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These few Precepts in thy Memory…

“Lo, thus, by day my limbs, by night my mind,
For thee, and for myself, no quiet find.”

(Sonnet XXVII, by William Shakespeare, b. Apr. 23, 1564, d. Apr. 23, 1616)

It is obvious from the above quote that William Shakespeare had the heart of a blogger.  Aside from experiencing the unquiet both day and night (a condition with which ALL bloggers are familiar), he was creative, appealing, humorous, unafraid, and most of all, prolific; all qualities which are essential in any successful blog writer.

But Shakespeare has much more to offer bloggers than writerly solidarity, and a close look at his works reveals the following lessons for blog writers:

1. Exclude irrelevant details. Shakespeare gave very little stage direction. In fact, most of his direction consists of “Enter Romeo” or “Exeunt”.  Blogs are by nature short, and writers have only a few paragraphs in which to express their thoughts to readers. Those readers appreciate writing that is straightforward and concise.
2. Be versatile: When his public was looking for comedy, Shakespeare gave them The Taming of the Shrew.  When they were struggling with their consciences he wrote Hamlet.  Bloggers too, must always have their fingers on the pulse of their readership.
3. Pay attention to language: “Once more unto the breach, dear friends, once more…” Shakespeare’s language was honest and inspiring, gritty and beautiful.  We can’t all aspire to the same authorial genius, but we can give our readers a beautiful architecture; spelling, punctuation and grammar are the foundation, our passion for the subject matter is the heart.
4. A good ending: Shakespeare’s plays almost always ended with a wedding or a funeral.  He left very few loose ends.  Blogs that end well stay in a reader’s mind, and keep them coming back for more.
5. Make your writing available to the public: As bloggers we don’t have entire acting troupes and theater staffs at our disposal, but we do have e-mail subscriptions, RSS readers, and regular posting schedules.  Let your readers know when and where to find your work, and have it easily available.

Harold Bloom writes of Shakespeare as the inventor of the human; perhaps we could dub him the patron saint of bloggers as well.

The How-To of Headlines

It was suggested to me recently that my headlines could be snappier, shorter, and more… well, succinct.  My immediate reaction was to bristle and go on the defensive; who is this person to tell me how to write headlines??  But the truth is that headline writing is an art.  Some people might even say it’s a gift.  You either have a talent for it or you don’t. 

Well, I hope that last part isn’t true, because the headline is the first impression your reader has of your post, and as such it carries a heavy burden. I’d like to hope there’s a chance I can learn to do it well.  Here are some great resources for headline writing that I have found in my search:

·         Copyblogger’s excellent series How to Write Magnetic Headlines

·         How to Write Great Headlines by Stuart Brown

·         Ben Yoskovitz’s The Best Headlines Are Not Just Written For Google Or Digg

·         Mark Merenda’s Smart Blog, which is full of great tips for writing and marketing of every kind

·         And of course the best resource: your own experience.  Take note of the headlines that catch your attention as you’re perusing the web, newspaper, or your favorite magazine

Headline writing is more about psychology than anything else, as is the case with all marketing.  What you’re trying to do with a headline is catch your reader’s attention and convince them not only that they want to keep reading, but that they need to keep reading.  That’s a lot of pressure to put on one short sentence.  Some people may have a natural gift for it, but for the rest of us, I hope that education and practice will do the trick.

Happy Headlining!

Increase Your Readership with Keyword Knowledge

There is no use in having a blog if nobody reads it. But how do you bring readers to your blog?  One of the most effective ways is to incorporate search keywords.  Lorelle on WordPress and Copyblogger both have a some great suggestions about how to incorporate search keywords into your website or blog.

Most of us want to just get out there and write.  This may be the best way to go about it in the beginning, when you’re looking to find your voice and build your confidence, but as your blog matures you’ll be able to think more and more about improvements and focus.  With so many blogs out there on the web you have to make your blog available and easy to find. With search engines, that means using the right search keywords.

Incorporating keywords into your blog can mean the difference between being a social blog and being a business blog.  A social blog is like an online journal; a way to connect with your friends and family.  A business blog has purpose.  It reaches out to new people and attempts to share information with them, teach them something that can benefit them personally or professionally. In order to reach these people in an effective manner, you need to know first what you’re selling, and second what they’re looking for.

We write a business plan or a mission statement when we start a business; my suggestion is to do the same for your blog.  Incorporating keywords and reaching out to your niche market will be easier and more effective when you are sure of your own focus.  Then read the articles mentioned in the first paragraph and become an expert on keywords.  Because you can have the best blog in the business, but it won’t do you any good if your intended customers can’t find you.

