To blog or not to blog

This is like, the fourth time I’m trying to post this, because, for some reason, it wasn’t coming up before, so, if like a couple hours later, there’s like four of these…that’s why. *shrugs*

Sup, @graciegirl? 😉

To answer your first question: Yes, somewhat. Personally, I have an extremely hard time with schedules and time frames and such. So, it’ll sometimes be a month (or, three, thankfully only once😑) before I post something. Of course, it also depends on what you’re planning on blogging about, and if you have a good amount of follows. Now, obviously, just starting out, you won’t have many (I’ve been doing mine for almost two years, and I still only have about twenty or so followers. Annnnnnd, some things are harder to keep on top of and have set schedules for. But, as with anything, if you have a will to see it done, and be consistent with it, and if you actually enjoy doing it, you should have no problem keeping up.

Second question: Absolutely! With a blog, the possibilities are nearly endless, and I definitely think it’s a good way to branch out a bit and try different things. I try to have a lot of variety on my blog, just because I get bored with the same things. I post book reviews mostly, but I also like to write various short articles, share some of my artwork, and just random things. (I think I did post a short story once, a long, long time ago. It was awful, but, still; variety! 😀

As of any services… I use Blogspot, and I love it! But I’ve heard good things about WordPress too. My mom used blogspot for her’s, and so I naturally used it too. It takes just a little while to figure out all the features it has, but after I did, I was super happy with it.☺ I definitely recommend checking it out.

@graciegirl
(Okay, weird tech things. It says I’ve already posted, but I can’t see it so I’m posing again…)

Okay, so I’m tired and I’ve been sitting in front of my computer all day so words are going to sound harsh… just know that and take all of the following with a grain of salt. 😉

1. In a word… no. I know Daeus said yes, but… he wrong. (Okay, I think this probably varies on a person-to-person basis, but here’s my opinion.) No. Writing a blog will not help you write regularly. My reasoning? I’ve been posting on my blog every week for two years now. During that time, there have been a few lulls where I have gone through months without writing any fiction. If you’re hoping your blogging will stimulate your writing, I wouldn’t count on it.
Also, while I have been able to be successful keeping my posts consistent, I didn’t really have a problem with inconsistency in my writing when I started. I don’t know if just blogging will force you to be disciplined, or just kind of expose the problem. So… I can’t help you there. Sorry

2.While blogging is another writing outlet, I find that it does not regularly satisfy me need to sit down and write prose. In fact, some times it gets in the way. Sometimes when I’m in a writing lull and I finally get the courage to start writing again, it’s time to write a blog post. That can be really deflating… when I can’t just sit down to write even when I want too. Make sense? So again, I don’t know that blogging will be great for that. (On the flip side though, sometimes when I’m writing a post and I figure stuff out it floods me with creative energy to keep me going for a long time.) But yeah, kind of looks like we’re 0-2.

3.Wordpress is the real deal. It is industry standard. It’s what all the free tutorials are for. Do wordpress. If you find you hate it, you can switch, but I don’t think that’s likely
(YAY THAT’S A W!)

Okay, now for the other side of the story.
I have all these negative things that I’ve said about blogging… but I’m still doing it after two years.
Here is why:
It is rewarding. It’s cool just mentally and emotionally to put something out there and have people read it. My blog isn’t terribly popular, even after two years of steady work. I have about forty different viewers per week. For my first year and a half, I was lucky to get twenty. But even when I just had ten people coming and checking my stuff out, I found that it was really cool just to sit back and realize that other people were reading what I was writing. That still hasn’t changed.
It helps me organize my thoughts. Seemingly all of my posts start out when I’m not sure about something so I start thinking it through… then end up with an informed opinion. (My blog, woodlandquill.com, is for other young writers. In case I didn’t say that.) The first person who learns from my blog posts is me. Just spending the time to think through things like POV, character development, and storyworld conflict help me figure out… writing. I wouldn’t be aware of hardly any of what I know today as a writer if I hadn’t blogged about it first.
Blogging helps me meet new writers. It took seemingly forever since I got my first comment on my blog, and it was from a good non-writer friend of mine who was just stopping by to be nice. Even now, the comments just kind of trickle in at an agonizingly slow rate. That being said, I do have a couple of regular readers who drop comments pretty often, and I’m getting to know them pretty well. I’ve also been able to look at a couple of their writing excerpts and brainstorm with them about story ideas. It’s always fun to meet new writers, and my blog gives me the opportunity to do that.
Blogging is fun.
Like, there are weeks when I hate it and I don’t feel like I have anything to post about and I have to physically bleed to get words onto the website, but also… it’s fun. I really enjoy it most days, and as long as it’s fun, I’ll keep doing it.
So… should you start a blog? YES.
Don’t expect it to grow super fast or fix your writing life or any of that. Expect to spend months posting on it, doing hard, grassroots growing of it… but if you find you like it… do it. Also, if you decide you do want to go forward with it (or if you just want to discuss it more) shoot me an email at thewoodlandquill@gmail.com. You can just reply here… but there’s every chance I won’t see it. Someday are just too busy and I just delete forum notifs I can’t get to so… shoot me an email and you’ll hear back.
(And please do, because I like talking about blog stuff… and after two years I at leas know something about the ins and outs of it. Something.)

