Begin with a question...
the answers might surprise you
I was going to title this post, Blogging 101 but I thought better of it. I am attempting to distract you by sharing the first step in any blogging adventure. Writers of all stripes have a wide variety of opinions on the often maligned practice of blogging. I am sharing what I gained and learned so if you are on the fence—you can safely leap.
My blogging journey began about 7 years ago. If it was a cocktail it would be equal parts wanting to safeguard ideas and a curiosity about becoming a writer. A real writer. Ironically I have earned money from writing for over 20 years. First as a medical writer and next as a data storyteller. I knew the words to select for technical writing but my narrative voice for anything less complicated than a gallbladder was definitely blocked. A literary faecolith if you will.
The secret? If you write regularly, your writing improves.
I know, I know—BOOM! Who knew?
My advice to you is to be curious, write stuff down, and read everything. You might be surprised how your observational skills improve when your mind is mapped for descriptive narrative.
Here are a few pennies worth of advice for getting started…
Find a platform or don’t. I started over on a Weebly site because everyone else was doing Wordpress—and I didn’t want to look like “everyone” else.
data & donuts is a searchable archive of stories, conferences, and ideas. If you write as well, no need to send off writing clips—it is all out there. Medium is no muss no fuss so is Substack for that matter.
Let the benefits find YOU. Don’t do it for the money. Yes, get paid for work that you are doing but don’t let adverts and pop-ups ruin the experience for your tribe of readers.
Find a niche or don’t. I write what I feel like talking about or exploring. It can be about a book I read, a movie I saw—or anything else. I do dabble with geospatial analysis and history and I hope we are all learning something.
Writers tend to see stories in almost anything. Take a few weeks or months to simply write about something you observed or something that happened to you. Use your language, not the overly edited prose in a published piece. I write free form and give it one look over before hitting publish.
Don’t be boring. Nobody reads a didactic piece of writing if it is devoid of personality. At least not for pleasure.
What I am listening to at the moment:
I run for hours on trails and often use the time for learning something ping ponging between podcasts and audiobooks. The Storyteller read by Dave is something you must experience. Click the link to purchase and I think Amazon gives me 10 cents—to be honest I don’t know how that works.
The man can tell a story. I swear I feel like I know him. Like he is a personal friend. He is not, but that is sadly my loss.
Indulge me one more Dave thing if you need convincing.
What I am reading at the moment:
What I am looking at:
This sketch of Sigmund Freud hit my inbox today. The artist is Salvador Dali, created in London when the two met. It has stayed on my mind so I am sharing it with you.
Let me know if you decide to start a blog. I honestly wish they were called something else. Maybe verbal blueprints or something. I write before I write. It clears my mind but lets’ the rest of the body know what we are about to embark on…focus and creativity on a good day—a wild and strange ride otherwise.
Substack I am figuring out. I have paid subscribers but Salman Rushdie or Patti Smith won’t lose sleep over my little part of the pie. I am a fan of the ease in which readers can offer support.
Thank you,
Bonny