It’s Time for (Many) Experienced Writers to Stop Blogging

Should writers blog?
illustration by editorial cartoonists Cox and Forkum

Note from Jane: This provocative guest post is by L.L. Barkat (@llbarkat). If this topic interests you, I also recommend reading Please Don’t Blog Your Book: 4 Reasons Why and Get Started Guide: Blogging for Writers, especially if you think blogging is the right choice for you. While my views don’t mirror Barkat’s (see the comments for my take), her perspective is refreshing and helps to dispel a few platform-building myths that are pervasive in the writing community. Blogging is neither a requirement nor the best marketing and promotion tool for a huge swath of writers, regardless of their experience or level of accomplishment.

I look forward to a lively debate—offer your view in the comments. You should also read this counterpoint from Dan Blank, 2 Strategic and Compelling Reasons to Keep Blogging—and When You Should Stop.


“Blogging is a waste of time.”

The panel burst into protestations. Jana Riess, Lauren Winner, Cindy Crosby, and Andy Crouch were at the Calvin Festival, discussing social media in 2006, before it was a foregone conclusion that if you were an author you should have a blog.

Andy Crouch was being a bit bald-faced in making his proclamation. After all, he wasn’t a blogger. He didn’t have much of a social media presence. Remember, these were the days before Twitter, super-charged Facebook, and LinkedIn. And forget about an author claiming to be the Mayor of the Library of Congress in a game of Foursquare. What’s more, nobody was going to pin Crouch’s statement on Pinterest or pheed it to Pheed.

Was Crouch right?

I decided to find out. Especially because I’d recently met the Director of Marketing and Promotion from Simon & Schuster, who’d told me flatly, “We ask all our authors to start blogs.”

So in 2006, I started blogging. Over six years, I wrote more than 1,300 blog posts, garnered over 250,000 page views, helped establish a large blogging network for which I later became the Managing Editor, test-marketed five books and wrote and sold them. I watched blogging colleagues get book contracts. I hired some of these  bloggers as editors for the network where I managed. I was a true believer in the blog world.

But on Saturday, November 10, 2012, I suddenly did the unthinkable. I myself stopped blogging.

I had finally decided that Andy Crouch was right. Six years later.

Last spring, an author approached me via Twitter to get my advice about blogging. How could she make it work for her? Was it worth it? Should she move to WordPress, get a new design? What did I think?

I told her to forget about blogging. And one week later, after a Skype conversation about writing and platform-building, I hired her as an Editor for Every Day Poems, a publication of the site where I currently serve as Managing Editor. “How many people are visiting your blog per month? One hundred?” I had joked gently. “Work with us and serve a much larger audience. This will be more worth your time.”

Does this mean I would recommend that everyone stop blogging? No. I encourage new bloggers, just the way I always have. It’s an excellent way to find expression, discipline, and experience. But if writers already have experience, and they are authors trying to promote themselves and their work, I tell them to steer clear. If they’ve already found themselves sucked into the blogging vortex, I suggest they might want to give it up and begin writing for larger platforms that don’t require reciprocity (an exhausting aspect to blogging and a big drain on the writer’s energy and time).

Someone will disagree with me and point to a case like best-selling author Ann Voskamp, and I will point them back to the facts. Yes, Voskamp made it big largely because of the power of her blogging platform, but she had the power of being first. Before blogging was a “thing,” Voskamp was already blogging quietly and steadily in 2003. Before blog networks came of age, she was writing for one of the few women’s sites that also had the power of being first. Time cannot be turned back. Few authors can make of themselves what Voskamp did—not for lack of talent but for lack of timing and sheer cyber-longevity.

If an author shouldn’t be blogging, what should an author be doing? This is up for discussion. It is a current trend to use Facebook as a writing venue. One of my top colleagues just got invited to write for 99U, as a result of her Facebook-writing activity. This same colleague connected with Lifehacker via Twitter and got a regular writing gig as a result. And she is not a writer with an otherwise large platform. As it turns out, intelligence can be expressed in strings of 140 characters, and big outlets will pay attention.

For myself, the same has been true. New writing assignments, some even international, have come primarily through Twitter. Likewise, I myself publish poets I meet on Twitter and Tumblr, while I am far less likely to do the same for bloggers. It’s not a bias. It’s a matter of simplicity. I can see at a glance how a writer expresses. Remember the old elevator pitch? It’s alive and well on Twitter and I depend on it. Apparently others do too.

