KOP: How Often Should You Blog?

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So by now you have set up most of the basics to create your platform. All you need now is to put something out there and get people to read it! 

So today's blog post is on a rather controversial topic: how often should you post on your blog? 

(no, I didn't realise this was controversial either until quite recently.)

Method 1: The More The Better

When I first started blogging, I read that you need to post regularly, at least 4 times a week. The logic for this was pretty sound:

1. You want to build up a strong archive of good posts so that when people come to visit, they have something to actually read.

2. The more posts = the more ways people can find you through search engines.

3. If you don't keep updating your content, there is no reason for someone to keep visiting.

4. If someone subscribes, then the more often you post, the more often you will pop up in their inbox, and the more they will remember you.

For example, Susan Gunelius on About.com suggests the following frequencies:

• For maximum growth: post multiple times per day to drive the most traffic (3-5 times or more is considered best for power bloggers).
• For steady growth: post at least once per day.
• For slower growth: publish at least every 3 days or 2-3 times per week.
• For very slow growth: posting less frequently than 2-3 days per week is most appropriate for bloggers who maintain blogs as a hobby with no strategic plans for growth 

All of this sounded like very good advice. So for the first few months I tried to post 5 days a week, though generally managed 4. During this period my traffic slowly (painfully slowly) started to increase. Small miracles happened which would give me a sudden burst, and then it would settle down again. 

When I had to go back to full time work, my number of posts dropped off. I wanted to do 3 times a week, but sometimes struggled to even make 1. During these times, there was a direct correlation between the number of times I posted and the traffic for that week. Every day that I did write something, there was a spike in my stats. After that, it would slowly decrease over the next few days until I posted again. This reinforced to me my need to post as frequently as I could.

However, on my fitness blog, which is newer than 100FD, I found that even though I posted less often and had less content (though it was solid) I still had stronger stats that didn't dwindle based on posting frequency. The reason for this is because the majority of traffic is from Google to a small number of articles which rank really well. I had spent time promoting a few of my articles so they ranked well, which ended up paying a lot more dividends than writing more posts. (I mainly used article marketing to get backlinks and authority.) This is much more in the style of the second suggested method.

Method 2:  Less Writing, More Promotion

One advocate of this message is John Locke who wrote the book 'How I Sold A Million EBooks In 5 Months' (has some good tips here and there though a lot of his success I think is based on his personal circumstances and wouldn't work for everyone the same way. But since I paid $2.75 for the kindle version, I thought it was worth the investment.) He has a blog he posts on about once a month! I was completely shocked when I heard this. At the time of writing his book, he only had about 7 posts on the entire blog! So why does he do it this way? (And yes, it is a conscious decision, not just because he's lazy.)

The arguments in favour of this method include:

1. You only have top quality content on your site.

2. When you write a great piece, it doesn't immediately get buried but is available for people to read for a longer period.

3. If you haven't got much traffic, you should spend more time generate traffic than putting up content that no one is reading. 

4. Most of the reasons why you should post frequently don't apply as a new blogger: you aren't going to rank well on the search engines no matter what, and without readers or subscribers, no one is sharing your content or looking out for you. 

5. Instead, you want exposure: you want to spend your time appearing on every major blog in your areas so people actually know you.

However, the keys to this method, which a lot of people ignore, is a) making sure your content is even stronger and better researched than if you posted more frequently and b) still spending the same amount of time on the computer, but just using it differently. 

I have to say, this method has a lot going for it. With so many blogs out there, it is almost impossible to be found without a miracle if you aren't active in the community. Unless you already have a very strong readership who will come to you just because you are you, I think focusing on being known in the community is a much better use of your time.

In my own personal experience, I have to admit that the big jumps in traffic for me came from a) being linked to in Nathan Branford's post about Heifer International (which only happened because I was reading his blog and commented), b) being in ROW 80 and having my blog appear in a blog hop every week, then c) going to those other ROW 80 blogs and commenting and just being active in that community. 

