What's the secret to a good blog?

[Jolewist]

Hi guys!

Pretty much what it says in the title. I've noticed that quite a few of you advertise your blogs in your sigs(or the area where there would be a sig), and was wondering, what's your secret? I'm thinking of starting one up myself and wanted some advice for the pros.

What sort of stuff do you choose to write about and why? What's the trick to grabbing followers? How often do you post etc etc?

Oh and if you do have a blog, be sure to post it here so we can take a look.

[Iangould]

Hardcore porn and lots of it.

The kinkier the better.

Also, cats with fruit peel on their head.

[Kees_L]

I like blogs that inform or entertain me, on stuff I don't know about yet.

So now you know, get to it.

[Tom]

There is only one secret to being a good (or at least, successful) blog: content, content, content. If you want an audience, don't fuck around. Produce content. Every day. You don't have to be the best writer in the world, but you have to be able to form opinions and state them strongly and articulately. Don't waste posts. Make every single one worth the time it takes to read them or view them. Don't be afraid to piss people off. If they're responding to your post just to tell you how stupid you are, congratulations. You've done your job.

It's about constant content, offered in such a way as to get people to keep coming back for more.

[Jolewist]

There is only one secret to being a good (or at least, successful) blog: content, content, content. If you want an audience, don't fuck around. Produce content. Every day. You don't have to be the best writer in the world, but you have to be able to form opinions and state them strongly and articulately. Don't waste posts. Make every single one worth the time it takes to read them or view them. Don't be afraid to piss people off. If they're responding to your post just to tell you how stupid you are, congratulations. You've done your job.

It's about constant content, offered in such a way as to get people to keep coming back for more.

So it's effectively posting critical comments and such likes on news stories and all that? Like doing a piece on the announcement on the DC relaunch, and the pathetic fan boy reactions(in my opinion), as-well as reviewing new releases, talking about world events, posting images & jokes and such that have amused me or made my day, weekly features about what got me into certain comics & evaluating certain runs etc etc?

[Tom]

So it's effectively posting critical comments and such likes on news stories and all that? Like doing a piece on the announcement on the DC relaunch, and the pathetic fan boy reactions(in my opinion), as-well as reviewing new releases, talking about world events, posting images & jokes and such that have amused me or made my day, weekly features about what got me into certain comics & evaluating certain runs etc etc?

I can't tell you what to blog about. It has to be something that you know will inspire at least daily commentary from you. None of this sounds like a bad idea, but I'll be honest: none of it sounds terribly original either. If there are dozens or hundreds (or even thousands) of blogs doing the same thing, you have to ask yourself how you're going to differentiate yourself from them. Sometimes, "voice" is enough. In other words, if the content isn't exactly original, you make it so by having a strong, unique voice when you write about it.

[Kid Omega]

So it's effectively posting critical comments and such likes on news stories and all that? Like doing a piece on the announcement on the DC relaunch, and the pathetic fan boy reactions(in my opinion), as-well as reviewing new releases, talking about world events, posting images & jokes and such that have amused me or made my day, weekly features about what got me into certain comics & evaluating certain runs etc etc?

If it's about Comics, you have to be prepared to rise above the din. The signal to noise ratio in comics is not pretty.

There are hundreds of daily comic blogs complaining about DC and/or fanboys.

[jesse_custer]

The secret is the voice, to use Tom's terminology. Is your voice likable? Funny? Recognizable?

Content goes without saying, but then again, it's something I still struggle with.

[Jolewist]

If it's about Comics, you have to be prepared to rise above the din. The signal to noise ratio in comics is not pretty.

There are hundreds of daily comic blogs complaining about DC and/or fanboys.

So then, what's the way to go? I kind of want to cover all the nerdy aspects of my life.

Also (directed at everyone), wheres the place to go and create a blog, and they are free right?

[Kid Omega]

So then, what's the way to go? I kind of want to cover all the nerdy aspects of my life.

You have to answer that yourself, my friend.

Most people I know w blogs just do them for fun. A creative outlet that they can easily share with their friends.

Very few people monetize, or even grow beyond just having a place to publicly type. So ultimately it barely matters.

Just do what you want and don't burn calories worrying about it.

[snarkbunny]

So then, what's the way to go? I kind of want to cover all the nerdy aspects of my life.

Also (directed at everyone), wheres the place to go and create a blog, and they are free right?

You may want to start with a mission statement, in 30 words or less, what is your blog about and why should someone should read it? Frankly, I think you are best to just to start writing to please you and not look for followers.


There are lots of free blogsites out there.

[StoneGold]

A good blog, or a successful blog? Not always the same thing.

[Jolewist]

You may want to start with a mission statement, in 30 words or less, what is your blog about and why should someone should read it? Frankly, I think you are best to just to start writing to please you and not look for followers.


There are lots of free blogsites out there.

This is going to be much trickier than I thought..

& yeah, I just googled the same thing. I'm torn between Blogger & Tumblr

[JeffreyWKramer]

I don't know Tumblr. Blogger has periodic glitches of various sorts, but is mostly reliable. Doesn't keep me from getting pissed off it at times, though. Seems every time they do an upgrade of one thing, it fuckes up three other things, and then the patches for those things fuck up something else.

What others have said is important. First and foremost, blog about something important to you, something you feel strongly about. Blogging might sound like fun, and it sometimes is, but if you're committed to posting daily, you will need that passion about the subject to convince you to keep posting day after day, especially when you'd rather just sleep in or something.

Content is also important. You need to have something to blog about, and frequently. As Tom says, at least once a day.

Originality isn't unimportant, but it is more important for some topics than others. I do a cooking/food blog. I post mostly original recipes, sometimes review others' recipes, plus the occasional product or restaurant review, that sort of thing. In that regard, it's a lot like a gazillion other foodie blogs, but at least I have lots of original recipes, because there are always different ways to cook things, numerous variations on every basic concept.

If you're blogging about politics or comics or something like that, if you want your blog to stand out from the others covering the same topic, you need to be able to offer some sort of different perspective, or at least be able to make the same points others make in a more effective - or funnier, or whatever - way than the other bloggers. Lots of people cook, and cooks can always use more recipes/ideas. In contrast, nobody needs to read about how pathetic DC's editors/plans/fans are on 73 different blogs. That signal/noise ratio thing Alex mentioned.

I don't know much about blogging for money. Although I have some ads on my blog, I haven't made it a priority, and so far I haven't collected a cent on the blog. If I eventually make some small pittance, cool, but I'm more concerned with enjoying the blogging and the sharing of recipes and such, and with being noticed. Our number of followers is fairly small, but it grows steadily (albeit still slowly). The number of hits we get has been growing steadily, and at a much better rate than the followers number. Some other blogs have mentioned my blog, as have some Facebook pages. COOK'S ILLUSTRATED's Facebook page has mentioned our blog posts a couple of times, and recently we were contacted, on the basis of our blogging, by BETTER HOMES AND GARDENS and invited to take part in a recipe contest (it's a stupid contest, with the winner being determined by the number of votes - i.e., a "how many people do you know/can you get to vote for you" contest, instead of an actual recipe contest, but still, it's nice to be noticed).

[Tom]

I don't know of any successful bloggers who started off with the idea of making money off it. Alex is right. Just jump in and figure it out as you go.