I'm pretty new to blogging...actually, very new. I haven't decided yet if there are right and wrong ways to do it. I've read blogs about blogging, with great hints about how to get more readers, how to keep readers, how to guest blog, and how to organize your blog.
I've been told, "don't talk too much about yourself," and "just be yourself," and "only talk about stuff that is important to you," and "find a topic that people will be attracted to and write about that."
I've heard, "your blog posts should be 200-300 words max" and "your blog posts can be up to 600-800 words."
I've seen blogs on all kinds of topics, from marketing to motherhood, vocations to vacations, gardening to grand-parenting, and leadership to landscaping.
I've seen some great gimmicks like "A Photo A Day" and "Seven Sentences" (where every post is exactly 7 sentences long).
My blog is pretty much about whatever is on my mind when I sit down to write, along with the ongoing story of A Girl Named Little. I have no real topic, no real focus necessarily. I don't stick to a set length for each post, and I don't really do anything fancy to get more views.
I know that I'm called to encourage people to break the ties that hold them back, to reveal the secrets that weigh them down, and to battle the fears that tie their hands. I'm not sure that my blog is specifically about that, though.
So, am I a wrong-blogger?? (I just made up that term, by the way...just for fun!) Is there a right way to blog? Do I need to pick a specific topic? A consistent length? Do I need to post less about my own thoughts, and come up with a more "generalized" topic to discuss?
When you first started your blog, how did you decide what to write about? What blogging "rules" do you use?
You do whatever feels comfortable to you. Nothing more, nothing less. Once you get into it, you will see where you want to focus once you find your voice. It may not be any different than it is now. But after a while, you will notice more about who you are and what you want to say.
ReplyDeleteDon't worry about the length of your posts. If people like what you have to say, they will read it no matter who long it is.
Then if you really want to fine tune things... Then there's always more to learn and do.
I always say... Blogging is deep enough to drown in and shallow enough to play in.
So have fun. Anything less than fun is a drag:)
I agree with Spence. Be yourself and have fun. I think it's a great idea to pick up pieces of wisdom along the way but only use what works for YOU.
ReplyDeleteYou're doing a great job.
I love what Spence said, and he's a master. I very consistently read a blog that has no real focus, though its writer certainly has a life's intention. It all comes out in time, and I appreciate the variety. I'll only add that my time is limited. Please don't waste it. Make each word compelling - and edit yourself before you post. Even if I enjoy a writer, if I feel that I have to invest too much time to get to their nugget :) I find that I'm not prone to stick with them, however much I enjoy them.
ReplyDeleteHello Kim! So glad to find you. Blogging for me, eleven years ago was to find other moms and step moms when I was a new step mom. Blissfully Domestic is the brainchild of Allison Worthington, when she as a mom of five boys needed an outlet to connect to other bloggers. Blogs can be many things, but the most important thing is that it is a place you are comfortable sharing whatever you share, your life, your passions and gifts, your story, or your writing...there is no right or wrong specifically. Whatever you right, there will be an audience for it. Visit other blogs, leave comments so they can find your writing and don't forget searching your topics for other like minded bloggers is worthwhile!
ReplyDeleteI agree with Spence! Just have fun and be proud of yourself for doing it!
ReplyDeleteI have been meaning to start a blog for months and really pushed that I would when I returned from the ReCreate Cruise and still have not done it. I have taken lots of steps, but haven't posted a thing. I believe it is because I am trying too hard to make it perfect--to get the strategy down, to get the look of it just right. Kim, you are shipping--and I am still just dreaming, and that makes you quite an inspiration in and of itself!
You are def not a wrong-blogger! In my opinion, the only wrong-blogger is a non-blogger who has a call on his or her life to speak! Thanks for the nudge. I needed this today. :-)
Lindsey... I met Randy on a cruise almost 5 years ago... he started me blogging. I went home from the cruise we were all on... started a blog and ddn't write a word for 5 months!!!! but once i did... it was a blast!
