My guest post today is the fabulous Erin, author of the blog Erin Margolin. I’ve been blogging with Erin since Theta Mom’s inception and it’s been a pleasure to watch her come into her own both as both an authentic writer and blogger. Today, she is sharing some practical advice to help you get your own writing in great form.
Instead of gettin’ all Shakespearean on you, I’m here to give you some ideas to help you write kick-ass blog posts. While I don’t claim to be any kind of expert I’ve been in Blog Land for a few years now, long enough to learn at least a little bit. I know what I like to read and I know what I like to write. So thank you, Heather, for sharing your space with me today. You are someone I look up to and admire, and hopefully one day I can build an amazing empire as you have!
Top Ten Ways To Create Great Blog Posts:
1. Good grammar is essential to great blog writing. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve stopped reading a post because of improper subject/verb agreement, the use of “their” when it should’ve been “there,” or even basic spelling mistakes that can easily be remedied by spell-check or www.dictionary.com. Run-on sentences also drive me batty, especially when there are no paragraph breaks. I get visually overwhelmed and I can’t read it. Chop things up into smaller, more digestible bits. Really caring about your writing AND your readers means consulting your dictionary or even that old grammar handbook hiding in the back of your closet.
2. Shorter posts are very attractive to readers. We’re all busy with our lives outside of Blog Land. If I open a post and see that it’s lengthy, I’m less likely to read it all the way through. There are certainly exceptions to this, but for the most part I try my best to keep my posts brief, two or three paragraphs. Challenge yourself to get your point across in fewer words!
3. Be different, be unpredictable. I’m not interested in your parakeet’s horrible head cold or seeing photos of your children every day (sorry). Dare yourself to mix it up. If you are killing yourself trying to think of something to say, DO NOT POST. Posting daily will not necessarily retain readers. It’s about the quality of your posts, not the quantity, remember? Followers will not disappear just because you skip out for a few days here and there. In fact, if you make them wait, they may get really antsy and eager to see what’s coming up next!
4. Read your post out loud to yourself a few times before you publish. This will help you catch errors and maybe even “see” something you didn’t earlier. Find a buddy or a writing partner, someone you can bounce ideas off of, or someone who’s willing to proof your posts and give you constructive criticism.
5. Read a lot: newspapers, books, magazines, and other blogs. I’ve always thought that reading is the single best way to improve your writing.
6. Read Anne Lamott’s Bird by Bird. She talks a lot about writing through the crap to get to the good stuff underneath. Get your thoughts down first, edit later.
7. Keep it light and interesting. Toss in a vlog, a guest post, a Top 10 something, a recipe, even a short story or a poem. Save the drivel in your drafts, please. If you’re scraping the insides of your brain and coming up with nothing, chill out: the world will not come to an end. If people love you and your writing, they will come back. You don’t have to force it.
8. Write the truth, what’s in your heart. Write what you know and in the words of Cheryl @Mommy_Pants, “Write what you don’t know!” In fact, why don’t you check her out @TheRedDressClub where she posts weekly writing prompts. Whenever I need inspiration all I have to do is hop over there.
9. Look at your language. Do you use metaphors, similes, personification? What about your verbs? Did you simply get up? Or did you “jump” up? Did you pop up out of your seat like a piece of toast from the toaster? Or did you clamor over the person next to you and trip over her purse? Bring us into your post with your words. Use vivid description and details to draw us in, make us feel like we’re there.
10. Last but certainly not least: BE TRUE TO YOURSELF. Be authentic. Be you. Don’t try to imitate anyone else. No one is youer than you (Dr. Seuss). Just relax and let your real self shine through.
Please send me an email if you are interested in guest posting at Theta Mom® for TMC Network. Full details can be found on the Network page.
I have two goals for 2011, one of them is to focus on my content above all else. Today, I didn’t post anything because all I did was stare at my screen for an hour. I couldn’t think of a thing to write!
I’ve been brainstorming vlog ideas, I’m ready to branch into that part of the the blogging experience!
Great post today!
Heather–when are we going to see a vlog from you?! 😉
YAY for vlogs! yes, Heather—when will we see one from you? That would be AWESOME!
What great tips, and they’re written in a way that’s quite easy to relate to.
But I am oh-so-very-scared of vlogs. I love watching them, though (hypocritical, I know.)
Vlogs are scary for sure. I haven’t done that many myself, and my best advice is to have a topic in mind, and to keep it short (2 minutes or less). You can always do a few takes and delete the ones you don’t like!
😉
This is a great post. I particularly agree with #1. Good grammar is so important!! It’s why I read, re-read, and read my posts over and over again to make sure everything makes sense. Well written, Erin, and fabulous suggestions!
Thank you so much, sweet Sarah! Yes, I do love good grammar. It kills me when I see the simplest mistakes made over and over, even within the same post! Thanks so much for coming by.