I heard another point in favour of infrequent posting on The Self-Publishing Podcast (this is a great podcast, though does have a lot of swearing and could easily be cut in half they spend so much time laughing at their own jokes. However, they do give some great tips in amongst that). Their advice was particularly focused on writers trying to become visible as an author (rather than just trying to get people to your blog to sell them things there). They suggested that if you have the material for a great post, instead of putting it on your blog, you should think about turning it into a free ebook to download through Amazon KDP Select. One of the hosts did this in reverse, taking a popular blog post and turning it into an ebook which is now free, and it gets downloaded roughly 90 times per day. That's a lot of people seeing you on Amazon where your other books will be.

Further, they argued that if you don't have a great idea for a post that day, spend the time on actually writing your novels! Don't blog at the expense of actually getting your writing out there because you can't count on becoming well-known based on even a handful of books. You need to be prolific (with quality) if you want to be discovered as an author. 

This is good to remember, that your promotion should not be at the expensive of your writing. However, I also strongly believe that as a writer you need to practice as much as you can. What better way to practice and train as a writer than to spend 30 minutes a day or a few times a week writing and then getting feedback on that writing? The discipline itself is a great reason to blog more often. Further, for me, a lot of my blog posts help create my 'Five Day Writer' series, so the more I post, the more of my books I get written. 

So, in summary, it's not as simple as blog more/ blog less.

Key Points To Remember:

- For either method, you are still spending the same time online (not writing novels/living/etc), just one is focused on producing more content, and the other is focused on getting more exposure for less content. 

- I believe you still need an archive of posts before you start promoting yourself.

- If you want to build up your platform super-fast, then you need to spend more time overall both producing more content and getting more exposure. 

- Every new blogger needs to introduce themselves to the community somehow. Just writing content and hoping that someone will read it is a very, very slow way to go. 

- You are a writer! Writing blog posts is all part of your training. So don't be afraid of it. 

- Make sure you are in a niche that excites you enough that you can write lots of content.

Final point which I think is sound: whichever you decide to do, let your reader know. If they know how often and when you are going to post (every Monday, or every first Monday of the month) they will be more likely to remember to come back on check on you. 

Otherwise, they might keep coming back for a week and since nothing new is there give up. On the other hand, they might subscribe, but once they realise you post everyday, they might just start deleting you from their inbox. 

Talking about subscribing... have you subscribed to 100 first drafts yet? Sign up to receive posts via email, or become a follower. 

(I'm trying to post 1-3 times per week at the moment, just in case you were wondering :D).

Tips On How To Make Writing a Habit

You may have heard that it takes 3 weeks, or 8 weeks, or any number of weeks to form a new habit. Well, there is no strict formula for every action. How long it takes for the action to become so hardwired into your brain that you can start without expending any will power is affected by three factors:

 

1. How difficult the habit is.

2. How often you do it.

3. How much it clashes with your old habits.

Therefore, while making writing a habit has its difficulties there are steps you can take to make the process a whole lot easier. 

To start off, you want to make the new action as easy as possible. It is much easier to train yourself to write for 15 mins a day and then train yourself to go from 15mins a day to 30 mins a day, than it is to go straight to trying to write an hour a day. 

So play around and find the maximum amount of time you can write for wthat doesn’t scare the socks off you and make you want to hide under your blanket at the very thought. It may be even only five minutes to begin with. Just before going to sleep you will jot down all the ideas that have been going around in your head about your story. That’s okay, make that a habit. It’s much better than not even doing that. Then, once you have that down pat, you can try extending it.

Next, the more often you do it, the easier it is to form it as a habit. Research has found that in forming new habits the more faithful you are in performing the habit at the beginning, the easier it is for it to become automatic. (See BPS Research Digest: How to Form a Habit). Their advice is: try to do it every day, though missing one or two here and there won't hurt but don't let them add up. 

 

Add to this thought our previous discussion on becoming an expert writer:  you want to be knocking over hours and words so you build up your bank of practice. The more time you spend doing this, the faster you will become an expert!

Finally, are there ways to minimize how much it clashes with your old habits?

The first step is to look at your usually daily routine (your 'real' daily routine, not the one you hope you stick to) and find a place to slip it in where it won't be forcing you to give up too much just yet. Love your Deal or No Deal? Well then, put your writing time after that so you know you go straight from Deal to Writing, without feeling you've missed out. 

