Okay, so I haven't had a dedicated website for myself in years. If you typed in elanajohnson.com, the magic monkeys behind the Interwebz would redirect you to...this blog!
But, over the past couple of weeks, I've decided to buy web hosting and make some websites. This is mostly because I have two personas now, and I'm publishing a lot of books, and I feel like I need a more permanent landing page for my fans.
While I was doing all that (which is actually kind of fun for my right and left brains!), I contemplated what to do with this blog.
See, I've been here for years. Eight to be exact. I've loved interacting with all of you. I have scads and scads of (I think) helpful articles about publishing, marketing, querying, and yes, losing weight. Ha!
At first, I thought I'd migrate them all over to WordPress, one post at a time. I was actually getting on today to redirect people over to the new blog site!
But I just can't do it. I've loved this little corner of blogdom, and I don't want to leave it. I have neglected it for a few months, but hey, writing and publishing a new book every 11 weeks can cause some virtual neglect.
I am determined to get back to blogging. I love doing it, and I've been learning lots of new things. And I'm going to do it here. I'm just going to link from my new website back to this blog. I think that will actually make things easier, and things won't get lost.
But, if you want to check out my new website, please do! And if you're interested in my adult romances, you'll have to check out Liz Isaacson's website. She's me. But with a different name. :)
What have you been doing this summer? I hope it's been better than building websites while your kids swim with their friends. Just sayin'.
Okay, so it's 10:16 PM on Tuesday. I never (like NEVER) write my blog posts the night before they go live. I'm much too neurotic for that. I have to read over them a billion times. I have to shift them from this day to that day, rewrite them, postpone the ones I'm worried about.
No, seriously. Writing this blog is like a full-time job with approximately 1618 bosses. That's how I think of you, my readers. I stew about what you might like to read. What you might want to weigh in on. What you might want to know about me, my book, my next door neighbor (kidding. Kind of). What will get you to dish about your next door neighbor.
The pressure is heavy, enormous. Sometimes I feel like I won't be able to deliver. That I won't be funny / informative / personal / helpful / impersonal / friendly / witty / knowledgeable / [insert adverb here] enough. (Is adverb even the right part of speech? Are they called parts of speech? Crap. No time to Google this vital piece of information.)
I want to give each and every one of you the exact post you need at the exact moment you need it. I want to get to every blog out there. I want to leave meaningful comments on said blogs.
The fact is: I can't. I will fail at this.
And that bothers me in a way I can't describe.
I'm humbled every day when I wake up and see comments. You make me laugh and cry and everything in between. I appreciate every comment and the many who read and don't comment. I'm glad you think my blog is worth your limited time.
So thank you. And know that I am trying.
What's pressuring you right now? Did I use an adverb up there? How in the world do people write blog posts the night before and not have time to edit them into submission??
I told you I was gonna come back to this. Well, I really am. Today. I've heard some people say they started blogging as a way for them to get what's inside of them, out.
Okay.
So maybe I did too. Remember how I didn't tell anyone about my blog? Or that I was anonymous? Yeah. It was for me. I was terrified to have anyone else read my inner-most thoughts, mostly because I was afraid people would think I was lame or not smart enough to blog or whatever.
Let me just say that I do think you must enjoy blogging. Anything you do for an extended period of time must be enjoyed, or else you'll quit.
But that doesn't mean I'm still blogging the same way I was two years ago. Many things have changed. I've changed. So my blog does too.
Let me outline the ways my blog is for me:
1. I like doing it. A lot. I benefit from this.
2. It's an excellent promotional tool. I benefit from this.
So really, my blog is all about me. But I choose carefully what I say here, because I want you to feel welcome and comfortable and appreciated. And with MY attitude in THAT place, then what is enjoyable for me (hopefully) becomes enjoyable for you too.
Imagine you're at a big table, dining with your bloggy buddies. You don't hog the conversation do you? Read from your novel every second or anything like that. No. You laugh and joke, talk about real life a little, things you like a little. You ask questions about other people to get to know them. You share some of your life, some of your writing, some of yourself.
You invite them to do the same. And that's how you can enjoy yourself at dinner. That's also how you can enjoy yourself while blogging. It's all about you, but there has to be a place for others at the table.
What do you think? Are you enjoying it? Are you leaving room for other people to enjoy it too? I think that when we enjoy it, others will feel that and keep coming back. So if you're blogging for you -- keep it up! Just leave a little room at the table, okay? Okay.
Okay, lean in a little closer. Closer... closer... Okay, that's a little too close. *grins* (And I should send you like, a dollar if you know that movie.)
More secrets today. Are you ready? Some of these are not really secrets. Maybe just things to think about. Things that might make your blog easier, faster and more entertaining to read.
Let's start with the basics.
1. Your blog layout.
- Dude, consider carefully before you use a black background. I used to have a dark bluish one, and I loved it. But I realize it's hard on the eyes, and I like light backgrounds much better.
- Absolutely no neon type, please. I'm begging.
- How big is your font? Too small, and I'm skimming from second one. I won't squint to read your blog.
- Look at your white space. Consider the principles of design found here. (Yeah, I teach these in the computer lab. So sue me.)
- Look at the length of your paragraphs. Huge blocks of text intimidate me. They make me think I'll be stuck on your blog reading and re-reading that monster graf for the rest of my natural life. And that's never good.
2. Your blog content.
3. Your blog audience.
- Be yourself. Share a bit of personal stuff without going overboard on the big 3: Religion, politics or sex. Right? Right. Remember your blog audience.
- Rants should be saved for private Skypes, chats or emails. Remember your blog audience.
- Share about your book, successes and whatnot without shoving it down our throats. We all want to celebrate, but we don't want every giveaway to be your book. We don't want every post to be your book signing schedule, etc. Remember your blog audience.
- Give your blog audience what they want. Don't know what they want? Figure it out. Then deliver. For this, I leave you with one of my favorite quotes of all time. You can insert anything you want for "street sweeper." Writer. Blogger. Whatev.
“If a man is called to be a street sweeper, he should sweep streets even as Michelangelo painted, or Beethoven composed music, or Shakespeare wrote poetry. He should sweep streets so well that all the hosts of heaven and earth will pause to say, here lived a great street sweeper who did his job well.”
~Martin Luther King, Jr.
Tell me what you like about blogs. What do you think of mine? How are you doing on your blog layout, your blog content and your blog audience? Do you consider all three of these things? If not, dude, maybe you should...
I'm going to address something entirely different next week (or whenever I feel like it): "But my blog is for me. I started it for me."
So feel free to leave me your OP on that too. You know I won't hold back!
