Choosing a blog subject is as multi-faceted as rolling dice.In the past month or so, there has been a distinct pattern to the advice I've given most of the bloggers who have asked me for feedback.
Most of the advice I've given has related to two subjects: design and readership. You can see where I'm going here. After almost three decades in the media, I can tell you that design and readership are completely inter-dependent on each other.
In most cases, you won't get readers if you don't have a decent design sense; and if you have a lousy design sense you probably won't get the readership you deserve.
But hey, the hard work in blogging is generally done for you. You don't have to be an Einstein (I'm not), a web designer (I'm not) or an html genius (I'm not) to be a blogger. Websites like blogger.com have done all the hard work for you. You want to start a blog? No worries at all. Just jump onto the site, have a quick trawl through the design templates, choose one, publish your first post - and, hey presto, you are now part of the worldwide web. So simple. It's not really a case of E=mc squared.
The equation really is: Good blogging = high readership.
You don't have to be a Pulitzer Prize winner (I'm not) or a bestselling author (I am) to be a blogger. Anyone can blog, but here comes the corollary. Because there are between 55-60 million blogs, not every blogger is going to have a huge readership base. You need to have something that sets you apart from everyone else.
Do you already have something that distinguishes your blog? If so, well done, but look for another element that reinforces your unique status.
If you don't really have something that sets your blog apart from others, don't despair. If you have great subject matter, you're in with a chance. If you write well, that's a valuable asset. But if you're not a great writer, just stay focused, keep your vision and thought process clear and explain yourself in simple language. Not that hard, is it? Don't be verbose, antagonistic or unnecessarily opinionated - you are trying to get people to read your blog, after all.
Follow the simplest path. Stay attuned to the ``look'' of your blog. Don't always run with the pack. Try and introduce some design or presentation elements that other bloggers don't use. If that's too challenging, then stick with the basic design ideas.
Another question that crops up a lot is ``What should I blog about?'' Blog about anything, but write from your heart. Write without artifice, without bias, without fear of censure. E. J. `Samadhi' Whitehouse asked me a couple of weeks ago how to write a bestseller. I don't know. I don't think anyone knows. But if you write from your heart, then you're halfway there.
As for design, would you spend hours poring over a dull balance sheet? Or would you rather read something that was accompanied by a decent illustration, be it a graphic or a photograph? You'd opt for the latter, right?
Here's a good rule of thumb. Try and ensure that there is at least one of these design elements - no matter how small - on every screen of text.
Another interesting facet of blogging is that the price of digital cameras has dropped, while the price of memory cards has absolutely plummeted. You don't need a bells-and-whistles camera to produce a decent photograph.
Empower yourself. Grab a camera and upload pictures onto your blog. See the difference? Now you know what I mean.
You're an artist? Wonderful. You are a couple of steps ahead of anyone else. Put your artwork on your blog. And tell the world about it. Everyone has a story to tell. And if you tell it well enough, people will visit your blog.
I've ``talked'' to several talented bloggers who put photographs on their sites. And I laud their efforts to put a handful of pictures onto a single blogpost, but I always try and gently steer them to the ``single focus'' theory. If you can't decide which is your strongest photograph/ graphic/ illustration, then don't confuse your readers. Spend a few minutes sifting through the batch. Then when you've chosen the strongest image, back yourself and use it prominently.
You want to grab the attention of your readers? Then put your best image at the top of your blogpost. By all means use the others if you must, but the best one must go first. Your regular readers will always return to your blog, but don't you want to grab the attention of first-time trawlers and give them no option but to return to your blog or to bookmark it?
It's a big challenge to try and attract readers. But there are some great forums and blogs that show you how to do it. There are many different approaches and they all revolve around a constant theme - post well and post often.
You don't have to be a Pulitzer Prize winner (I'm not) or a bestselling author (I am) to be a blogger. Anyone can blog, but here comes the corollary. Because there are between 55-60 million blogs, not every blogger is going to have a huge readership base. You need to have something that sets you apart from everyone else.
Do you already have something that distinguishes your blog? If so, well done, but look for another element that reinforces your unique status.
If you don't really have something that sets your blog apart from others, don't despair. If you have great subject matter, you're in with a chance. If you write well, that's a valuable asset. But if you're not a great writer, just stay focused, keep your vision and thought process clear and explain yourself in simple language. Not that hard, is it? Don't be verbose, antagonistic or unnecessarily opinionated - you are trying to get people to read your blog, after all.
Follow the simplest path. Stay attuned to the ``look'' of your blog. Don't always run with the pack. Try and introduce some design or presentation elements that other bloggers don't use. If that's too challenging, then stick with the basic design ideas.
Another question that crops up a lot is ``What should I blog about?'' Blog about anything, but write from your heart. Write without artifice, without bias, without fear of censure. E. J. `Samadhi' Whitehouse asked me a couple of weeks ago how to write a bestseller. I don't know. I don't think anyone knows. But if you write from your heart, then you're halfway there.
As for design, would you spend hours poring over a dull balance sheet? Or would you rather read something that was accompanied by a decent illustration, be it a graphic or a photograph? You'd opt for the latter, right?
Here's a good rule of thumb. Try and ensure that there is at least one of these design elements - no matter how small - on every screen of text.
Another interesting facet of blogging is that the price of digital cameras has dropped, while the price of memory cards has absolutely plummeted. You don't need a bells-and-whistles camera to produce a decent photograph.
Empower yourself. Grab a camera and upload pictures onto your blog. See the difference? Now you know what I mean.You're an artist? Wonderful. You are a couple of steps ahead of anyone else. Put your artwork on your blog. And tell the world about it. Everyone has a story to tell. And if you tell it well enough, people will visit your blog.
I've ``talked'' to several talented bloggers who put photographs on their sites. And I laud their efforts to put a handful of pictures onto a single blogpost, but I always try and gently steer them to the ``single focus'' theory. If you can't decide which is your strongest photograph/ graphic/ illustration, then don't confuse your readers. Spend a few minutes sifting through the batch. Then when you've chosen the strongest image, back yourself and use it prominently.
You want to grab the attention of your readers? Then put your best image at the top of your blogpost. By all means use the others if you must, but the best one must go first. Your regular readers will always return to your blog, but don't you want to grab the attention of first-time trawlers and give them no option but to return to your blog or to bookmark it?
It's a big challenge to try and attract readers. But there are some great forums and blogs that show you how to do it. There are many different approaches and they all revolve around a constant theme - post well and post often.
You'll soon find yourself on the reader radar.
Like I said to one blogger last week, don't give up just because people aren't rushing to your blog. Stay in there. Learn more about blogging. Learn more about yourself. Get better. That's when readers will discover you.
Like I said to one blogger last week, don't give up just because people aren't rushing to your blog. Stay in there. Learn more about blogging. Learn more about yourself. Get better. That's when readers will discover you.