Is blogging a waste of time? Crouch was ahead of his time in saying so. For the experienced writer, my answer is yes … in 2013.

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jeffo

I note that there are a lot of successful authors who DON’T blog. Of course, many were successful long before blogging became a thing, but certainly they are active in other areas.

New authors need to approach blogging carefully. It can be a huge time sink–if you let it become one, but so can Twitter and all the others, if you’re not careful. It’s also not going to pave your road with gold and book deals and mega-advances. The problem is most new writers end up blogging about…writing, and that interests other people who are at the same stage in their writing career. On the other hand, it can be a good way to meet people, feel like part of the community, get support and feedback. I’ve picked up a couple of great beta readers through blogging.

L.L. Barkat

The community aspect can be so important. It all comes to one’s purposes for blogging. The writer who approached me was trying to build a platform for her poetry books. It would have been a very slow-go, if ever achieving that at all.

Curious to know… where do you meet the most new colleagues currently? Facebook, Twitter, or blogging?

jeffo

Blogging. My Facebook page is exclusively personal–and relatively underused–and I’m not on Twitter at all. I think I’m lulled into the sense that there’s more ‘meat’ or more contact through blogging and forums than Facebook and Twitter, which encourage brevity. It’s silly, because there’s plenty of fluff and plenty of meat in all of them, but I think my personality is more suited toward blogging than the others.

L.L. Barkat

And my Facebook page is exclusively professional. Ah, the differences between writers 🙂

Twitter is the place I seem to make the most contacts these days. I’ve even hired through the connections I’ve made there.

jeffo

It seems more people are touting Twitter than just about anything else. I’ll definitely be taking another look, but I’ve largely been underwhelmed when I’ve poked around there.

L.L. Barkat

if you end up poking around Twitter, connect with me/us? @L.L. Barkat @tspoetry @Edaypoems

A. Celestin-Greer

If you think it depends on why you’re blogging, then I feel like your post should be a bit more specific. I read it, as an inexperienced (or at least fairly inexperienced) writer as, don’t bother to do it. At all. But the reason you give isn’t very clear either. Is it because it’s a time sink?

L.L. Barkat

Ah. Sorry. It’s a time sink, yes. An experienced writer could be using that time to write for larger audiences and get the work out there.

(funny. I guess that saying “blogging is a waste of time” seemed to suggest a time-sink, but I see now that that was not the case! 🙂

Also, it can be highly discouraging for writers like the one I cite in the article… to try to make their way as bloggers, when what they really are looking for is readers/audience. They will find they can do this more quickly by writing for others.

A. Celestin-Greer

Interesting, and certainly interesting to see all the views here. I feel kind of like I’ve done things bass-ackwards then, because I’ve started writing for other websites for the past year and just now I’m thinking…Hey I should get a website as a portfolio. But I’ve been wondering on whether or not to blog.

If I did it, it’d be more of a place to express my feelings on the things I normally write about more freely (yet still professionally I hope) but reading this at first I took it as, don’t waste your time. But, I think I understand your point now. For that specific writer and similar ones, yeah I feel like it is a waste of time too.

I do gaming journalism right now and if one wants to bring their writings on it to the world through their own blog, then that IS pretty much pointless (again, depending on why you’re doing it!)

L.L. Barkat

A website that has blogging capabilities might be just the ticket?

Or if you’re looking to express, Tumblr can be a great place for that.

A. Celestin-Greer

Well yes, I’ve got a tumblr for all the stuff I’d rather no one see haha, but yeah I was thinking of making a WordPress website that I’m designing myself mostly and blogging there, using their plug-ins. I’m guessing I’ll be able to do that anyway.

L.L. Barkat

Shhh. Me too (on the Tumblr 😉

WordPress is a bit of a challenge. Let me know if you need recommendations for a good designer/overall helpful WordPresser.

A. Celestin-Greer

Haha, good to see I’m not the only one who has tumblr as a guilty pleasure. And hey, thanks for the advice and interesting blog, I’ll keep you in mind once I get around to finishing the site 🙂

Carrie C

Exactly! It can be a huge time commitment, but if you’re dedicated and engaging with your audience it will be well worth the time! Interacting and communicating with your audience then they’re likely wanting to follow you and eventually read your books! On the Speaking of Wealth show we talk to several authors and they would gain real value from blogging, if they stick to it and develop that relationship with their audience.

