Writing Blogs: What do you Post?

BigJ1

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Hey writing gang! Just a quick question for those of you that have blogs. What kind of content do you post? Do you write articles? Do you repost from other well-known sources? Do you put up samples of your own writing? I've been writing articles lately on my own. I'd love to hear what some other ideas are from other users on this awesome community!

Justin
 

PiaSophia

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Hi there! I have a blog and write about everything midwifery-related (I'm a midwife). All of the content I post is entirely my own. Mostly I write about things I experience in my work, sometimes I write advice on topics I feel my clients ask me about a lot (and therefore I feel like my readers would like to hear the advice as well).

I use Instagram a lot, and sometimes ask my followers for their input on what they would like to read about. That helps with blogger's-block, and often sparks new inspiration. Good luck!
 
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Laer Carroll

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Are you serious about being a writer and reaching an audience for your writing? Or just dabbling?

If our website is purely personal, we can post any old thing, any length, any number from hundreds a day to one a year. And unless we are super witty or super wise, maybe one other person will ever read it.

If it is to promote ourselves as a professional writer, we should post material which will further that purpose. Not very long or short. About one every week or two. About topics likely to be included in our books and which will interest our likely readers.
 

BigJ1

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Thanks for the feedback guys! I definitely see what your saying about useful info. That's why I started writing help articles for other writers. I was pouring my heart and soul into other content that wasn't getting me any traction.
 

Carissa

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My quick answer is that I think its best to post the type of content that you, yourself would want to read.

On my blog, I only post content that I think would be useful to other writers. That has meant that over the years, I have reduced the number of posts I put out to just a few a year. I put a lot of time into each one to ensure that they are helpful, and traffic to my blog is fairly directly releated to the amount of time it took me to pull the post together (for example, a regularly updated Writing Contest Calendar, a javascript Pitch Generator and Name Generator, and a compilation of 600 successful queries are the most visited pages on my blog).
 

screenscope

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I blog about my own writing processes & inspiration and contrarian writing opinion, always with a touch of humour. I don't have a strategic plan for my blog and only write the pieces when I feel like it and have the time.

It's a lot of fun and gives me a break during novel writing.
 

Paul Lamb

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My blog is eclectic. I began it to foster my writing and publishing, and I certainly still do use it for that, but I've broadened it considerably and will write about visits to my little Ozark cabin, or my bike riding adventures, or even anecdotes about my grands. I almost never post my original (creative) writing there (like samples from my stories), though I will have links to published stories if they're online. Sometimes I'll post a paragraph I like from whatever current book I'm reading. Sometimes just a photo (on Wordless Wednesday). I've posted every day in a week and then go a week or more without a post. I never know what will interest the mysterious readers I have, nor is it always clear to me why my visit count will spike on any given day. If someone leaves a comment on your blog, it's generally best (respectful, courteous) to respond to it. Certainly if you want a lot of readers, visit other blogs and leave substantive comments. And, visit other blogs outside of what your intent is. If yours will be a blog about writing, find a blog about knitting or collecting fountain pens or neighborhood news or politics or travel. Say something insightful on those in the comments and find new readers who will sample yours and maybe stay for the long haul.
 

emnorth

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I write True Crime, I love it. I am currently writing my own psychological thriller so it's a good way to research for my book and also do something I enjoy (writing and reading about true crime).

The blog is here https://themissingandthelost.com if anyone is interested in true crime.
 

mattsweeney

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I run an entertainment blog that posts book reviews, film critiques, short stories, literature discussions, writing tips, etc.

Check it out- 157 blog posts and counting! (I'm trying to post every day.)

How do you find the time to post every day? I'm planning on launching a book review blog (at least to start) for MG parents. But it takes me 2-4 days to read a book - much less review it with a critical eye. Just curious how you stay up to date on it.
 
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clawyer80

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I write a blog for my church, but I don't have a blog or any interest in having a blog for myself. How necessary is having one for the pursuit of becoming a published author?
 

ecoliving55

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It depends on what your objective is with the blog. If you're trying to get traffic to a site you'll need to write about things that people are actually searching for on Goole usually on a slightly narrow/niche topic. If you don't care if anyone reads it or would just like to use it as a portfolio site, then write what your heart tells you.
 

