Blogging

As embarrassing as it is, I must admit, I forget to blog here at Voice from the Heart for a couple of months.

I go and check on my fellow bloggers. I look at the site, and think, “Oh, I’ve got to get my blog done.” But do I? No, I forget.

Life takes over, people get married, kids graduate from High School, the dog needs a bath, laundry needs to be done, and of course there is eating, which often requires cooking. Sounds like an author’s regular excuse not to write. It does transfer over for those involved in blogging.

There is always an excuse to forget and not put your butt in the chair and write. The dog is a good reason not to find a subject to blog about, or the kids and cooking. Then there is the big question mark as to why the blog isn’t successful, and you’re not published. It’s like talking about what you’d do with the money you’d win in a lottery, without actually playing.

You have to play to win at anything, it doesn’t magically drop out of the sky and land in the lap and there is instant success. You get a million hits on the blog, and the book hits NYT list. Nope you’ve got to blog, you’ve got to blog about subjects that people want to read, and you’ve got to write, a lot and all the time.

 Blogging is something I do a lot. I’m with The Naked Hero, www.thenakedhero.com and The Writers guide to E-Publishing, www.thewritersguidetoepublishing.com To say I shouldn’t be forgetful about my commitment to blog here at Voices from the heart, is a understatement. Every week, I come up with two blogs sometimes more often if I’m covering for a partner in one of the sites, or guest blogging somewhere.

Blogging is a commitment that has to be upheld if the blog is to be successful. I can’t say how many times I’ve never returned to a blog, when I noticed it hadn’t been updated at least once in a month. To keep my interest it has to be at least once a week.

When blogging first took hold, I heard many authors say, “I’m not going to bother. It’s just another fad.” Well that ‘fad’ is bigger than ever. Everyone seems to have a blog, celebrities, politicians, sport figures, newscasters, and of course writers. There are absolutely millions of them. So how does one stand out against the others? Commit to a subject manner, stick to it, and be honest. The competition for readers is thick. It’s like being a in a foot race with an Olympic runner, and you haven’t trained in ten years. Does sound discouraging, but keep it up, and you’ll attract the right people over time, who like what you have to say, can relate, and will come back.

Blogging isn’t for everyone. You literally have to come up with something to say about something, know what you’re talking about, and don’t hurt anyone’s feelings. Sounds easy, but it’s not always. So I’ll try harder, because this blog does mean something to me. How long did it take me to write this, maybe 20minutes.

So do you blog? Is it like trying to write a novel, with plenty of excuses?