If you are a writer who doesn’t blog, then you need to start. Yeah, yeah, I know it feels like one more thing on your list. I get that. I resisted blogging for years. Who even reads blogs, I wondered? Turns out, lots of people.
This Writer’s Living blog is not even a year old, but already it has enhanced my brand in a major way. It’s an ever growing body of work. It publicly showcases my writing. It has helped us show up in some pretty cool places. And it brings in targeted readers for another side of my business. I wasn’t a big proponent of blogging, but now, I believe it is one of the most effective ways writers have for growing their brands and getting new opportunities. In fact, research shows that companies that blog get 55 percent more visitors to their sites than those that don’t.
The key though, is in how you build that blog. Write with the audience in mind.
Here is how.
1. Decide what kind of blog you will write. Before you start, truly think through what you want your blog to be. Will it be like a diary and allow you to simply tell others about the goings-on of your day? Will it be an information source to help others learn or do something? Will it be a place to show off your writing and talk about upcoming projects?
The reason why it’s important to decide this upfront is because it will determine how you approach the blog. If you see this blog as just a diary, then you won’t approach it in a professional way and chances are, it probably won’t add much to your brand. But if you see your blog as a tool or resource to help people in some way, then you’re on your way to creating a product that can build your brand. When you write a blog as a resource for others, you write with your reader in mind. If you write a blog as a diary or some way to vomit the mundane details of your life all over others, then you write only with you in mind. The key to successful blogging is writing something you enjoy, but writing it for your reader.
2. Choose a topic. If you are writing a blog that will be a resource for writers, then decide what angle, side, or piece of that broad topic will be your focus. For us here at Writer’s Living, our focus is on helping writers manage the business side of their careers. We are not a “how to write” blog. We are not a “post your writing pieces” blog. We are not a blog about any particular type of writing, such as novel writing or screenwriting or poetry. We are a blog about how to make a living writing. Everything on this blog is related to that in some way, whether it’s inspiration to keep you going, motivation to push you forward, or information to show you how to do it.
3. Get a name that works. Get your name or one that quickly identifies what the blog is about. Don’t go for cutesy, weird names that test your reader’s memory. It does you little good if nobody can ever remember what that blog is called or how to get to it. Make it easy for your readers.
4. Get a dedicated domain name. A free site like WordPress.com is OK, if that’s what you have to do just to get going. It’s better to get going on a free site than to sit around twiddling your thumbs. But consider a dedicated domain name as soon as you can, using your own hosting. That way, instead of having yourblog.wordpress.com, you will have yourblog.com. It’s cleaner, easier to remember, and gives you the links. Plus you have more control. But that’s another post for another day.
5. Create good content. You don’t have to be a stellar writer when it comes to blogging or making a living writing. But you do have to produce good stuff. Nobody wants to read boring, confusing, or rambling posts. But the way to get good is to start off being bad, if you have to. I am a big believer of what motivational speaker Les Brown says: “Fail your way to success.” Don’t be afraid to be bad before you get good. But work hard to get there. You must produce good content if you want to have a successful blog that builds your brand.
6. Define success. Speaking of success, this is the thing with blogging: Success can mean many things. Is your blog there to take qualified leads to your mailing list? If so, then converting casual visitors into subscribers is success. Is your blog there to show off your writing and expertise so you get new clients, speaking engagements, and other opportunities? Then when those opportunities come along, that is success. Is your blog there to rack up lots of comments or followers? Then when that happens, that is success for you. Certainly your blog can do all these things, but it may do only one because that is where you put your energy. Defining success is important so you can gauge just where you are.
Your definition of blogging success may change over time. That’s fine. Set goals and work toward hitting them.
7. Produce consistently. This doesn’t mean post every day, although it could be that, if that’s the schedule you choose. But it does mean post often enough. You can’t do ten posts this month and then none for six months. The schedule I use is to post several times a week. Some weeks, that means four times, some weeks, that means twice. The point is that you must build a body of work so visitors have something to see when they stop by. And you want to give your regular visitors or subscribers something new on a regular basis. Whatever you do, don’t over promise and under deliver. Don’t tell your readers you will post daily and then only do it once or twice a week. If you can’t commit to posting daily, then don’t say you will.
8. Share your work. Remember to post your content to your social networks, other sharing sites, etc. You can even send out press releases. The idea of “build it and they will come,” doesn’t work for blogging. Just because you put up a blog doesn’t mean people will flock to it. You’ve got to let them know it is there.
9. Focus that blog. If you want your blog to build your writing business, then focus your posts on things that would be of interest to your target audience. For instance, if you are a freelance tech writer, then your blog needs to be related to this in some way. Maybe you post your take on tech trends. Or maybe you post gadget reviews or industry news. That way you are serving the needs of people in that industry or who are interested in that industry. Then when you send quotes or proposals to clients or you query tech publications, you can share posts in your query. In that way, your focused blog can help you land new work, grow your authority in the industry, and lead to new opportunities.
10. Collect email addresses. Get a mailing list sign up box on your blog. One way to build your brand is to stay in touch with people who are interested in what you have to say. Deliver your newsletter, blog, or both to them via email. Don’t make them go looking for you. Get permission to drop into their inbox.
Fiction authors can use blogs to build their brands, too
Fiction writers might wonder how this applies to them. While it is easier to see how nonfiction writers can use these tips, fiction writers can also. I will be launching a blog soon to complement my novel-writing. (You do realize I am a novelist, right? That’s how all this other stuff began. Way back in the time before there were ebooks and Twitter and Facebook, I self-published my first novel. Then my second. Then got a book deal. And on and on.) So I will live firsthand the advice I am sharing here.
Fiction writers can adapt this advice to make it work for them. For instance, sharing your work means posting excerpts from your books or short stories right on your blog.
Include announcements about your projects — what you’re working on now, when your next book signing will be, cool things you came across in your research. Let your readers in on your process. Readers often find it cool to go behind the scenes with their authors. If you are having a tough time writing a scene, tell your reader. If you need help with the name of a character, maybe your readers want to chime in.
The key to successfully using a blog to build your fiction brand is in showing who you are as a writer and inviting readers on your journey. I’ll test the truth of this when I launch my own blog for the novel-writing side of my career. If you like inspirational fiction or just want to check out my author’s journey, join my Author Monica Carter mailing list. We’ll have fun with the blog and you’ll have a chance to get cool gifts, participate in wonky contests, and hang out in my fictional world.
Whether you write for publications or business clients, or construct fictional worlds, blogging can help you build your brand. How do you use blogging in your writing business?
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