Alison S

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I'm not sure this even counts!

I have a tiny blog that I use for worldbuilding - and even my worldbuilding is tiny because it only relates to a single English county :giggle:

When I'm brainstorming story ideas I tend to write short snippets or notes, and I found that I was writing a lot for this one setting where quite a few of my stories are set. So I gathered them in one place and put them here https://farynshire.wordpress.com/

Please feel free to delete this if it's not appropriate/in the wrong place - I'm still very new!
 

ShaunHorton

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My blog hasn't been too active the past couple years, but I post a mix of stuff. Articles about Horror and the craft of writing, random ideas I have, short stories, reviews of books, movies and video games of the genre, I also post about cryptids (which I feel is still on topic considering many of them are used as monsters in horror stories), and occasionally I'll throw out a rant if something semi-related to writing or the genre really ticks me off.

I need to get back to work on it.
 
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Maxx2

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Hey writing gang! Just a quick question for those of you that have blogs. What kind of content do you post? Do you write articles? Do you repost from other well-known sources? Do you put up samples of your own writing? I've been writing articles lately on my own. I'd love to hear what some other ideas are from other users on this awesome community!

Justin
I have a blog that started out to be about kitchens during the Cold War. Then it moved on to Russian Installation Art. Now it is mostly history of science, but since I was trained as a archaeologist that can get messy fast. So I came up with some "rules" --
1) I have to study up on a topic before I even begin drafting posts on that topic
2) I have to give sources and admit I don't really know what I'm talking about
3) A prospective post has to be mulled over for two days before I put it up there
4) but I'm allowing some twists in the process and all the more so since I'm starting a new set of topics on Pyramid Texts, Artificial Intelligence, Mannerism, early cinema, Wittgenstein, Alan Turing and the slipperiness of what Lacan calls the "Signifier"...so I'm busy carefully bending most of my rules.
5) I may start putting in ways that these topics recur in my fiction (for example in my current YA book, an Evil Assistant Vice Principal in charge of the Principles of Individual Discipline tries to force the MC to read Wittgenstein)
 
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CathleenT

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I've written a lot of various content that didn't end up being worth the time I was sinking into it, so I stopped. One example is that while I was studying social media, I pubbed what I learned in blog posts. And they got great traffic at the time...but that kind of thing has to be updated frequently, and I just didn't want to put the effort in for a bunch of people who weren't reading my books.

I wrote articles on writing as well, and those have fared better over time, particularly since they climbed in the Google search ranks. In that area I'd recommend solving a particular problem, not too big--some of my most popular posts are comma blogs and ten ways to use hyphens with numbers. These just have to be correct. A fair few people come, read just the one article, and leave. But some of them pick up my free book, enough to make it worthwhile, especially since these evergreen articles need no updating.

As far as current output goes, I post a short story most months, plus stuff about my new releases and reviews for other writers in my informal blogging group. It's really the short stories that matter the most to me. : )
 
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Kimberly Anne Bell

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Well as an author you would want to post content that your readers would most likely enjoy or find informative. You can also collaborate with other authors to create content.
 
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BabyBoomerX

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I have 2 blogs, which I haven't updated for a long time.
In one of my small creations, poems, I have short stories.
On the other, I sat, thoughts, reviews, and little things.
But I haven't published anything for a long time.
 

Viva Venezuela

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I have no blog, but reading all this makes me curious. Do a lot of people check out your blogs? How do they find them because no searches I've ever done have suggested any blogs?
 
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UCWpresident

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I write religion/mental health content. It's pretty interesting, since I've got a style where I don't need to post "bigger" blog content. Stuff about my Christian Plato stuff, and everything else. Me having schizoid personality disorder. It's interesting.
 

jjosuminded

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Hey writing gang! Just a quick question for those of you that have blogs. What kind of content do you post? Do you write articles? Do you repost from other well-known sources? Do you put up samples of your own writing? I've been writing articles lately on my own. I'd love to hear what some other ideas are from other users on this awesome community!

Justin
I make it a place for my personal thoughts on many topics, such as art, music, society issues, video games, and sometimes just my inner world and some of my conflicts in my "Late Night Journal" section. To me, it's all about sharing who I am, through interesting topics my readers and I may have in common.
 
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