ReplyDeleteHi Kim! My husband is a Boulder, CO native! :) Love it there - Parker is pretty! Nice post! I started blogging in 2006 gathering information for what we thought would be an international adoption... after "sending" four families overseas, and six children later. Adoption was not what God had planned for us. However, blogging has been a blessing. Now, I share with others and give information! :) God Bless and keep on writing! Am on Twitter @CarolinaMama
ReplyDeleteKim,
ReplyDeleteThe honesty and vulnerability with which you write this post reveals a couple of things: You are indeed a creative as you struggle with your creation, and you are going to be a great blogger.
Not long after the recreate cruise docked I shut down my old blog of 5 years and opened a new one. The first one was fun and provided an outlet that was much needed for me during a very difficult growth period in my life. Here's the post on the full story: http://onestepforwardtoday.com/2011/05/no-longer-pursuingyahweh/
That said, I would encourage you to continue moving ahead just as Spence suggests above. I would only add that down the road you may be led in a different direction with another focus. Don't be afraid to let go of your "first born-blog" if and when that time comes.
Finally, "Don't compare your beginning to someone else's middle." (statement by John Acuff) That is, you may feel like you're in the shadow of the blog-fathers; there is nothing else to say since it's all been said. That's not true. Because your story is just now beginning to unfold on this platform. And no one else has your story.
Blog away!
BP
Kim, You have an important story to tell. A piece of God's glory that is yours alone. The more important the story, the more intense the resistance will be. Steven Pressfield's the War of Art articulates this compellingly.
ReplyDeleteI have been blogging for 4 years and do not have a huge following. What I do have are dear friends that I have met who live far away. I have the joy of knowing that the hard things I have gone through have helped others in the same place. Your story of Little is doing the same thing. The Littles out there who are reading it may not be ready to dialogue openly yet about their story. It might not be time. So you won't hear from them. But they are drinking in your words and waiting to find hope.
Also, You are a writer, Kim. And every time you write something, anything, you refine who you are as a writer. You find your voice.
Whatever it is that burns in your heart, write that. It is the bit of genius put in you by God for all of us. We need you.
Mine is simple: write what I think I can share with others as a blessing to readers.
ReplyDeleteI am very new in this blogging world, too. So, we just need to read more so we can write more, my opinion.
As new blogger to another, I'd say: "Express your self and thoughts im writing. I'm so glad that you blog :)"
These comments are all amazing! Thank you so much for all of your thoughts!
ReplyDeleteI feel encouraged to keep going along the same lines I am now, for now, and just let God lead for the future.
Spence...I love your statement, "Blogging is deep enough to drown in and shallow enough to play in." I need to chew on that one a little bit more!!
Pete...hope to see you when we're in town later this month! Thanks for joining the conversation!
Chance...thank you for the encouragement to be cognisant of whether my word's are compelling and thoughtful.
Sweetie Berry...thank you for the encouragement, and for taking the time to join the conversation!!
Lindsey...you're welcome! Get on it, girl!! I wanna read what you have to say!!!
Carolina Mama...I'm now following you!! :-) Can't wait to get to know you more!
Bryan...one of my FAVORITE quotes..."don't compare your beginning to someone else's middle"...that has stayed in my thoughts since I first read it on SCL. Thank you so much for your encouragement!! I'll check out your "first-born" as well as your current blog!
Sheila...my prayer is that my Little story will encourage other Littles in exactly the ways you said! Thank you for that reminder!
Helen...what is your blog site address? I'd love to read what you're saying!
These are amazing!!
ReplyDeleteI'm encouraged, too!!
Sweet Girl...(yes, I'm old) welcome to the world of cyber-insecurity. We write our hearts out & then wait to see if anyone heard us and does our voice matter. I think it's safer to write for writings sake, to write for our heart's sake, to write for our growths sake...without expectations of others. Some may get us, some may not. Isn't it the same in "real" time as well?
ReplyDeletePeople's approval is a luxury not a necessity ...if we don't require it to move forward then when it does show up it's a delicious breeze.
I personally cannot wait to lean in and hear what you have to say when it doesn't matter to you who is listening. That's when our offering is sterling. Continue to be attuned to your own heart and see what God has in mind.
Many blessings on your pen that inks your story. Together we will survive the quaking in our souls....Jesus said so.