Beth bates

Hallelujah, amen. I’m taking this post as gospel and going to finish my book now. Also, please define “experienced.”

L.L. Barkat

Great question.

By “experienced,” I mean a writer who has finally developed a solid voice, the ability to handle deadlines (um, pretend you don’t know I have a review due right now 😉 ), can write tightly and consistently, has developed a basic network with editors or published writers—in other words, a writer who could easily be writing for larger venues but perhaps is so tied to her blogging that she isn’t finding the time.

This was the case with the writer who approached me. It would have taken so much effort to build her blogging presence, and she didn’t need to do that, because she already had a great deal of opportunity ready to be acted upon.

Jane Friedman

As someone who has been blogging since 2008—and pulled back in summer 2012, for various reasons—here’s my perspective on what I see as a fairly multi-faceted issue.

1. There are a million blogs out there, and it’s tough to get attention. So I agree with Laura that people who get into the game today must contend with a very different dynamic than people who got into it 5 or 10 years ago.

However, that’s not a reason not to do it. If it were, then why bother writing fiction or poetry or memoir or essay? Thousands upon thousands of writers are already out there doing it—moreso than ever—but yet we all know and agree that a new voice still has the chance of finding an audience.

2. I would be more inclined to discourage a new writer from blogging than an experienced one (it can become a major distraction for some writers if they’re working on manuscript), though it depends on MANY factors. Usually the top 3 considerations are (a) what is giving you energy rather than taking it (b) what will lead to career progress in your *current* situation, and (c) do you have something to say—or a voice/personality—that’s a great fit for a blog?

Blogging can help both new and experienced writers with discipline, focus, and voice development. But it is indeed a waste of time if you’re doing it because someone admonished you to (e.g., to build your platform), and it’s a forced chore. If you’re not enjoying it, neither are your readers.

Established writers likely have more reason to blog than beginners for the simple reason that they have an existing audience who seek engagement and interaction in between “formal” book releases (or other writings). It may take less effort to interest and gather readers if you’re known, and it’s valuable to attract readers to your website (via a blog) rather than a social media outlet since you don’t really own your social media profiles, nor do you control the changing tides that surround them. You DO, however, own your website and blog (or should).

3. Regardless of how well established you are, it’s always a good idea to look for new (and bigger) outlets where you can become a contributor. Such efforts not only bring you into contact with new audiences/readers, but also drive traffic back to your existing site or blog.

L.L. Barkat

I agree that a new voice always has a chance of finding an audience. I also believe that it’s easier for writers who are writing in a niche, because they’ll be perceived as new sooner than someone who is competing in a saturated space.

Where do you think it’s easiest to be found as a new voice?

Oh, fun—that you would discourage the new writer! What do you encourage a new writer to do, if not blog?

Jane Friedman

I really don’t know where it’s easiest to be found. I’d say it depends greatly on a writer’s genre, voice, and fondness for particular mediums. I never thought Twitter would be the place I would get found, but that’s what happened. If writers are able to approach whatever they do online as partly experimental, a place to try on ideas, that helps.

And, not to get too froufrou, but: online relationships/engagement have a lot in common with Zen. The more you try to gain something out of it (use it as a means to an end), the more you stunt the effort and fail. Just as you would look to be creative, fun, or ambitious on the page (in a formal piece of writing), I suggest the same approach for online.

L.L. Barkat

I was thinking this morning how I met you on my blog, via Twitter. Which just makes me smile.

Would we still meet today, now that I’m not a blogger? Who knows.

But I’m happy for the Zen. We met, in such a friendly, organic way. We will never un-meet. 🙂

Beth Bates

I think I only blog when I want to write about something I don’t feel like going through the rigamarole of submitting to journals or pitching. But maybe I ought to.

L.L. Barkat

Is that something you have an interest in? 🙂

virtualDavis

What a jolly (and timely) debate! Like most, there’s no tidy “right” answer. And with time tick, tick, ticking away, the answer is changing every day. So rather than wading into the fray I say, follow your passion. And — from time to time — change it up. Blog for a while. Stop blogging for a while. It’s a bit like scotch and bourbon. Or wanderlust and homelust… Thanks for a provocative post, Ms. Barkat. 🙂

Dina Santorelli

I love this comment. Agreed.

