Blogging is fun, but it’s harder than it looks…

And I’m sure you’ve found that out. Posting consistently on any social platform is crucial, but that’s one of the hardest things to do. And it takes time to write blog posts. It’s not like a quick Instagram caption or something.

Post ideas

Just like writing novels, with blogging sometimes you have a ton of ideas for posts and other times you have none whatsoever. Find inspiration from other blogs (always adding you own unique spin) and see what other blog readers are liking. Pick topics (blogging tips, characters, your writing, writing craft, etc.) and come up with subtopics to write posts based off of.

And here are some ideas to get you started…

• Character interviews
• Writing tips (on outlining, plot structure, editing, developing a story, etc.)
• Blogging tips
• Book reviews
• Book analysis (comment on the plot structures of popular novels)
• Introduce your projects complete with covers, blurbs, aesthetics, etc.
• Explain the inspiration behind your stories
• Give some tips you learned from this series 😉
• A roundup of awesome blog posts you’ve seen that week
• A list of your favorite writer resources and tools
• Your favorite writing podcasts and websites
• Short stories, flash fiction, poetry, etc.
• Snippets and sample chapters from your WIPs
• Tour of your workspace
• Day-in-the-life post
• Your favorite pens/pencils/notebooks
• Your morning/night routine

The list can go on and on. If you get an idea for a post, write it down. You’re going to need that list of little bits of ideas when you’re running low on inspiration. So you see, not all of your posts have to be about writing. Get creative, show people some of your life (with whatever you’re comfortable with), and ask your blog readers for feedback about what THEY want to see! You can create great-looking feedback and survey forms with Typeform.

Scheduling content & timing

It’s wonderful that WordPress and Mailchimp allows you to schedule content. You never have to be scrambling to get a post out on time! You just have to block some time every so often to work on several blog posts (yes, sometimes instead of writing). Maybe write a few posts in one sitting every other week. Check out my post here about planning great blog posts (and get a free printable!). 

How often should I post?

I don’t believe more than once or twice a week is necessary. Figure out how often you can post consistently and keep that up while not burning out.

Which day and time should I post?

To find out when most of your visitors are on your site, connect your website with Google Analytics. With this, you can easily see your website traffic and plan your posts accordingly. Just pick the day and time with peak traffic.

Post formatting tips

• Don’t make the post too long. Blog posts don’t really need to (and shouldn’t) be that long. If you have an idea that seems kind of long, split it up into two parts. And hey, that takes care of two weeks of content instead of just one. 😉
• Use your paragraph breaks! People read through things better when it’s broken up more. Big block of texts are intimidating and put a lot of people off.
• Use bullet points. This is kind of tied into the tip above. Bullet points makes things easier to understand and digest. Not all post topics need bullet points, but use them when you can.
• Include a CTA (call to action) at the end of the post. Ask your readers a question at the end of your post to encourage them to comment and interact with you.

Interacting with people on your blog…

Responding to EVERY SINGLE COMMENT is very important. People are here because they’re interested in you, you’re writing, and what you have to offer. They’re taking time out of their day to read and write a comment, so thank them by giving them the attention they want.

…when they’re nice…

It’s easy to interact and respond to people when they’re comments are nice and friendly. When responding to comments, you kind of want to match the mood of their comment. If someone gave you a really heartfelt, long, deep comment about what they thought and felt about your post, responding with a light “thanks for commenting!” with a bunch of emojis may rub someone the wrong way. Be authentic and respond how you would as if it was in-person.

…and when they’re not…

I haven’t gotten hate comments before, but that doesn’t mean that it will never happen. There might be people saying hurtful things on your blog. If these comments have no evidence or basis for their anger, then delete it. They’re not here to connect with you, just to spew…whatever. BUT if a comment does offer some criticism, whether they handled it politely or not, thank them for their feedback. No need to argue. Do not argue with your readers. Always be respectful and gracious. 

Your email list incentive

What’s going to prompt people to join your email list? Yes, the content you post is a big factor, but sometimes you just need a little something special to start growing your list.

The email list incentive is something I haven’t set up for myself yet (working on it!), but definitely plan to in the near future. It’s basically something extra, some freebie, that you offer someone if they sign up to your email list. I can guarantee that you will see a different in your list growth if you do this. Some ideas to offer as incentives:

• Short story
• Flash fiction
• Poetry
• Newsletter
• Free printables
• Access to something
• A sample chapter from one of your (edited) WIPs

Get creative to think about something that’s unique to you that you can offer. Also, you can get inspiration from what other authors are offering. 

Guest posting

Guest posting on other blogs is a great way to increase your reach and drive traffic to your site, resulting in more email subscribers. Do some research to find some sites that accept guest posting. You can find places to submit articles, or even stories like flash fiction.

Falling into the blogging hole

Keeping up with blog posts consistently is really hard. It’s so easy to fall into a rut, miss posting dates, run out of ideas, etc. Setting aside time each week to work on a bunch of blog posts to schedule is crucial to stay on top of things. Yes, this will take some time away from your writing, but that’s part of the author business. And remember, take hiatuses if you need to. If you feel yourself getting close to burning out, announce that you’re taking a short (or long) hiatus to refresh. During this time, you can re-asses your posting schedule and activity to see if something needs to be altered. 

This whole blogging thing is a little bit of trial-and-error to figure out what will work for you and create the best results for your blog growth. 

Okay! I hope you enjoyed today’s post! I really enjoy talking about blogging, because I love it so much! I’ve been able to connect with so many awesome people through this platform. 🙂 

There’s still SO MUCH on the subject of blogging, so definitely do research to learn more. Ask questions in the comments so we can get a discussion rolling! 

What did you think of today’s lesson? Questions? What are your blogging strengths and weaknesses?

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