friend!
(all images by shutterstock)
Go on, you know you wanna read part two: Blogging Tips Part II
