Blogs – For You, For Me – What shall it be? by Debra H. Goldstein Do blogs make a difference? Do people still read them? I personally think so, but I’m not sure. The reality is we are all inundated with blog messages. How do you pick and choose which ones to follow or read? During the past few months, my writing efforts have been devoted to blogs. I wrote forty-four leading up to the recent launch of One Taste Too Many, the first book in my new cozy series. Some were straight blogs about writing, some were responsive interviews where I explained my thought processes or motivation related to writing One Taste Too Many, and some were from the viewpoint of either my protagonist, Sarah Blair, or from RahRah, her pet cat.
Style Affects Mood
It was interesting to see how my mood impacted what I wrote and how I employed different styles if the piece was intended to be serious or to have a funny or whimsical nature. Sometimes, I discovered writing in the third party, as RahRah, was completely freeing. He had no filter! I enjoy It’s Not Always a Mystery because it lets me share personal thoughts, as well as writing related topics, and gives me an opportunity to introduce authors you might not otherwise be familiar with. Most importantly, it permits me to have a forum to say thank you to you for your support and friendship. I love what blogs let me do, but what do you want from them?
In answer to your question, Debra: most blogs I read for information, like blogs by writers, by reviewers or cooks, a subject, in your latest book, you claim to know nothing about! The tidbits of knowledge in short concise columns are easily digestible. If the blog is written by friends or family members, all the better. The opportunity is there to stay in touch and to learn about a side of that person we don’t often see.
Thanks for your reply — I feel the same way, but I admit there are some blogs I simply skim vs. other ones I know are well written and informative. The key is the connection ….
I have my own blog, and I’m also part of 2 multi-author blogs (Stiletto Gang and Pens, Paws and Claws). I also subscribe to a number of blogs, yours being one of them. But I’ll be honest. Unless the first sentence or title grabs me, I no longer read them all, and though I do read at least two or three a day, I simply don’t have the time to read all the blogs I subscribe to.
Are they still effective? I think some are. Jungle Red, for example. Others? Not as much as they once were. I, too, wrote a number of blog posts when Past & Present launched last Sept. Since that was the first title published under my imprint (vs. traditional) I was able to see in real time which blogs brought sales, and which didn’t. I was surprised to see that the post that generated the most comments (50+) didn’t garner a single sale. At least not on that day.
For my own blog, my New Release Mondays sometimes gets a ton of hits, and sometimes very few. Why the difference? Book title? Author name? I’ve yet to figure it out. My own Thursday blog is generally something about writing, i.e. The Inspiration Behind Character A. These seem to be popular, but again, some resonate more than others. Both my multi-author blogs have been somewhat of a disappointment in terms of comments and views, but the time commitment is small enough that I plan to stick with them — for now.
So, how do we measure it? Is it worth continuing the blogging process and taking away from our writing time? I don’t know the answer, but I do know that I won’t try for 40+ blogs again, as I did with P&P, because I think, even though each one is different, you become a bit like that annoying telemarketer (let’s face it, most of these blogs are followed by the same people).
Bottom line here is that this is something that I’ve been spending a lot of time thinking about, as you can surmise from this lengthy comment. Continued success, Debra.
Success to you, too, Judy. I like the blogging tool, but time means many are simply skimmed. If they aren’t adding to my knowledge base or interesting me because of the details about the person writing them, I don’t always have the time to read them all in detail or to leave comments. Many of the best blogs I read, I don’t comment on because in some ways, I tend to be a lurker. The other thing I’ve found from the blogs I write for regularly, is that many get a number of hits on the blog, but they get far more engagements when shared to other platforms (even if they don’t generate millions of comments).
I don’t use my blog so much to promote my writing as to promote friendship. Over time I’ve built a nice audience of regulars, and I relish their comments. For me it’s often like keeping a journal. When I have a new book, I do guest blogs and while I don’t know that they sell books, I do know that get the title and my name out there.
Judy,
Thanks for the comment…and I agree with you about it being a connection mechanism. I know I have more readers than posters, but the comments bring those who make them closer to me as people. I worry about how they are doing, etc., especially as I see them on Facebook and in other venues like conferences. I like the lurkers, too, because I often am one, but the connection is different.