Don't let all the smoke and mirrors full you! I do love my blog, I am a positive person, and I love writing, but I have my days that I let out a big ole sigh and have to make myself sit down to come up with something, anything to put here.
Recently I received an email from a reader who has a lot of issues with coming up with ideas and he flat out said that he HATED his blog.
My response. . .OF COURSE YOU HATE YOUR BLOG BECAUSE IT'S HARD! IT'S A COMMITMENT!
It's not like the first time you got the butterflies in your stomach when you decided you wanted to start a blog. You carefully chose the design, the colors, the font, the pictures, the tabs. . .all fun and games until you make it live and realize that you have set a precedent to be there, make a commitment to you readers--yourself.
Here are some great tips to help fall back in love with your blog and connecting to your readers.
1) Redesign your blog. Maybe you are a little blah and need a little more creation. I have redone my design twice in the past six months. I do this with my colors of my house to get my creative juice flowing and being in my little world of the blogsphere is no different.
2) Add some fun with new plugins. Blogger plugins here, Wordpress plugins here You can check them out and see what will work for your blog. You can add some cool plugin bling!!
3) Check out your older posts. Frequently I will go back and look at topics that I blogged about that has already changed. Like my blog on Facebook. It was pre timeline! Guess what? I need to resurrect that blog and add to it. Make it better.
4) Guest blogs. Add some guest bloggers. I don't host a lot of guest bloggers here, but when I do it's because I think they have something really great to offer or to help you learn something new. Get some guest bloggers that are industry leaders. Most of the time these leaders will recycle blogs from other appearances, but that's okay. It will be your readers first time seeing it.
I might have some days that make me squirm or procrastinate to write the blog, but I'm committed to making my career exactly how I want it. AND quitting is not an option....
What do you do to fall in love with your blog on a weekly basis?
I was just sitting here staring at my screen sighing because I was drawing a blank -- again. You've given me some food for thought. Thanks, Tanya!
ReplyDeleteChicki, it's always so lovely to see you! I'll have to pop over and see what you came up with:))
DeleteAlways a pleasure. I love my blog but because it's about survival, I feel a bit of terror every time I think of it. I want my friends to be safe but don't want to scare the crap out of them. I will reread this later and use these tactics to divert myself. THANK YOU!!
ReplyDeletehahahahhaa! Pj, you always put a smile on my face. Too fun!
DeleteThough I was somewhat apprehensive & reluctant to accept the invitation to join a group blog, I'm very glad I did. Not only have I gotten to know the other four writers, but we're mutually supportive of our writing endeavors.
ReplyDeleteAm in "in love" with blogging? Not really. But I truly enjoy the interaction. If something I've posted on "Four Foxes One Hound" resonates with someone, I feel extremely gratified.
Once I launch my own blog, I hope the Four Foxes will allow me to remain on board ... as we've been doing for the past 15 months.
Wonderful, Jeff! I love your Four Foxes blog! Your grog really works well together. I love how you have a weekly theme and that is how you come up with your post.
DeleteGreat post, Tonya! I'm teaching a seminar on blogging for authors this weekend; this will give me some great fodder to pass on to them. For me, the blogging thing has been an evolutionary process over the last few years, until I've finally found that I'm truly happy with what I have.
ReplyDeleteOne of the biggest keys for me has been figuring out precisely what I'm trying to achieve with my site/blog, and who I want to reach to achieve that goal. Once I did that, it was easy to structure the website around that and get excited about the content I'm posting, whether it be interviews with great mystery/suspense authors, reviews of the books I'm reading, or snippets and instructional posts on the writing life.
Fun! Jen, I didn't know you did seminars! That is so cool. I have to agree that finding your blog niche is key to keep you motivated. I love helping my fellow authors and truly paying it forward, so it was a no brainer when I decided to blog about. . .what else? WRITING!
DeleteI was blogging three times a week when I first started.
ReplyDeleteAt that rate, I spent more time blogging than actually writing. To love my blog more, I dropped my blogging to only once a week.
That is one of the hardest lessons to learn, Maria. Most people get so excited they are gung-ho about blogging until they realize it has taken over their life. There are those boundaries that we have to figure out. I love your blog!
DeleteThe main thing is to blog about subjects you're passionate about. For me, a couple of those things are good books and local history! Sometimes I have to drag myself to the blog, but once I get into writing the posts, it's fun - and I often learn something!
ReplyDelete"but once I get into writing the posts, it's fun - and I often learn something!" PERFECT, Jennette! Having fun creates great blogs.
DeleteI've been procrastinating getting back to my blog. I'm not too sure what I want to do with it at the moment, but your post and some of the comments have been really helpful, and given me alot to think about, so thanks.
ReplyDeleteCD, take the time to figure it out. Pick a theme that you are going to stick to, build your site around it. Then decide how many days you think you can commit to it. Let me know what you decide.
DeleteHi Tonya. Thanks so much for this helpful post. I've been procrastinating getting back to my blog for almost a month and a half now. I started it enthusiastically, but got overwhelmed with the knowledge that I don't know ANYTHING about blogging. So, I've gone back to the drawing board. I've started reading articles and posts on blogging again, and I feel more confident that I'll be ready to go public soon - once I'm a litte more secure in how I want to present myself and what my platform is. Blogs like yours are incredibly helpful in reminding me that I'm like so many other new authors out there - we're all flying by the seat of our pants sometimes, but what a ride! :)
ReplyDelete