L.L. Barkat

Heh. 🙂

You are a poet! (Come find me at Tweetspeak Poetry? 🙂

Amy Sue Nathan

I’ve been blogging since 2006. I can’t imagine not blogging. But I do suggest to new writer or author bloggers that they blog less about their book or writing and more about their interest, or what their writing is about. I don’t think that blogs that are just a book or even a personal life (unless it’s awful or awesome) will get through all the noise that is out there today. But a special interest blog—about gardening or toddlers or cupcakes just might. And there area always ways to also make it about the writing and/or the book.

L.L. Barkat

Special interest blogs have more of a chance, yes! As is true with niche-products in other arenas.

Would love to hear why you can’t imagine not blogging 🙂

Rachel

As a newer blogger (just passed the one year mark in February) I am encouraged by what each of you said in your comments. I had originally blogged as an easy way to keep family and friends updated on my daughter who has special needs but picked it back up with more of a focus on writing about my personal journey so that I could encourage others who find themselves walking a similar path. (I’m hoping this falls under the category of a special interest blog and that have more of a chance!)

L.L., I found your post very thought-provoking but as I read through it and the majority of the comments, I was beginning to feel as if I’d made a mistake to start blogging again.

I do have a desire to write a book although I haven’t made a final decision as to what its focus should be. In the meantime, I’m going to try to focus more on the art and craft of writing instead of worrying so much about platform and numbers coming to my blog.

Thanks for your excellent post–I came away with some great thoughts to ponder.

L.L. Barkat

what part felt like a mistake for you? I think that’s the part you need to maybe spend some time with. Test it, turn it. 🙂

Monique Heard

I’m interested in blogging in the near future and I think as long as your readers can connect to whatever your blog is about and get a feel for who you are, and I mean passed the words on the screen, every blog has a chance to reach their audience. Good luck!

jswwrites

The whole “build a platform” thing is overrated – it mostly just takes time from writing. I blog and use Facebook and Twitter. That’s it. I blog because I enjoy it — I was blogging before I was publishing — not necessarily to build an audience for my books. If that happens, it’s great, but if not, that’s okay, too. I’m fairly new to the publishing world (less than a year) but I took some early advice to heart: only do the things you enjoy and forget the rest so you can focus on writing.

L.L. Barkat

Js, great point about doing what we enjoy. That makes us attractive to both ourselves and others. What do you particularly enjoy about blogging right now? 🙂

Richard Mabry

I’ve addressed this before with those who read my tweets, Facebook posts and blog. Each audience had a different view, but apparently all of them agreed that they spent much more time on Facebook than either of the other two venues. I’m probably where most of my published-but-still-working-to-maintain-platform colleagues are: I’m afraid to stop what I’m doing. Thanks, LL and Jane, for triggering further discussion.

L.L. Barkat

Richard, say more about why you are afraid?

Richard Mabry

Because, as you know, authors want to sell books–it’s how they make royalties and get new contracts. And to sell books, we need to help potential readers discover us. We can all say “write the best book possible and it will sell,” but deep in our hearts, we wonder what else we could/should be doing to further our cause.
Thanks again for a very thought-provoking post.

L.L. Barkat

Okay. 🙂

I’m thinking… if that is your goal, you should probably take an honest look at your blog stats and act accordingly.

If you could be writing for an outlet that reaches 50,000+ readers, for instance, but instead you are writing for your blog (and you have far fewer readers), I think it’s fairly clear that it’s time to write for the 50,000+

Anthony David Jacques

I find that blogging was good experience, and I even did a short story a week for an entire year on my blog back in 2010.

But I realized not long after that blogging was the gateway drug to better writing and it was time to move on bigger things. I have been a contributor and editor on a couple online zones since then, have published a few short stories and am waiting to hear back from my editor on my first novel due out later this year.

The time I saved no longer blogging made all this possible. But I would always add, to each his own. Who knows, maybe someone will come along and revolutionize what blogging means in this new decade of the 21st century. That person probably isn’t me, but that doesn’t mean that persons isn’t out there about to blow our minds.

Good article.

L.L. Barkat

Anthony, I like your openness. True, that people have different ways of making things work. I also *love* that you were able to see that, at least for you, it was time to stop blogging if you were going to accomplish certain goals.

