For Writers

What to Blog; What not to Blog… That is the Question.

What Should Authors Blog About

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

As an author, I’m constantly stressed about “performance” on, not only a storytelling/writing level, but on an author platform level. The advice from financially well-to-do authors emphasize the importance of sales and marketing. The list of shoulds for building your audience and platform are so long, that, when placed alongside your responsibility to create and package the best stories you possibly can, overwhelment-itis can easily set in.

When this particular brand of sickness happens, my natural response is to freeze. Over the past few months, every time I’ve thought about writing a blog post, I’ve considered how it affects me, my brand, my sales, my SEO, my whatever. The result? No blog posts. No interaction. No nothing.

 

And then I remembered the reason for blogging in the first place; long before blogs were ever a way to make a living or promote your brand or product, blogs were first, and foremost, a way to share. It’s that simple. I’m here to share. As a matter of fact, that’s exactly how I approach fiction writing; I write stories I love so much I feel compelled to share them.  (And I hope, in that process, someone will benefit from them too.)

 

So, whether this is an intelligent business decision or not, I’ve decided to go against popular advice on finding a niche, or blogging on a specific subject, or blogging to promote my books and brand, and go forward with the blog and just share.  For me, it’s back to the basics. No overthinking—I write what I want to share.

 

The only test a blog post will need to pass is to be deemed share-worthy (meaning do I think that it has even the remote potential of being interesting, informative, useful or fun to someone—anyone—else). No more thoughts about how it will be received or where it fits in my “platform” as that’s not the point, after all, is it?

 

AUTHORS AND READERS ALIKE: Does anyone have ideas on what authors should blog about, or what readers want from authors in respect to their blogs? Please share.

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4 Comments

  1. That’s been my dilemma as well. Lately, I’ve only been posting book reviews, but I ought to do more; I just seem to want to stay “on topic,” but don’t feel I have much of relevance to post.

    I imagine readers want to read about a writer’s inspirations, trends within the author’s chosen genres, and the writing life. Aside from promotional stuff, which gets old if that’s all there is to a blog.

    Thanks for making me think about the direction of my own blog (a significant accomplishment, I assure you). :oP

    1. Be sure and let me know what you come up with! LOL I appreciate your post on ShadowLight, though, so let me know if I can return the favor.

  2. I think that this all depends on the purpose of your site. Since Mythic Scribes is a fantasy writing community, we’ve made the decision to stick strictly to that niche. For that reason all posts on our blog are somehow related to fantasy, writing, or both. However, we do share off-topic stuff on our forums.

    But your site isn’t about fantasy writing per se. Rather, it’s about you, the author. And it’s conceivable that your fans want to know more about you than just your thoughts on writing. Perhaps they would like to be let into your life some more?

    When I read the blogs of my favorite authors, I do enjoy getting an inside peak into their lives. And it has the added benefit of making me, the reader, feel more connected with them. I imagine that is exactly the result that you are hoping for, right?

    1. Thanks for this advice. The links didn’t post, but I have them in the admin…I’m going to take a look at each site you referenced. Thanks!

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