HELP PLEASE!!!!

hey, first of all congrats on getting the contract

with regards to a blog i'm usually against setting it from a characters point of view. It's got a shirt life span and blogs usually take time to get going and gather interest. You have to decide why you are creating a blog, what you bring to the table, and how you can then leverage it to your advantage.

Maybe you could create an author blog instead but do a regular (sae time every week) 'Guest' Post from your main character? could be a nice way to create a link to your book but still have a blog that you can use for years to come.

As for the platform Blogger is fine, but look at wordpress.com too. I use that and i think its neater than blogger. just my opinion though and they both provide exactly what you need.

Getting people to it is the tough one though and takes time and effort. Social media makes it easier, as does posting entries on forums like this. It's all about engagement and slowly over time you should start seeing the rewards (its what i'm hoping for anyways

The big thing is what do you want your blog to be about? are you an expert in something where you can provide advice? Are you part of a niche you can discuss a lot about?

For example i'm a marketer so my blog is about that, specifically towards writing (because i'm creating an author platform too)

I'd do some research though and read some guides on how to create and market blogs. I have a links page on my blog with some decent links to 3rd party sites (they helped me anyway) but there's a million others out there.

Hope this helps anyway

Matt (Turndog Millionaire)

Congrats and all the best with your book and your career.

I use blog.com and I'm very happy with it. It's easy to use and provides a good start for a blog page.

In terms of getting readers, think about visiting other writer's blogs/webpages (especially the ones up and coming) and post comments on their blogs/webpages. Invite them to write a guest post or do an interview in your blog. In this way, you'll start to make some friends, who'll tell other people about their guest post/interview and perhaps you'll get some visitors.

Use Facebook and other social media too and tell about your blog pretty much everyone you know.

Hope this helps.

Ethan

Congrats Vince!
I use Blogger, I've heard good things of Wordpress too. I have too many projects going on to look into Wordpress, in other words, I'm lazy.
If you are on Facebook you can join Networked Blogs and all your post will pop up on your wall once you've posted on your blog. Then get your friends to "share it" so it gets "out there". It's great that your friends get to see it but better if there friends see it also.
And the commenting is a very good idea. If you comment on someones blog they are more than likely going to check you out. It's very time consuming and you want to hit the right market of bloggers that would be interested in your book.
Good Luck!

Congrats on getting the contract!

A few bits of blogg-y advice (from a long-time blogger):

1. Think about what you really want to do with your blog, long term. You will only build a following if you're consistent in subject and frequency. It's OK if you can only post once a week, but do it consistently. If you post sporadically, no one knows when to visit your blog or expect new content.

2. Re: the diary posts. It's a fun idea, but short-lived. What might be a better idea is to merge it in with a general author blog. Post one week on where you ideas come from, the next week a diary post, etc. Mix it in leading up to the release.

3. Twitter is your friend. Many blog readers use Twitter almost as a syndication service. Tweet out your posts. This will allow readers to spread the word, even if they aren't regular followers of your blog.

4. Blogger is just fine. (I prefer Wordpress, but that's because it allows for more customization, and I'm a geek who needs to touch the code herself.)

Wordpress is a flexible blogging platform. It can seem intimidating at first, but with a little bit of work, it is very easy to set-up with many webhosts. Also, to my knoweldge wordpress does provide free hosting to a limited extent.

I had a crappy blog on blogspot once. I think it is less flexible and bit more casual, in my opinion. If you really want to go for a more professional blog, with your own domain name and everything, I think the best option is wordpress. The reason I say this is because wordpress offers a lot of customization compared to blogspot such as themes, widgets, layout etc.

If you are soley looking for a free service then blogspot is good choice.

For content you could always try to sell yourself as an author. The internet these days is all about identity, so you want to be unique. Most of social media these days is about selling yourself and interacting with the audience. Talk about things that inspire you, talk about your story and other projects you want to work on. And try to be consistent.

The best way to promote your blog, and I don't practice this myself, is to participate in the writing and blogging community. Never use backlink services, because all you will have on your blog is spam. I deal with this issue everyday now.