I love this post. I’ve been trying to work on being more concise in my intros. I tend to write long posts, but breaking up the intro a little seems to help me keep it in perspective. Thanks for the advice!
You are so welcome, and thanks for coming by, Katie! I’m glad you found some good ideas here.
😉
Great tips! I’m guilty of spelling errors and typos! I also tend to type, at least for my blog, the way I think, so there are lots of ellipses and commas where I should be starting a new sentence. Proofreading is the bane of my existence. No matter how many times I reread, I ALWAYS miss something. My post today is also really long, even for me!
Certainly I’m not perfect either—no one is! We all have typos from time to time and it’s not the end of the world. I am an ellipsis lover myself, but have been working on taming that beast. It’s SO HARD! So happy you came by!
I LOVE ERIN MARGOLIN.
That is all.
I LOVE THETAMOM.
[sorry…I lied about that being all.]
and WE LOVE YOU TOO!
xoxoxoxoxo
All great tips. I have to say that #1 is a pet peeve of mine. Many of us throw out a grammatical error when writing, especially when the brain is working faster than the fingers. But there-their-they’re, then-than, your-you’re, etc – they make me lose focus on the writing and the story. You can tell when it’s a slip, or when it’s a repeated problem. Slips happen. Repeated problems are difficult to read. If you are unsure – look it up! Dictionary, thesaurus, grammar – it’s all at the click of a mouse!
Oh totally! I should’ve been specific. I’m sure you could find loads of slips/typos in posts of mine. I was thinking along the lines of what you said about repeated problems….no offense intended!
Thanks for coming by!
A great post – from an emerging GREAT writer. Really helpful tips here. And if I ever get around to making my online writing course, I’m gonna include a link to this post.
and WHEN you have your online writing course, I am going to be the first one to sign up!!!!
xoxo
OH-SO great info!!! Thanks for passing it along!
And thank YOU for taking the time to visit and read!
Have a wonderful day!
This advice never gets old. Good stuff!
Wonderful advice and I’m with you 100% on the grammar. I’ve read two of Anne Lamott’s books and think she’s pretty fabulous. I’ll have to check that one out too.
These tips are fabulous! Several of them I keep in my head, but never all at once. Now I have a list of 10 things jotted down to look at with each post. I love 2, keep it short. I just don’t have time to read it all! And number 3, there have been several posts I wrote all the way out and then said, no, I’m not feeling this. Then hit delete. And then others I should have done that with and didn’t, ouch!
Great post! Thanks for sharing!
Thank you for these fantastic insights! Great reminders, and new tips, too. I love your “permission” to take a couple days off! Eases the mind of this perfectionist first-born people-pleaser!
Love this post. Erin is one smart cookie. I’m reading Bird By Bird now and I love it!
love it! but i’ve got an issue with the last one about BE YOU! i am me. which means… i’m not a follower and i post about ANYTHING i want. including my little one (a doll) and people seem to run away from my blog and never return because of it.
i’m not going to apologize but i just think it’s shallow and rude to exclude a blog because someone doesnt post about shopping products or throw millions of photos of their kids. it’s not me. it never was.
iuno… BUT GREAT POST!! 😀 very good advice!
Congrats on your very first guest post, Erin! I’m sure it will be the first of many 😉
Wait, I think I’m getting your guest post confused with your first syndicated piece on BlogHer. You’re just too busy and popular for me to keep things straight! D’oh!
some of my favourite bloggers post pictures of their children on almost every post – Enjoying the small things (Kelle Hampton), Flower Patch Farmgirl. I guess it’s all in your taste.
All important and wonderful reminders. #8 and #10 ring so true for me.
Hi Erin! I’m an Erin, too! Is it my imagination or are there a lot of Erins in the blogoshere? Weird. Kinda freaking me out.
Anyways, nice post. Love love love Bird by bird- there’s some great quote that I don’t have at my fingertips at the moment- about writing being its own reward. Not to worry about being wildly popular. Though I wouldn’t mind my blog being wildly popular, don’t get me wrong, I’m new and check my stats obsessively! But I keep bringing myself back to aiming for the best content I can bring, developing my voice, making sure it sounds like ME. If it doesn’t, what’s the point?
Totally agree with #3! (I agree with them all). I post once a week, SOMETIMES, twice, and that seems to work well. Keeps me fresh and I don’t inundate subscribers with emails.
Great post!
Great tips! I never used to leave a post in draft form. Now I have several half-finished posts just sitting there reminding me that some of my words are just for me. And that is totally ok. On my way to check out your blog now. Nice to meet you!
Fantastic tips! I think a vlog could be fun but I can barely get off my ass to download the kajillion photos it take so I wonder how long I would let a vlog sit on my camcorder for!
Great tips….very helpful. Thank you.
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