When Electric Venom turned 6 months old last week, I’d planned to write about things I’ve learned about blogging in that time but with the 9/11 anniversary, it just didn’t seem appropriate. Daniel Drezner’s recent article, Advice to New Bloggers (found via Instapundit) made me decide to go ahead with the list of the things that I’ve learned, although I hesitate to call this “advice” since I’ve only been doing this for a short time (as I will no doubt be reminded by quite a few folks who’ve been doing this for much longer).

What it does amount to is some observations based on my personal experience which I plan to revisit in six more months to see what’s changed, if anything. Frankly, I’ll be surprised if it’s much different: blogging has a high learning curve, so lessons seem to come early on. Still, it’s always nice to look back – as I’ve looked back to my earlier posts and old email in the process of pulling this list together – to see how time and opportunity have changed one’s views.

10. You’ll hear time and again that the blogosphere is like high school, and don’t doubt it for one minute. Also, don’t expect to be an exception to that general rule. You may meet bullies, but don’t let it worry you. Chances are, the bully makes a life pushing others around and if you give it time, someone else will be next. You may meet one of the “friendly types” who are always eager to help those nobody knows yet. This is the blogosphere’s version of the person who offered to show you around and “fill you in on everyone” when you were the new kid at school. It will make you feel welcome. It will make you feel grateful. It will make you link back to your “new friend” and sing his or her praise everywhere. That, you will learn, was the purpose. And it will all change the instant that “new friend” realizes you’re capable of finding your own way around or that you may be interested in making other friends. Don’t sweat this. Your “new friend” will be off making “new friends” as soon as they get over this latest “crisis” in their life.

9. Don’t spend time fretting over whether something is “blog worthy.” If it interests you, makes you laugh or makes you think, it’s worth blogging. After all, your blog is a reflection of you – do you really want to start tailoring yourself based on what others may or may not like?

8. At the same time, give some thought to how wide of an appeal you want your blog to have and then accept the choice you’ve made. If you choose to blog only about Canadian hockey, for instance, you’ll need to realize that folks who aren’t interested in hockey (or who don’t like Canada) won’t be your core readers. Likewise, if you choose to blog solely about your daily life and routine, you may not attract people looking for news analysis. The wider and larger you want your audience to be, the wider and larger you’ll need to make the topics addressed on your blog.

7. Early on, you will need to decide whether you blog to change peoples’ opinions or just to express your own. If you blog to change minds, then expect to be debated in your comment section as well as on other blogs and don’t take it personally. If you blog to express yourself, then ignore the annoying comments and write your next entry. Either way, remember that you have the power to turn off the computer so there’s no reason to let the frustration carry over into your life away from the keyboard.

6. Make it easy for readers to come to your blog. That means giving them a fast-loading page with working links. It also means using punctuation and spelling correctly so you aren’t wasting readers� precious free time by making them try to understand your point. That�s your job.

5. Don’t try to make a name for yourself by bitching about the bigger bloggers. There is a reason they are linked everywhere and have such high readership. Ridiculing them only makes you look jealous and small, much like a yappy Yorkshire challenging a Great Dane to a fight. (Incidentally, those big bloggers happen to be damn nice people who truly enjoy finding and promoting new blogs, so be grateful when they show interest.)

4. Update often, and if you can’t do it frequently then at least keep something that resembles a regular schedule. Readers quickly learn and remember which blogs update only once a day and which update several times an hour. There are plenty of other blogs providing fresh content on a consistent basis so if your schedule is sporadic or unreliable, you’ll lose readers to them.

3. If you want to promote your blog, be willing to promote other blogs, and never make the mistake of thinking that outgoing links are lost traffic. That means, if you submit to someone’s blog contest or weekly blog digests like Kevin’s Bonfire of the Vanities or Kelley’s Cul-de-sac so you can get more exposure, then have the class to return the link to the feature that’s giving you traffic. Another variation on self-promotion involves whether to email links to your post to other bloggers. I’ve learned to keep in mind that there are some bloggers (I’m one of them) who welcome such emails and 99% of the time will be happy to give you the link. But be warned that some bloggers don’t like it. If in doubt, check their email policy. If you’re still in doubt, ask before sending your link. And when they do link you, send them a note of thanks.

2. Don’t delude yourself into believing that you and your “blog persona” are separate entities. In the blogosphere, you are how you behave toward others. Claiming that what happens on a blog or in its comments is “just make believe” and doesn’t matter in the “real world” is little more than a childish excuse to act like an ass, and people who decide that you’re an ass based on such behavior are perfectly justified in holding such an opinion of you.

And the Number One thing I’ve learned about blogging is this:

1. If it’s not fun, don’t do it. But if you enjoy it, if it really adds something to your life, then don’t let anyone’s opinions or personal issues or downright nastiness stop you from pursuing it. Just blog.

Tuesday, September 16th, 2003, 1:46 pm   |   Blog bites  |  RSS feed Comments and pings are currently closed.