Kurt Brindley

If someone has a blogging niche, a speciality, a unique voice, then blog it. A problem I see is, many writers’s blogs, mine included, are all over the map, not focused nor are they regularly presented. On the other hand, there are way too many writers out there with “how to succeed as writers” blogs. I tend to expect highly established writers, the NBAs and Pulitzer Prize winners, etc., not to have a blog or much of a social presence. Call it a personal bias but to me blogging seems rather blue collar. Nothing wrong with that – life is full of hierarchies and rank structures. Great post.

L.L. Barkat

oh, Kurt, that is fun. Blue-Collar Blogger might need to be started by someone who is ready to blog 🙂

I hesitated to make the post sound like there is a ranking. But I suppose it’s in there. It’s refreshing to me that you would see that as okay 🙂

Jane Friedman

There are many high-profile writers who have social-media presences, though many of them tend to be in the genres (young adult, romance, scifi, etc), such as John Green, Neil Gaiman, John Scalzi, etc. If you look at major literary-award winners, it’s true that they tend to be rather reserved/quiet/absent from online. I think this is a symptom of (1) this “ranking” thing—it’s beneath them as “literary” writers and (2) they made their careers before the online world became what you see today.

HOWEVER: Just about every literary author I know writes for online venues at some point. But there’s a perceived stigma when it comes to publishing their own words on their own site. There’s a sense that one’s writing is more valuable if someone else has accepted it, edited it, and paid for it—and in some cases, that’s true.

This is not so different from the self-pub debate in the book publishing world. The easiest answer, if any, is: You play the field and adjust strategy based on career goals.

L.L. Barkat

and that’s even a different angle, yes? This idea of stigma?

I don’t subscribe to that. A perfect example of a group that is maybe chipping away at this is The Common, out of Amherst. The writing is breathtaking (see @commonmag on Twitter )

Porter Anderson

@be8d09308a2cfbf806c5cfdb9d6a93b4:disqus

@janefriedman:disqus

All good points.

But I think literary writers also have a much harder row to hoe in social media — inclusive of blogging — because they, by definition, don’t “niche” easily.

Some may be seen as holding themselves “above the fray” if they don’t get in there and sling the tweets with everybody else and blog their breakfasts and whatnot, but their hesitance may have to do with the difficulty of the “non-genre” nature of what they do. If they want to blog, it might HAVE to be breakfast they talk about because there’s a lot less chance of them having a solid, palpable Subject attached to them.

The more eclectic their gifts may be as literary writers — which can make them all the more valued as such by readers — the more difficulty they may have nailing down a context in which to relate to blog readers and social-media buddies, you know?

And as a last thought — which could get me into a lot of trouble, so I’m burying it here — literary people probably (I said probably) have to spend more time on their work than some (I said some) genre writers. They don’t have a formula sent to them on pink paper by Harlequin. They’re creating worlds that may (I said may) be bigger, less easily cobbled together, and possibly riskier (I said possibly) than genre people are. All of which may mean (I said may mean) they have less time and mental energy left for the rigors of blogging and social mediation.

Let’s not even mention dear La Atwood, whom we all adore because The Great Lady Tweets, but think of her as a lively exception who, in fact, has turned to writing vampires on Wattpad when the time came, probably because something as social and bloggish as Wattpad demanded a less esoteric presence than her deepest literary work. And while I think she seriously enjoys the Wattpadding of her career (I hope so), I would guess that a great many of her Wattpadded readers “know nothing of her work,” to paraphrase Mr. McLuhan, whom I miss daily.

Literary people, in short, may (I said may) just not match in temperament and material the drives and instincts and needs of the wider universe of publishing. And frankly, I’m much, much more worried these days about our literary people who AREN’T at this party, but may not belong here. Where DO they belong? I’m not sure we know anymore, and the digital dynamic cares nothing for them.

As I always like to hang myself by pointing out, the digital dynamic (which has given us blogging, btw), is an engine of distribution and it empowers most easily and strongly the lowest common denominator because the lowest common denominator creates the most distribute-able stuff for the most receptive and largest crowd.

The elegant thinking of true literature (like fine art, like classical music, like modern dance and ballet) can find far fewer life rafts on the digital tide and must swim for shore, hard. Our literary people may need a lot more help from us than we’ve managed to give them so far.

As the old hymn tells us: “Let the lower lights be burning. Send a gleam across the waves.”