Blogging Lessons from a 7 Year Old Softball Player

My seven year old daughter recently began playing softball for the first time in our local youth league.  I must admit that although I was pleased when she first expressed an interest, I was also skeptical of how long it might last.  You see, my daughter is not exactly the athletic type.  Add to this the fact that she is very hard on herself if she isn’t perfect at any given activity, and you don’t exactly have a formula for fun.  My daughter, however, has not only surprised me with her love of the game, she has also taught me a few lessons about conquering fear, pushing our limits, and enjoying ourselves while we do so—lessons which I have found also apply to blogging.

Lesson One: Do (or Blog) what you enjoy.  Before she started playing softball my daughter enjoyed watching softball (or baseball, rather).  She enjoyed going to the park with her parents to play catch or mock games where she pretended to be her favorite Red Sox team members.  Because she enjoys the sport so much, she doesn’t mind the learning curve, and is thrilled to spend 4 out of seven nights a week playing or practicing.  Blogging for business should be the same way.  If you don’t enjoy what you do you’re going to be hard pressed to make yourself spend time writing about it. 

Lesson Two: Look for opportunities to learn. Batting cages?  Choking up?  Infield fly?  There is a whole vocabulary that comes with any new activity, and becoming proficient in the language is part of becoming an expert in the field. The only way to acquire the knowledge is to take any learning opportunity that comes along.  We passed some batting cages the other day and my daughter begged me to stop.  There she was—in her white skirt and ponytails—among the muscled and tattooed, hard-core players.  She loved it!  They even gave her some useful tips. So don’t be afraid to take classes, buy books, or ask questions of seasoned bloggers.  Being open to any learning opportunity that comes your way is the best way to improve quickly.

Lesson Three: Don’t be afraid to make mistakes. My daughter, who has always beat herself up when she makes the smallest mistake, has no problem laughing off a dropped fly ball or a strike-out at bat.  Not because she doesn’t care, but because she knows she’ll get better.  Whenever we begin a new activity, especially one like blogging where your talents (or lack thereof) are put on display for the world to see, we are in danger of being paralyzed by fear of mistakes.  It is better to push forward and learn from your mistakes than quit altogether before you’ve even had a chance to make any.

Lesson Four: Get the gear. Mitt, bat, ball, helmet, sliders… My daughter has them all.  It wasn’t cheap, but having those things makes her a better player.  It gives her confidence and makes her feel more committed.  It’s fun to have the tools of our trade.  Having them not only makes it easier to do our jobs, but it also makes us feel legitimate.  Blogging is a fairly inexpensive activity, but there are certain things in which you may want to invest: professional software, attendance at a conference or two, and a high-speed internet connection. 

Lesson Five: Make new friends. By joining a softball team my daughter instantly had 10 new friends with whom to discuss her baseball obsession.  She’s in seventh heaven. With all the social networking websites littering the web, bloggers have even more of an opportunity to find like-minded individuals who share their blogging passion.  Find a community that fits your business or personality and start contributing. Discussions with fellow bloggers will sharpen your skills, fuel your passion for your subject matter, and provide inspiration for new posts.

It seems that the older we get the harder it can be to push our limits and learn new things.  Watching my daughter has reminded me of the importance of being open to new experiences and activities.  Don’t let the learning curve keep you from blogging to your full potential.  Take a page from the book of a seven-year-old and jump in with both feet.  The benefits will amaze you.

3 Steps to a Great Blog, Even If You Don’t Write Well

You don’t have to be Shakespeare to have your own blog, because a blog is about many things, not just the writing.  A blog is about distributing information, building an online community, and keeping up a regular correspondence with your readers.  And because blogs are generally a short but frequent medium they tend to be somewhat forgiving.

Of course, if you want to have a regular readership that consists of more than just your mother it helps to have a writing style that is somewhat easy on the eyes—or that at least follows the basic rules of grammar.

The good news is that there is help, and it doesn’t require re-taking your high school English course.  Here are three tips to get you started:

1.       Subscribe to other (good) writers' blogs.  Reading good writing is the best way to become a good writer. If you want to be a good blogger, it will help to read good blogs.  This is a good one because it’s fun and beneficial.  I recommend one of my favorites: skelliewag.

2.       Use spell and grammar check. Some people are bad with numbers, some with dates.  It’s perfectly understandable if spelling is not your forte.  But it is inexcusable when you have a built-in editor at your fingertips.

3.       Read your posts aloud. Reading your posts aloud will help you catch any number of awkward sentences you may have lurking in there. And it will have the added benefit of helping you develop your unique blogging “voice”.

These are just three quick tips to get you started.  But you’ll find that the very best way to become a good blogger is with practice.  So set aside your fears and get started!