And I am not a proffesional blogger. These are just some things I have learned over the past couple months. Good luck!

Vince524 said:

Hey everyone. This is my first time in this area of AW.

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Vince, what the hell are you doing out of the Pop Culture forum? No dessert for you tonight, mister!

Vince524 said:

I just recently got a contract for my MS "Vision of Shadows." It's probably a while off from being published, but it's gonna be an E-Book.

I was told to create a webpage for myself. Also, I was thinking about doing a blog.

The story has to do with a 16 yr old girl who's psychic. She talks to ghosts and has visions and such. In the MS, she keeps a journal. The entire MS is 1st person, from her POV.

So I was thinking about trying to gin up some excitement to the book by doing a blog of her journal entries. All taking place before the book starts.

In the MS, she mentions many different encounters with ghosts. Most of the stories she gives in there are short. Often amusing.

Here's my problem.(s)

1) I have no idea how to start a good blog. I had started one once, under blogspot. Is that good enough for this?

And 2nd, how do you get people to read the dang thing?

Any help would be appreciated.

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As others have suggested, you can roll with Blogger or Word Press (I'm on Word Press and have been for close to four years). Take a look at both and go with the one that gives you the bells and whistles you like and causes the least amount of heartburn.

• Spend the money and buy your own domain name.
• Keep the blog freshly updated with new content on a regular basis. You can't blog like a madman for a week or so, tease the reader and then take a week off. They'll drop you like a bad habit and they won't come back.
• Find a workable schedule to update your blog. I never go more than two to three days without adding a new post. Don't start blogging if you're not going to keep blogging.
• Don't be discouraged if the number of page hits starts small and stays small. There are a ton of blogs out there and many are small, personal and of special interest to particular sets of readers.
• Check out the blogs of other AW writers. See what they are doing that you like and do that. See what they are doing that you don't like and don't do that. I'm not saying you should imitate and for God's sake don't steal from others, but learn from those that are already doing what you're trying to do.
• Pay it forward. Create a blogroll and link to the sites you like and ask them if they will include your blog in their blogroll. You will get a few "no's" but you'll get a lot more "sure thing, bud."
• Enjoy yourself. Be professional. Don't write so long that the reader's eyes glaze over, but tell the story you're trying to. Find the happy medium.
• Get on Facebook, Twitter, Linkedin or whatever other social media site you need to be on to publicize your blog. Don't be pushy. Do be patient.

Enjoy. You poor, doomed fool.

In my opinion Blogger is not the best choice if you want something professional. That's not to say it can't be, but I think a lot of people expect Blogger sites to be kind of like online diaries. Wordpress is great and there are a lot of options with it. Personally, I like Webs.com. They're geared more towards small businesses, but it works great as a personal website - just look at mine (shameless self promotion).

As far as writing as your MC, I think it's a cool idea. I like the idea of having your MC "guest blog" on a regular basis. You may also want to consider opening a Facebook account and/or Twitter account for your MC. Do it as if she was completely real and you could have thousands of "friends" in no time.

You may also want to consider opening a Facebook account and/or Twitter account for your MC. Do it as if she was completely real and you could have thousands of "friends" in no time.

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Agree!! I know a blogger that wrote about a WalMart bag stuck in a tree. The bag stayed stuck there for over three years and she posted about it often. "Windy" became very popular and had her own FaceBook page. Sadly, not too many months ago she lost her fight and blew away. People left their condolences on her wall.

If you need friends on Facebook I have links on both of my blogs. Just put AW in the request and then I will suggest you as a friend to my blogging/writing friends.

Congratulations on your writing success--keep it going! No offense to Blogger, but there have been times when they may experience some technical glitches, and that may mean you may miss engagement/interaction from others who happen by, but, in fairness to Blogger, it may just be only when I happen along.

I've had my humor blog on Blogger since 2003. I've only lost one post, completely and totally gone forever. I do have issues with it and swear frequently at it. But that may be operator error.