BLOG RULES - MY 5 RULES of BLOGGING

Yesterday I introduced you to 

Jennifer Carroll 

a neighbor of mine,

who has, 

among other things

a wonderful BLOG.

I found a post where Jennifer featured my beloved Greenwood Country Store. The store has recently undergone a renovation and is now open again for business.

****************************************

Jennifer and I 

are both attending the Haven Conference

 in Atlanta next week

and one of the reasons 

she wanted to meet me was to discuss

the topic of....

"Growing your Blog" 

Gizmo

I definitely do not consider myself an expert in this subject...

Oh no...far from it..

Like much of the rest of my life...

Parenting, Painting, Photography

BLOGGING is another field where I am 

 "self taught".

But our conversation got me thinking...

"What makes a blog good?"

"What brings people to MY blog?" and

 "What keeps them...coming back?"

I came up with my OWN, often learned the HARD WAY....

5 RULES of BLOGGING

 1."If you Build it they will come"

Blog followers come, slowly and in waves, 10-20-50 at a time in one day

and then I have had weeks where I only got one new follower.

Be patient. It takes time for your name to get out there, for what you have to say to be heard. 

I no longer ache for followers but pour my energy into

increasing the connections I have made.

In the beginning I was sort of like the middle school girl, 

in her braces and ill fitting training bra, 

sitting at her lunch table

surrounded by friends she has had since kindergarten...

...but secretly wishing that she could be at the Popular Girl table.

And then WHEN her wish is granted and she gets invited to the 

table of popular girls...

all she wants to do is to go back

and sit with her friends...who get her jokes.

which brings me to my next rule......

Mo

2. BE YOURSELF

We all have something to say, show, do, get off our chest

...something

 that just telling a few people is not enough...

we want to reach more people.

BUT the most unique thing about any blog...

is ITS Author.

I believe that YOU are the most interesting thing about your blog.

How YOU write and talk and view whatever 

slice of the world you want to share. 

THAT ingredient 

(or "ingrediences"...as Real New Jersey Housewife Teresa likes to say)

is what I cannot get anywhere else.

POST Length is not an issue for me, 

some people take longer to get to the point but tell great stories..

some are brief...

I read short blogs long ones, 

I believe if you are true to yourself..it will resonate...

charley

3. Simplify

 Do what you love but DON'T try to do it all.

In the beginning, I wanted to share everything...

My Photography

My Paintings

My Children

My House

and my scintillating Wit.

Compartmentalizing all of those things was confusing.

And my cousin, who can be brutally,

 but refreshingly honest 

exclaimed...

"WHAT IS your blog About???...I am so confused!!!?"

and she was right...who knew? 

It was all over the place.

So I got rid of all the compartments 

and just focused on one day at a time

what I was doing...that moment...

and it seems to be running smoother and is less confusing.

suzannah

4.  Thou Shall Not Steal

Have integrity. 

If you feature a photo, or quote or tutorial etc.

 from another blog... or Pinterest.. or flicker, whatever...

please give credit where credit is due. 

Not only is 

posting photos without linking back rude.

It is frustrating for a reader

to find a source, should they want to replicate something

and in the end, they will be frustrated with you and your blog for 

not linking them back. 

It does take more time...oh well. do it.

Lilly

5. In Dealing with Criticism...

Come from a Place of LOVE

This RULE, I have borrowed from Sherry and John at Young House Love.

Any  Blog that is authentic is going to annoy someone. That is just a fact of life.

If you try to please everyone you will end up a watered down version of

yourself and then...YOU will be miserable.

I consulted Sherry and John

after I got my first really nasty, stinging comment, 

one that cut deep and hit me hard.

I found that if I try to disconnect from the mean comments

and just rise above it with Love, it simply is easier to move on. If I stay stuck

in the yuck the mean comment brought up

well, then the comment has taken over and 

become "TRUE" in a way. 

"Burger"- the painting I did for Sherry at Young House Love

so there you have them...TODAYS 5 rules. Tomorrow I may learn something else, some other lesson, and come up with more rules...

My blog grows with me as it follows my life.

Graham

What are your rules for blogging? For Life?

XO