Back in the day, amateur bloggers could often get away with sloppy craft. The novelty of the medium meant readers were very forgiving. Even today, the readers of someone’s personal blog may not care about slips such as using intrical to mean integral. But the more professional your blog is, …
Three Elements of a Good Blog Post
When writing your blog post, keep these three elements in mind. Attention-getting headlines are a must. Write your headlines with your reader in mind. Think about what sort of terms people would use on Google to find the subject you’re writing about. Put that term in your headline. Back in …
Do Your Research, but Not Too Much
Research can be a great source of ideas. It can also be a huge time sink. If you’re doing research solely for a single blog post, set a limit on your time. Decide when you will stop researching and start writing. For most blog posts, an hour or two should …
Introduce Your Readers to Someone New
Writing a feature about someone in your business can be good for almost any blogger. Nonfiction bloggers can feature industry experts, and fiction writers can highlight other authors whose readership is similar to the one you want to reach. There are several different ways to do a personality story: Profile—This …
Types of Articles You Can Write for Your Blog
In my last post, I alluded to some different types of articles you might write for your blog. Every blog post doesn’t need to be instructional or inspirational, although those are two of the most popular types. Depending on your blog’s purpose and audience, you may want to specialize in …
Structure your blog posts for simplicity
Once during a training session at the newspaper, I asked a senior editor whether he thought reporters should outline their stories. He agreed they probably should, but admitted that most don’t. I have written before about the power of the outline. When you’re writing something as short as a news …
Use your blog to serve readers
WordPress is far and away the blogging platform that hits the sweet spot between ease of use and powerful capabilities. There are platforms that are easier but won’t be as powerful, and more powerful platforms that are harder to use. I use WordPress and recommend it. But the mechanics of …
Why You Should Be Blogging
Writers are forever being told to blog. You have to get your name out there. You have to build a platform. You have to demonstrate your expertise. All of this is true. The problem, especially for fiction writers, is doing all that in a way that doesn’t rob you of …
New Manuscript Formatting Guideline
One of the great things about attending writers conferences—or any conference in your given industry—is the ability to meet with experts who know more than you and learn from them. At this year’s Florida Christian Writers Conference, I enrolled in a four-day fiction workshop taught by Ramona Richards of Abingdon …
What’s Not Helpful in a Critique
Last time I wrote briefly about how to give and take critique. To go a little deeper, we have to understand that the role of critique partner is different from the role of editor. A developmental editor often will help a writer shape the theme or concept of a manuscript. …