Blogging is scary and rewarding. I started a tech blog in 2010 called Codewryter, which turned into a Web Design Company.
Why did I start a personal blog? I wanted to share simple stories about my life. If you are considering starting your own blog, here are a few suggestions.
Make a List of Ideas
Create a list of 10-20 ideas about which you’d like to write. Don’t worry about whether the subjects relate. Write down 10-20 sample headlines. Mine would look something like:
If I die, who will empty the lint?
No Matter What Ailed You, My Dad Had the Solution
Remembering The Uncle I Never Knew
The Time Gene Hackman Sat Down Next To Me
The Things I’ve Learned About Marriage
You get the point. Create your own list. Don’t over think it. Start writing.
Write a Post
Pick a topic from your list and write 300 – 500 words. Use a conversational tone. Picture a target reader, such as a good friend or family member. Write as much as you can without worrying about editing. Get your whole idea down on paper. You can edit later.
Before committing to blogging, see if you can write three posts. They don’t have to relate. See how this goes. Is there one post that flew from your hands to the page? Those are the topics that will fuel you.
Be Open to the Ideas that Come
Give yourself a few days to write these posts. Keep a pad of paper near you at all times, to jot down ideas. I usually think of blog post ideas when I am unable to write, such as driving in the car. I carry notebooks wherever I go. I have them in every room, office, backpack, etc.
Write down the ideas that come and don’t judge them.
Name Your Blog
Think about what you want to call your blog. For my first blog, Codewryter, I thought the name up on a whim for a homework assignment at Marlboro Grad School. My second blog is this one, and obviously it’s my own name. You could do the same thing if you want, use your name. If you are thinking of writing a blog for business, I recommend a different process, and choosing a domain name is something to carefully consider, you can contact me here if you need help or have questions.
Post Weekly
I try to post to my blog every Saturday. What I don’t do is wait until Saturday morning to start writing the post. If I do that I literally can’t think of one idea, or I decide that every idea I have is stupid. Since I committed to posting once per week, I will grab whatever is the most developed post I wrote that week and spend a chunk of time editing it (sometimes a few hours). If it is about strange insects in my office, and that’s the best I came up with all week, well then that is what I work with. It’s more important for me to post SOMETHING, than not to post at all.
If you want your own custom domain name, you can get it for free when you sign up for website hosting at Siteground. Read this article for more info on getting started with a new website. (Note: my link to Siteground is an “affiliate link” which means I make a commission, at no additional cost to you, if you click through and make a purchase).
Questions, comments, suggestions? Please feel free to contact me.