Saturday, October 17, 2009

how to get your blog noticed by more than just your Mother

I am a frustrated writer.
I write a lot, and blog quite often.
I write about my family, my pets and events that occur in my life.
I leave it up to others as to whether I write well.

I love to write. But the reason I am frustrated is because not many people read my blog. The hits are few and far between, and sadly mostly include my mother, my best friends, my husband and occasionally my children,who are usually mortified by my anecdotal perception of their lives.

So how do I get more people to read my blog?


1) Get endorsed by a famous real life writer

I read voraciously. All genres of fiction. I have favourite writers. One of them is Meg Rosoff
Over the summer I was reading her latest book, "The Brides Farewell" and loving it. When I read something I enjoy, I usually try to get to know the author by checking out blogs, interviews and websites. This time, I even looked her up on facebook, and low and behold, there she was.
So I messaged her that I had just read the book and then asked her to be my friend.
For some reason she accepted the request.
We aren't bosom buddies. She is a busy author, writing her fourth novel, with real friends, real interests and a real life. I am just a name on her friend list. I wouldn't expect it to be any more.
But she did message me. And she wrote these words:

HI LYNNE, LIKE YOUR BLOG

So there it is ... praise from a famous author. Thank you Meg!

(And by the way ... Mum, friends and kids ... read her, she's good.)

2) Write about controversial topics

So far, the most controversial subject I have handled is drying my laundry outside (see "Be Green -flaunt your underwear"). I am more of a "hey this is my life, it may seem boring, but I will try to entertain you while I tell you about it" sort of writer, rather than a " THE ICE CAPS ARE MELTING " blogger (This may indeed be true, but I will leave it to others to write about it)

3) Make stuff up

This can stand alone, or go hand in hand with # 2.

For example, look at this.
A strange and undeniably attention seeking rant at a government agency few of us have on our Christmas card list.
Upon reading her blog we feel an immediate righteous indignation on her behalf. How dare anyone be treated so appallingly?

But was she?

The TSA responded using their own blog, posting the CCTV footage of the woman's ordeal, and showing that most of the woman's claims were not true.

and so the debate will go on. The woman's blog was eventually temporarily shut down to prevent it crashing due to an overload of viewers.

Hmmm. Food for thought. I guess if something like that happened to me, I might blog it, but I would have to keep it simple, and I don't think I have it in me to exaggerate to that extent. That is what fiction writing is for.

4) Looking good

I am not computer savvy. I admit this. So when I started my blog, I went with the basic package, and although I have tweaked it here and there along the way, (at one point I added pictures of my dogs ... but I don't know how to link them to the blogs in which they feature so they are just sitting there on the front page) it's still pretty flat. I don't have the know how to make it look better, and I don't have a queue of helpful web designer friends lining up to assist me. So for now this is all you get. Maybe one day I will be in the same league as those super bloggers who have thousands of hits a week because they look pretty and exciting. And maybe one day you will click on my blog and find links to my previous posts, instead of having to scroll back through page after page. Maybe I should take a few lessons in web design and management, but, as those of you who know me can testify, I am not very good at following directions, advise or ... anything, really.

So I will keep on blogging. My Mother will keep on reading my posts and responding as any indulgent Mother should: with praise, encouragement and unquestioning love. My friends will (hopefully) enjoy what they read and comment every now and then as and when they feel led to do so. My husband will continue to be the subject of my funnier posts, just because he is who he is (and I love him for it) My kids and pets will continue to feature regularly in what I write because they are so much a part of my life.
And Meg Rosoff will continue to be one of my favourite authors.

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

I'm going to try again, and let's see if I can get into my google account! I was actually reading your blog about non-sleeping child with great interest, as we've had endless trouble with my now-12 year old. But she doesn't just wander and play on the computer, she panics horribly. I also know that she doesn't need as much sleep as most kids, which you have to take into consideration. As for the sleeping pill, as long as it's not a whole bottle....! I'm always convinced social services would lock us all up if they spent a weekend here....

About Me

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I have been married to Andy since 1991, we have 4 daughters, 2 dogs, 2 cat, 4 rabbits (and various baby rabbits) and a hamster (not dead). We have lived in the U.S.A since 2000, and are citizens of the U.K. I miss many things about the U.K.(pubs, old buildings, red post boxes, church bells,narrow roads, a good joint of roast lamb with mint sauce, to name but a few) but I have grown to love the U.S.