How
many times have you heard someone talking about their blog? Or how about being told you should go read
so-n-so’s blog? Or, perhaps, someone has
stopped you and said you should start a blog, you know such amazing stuff! Blogs, and blogging, appear to be an ongoing
craze in genealogy. There are new ones
started every day and with a little know how you can start and keep one going
too.
I am going to walk you through the reasons you might want to
have a blog, how to get started, plus ways to keep it going. By the end you should feel comfortable enough
to get started immediately. Really!
Sometimes all you need is to take the plunge and I am here to give you the
starting point.
The
choice to start a blog is a purely a personal decision. Don’t let anyone tell you otherwise. Honestly, if you love to write, tell stories,
or share information then sure, a blog might be right up your alley. However, if you hate writing or find it a
chore, well, think hard about what you want to do! There are options for all types of writers,
and non-writers, available.
Step 1: Why have a blog?
Before
you run off and start picking out the wallpaper for your blog you need to make
a plan. Your first question needs to be “why
do I want to create a blog?” Think about
it for a few minutes. You may even have
several reasons that jump out at you on why your blog needs to be created.
Some common
reasons for creating a blog are:
Journaling your genealogy research Become a better
writer
Look
for living cousins Meet other
genealogists
Tell the story of an ancestor Write
on specific topics / genres
Share news / information It’s
FREE, mostly, so why not!
Plus many, many more…
Did any
of those reasons strike a chord with you?
If so, think about why. Hidden in
that answer will be the beginnings of your blog. You may just need to search for it a bit.
Step 2: Where do I start?
Now
that you found your reason to blog it’s time to find a platform. The most common blogs are written, but I am
going to show you a couple of other options too. They can truly be a multimedia
extravaganza. In fact I have toyed with
the idea of a vlog (video blog) because I enjoy talking to people more than
writing. To say the least, only your
imagination (or technical ability) can hold you back.
Let’s
look first at the types of platforms for blogging. Think about which of these may be the best
for you. Check them out, look around and
do your homework to see which would be the best fit for you. You may even want to do a combination, so
keep your mind, and options, open.
Traditional Blogs: these are what most people think
of when they ask “have you read that blog?”
They are written posts, usually ranging from 500-1,000 words, which are on
blogging specific platforms. The most
common sites for blogs are:
Image Based Blogs: these types of blogs are more
image centric and can be shorter than a traditional word driven blog from a few
sentences to a few paragraphs. A few of
these are:
Short Attention Span Blogs: this is what I like to call micro
blogging. These are designed to capture
snippets of an idea, image, thought, or to pass on information quickly. These sites come and go, but Twitter https://twitter.com/ seems to be the main stay for this
category.
Audio / Visual Blogs:
if you are interested in talking instead of typing, or maybe you like to
create videos, well a vlog may be right up your alley. Two sites that you should look at are:
Step 3: What do I write?
Many
people get blocked at the point where they need to start creating or
maintaining a blog. It could be for many
reasons: fear, uncertainty, or even just because they aren’t really sure what
they want to do with their creation.
Think back again to why you wanted write a blog and then let the ideas
flow.
Sometimes
all you need to do is make a list to help you focus. You have your reason(s) to write, now think
about who you want to reach and how you want to reach them. If you want to tell family stories, maybe you
want to consider small vignettes about various ancestors. Perhaps you want to chronicle your research
journey. In that case you might want to
think about treating your blog like a journal.
A blog can be an expression of your genealogical journey, don’t be
afraid to embrace it!
Blogs also
tend to be less formal and more conversational in tone. This doesn’t mean you shouldn’t cite your
sources or provide less than quality information. It does mean that you don’t need to worry about
formal language or an academic structure to your piece. All you need to do is find your voice, and
that comes with trial, error and practice.
However,
while you are finding your voice, don’t forget to spell and grammar check. You may need to find a friend to help but
make sure they are someone who will be honest with you and correct you. Not someone who will tell you how awesome you
write. Thankfully you can always correct
a published post later, weeks later even, if you find an error.
Step 4: Picking out the wallpaper.
Like I
said above, I feel your blog is an expression of your genealogical journey, and
of course your personality. However,
before you design logos or pick out wallpaper colors, remember that you need to
think about what you want to express.
This is how the world will see you, because let’s be honest, many of the
people who read your blog will never meet you in person.
At this
point I suggest you look at a lot of different blogs. What do you like or don’t like? What do you like that really works or just
makes your head hurt? If you have these
reactions to a site other people will to, so trust your gut.
A few
things to keep in mind:
·
Pick
a name that reflects your blog’s purpose
·
Clean
lines are better than clutter
·
Darker
letters on a lighter background are easier to see
·
Use
images that are pertinent to your site/post
·
Make
sure all of your links work (check back often)
Step 5: Buyer beware!
Of
course a blog is a lot of work. If
someone tells you that it isn’t, well, they must either have no problems with
writer’s block or have no life but their blog.
I have to schedule time each week for maintenance, writing, planning,
and answering contacts plus much more.
Even with scheduling I still don’t get it all done and writing tends to
be the one item that gets sacrificed frequently. It shouldn’t be, it should be the
priority. With that in mind watch out
for these problem areas with your blog.
First
of all remember to cite your sources.
With blogs it’s very easy! You
can insert links directly into your post so people can go and see the source,
location, image, or etc. for themselves.
This also goes for images. There
are so many amazing copyright free images out there you shouldn’t run into any issues.
Just make sure to let your reader know about the image and if you can provide a
link so they can go see it themselves.
To help
with your writing you should consider using prompts or writing themes. There are many out there that you can use or
participate in. If you find that you are
running out of ideas or are just plain stuck consider using a writing prompt to
get you going again.
Of
course writing is what will keep your blog alive. The way that you can stay on track and not
flounder would be to create a posting schedule.
Using your theme, schedule out several months ahead of time what you
want to write about and when. You can
set your calendar up in a way that works for you but remember consistency is
key. If you don’t write, or you let your
blog go for too long, you will lose readers.
There are several websites, apps and even paper blog planners available
on the market for you to choose from.
Further reading:
There
are not a lot of resources out there specifically for genealogy or hobby blogs. Most are about how to make money at blogging,
but they still have good advice. Just
apply it to what you want to do.
Also, I
suggest you read books by writers about writing. There is no better way to get better at
something than doing a lot of it and learning from those who you admire already
in that field. For example I love Stephen
King’s book On Writing. It was a great look at the creative process,
ideas about what and how to write, plus snips into his past and personal
struggles. Even if you don’t care for
his novels this is an honest look into the mind of a writer.
I
included some books and websites below that I enjoyed and learned a lot
from. Good luck and have fun blogging!
Amir,
Nina, Christina Katz, and Chris Garrett. How
to Blog a Book: Write, Publish, and Promote Your Work One Post at a Time.
Blue Ash, OH: Writer's Digest Books, 2012.
Moore,
Dinty W. Crafting the Personal Essay a
Guide for Writing and Publishing Creative Nonfiction. Cincinnati, Ohio:
Writer's Digest Books, 2010.
Saleh,
Naveed. The Complete Guide to Article
Writing: How to Write Successful Articles for Online and Print Markets. Cincinnati:
Writers Digest Books, 2013.
Smith,
Marion. The Memoir Project: A Thoroughly
Non-standardized Text for Writing--and Life. New York: Grand Central Pub., 2011.
White,
Fred D. Where Do You Get Your Ideas? A
Writer's Guide to Transforming Notions into Narratives. Cincinnati, Ohio:
Writers Digest Books, 2012.