 

Or my favourite, add it in somewhere instead of something you don’t like doing. Hate cleaning your house? Pay someone to do it and for that hour or so, sit down and write (but you can only not clean the house if you are writing). Though always check this with partners first, as they get a bit touchy if you give up doing all the chores to work on your masterpiece when they have to pick up the slack.

Anyone else have good tips on how to make writing everyday a habit?

Time To Get Serious, Time To Keep A Diary!

Well, have been having varying success with my writing this week. As mentioned, Sunday was a wipe out word count wise. Monday I did roughly 8,500 on the third book in my trilogy (which might turn out to be longer than a trilogy, still waiting to see). Tuesday did a sad little 3,000 as I worked well in the morning, but then came home after work and gym and just needed to read. Was feeling all dried out and in need of some relaxation. Wednesday I made my 7,500 which would have been great, except it was my day off so I was aiming for 10,000. And today I did okay in the morning, coming in at just under 3,000, but this evening had a personal training session at the gym later than I usually go, and then somehow cooking dinner ended up taking an hour, so I didn't get down to write until 9.30pm. So have only managed 5,000 words today.

So, have decided: it's time to get serious. In the mornings I'm varying between 2,000 words on a bad morning, 3,000 usually, and 4,000 on a good morning. But I am writing for generally the same amount of time, but sometimes I'm just a lot more effective (Okay, once or twice I've got to 2,000 and decided to fall back asleep, or take some time to read, but those few instances aside). The evenings are similar. I can sit down for the same amount of time and get a 2,000 word difference.

I've talked quite a bit about the flow and how useful it can be. I've outline a basic method for making sure it comes to your aid. But now I need to go even more hardcore. I need to know more than just 'exercise, eat, work'.

Based slightly on something Dorothea said, I've decided I really need to investigate what makes me write well and what holds me back on a practical daily level. So, I'm going to try and keep a diary where I rate how well my writing session went and analyse the factors that led up to it: how well did I sleep? Did I go to sleep particularly early or slightly later? What did I eat before hand? Do I work best after a meal of protein or carbohydrates etc. And particularly: what I was reading at the time?

This was the focus of Dorothea's message, to identify writing that makes you want to write. There are some authors that you will absolutely love, but they don't inspire you to write for yourself. And then there are authors or genres you think you despise, but they always send you running to pen and paper, possibly just to prove that you can do it better. In becoming more systematic about the process and identifying everything that makes me work best, I will be able to maximise my performance.

Athletes from all around the world are currently gathering in London for the Olympics. And they have spent the last few months, if not years, analysing every part of their life so that they can be at their best to go those few seconds faster. I'm going to treat my writing the same. If I work out that having some protein before I write means I can write an extra 1,000 words in that session, and I have two sessions a day, that means for each fortnight I could write at least an extra 20,000 words, which is two whole extra days off!

So, I'm going to start my process of self-examination on Saturday (unfortunately tomorrow's writing is going to have to be stuffed in around a variety of other things, as I can't see me having a block of time that I will be able to sit down and write, but I will do my best all the same.)

If I find out any amazing secrets, I will let you know.

For anyone else thinking of becoming serious about writing, I recommend the exercise as well. But I would say do it after you are at the stage of writing everyday. It's like when I go to the gym and see people wearing compression tights, but still only doing a walk on the treadmill. The pants really aren't going to help you unless you are working close to your maximum. Finding out that you can write 10% more if you drink tea instead of coffee won't be a big benefit unless you are actually writing, and writing a substantial amount. Until you have trained yourself to do, say, 1,000 words a day, spend more time focused on that. See my previous post for exercises on how to increase your writing.

The thing that has sparked my sudden desire to learn more is that I currently feel I'm spending every possible moment writing just to meet my targets. So getting more for my efforts and being able to finish a bit early would make a huge difference.

