Is there anything you don't know about blogging?

Deb wrote a post last week called, Top 10 Things Freelance Writing Blogs Tell You That You Already Know. Not that this was news to me. In fact Deb and I were discussing this on Skype recently and it pops up with other freelance writer pals too.

Deb’s post got me thinking. IS there anything I can say that you don’t already honestly know about when it comes to professional blogging? It does seem like bloggers who blog about blogging re-hash the same old stuff over and over. Although, just to play devil’s advocate…

There are plenty of posts here at Blogging For A Living along with every other blogging/writing blog out there that explain the same useful tips over and over. Yet, people don’t always listen.

I still see people using the wrong version of you’re or your in posts. I see blog images aligned so poorly that it makes me want to run screaming from the blog. Worst of all I come across way too many bloggers who consistently fail to quote their sources.

I darn well know that Deb, myself and hundreds of other bloggers write advice posts about how to get started in blogging all the time but the number one email question I get from new bloggers is… “How do I get started in blogging?” Um?

Why do you think that is? Personally I’m very curious about folks who email, “How do I get started in blogging” but didn’t yet do a simple Google search for, “How to get started in blogging,” a search that would no doubt bring up thousands of advice posts.

My theory? I guess I want to believe that people like reminders – I know I do. I’ll read something at a blogging blog that I already knew but haven’t acted on, so it’s a good reminder. Another theory is that some people don’t read and/or retain blog posts very well. But really I have no idea.

With this in mind: I went searching for some blogging advice I’d never heard before. Or at least blogging advice with a slant I’d never heard before.

Above are some new ideas/reminders to me, but maybe not to you. What have you seen that’s unique lately. OR go ahead and tell me this – is there anything that any blogger could tell you that would be new and useful?

Comments

8 responses
  1. Erik Hare Avatar

    Hey, I saw a post just like this one last week!

    (kidding … kidding …)

    I’m not generally a person for “tips”, and I suspect I’m not alone in this approach. I prefer general philosophies that can act as guides. But I have yet to see a lot of articles written from a deeply philosophical point of view. That, I believe could shed a lot of new light on the subject.

    Then again, if a subject seems to have been done, why do it at all? The examples you gave, in all honesty, didn’t seem particularly different to me (and I really dislike the term “lifehacker/ing). Perhaps it’s time to move on.

    Now, if you want to myth-bust most of what’s said about SEO, that could get interesting. And brutal. 🙂
    .-= Erik Hare´s last blog ..Ode to Twitter =-.

  2. Meg Avatar

    I think some people are looking for a get-rich-quick answer, blogging seems to be it (since it has brought fortune to some and writers don’t usually get paid well), and so they just want to jump in feet first and make the moolah! 🙂

    1. Jennifer Avatar
      Jennifer

      “Get rich quick scheme”… or want the work done for them?

      I’m hoping that I haven’t insulted… well… too many people (Quantum Phsysics fans included).

      As it seems we are in a time where almost every second person is looking for the system to do the work, but not wanting to work the system.

      Just my thought…

  3. Jessica Avatar

    Hi Jennifer…I have read a few of your blog here and think there really great. I just started my blog about the my journey to become a freelance writer. I’m starting from the very bottom. I am in search of a guest blogger and would like to invite you. If you could check it out and let me know if your interested. I am currently working on my second post called importance of goals. Thank for your time.
    .-= Jessica´s last blog ..The Beginning =-.

  4. Judy Avatar
    Judy

    I’m a stay at home mom and have just started blogging… I’m still very inexperienced, so thank you very much for providing some useful insights. Much appreciated 🙂

  5. Beth Avatar

    Good post with insightful comments, Jennifer. Here’s my two cents, for what it’s worth:

    I started a “real” WordPress blog (as opposed to a place for my friends to read my musings) 6 months ago. It has been a real learning curve, not because of the writing, but because I am having a very difficult time figuring out how to physically structure the blog. You know, the little things like adding counters, customizing the theme, figuring out how to have posts assigned to several pages, etc.

    I didn’t create my blog for money, but surely none of us object to making that a goal. At some point, when my number of readers warrants it, I’d love to put ads on my blog, but I don’t even know how to figure out at what point that might be.

    What I would LOVE to see on this site (and maybe it’s here but I haven’t see it yet) is a tutorial on the technical side of blogging. If anyone knows of a good one, please let me know.

    In the meantime, thanks for your blog!

    Beth

  6. Lady Tam Avatar
    Lady Tam

    I know that for me, I wasn’t even aware one could get payed to blog until I read this article. Like others above, I believe people aren’t asking so much “How do I write a blog?” but rather “How do I get payed for writing a blog?”

    Two very different things, in my opinion.

  7. Kevin Daniel Gibbons Avatar

    Hi Jennifer,

    Thanks for this post. I appreciate how you essentially tell new bloggers to get their heads out of their butts without stating it explicitly. I say “their” as if I wasn’t a rookie but, alas, I am. That’s why I’m feverishly reading stuff like this. So, thanks to you and Avril Lavigne–I will not make it so complicated! 😛

    Cheers,
    Kevin

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