Kim - Thank you so much for writing this blog!! Being new to blogging myself, I found such wisdom & encouragement in each response shared. Patsy Clairmont offered a wealth of advice in saying that we should blog for our heart's sake, for our growth's sake. How very true!! May we write to keep our heart in tune with God. To capture our journey, our adventure with Him. And if it touches & blesses someone else, well, that is all extra - to Him be the glory. May our God bless each of our pens!
ReplyDeleteBlessings,
Joanne Viola
Isn't it fun, Aunt Gail!! I love it when people take the time to comment!! Makes my day!!
ReplyDeleteWell, Miss Patsy...I know you are a friend of my Aunt Gail, but I only know you from hearing you at WOF. When I saw that you commented, I wanted to call all my friends and say "Pasty-freakin'-Clairmont just read my blog, AND commented! (I actually DID call my mom and say just that) :-) I'm honored that you would take the time, honestly. When I see the amazing encouragement that you and the other WOF bring to women all over the world, I am in awe. Thanks for allowing God to work in you and through you! If my words, especially my story about Little, can bring that kind of encouragement to even just one woman, I will feel humbled and blessed.
Joanne...thanks so much for your comment! Send me your blog address...I'd love to hear what you have to say!
ReplyDeleteThe main thing, Kim, is that you are blogging consistently. That is huge and already puts you into the 2% club.
ReplyDeleteI started blogging for myself first—just to sort out my own thoughts. Then, over time, I began to narrow my focus. This was hugely helpful in terms of growing my audience. But I think this comes later.
Consistency, finding your voice, and enjoying yourself are what is important now. Keep up the good work. It matters.
Thank you Mike! I so appreciate your comment. I'm thinking that, as I blog more and more, I'll see a general theme rise out of it all...or maybe a couple of themes. I like that your blog touches on variety of topics...some more philosophical and some more practical.
ReplyDeleteThanks for all of your support! I appreciate it more than you know! Excited to see you on Monday!
Kim,
ReplyDeleteMy blog is daysnthoughts.tumblr.com
Thank you for asking!
Joanne Viola
Hi, Kim! Here's my experience. In 2008 I hit one of those moments. I was getting some good stuff from God and didn't want to keep it to myself. The result was my blog, but very sporadic and, in 2009 I hit a dry spell...for a year and a half. Or so I thought. Early this year, God started nudging me, again. And it became clear that there were all kinds of seed thoughts, some from above, some indirectly through something someone else said or wrote. And, when I decided to get technically better at what I do, a certain uncle of yours made a written comment about not reading blogs that post less than three times a week. That one hit home. You can't expect your audience to come back if they don't really expect to find fresh content. Every time I post, I have a size expectation for the post. And each time I find there's more to include as I write it.
ReplyDeleteOther than that, I have no clue. Enjoy what you write, do your best to communicate it interestingly. And I suspect, if someone thinks you've started to regularly get too wordy, they'll let you know. I don't get here as often as I'd like, but your posts keep my attention and make me think. So, I'll be back.
What I love about blogging is that it's a process... you learn what works for you, for others, and through the process you are learning. It's a bit more a of a public learning process thatn some others but wonderful just the same.
ReplyDeleteI've enjoyed your poetry and wondering "aloud" if you are doing it "right"
Thanks!
www.idontwanttomiss.org
Kim,
ReplyDeleteThis is most of the battle: knowing what you are called to do. "I'm called to encourage people to break the ties that hold them back, to reveal the secrets that weigh them down, and to battle the fears that tie their hands." Wow. If we all could know what we are called to ;)
If you veer from that a bit, no worries. But having something that drives you, that will shine through.
:) - A Fellow Coloradoan
Kim
ReplyDeleteI just started blogging in Feb after being at all access and on stage with Andy Andrews. I never even thought of it and was never interested in reading blogs either. Then I started reading all the WOF ladies blogs and got hooked. Then found yours and I am amazed with how you write. Please don't change a thing. I haven't blogged in a couple of months because of the same thing... reading all the you should and shouldn't blogs. I think God called us to blog and this post has made me maybe start trying again. Thanks for your wonderful blog.
Kim S