Anyway… there’s that. Take it for what it’s worth. Don’t let me discourage you, but do weigh what I have to say. Blogging is awesome, even if it can be hard work.

@graciegirl I didn’t read through everyone’s answers (so there might be some repeats), but here is the short version of my blogging experience…

1. Blogging helps with motivation, but you still have the choice to stay consistent. You can chose to post or not post, but you still have the expectations of your followers urging you to post on time.
2. At least in my case, blogging has helped me write outside my normal style and genre (which turned out to be fun).

3. WordPress is nice. Very nice. .

Last but not least: The most rewarding part about blogging (to me) is connecting with other bloggers and seeing your readers reactions, along with having that chance to interact with them. Since I share about my life and my fiction, I enjoy connecting with other bloggers who write about the same things (like Ethryndal). If you blog about a certain topic and mange to find a group of small bloggers who also blog about that topic, you can form a fun group of small bloggers who read each other’s content.
If you manage to gather a few awesome followers who comment and enjoy your writing, it’s just awesome, even if there are only five of them.

@ethryndal @graciegirl Behold! The Sarcastic Elf!

#1. Blogging will make you a lazy, lethargic writer. #2. Plot and Characters are everything to a writer. IF YOU WANT TO GET AWAY FROM THEM EVEN FOR THREE PARAGRAPHS, YOU ARE A TERRIBLE, TERRIBLE WRITER AND SHOULD FEEL WHOLLY ASHAMED OF YOURSELF. #3. WordPress is awful. Don’t use it. Closing Statement: Overall, blogging is a worthless endeavor and I do not recommend it to the faint of heart. You’ve been warned. 😛

@Gracie-girl, Brandon Miller has some good points (the one person who disagrees with the majority usually does), but on the whole, I’d say blogging can be good, if you keep in mind what the purpose of your blog is. As with anything that can be used, whether it’s good or bad depends largely on how you use it. Like a sword. You can use a sword to chop someone’s head off. The action may not be bad in itself — it depends on who you just killed, and why you killed them, and things like that. Blogging isn’t nearly as messy or violent or dramatic (usually) as that, of course. So. If you start a blog to help you grow in a certain writing area, and if after a year or three you find you’ve outgrown it and the blog isn’t helping you anymore, don’t feel bad about stopping.

On the other hand, I started a blog because it was a way to build a platform that I didn’t object to as I do Facebook and that kind of thing, but that’s not the only reason I keep doing it (keep in mind I’ve only had it since September). It’s a way to connect with other writers and get to know them. It’s also a place where I can ramble on about my writing for as long as I like, without being afraid that the person standing in front of me will try to escape. If someone reading the blog gets bored, they can leave without hurting my feelings. And who knows, there might be someone out there who’s interested in hearing you go on and on about your struggles with personification, which can motivate you to keep going.

I post twice a week. Unless something comes up at the last minute, I always post on Tuesdays, and the couple of times I’ve missed that day, people notice and ask where I am. So your readers can hold you accountable for posting. The second day varies — sometime between Thursday and Saturday, usually. That way I get some flexibility, especially during the school year as homework piles up more toward Fridays, and I can keep my readers in suspense *evil laugh*. Actually, it’s to make things a little less predictable.

And I recommend WordPress. I know nothing about coding but I find it easy to work with, and it looks professional (in case you were thinking of someday making it your official authour’s blog when you get things published), and has a lot of free options.

I will tag @audrey-caylin for another opinion on Blogger (and blogging in general). Just to make things confusing. 😀