End of sermon, Sisters Jane and Laura. Peace be with you.

Brother Porter

L.L. Barkat

Um. I know 😉

Jane Friedman

Thanks for jumping in, Porter! Thought provoking.

I’ve always loved the Julian Barnes quote, “Never read at a reading. They’d rather hear what you had for breakfast.” For writers we idolize, reading about the ephemera of their life isn’t so bad—we get a glimpse of their greatness, mystery, humanity, ordinariness.

But addressing your point—that literary writers don’t have the temperament—one thinks that they must lack imagination if there’s not a single thing they can imagine themselves doing that’s tied to online media. I can understand lack of time, less so temperament, though I suppose there’s a segment of the writing population for whom that might actually be true. The older the writer in question, the more I understand it. For younger generations, no. In many cases, I think it’s about preserving a particular status and image. Nothing wrong with that—but I’m not eager to say it’s some inner quality that makes them exempt or unsuitable. It’s a choice, and I’d argue (for some writers) a status choice that’s a luxury not afforded to all.

My main belief, though: The Internet is far too immense, expansive, and wonderful for a curious, talented literary author to not find commonality in a few small pockets.

Nina Amir

Agree.

Adelaide Shaw

I am one of those older writers (literary type I like to think since my work doesn’t fit any genre) who is not on facebook and who does not use twitter. I have two blogs, one for my previousely published haiku and other Japanese short fortm poetry and one for writing, I’ve had 27 years of experience writing short stories and have had over 50 published in print and on-line, have written three novels which have not found a publisher. I’ve earned next to nothing with my stories as most small literary journals don’t even send a contributor’s copy any more.I started the writing blog to post what I’ve learned about the craft of writing and my experience, but I have only four followers after several months and only a few page looks per day( if at all) and no comments. At 78 years old I’m not comfortable with all this tech stuff, plus I don’t have the time. I post on my blogs about every 7-10 days which is about all I can manage. .

At this stage in my life I don’t expect fame or money ( I never did. Writing was for the enjoyment of writing). So why am i telling you this? It’s just to add to the discussion about blogging. What I write on my writing blog may be of help to someone of those few people who bother to check it out. If anyone here is interested, my blogs are:
http://www.adelaidewritewritewrite.blogspot.com and
http://www.adelaide-whitepetals.blogspot.com

Kurt Brindley

As with all good discussions and debates, this is one where there are really no wrong answers; only ones that are right according to one’s values and taste.

I have no expectations that who I consider/value as a high-profile writer will align exactly with anyone else – maybe it will, maybe it won’t. Just because someone hits it big doesn’t automatically or even necessarily make him or her high-value writer in my book, so to speak. In fact, most of the authors I read are dead and the living ones, while award-worthy in my eyes, are, generally speaking, hardly making the “Twilight” or “Hunger Games” bucks.

What does that mean in the context of this discussion? I’m not sure but regarding self-publishing, there has always been a stigma associated with it (and yes, I have two lonely self-published books); fortunately, the revolution we’re experiencing is lessening that stigma rapidly day by day. However, I, for one, still appreciate the firewall of agents and editors and the NYT reviews that sets apart a Big Six (or however many pub houses there are left) writers, at least the ones I value, from most of us “indie authors.” If one of the writers who I consider high-value started blogging, I, in all honesty, would probably be a little disappointed. But I admit, as each day goes by and more and more indie authors are showing us that not all are chaff, I am learning to see the value in their accomplishments, as well.

BTW, earlier in the day, L.L. had a couple replies associated to this comment – one in response to my comment and one in response to your response, Jane. I wonder if after seeing your response she had second thoughts about hers and disappeared them. 😉

L.L. Barkat

Ha. No, I didn’t disappear them. But I did notice that they got eaten. Hungry DISQUS? (a few others got eaten in other threads here as well.)

Nina Amir

I remember getting publicly slammed by a writing newsletter with 70,000 subscribers when I asked the editor/owner/writer to provide me with a free guest post for my Write Nonfiction in November event. She was appalled that I would be asking any writer to provide writing without pay. And she let everyone know. LOL. She wasn’t aware that most bloggers were providing free guest posts on a regular basis just for the promotional bio. Now we do so much of that online–everything from a 500 word blog post to much longer articles. But I can see how someone might see that as devaluing their work. Yet, authors give their books away for free with the Kindle KDP Select program all the time and never think twice. Go figure.

moonduster

When I was very young, I decided I wanted to be a writer, and somewhere along the way, I stopped writing and stopped believing. In 2008, I started working at losing weight and started to blog about it. (I lost 145+ lbs and went from morbidly obese to a healthy BMI.) I was approached by the editor of a magazine to begin writing regular articles for them and that lasted for over a year. In that time, I started blogging, on separate blogs, about other things that interested me, including writing.

