Upload
sarat1701
View
121
Download
3
Embed Size (px)
Citation preview
Clarksville Christian Writers Workshop BLOGGING & BRANDING: #CCW2016
WIFI HBCStudent A
Hi, I’m Hannah Conway
• Kentucky Native
• Army Wife, Momma & Speaker
• Author with Olivia Kimbrell Press
• “The Wounded Warrior’s Wife”
• “Wedding a Warrior”
WWW.HANNAHRCONWAY.COM
Sara R. Turnquist • Clarksville native
• Wife, mother, “closet writer”
• Author with Clean Reads
• “The Lady Bornekova”
• “The General’s Wife”
saraturnquist.com
#CCW2016
Icebreaker
BLOGGING
DO BLOG:
to connect with your audience
to practice your craft making deadlines
to build a platform
PLATFORM
the people who follow (listen to) you
followers on social media, blog, and e-mail list
DO NOT BLOG:
to sell books
to run a self-commercial
WHAT TO BLOG
your interests
social media
things you like to talk about
WHAT TO BLOG – back to YOU
what blogs do you follow?
why?
WHEN TO BLOG?
WHEN/HOW OFTEN?
why not daily? burnout not always your best not always read
what works best for YOU
TO CONSIDER:
your goals
your own expectations
your own version of crazy
KEYS TO BLOG GROWTH
predictability of posts
frequency of posts
use of social media
connection with audience
BLOG GROWTH
STAGE 1: six months - year little forward momentum two steps forward and one step back
0
0.5
1
1.5
2
2.5
3
3.5
4
Stage One
BLOG GROWTH
STAGE 2: six - nine months later small but consistent growth good time to seek out guest posts
0
0.5
1
1.5
2
2.5
3
3.5
Stage Two
BLOG GROWTH
STAGE 3: after audience grows a lot faster you’ll be asked to guest post
0
5
10
15
20
25
30
35
Stage Three
BLOG GROWTH – back to YOU
What stage is your blog at?
Why did you place it there?
Is there one of the “keys” you can work on?
BLOG GROWTH STAGE 1: 6 months – 1 year
STAGE 2: 1 – 2 year mark
STAGE 3: 2+ years
0 5
10 15 20 25 30 35
Stage Three
0
2
4
Stage Two
0
2
4
Stage One
KEYS TO BLOG GROWTH
predictability of posts
frequency of posts
use of social media
connection with audience
Some things to be aware of when blogging…
THINGS TO KNOW:
25% rule computer devices harder on eye low resolution contrast between ink and paper is strong, monitors are inconsistent
People avoid reading long paragraphs
WHAT TO DO?
avoid “pretty” fonts
avoid long paragraphs (100 max)
use block formatting
use headings and pictures
write tight - no more than 500 - 700 words
MORE THINGS TO KNOW
end with open-ended question
no right/wrong answer
ask readers to share an experience
avoid “you”
share your own experience
How can I get my blog found?
Tags, Labels, & Keywords, Oh My!
tags = labels = tags
keyword = like a label; it is a short way to state the purpose of your article (usually several groups of words)
makes your blog easier to find
Tags, Labels, & Keywords, Oh My!
title of that post
your name
blog site name
some phrases that relate to that post
Blog Post #1
Sara R. Turnquist Self Editing: The Good, The Bad, The Ugly The Musings of a Novelist self-editing editing publishing your novel road to publication how do I self-edit
WHY BOTHER? Millions of blogs and other articles exist
Google and other search engines search for posts and articles when someone types in a search word
You want them to find your blog
Tags, labels, and keywords are how that happens
Dave the Plumber
SEO
What was that about Keywords?
it’s all about keywords
what are people typing into the search box?
always use the keywords in the title
use them again in the first 50 words
spread them throughout your article
Blog Post #2
KEYWORDS – back to YOU
pick out some tags, labels, keywords for the second blog post
What is an SEO?
SEO is basically where your article shows up in that list when a person types something in the search box
based on a (secret) mathematical equation called an algorithm
BLOG TITLES
BLOG TITLES
search engine algorithms take words literally, not always understanding double meanings
“Too Hot to Handle Chili” vs. “Homemade Vegetarian Chili”
BLOG TITLES: Guess the matter?
When Things Go South
In the Mood
I Live Next Door to a Cemetery
Not Quite What I Expected
BLOG TITLES – back to YOU
Compose a title for a blog post
Give us a synopsis of the post and then tell us the title
Break
Questions?
STAY TUNED FOR MORE INFORMATION TO COME…
And tentatively mark SEPTEMBER 10th-11th in your calendar
for CCW’s FALL WRITER’S RETREAT!
at Carriage Lane Inn in Murfreesboro, TN
Workshops… Mentor Appointments…
Critique Time… and, most importantly…
WRITING TIME!
ONLY 15 SPOTS!!!
Stay tuned to the Clarksville Christian Writer’s Facebook Page for more details
HOW TO FIND US HANNAH
www.hannahrconway.com
TWITTER: @hannahrconway
FACEBOOK: Hannah Conway, Author SARA
saraturnquist.com
TWITTER: @sarat1701
FACEBOOK: Sara R. Turnquist, Author
Clarksville Christian Writer’s Group!WEDNESDAY NIGHTS 6:30 – 7:30 pm Hilldale Baptist Church 2001 Madison Street Clarksville, TN