Welcome to Session 2 of Maternity Ward?s 2013 Mom-Blog Writing Workshop! In Session 1, we dug into the question, ?Why Write?? Today, we tackle the logistics of setting up a blog. We also delve into some of the soft skills of blogging: publicity, community building and patience. I hope these notes provide a strong foundation on which you can begin your blogging journey.
As always, please feel encouraged to share your questions and thoughts in the ?Comments? section below. I look forward to having a conversation with you about this session?s topic, ?How to Write a Blog.? Here are 10 tips to get you started:
1. Select a blogging platform. Popular (and free!) examples are Google?s Blogger and WordPress.?You also can opt for paid design templates at both Blogger and WordPress. In addition, this 2012 article lists the ?Top 10 Free Online Blogging Platforms,? which looks to be another good source of information.
2. Decide on the purpose of your blog, and define your blogging goals. You may decide that the purpose of your blog is primarily personal ? an online journal for family and friends, with the goal of ?keeping in touch.?
If so, then your tone and style of writing probably would differ from a blogger whose primary purpose is to maintain a professional work product while he/she is on an extended family leave. This type of blogger most likely would want to focus on his/her field of work ? photography, computer science, nutrition ? in an objective tone, avoiding discussion of any topics that may be controversial or divisive to potential clients and employers.
3. Name your blog. The title should tie in to the main topic you?ll be writing about. I think you?ll find this 2012 article, entitled ?Choosing the Perfect Blog Name,? particularly helpful here.?This article uses the blogs Where?s My Toothbrush? and Raising My Rainbow as examples. Meanwhile, this 2013 article focuses on how to title individual blog posts.?I like that this article explores how blog-post titles tie into important considerations like keywords, search engine optimization and numbered lists ? important because these considerations increase the chances that people out there will be able to find and then read what you write.
4. Develop a blogging schedule. You absolutely can blog spontaneously, and write whenever inspiration hits. Some folks would say that this is what true blogging is. In my experience, I have found that having a blogging schedule enables me to stay organized and motivated. You may find, too, that it is helpful to know you will be posting something (anything!) according to the schedule that best fits your needs: every other day, every Tuesday and Thursday, every Tuesday.
This thought from the book ProBlogger, by Darren Rowse and Chris Garrett, has always hit home with me: ?There seems a definite correlation between success and posting frequency ? Lately, though, there has been a backlash against too high a posting frequency, with bloggers and readers both expressing a preference for fewer, better-written and well-thought-out articles? (pages 190-191).
5. Turn to published resources for blogging tips. ProBlogger, the book I just noted, is an excellent resource for general blogging tips, as well as those related to its subtitle, ?Secrets for Blogging Your Way to a Six-Figure Income.? I really, really like this book (and I have read quite a few about blogging!). Another resourceful book, which I mentioned back in Session 1, is Mom Blogging for Dummies.
One last recommendation, mainly for writing inspiration, is No One Cares What You Had for Lunch: 100 Ideas for Your Blog.?And yes, friends, I?m not ashamed to admit that a big reason I like this book is its super-fun title. Sometimes, I do judge a book by its cover. 
A final note: I am a big fan of Amazon.com for its customer reviews, and I encourage you to do a search for ?blogging? under the Books department, and see what other well-recommended resources related to your express blogging needs come up.
6. Write. Just do it. A blank page or computer screen is daunting, I know. But the more you write, the easier it will get. Just like riding a bike, or making the same recipe from your two-week dinner meal plan over and over again, until your hubby begs, ?Enough Brussels sprouts!?
7. Share your blog posts (publicize). Spread the word when you write, so that your friends, family, colleagues and anyone else you?d like to network with can read your blog post and, optimally, get something from it ? be that inspiration, education, a stronger connection to you. Social media is the fastest way to grow and sustain your readership, so update your Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn statuses with the link to each new post.
If you want to blog about and/or review books, then make sure you sign up for Goodreads. You can publicize your literary-minded blog posts through your Goodreads?profile.
Two more e-tips: (1) Include your blog URL in your e-mail signature. (2) Comment on other bloggers? posts, and share your blog URL at the end of your comment.
And, one more (traditional!) idea: Once you launch your blog, write a news release about it, and send it out to local media, such as leading city newspapers and magazines as well as smaller, community newsletters and publications. Maybe these hard-copy publications will help talk up your blog.
8. Build community. Encourage feedback, comments and questions, and respond to your readers? feedback. Nurture reader connections. These kinds of authentic, real-time interactions will help your readers feel connected to you, and your blog.
9. Be patient. Here, I?m talking about patience both generally and specifically. Generally, be patient with yourself as you learn a new blogging platform, as you get into your blogging groove, as you churn out post after post.
And specifically speaking ? if one of your blogging goals is to earn an income ? either directly or indirectly ? then reaching that goal almost certainly will take more than a month or so; more than a handful of blog posts.
10. Enjoy. I sincerely hope your blogging journey is an enjoyable and enriching one. Good luck!
Thank you so much, friends, for checking in with me today. I truly hope I was able to share some good information with you here in Session 2. Please leave your questions and thoughts below in the ?Comments? section, and I?ll promptly reply.
I look forward to chatting with you again on Tuesday, March 12, for Session 3 of our Mom-Blog Writing Workshop. Also, please let me know which topics you?d be interested in my covering for Session 3, as well as the other sessions this year. *Thank you so much!* See you again soon.
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