Just to give an overview for those of you who think I'm being a bit melodramatic:

I get up between 6.45-7am (which I know is not super early, but since I have to have 8-9 hours sleep, I'm really pushing it), get breakfast and a cup of tea and am sitting down to write around 7.15am. I then write until about 9.30am, when I need to get ready for work. I get home from work between 5.30-6pm, go straight to the gym and do 30mins work out with 15 mins of stretching before coming home, having a shower and cooking dinner. I usually get to sit down to write again around 7.30 and I write until usually around 10pm, by when I will hopefully have hit my target for the day. I then suddenly remember I also have to write my blog. I spend another half an hour plus doing that, before getting ready and falling into bed. If I manage to finish my writing early, I like to curl up in bed and listen to podcasts while doing my knitting (yes I am an old lady in training. But at least I've almost finished my new throw rug, while it's still cold!)

I manage to fit in reading: a few minutes while I eat my breakfast and dinner, the two stops I go on the train each way, and for about 20mins in my lunch break.

This also might explain why on my days off I tend to collapse.

But soon I will know the secret for amazing writing, and then I will take over the world! Or at least keep creating my own ones to play with.

Until later.

Buffy. 

Day 2: Balancing Writing and Work.

Yesterday I did 10,000 words, which was a first and super amazing. But today I had to manage 7,500 words along with going to work.

 

After yesterday's success, I had an awful sleep.

For those of you who know me, you will attest to the fact that I have seriously weird, in depth dreams. I sometimes dream I'm me, sometimes I'm someone else, and sometimes I'm watching from an external perspective. I have had dreams that cover weeks or months, and others which are just a flash of an image.

Last night I had a totally new type of dream. It was as if my mind just could not create any more images. I've had dreams where I have been blind before, which is annoying (and you wake up with sore eyes from trying to see all night), but this was not that. All I could see for the whole night was flashes of light. I tried today to explain it to Jenna at work, but had absolutely no idea what it was.

Sitting down to my laptop again tonight in the dark, staring at the bright screen, I suddenly realised. I was dreaming of staring at a blank computer screen. (Even now, though I've turned the screen right down, and have been trying to type with my eyes closed as much as I can, I have a head ache from an entire day looking at the damn thing.) I feel that this is somehow not a good sign.

So, after that weird night I woke up groggy and not at all wanting to write. But I got up, made myself a cup of tea, and got back into bed ready to write. I decided not to have creamy, hot, sweet porridge, as the potential for that to send me back to sleep once it settled in my stomach was just way too high. Sadly, this also seemed to affect my ability to get into the flow. I struggled away for just under two hours, trying to connect the one sentence with the next one. In the end, for all my efforts, I had 1,954 words. It meant that I still had another 5,546 to write that night when I got home. Though I did give myself a shake and remind myself that Stephen King only writes 2,000 words a day, and just look at how many books he's published!

At work, it was my first day back after my holiday, so found a wonderful 60 emails and a pile of work waiting for me to fix up. Add to that my growing discomfort with my computer screen, and by five pm I was very happy to go home.

On the way home I just kept thinking: I had over 5,500 words to write, the beginnings of a headache and no imagination left in me. I needed every bit of flow I could get.

So I just followed the routine. I went to the gym and did half an hour of cardio fitness (am starting to believe that listening to upbeat music while at the gym, instead of watching TV, helps with the runners high at the end, and consequently the flow). I did a short stretch because I couldn't find a spot to stretch in the usual room, so had to do it surrounded by all the muscle guys lifting weights and grunting. I then came back, made a ham and cheese toastie (never underestimate the power of a ham and cheese toastie) and jumped into a hot shower. It was then straight into bed with my laptop, cup of tea, block of chocolate and sadly also a bag of chips (I was congratulating myself that I had appeared to cut down my chocolate in take from half a block a day to a third of a block, until I realised that I've suddenly increased my in take of chips from nothing to half a bag. Really don't think I'm winning in this.)

But anyway, the thing you all want to know: did it work?

And the answer is yes! Was in bed and writing by a bit before 7.45 and by 10pm I had written an additional 5,694, bringing my day's total up to: 7648!

And not only that, they were the easiest 5000 words I've written in the past few days. 

So, all I can say: all hail the flow!

So, quick update, my sequel currently stands are 49,338 words. (and as I typed that, I suddenly thought how I could use something I just wrote to explain something I was getting stuck on. Go brain, you are really picking up.) I have to admit, coming home today, I thought I might have to rethink the whole thing because it just wasn't working. But I shall not give up so easily now!

Well, good night from a tired, but happy, Buffy.