Through blogging, I found my voice again and remembered how much writing meant to me. I have written two novels, a YA novella, a middle grade book, a non-fiction book and many picture books since then. (Still perfecting my craft and looking for an agent.) I’ve also made loads of contacts within the industry, developed some friendships with people who are now my critique partners and started a writing challenge that grew from 23 members in the first year to just under 100 members in the second year.

Blogging may or may not be useful as a platform for writers to sell their books, but it is useful in many other ways. Maybe the problem is with people who start blogging solely as a means to sell their books and not for the reasons of being part of a community and the love of writing. I don’t force myself to write blog posts a certain number of times a week or anything like that. I write when I have something to say.

L.L. Barkat

Moonduster, I love this… “I write when I have something to say.” Do you think most bloggers operate this way?

I’m also interested in knowing how much you do the reciprocity aspect of blogging (going to other blogs, commenting back on your own blog).

moonduster

I think the trend for bloggers, right now, is to write frequent posts because they think this is the only way to build a following. I don’t post as frequently, so maybe I could have a lot more blog followers if I did, but I do have a slowly growing group of blog followers and even more followers through my blogs’ Facebook pages. I try not to worry about it too much. If I write when I have something to say, my posts are more likely to be enjoyable or informative to read. If I force myself to write just for the sake of being a “good blogger,” then I may end up with more posts, but they won’t necessarily be worth reading.

I used to spend a lot of time commenting on other blogs, but now I limit it to just people who have commented on mine and sometimes other blog posts that peak my interest (usually ones I’ve found through shares on Facebook). I have made some writer-friends whose blogs I visit from time to time as well. But I try not to let doing so become the time-suck that it can become. I do think there has to be some reciprocity, but it’s more about wanting to encourage others in their writing (or weight loss, depending on the blog) than about being seen and driving others to my own blog.

moonduster

I will add that, of my followers, maybe only 1% leave comments on the blogs, so reciprocating by visiting their blogs is not very time consuming. Most of them comment to the blog posts on the FB pages or in the FB groups, and I usually respond there as well. I suppose if I had a larger following, it would become more difficult.

L.L. Barkat

it becomes very difficult, yes, when your following grows. Some bloggers choose to not have comments on their blogs, as a way to reduce the expectation of reciprocity. Of course, then you lose the communal aspect.

rachel

there are some great anonymous blogs out there – hilarious!
http://www.thepsychiccompany.co.uk/

Dina Santorelli

I started blogging in 2010 as a way to fight my way out of a writer’s block. My theory was that writing something — anything — was the ticket to getting my novel completed, and it worked. Rather than sapping my energy, blogging invigorated me, connected me with other writers who were having similar problems or who had helpful advice. I completed my first novel about five months after I started my blog. So as I wrote my second novel (I’m editing it now), I figured the same technique would work — it didn’t. And hasn’t. Blogging didn’t seem as vital to the process as it did the first time. I’m not sure why. Had I changed? Had the world changed? Perhaps a little of both. I still blog, but it seems more now to be a pastime or a marketing tool, rather than a vital part of the creative process. I NEEDED it then as a writer, but now less so — particularly with revved up social media such as Facebook Twitter, etc. — as a marketer or writer.

L.L. Barkat

Dina, that is fascinating. And maybe this is the real point: we need to pay attention to what is working for us and what is not. Blogging is hard to stop once we start, for a lot of reasons, but if we need to do that to protect our creative process, well… 🙂

What is currently the most vital part of your creative process?

Dina Santorelli

That is a good question. I’m not sure. But I think I looked to blogging as being a vital part back in 2010 — as a way of connecting and interacting and, as you say, crafting my voice and getting it out there. Now, I’m connected. And interacting. And have established my voice (or at least I’ve tried to). Have I outgrown blogging? Or has it shrunk in importance? I’m fascinated by everyone’s experiences here. Thank you for initiating such an interesting topic.