Success

Writers are often encouraged to enter the world of social media. I was slow to open a FaceBook account. Then, prompted by the desire to see photos of distant family, I finally did. I found many writer friends on FB so I started adding them. I now have 356 FB “friends.” Whenever I post a new blog, I create a link on my FaceBook page. I don’t expect everyone to open the link but when the topic is intriguing enough, some will.

Twitter took me longer. The idea of tweeting confused me. Birds tweet. People talk. Writers write. Last month I opened an account. With few exceptions I avoid adding FB Friends to Twitter. After a month, I have 86 followers; most have some shared interests. As with FaceBook, whenever I post a new blog, I tweet about it on Twitter. Some posts are re-tweeted, which spreads the word.

I started this Stringing Beads blog three years ago. I’ve had long spells when I haven’t blogged regularly. Readership suffers when people can’t count on a regular column. A good blogger must post regularly and about topics a reader finds interesting.

Overall focus is important. Solo blogs written by a lone blogger especially need this focus. Define your purpose in writing the blog then find a niche and fill it.

Are you blogging about the craft or business of writing? It may be mostly writers who read your blog. If that’s what you want and you’re good at it, fantastic! I’m grateful for blogs like J.A. Konrath’s Newbie Guide to Publishing and those wonderful writers at Writer Unboxed.

Some writers draw readers by focusing on something that complements their writing, either in style or content. In Casey Comments, Casey Clifford shares snippets of her life that could easily be found in her women’s fiction or suspense novels. Mary Stella’s Postcards from Paradise goes well with her fun contemporary romances about the Florida Keys. Beth Ciotta’s Blog is providing perfect introductions to her upcoming Cupcake Lovers contemporary series as well as to the much anticipated steampunk series, the Glorious Victorious Darcys.

Frequent, meaningful blogging isn’t easy. Time is precious. As a result many readers band together to write a blog with each writing every few weeks. Two remarkably successful group blogs with high readership are The Goddess Blogs and Magical Musings. Both have amazingly creative writers who write on a large variety of topics.

Successful bloggers always reply to comments left by their readers. Along with it being good etiquette, this helps create more interaction and reader interest. They also post interesting pictures. And they never delve too deeply into plot lines of their own works, but rather into life itself.

A successful blog also looks professional. Bloggers must learn and understand the program they are using, whether WordPress (my favorite), Blogger, Live Journal or some other platform. Set up and regularly test links that add to the blog, little extras in the sidebar. As your posts grow in number, occasionally link back to ones that were popular. Proof-read incessantly.

Read and comment on other blogs but not in a way that screams “read my blog” or “read my book.” Comments must be genuine and relate. Readers look for a connection.

Keep track of readership statistics. While you can’t tell exactly who is reading your blog, you can track numbers. WordPress has Site Stats on the dashboard that gives lots of data, including what search terms people are using to find you and what posts are most popular. A useful tool to install in your sidebar is StatCounter.

In her blog Write to Publish, Robin Sullivan talks about the importance of connecting with readers. You should make it easy to pass your blog on to others. Post Share links to Facebook, Twitter, StumbleUpon, and others. Include an e-mail link so the reader can send it to a friend. On WordPress, these links are found on Dashboard under Settings then Sharing. See below for my Share buttons. (Hint: If you liked this article, please pass it on! :smile:)

Click onto Blog Tips for a list of other helpful tips. Finally, please share a comment on what has worked for you. Thanks! ♥

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P. S. See also this recent post in Savvy Self-Publishing for more helpful ideas. Thank you, Lindsay!

P.P.S. – Another incredibly helpful post on this topic is Jim Murdoch’s guest column on Audacious Author called How to Get People to Read Your Blog. He mentions it in the comments below but I wanted to bring it up to the body of this post. Thank you, Jim!

The difference between a successful person and others is not a lack of strength, not a lack of knowledge, but rather a lack of will. — Vince Lombardi

Legendary Green Bay Packers’ Coach Vince Lombardi understood success and he understood what it took to achieve it. It takes willpower to coach a team to the SuperBowl and win – twice. Willpower, and always keeping an eye on the ultimate goal.

It also takes willpower to write and publish a book then another, and another. Raw, butt-breaking, stick-to-it willpower. Best-selling author Madeline Hunter once said that she had never seen a writer who persevered not eventually publish. Since then, I have observed others and seen first-hand the truth of her words. Writers who persevere do eventually publish.

When I think on my experiences in writing my first book, I’m awed that I ever finished it. It was a daunting job, even with the assistance of a decent critique group. My second book came easier. My third, written in only eight months, seemed even simpler, although the middle is still mush. Perhaps if I had pushed myself harder to polish and actually sell those early efforts, I would have had more success with those that followed. But, somewhere along the way I let life intrude. Again, again and yet again. 😦

About a year ago I received a medical wake-up call. It made me examine my life and where I was headed. I started eating healthier. Over the next several months, I lost a whole lot of weight, and gained a whole new wardrobe. 😀 My husband and I had long talked about a dream trip. In October we flew to Paris. But where is my writing in all of this? It can’t just sit idle.

I’ve had this innate need to write for too long to let it just fade into oblivion. I won’t allow my obituary to say “An amateur writer, she wrote several novels that were never published.” I ache to churn out characters and stories that will not just lie buried in some computer file, but will be read and enjoyed by many.

So I’m writing again, daily. My newly created characters are talking to me. They’re taking actions that reveal who they are. They’re getting into trouble. Forcing me to plot just how I’m going to get them to the point where they finally declare their love. Just now I’d be thrilled if they’d even talk to each other in a civil manner. Regardless of the grief they cause, I am writing about their lives and will continue until their story is told.

I will finish this book. Writers who persevere do eventually publish. ∞