To the many of you pondering over the question of whether to start an online blog or not, this is a sign telling you to do so. Why, you might ask? Well, there are quite a few reasons to answer that.
First and foremost is being able to make money from the content you write. Secondly, if you are a decent writer, you get to share your stories and experiences with the world. As Tahir Shah once said: “Stories are a communal currency of humanity.” Last but not least, you get to create a community of readers that share your beliefs and values, or those with similar experiences will have someone to relate to.
Getting started, however, is the tricky part; there are so many questions to think of. Like how do I start a blog? Where should I publish it? What am I going to write about? Or how am I going to go about it?
The most important thing to keep in mind is your dedication to your blog; your investment is priceless. What makes an article or a story exciting and readable is a personal touch with a hint of personality.
Like all great writers, do not just start writing from scratch. First, it is important to sort out your ideas, either in your head or on a piece of paper. This process is called brainstorming. Take a couple of minutes to think about broad ideas you might want to write about and write them down, so you remember your options.
After choosing a topic, a second brainstorm is in order. Try to think of ideas relating to that topic that you can include in your blog or article. These ideas can become headers, bullet points, or last remarks.
The next step is drafting. Most, if not all great writers, do drafts. A draft is basically an initial version of your post. You write down a possible title, a brief introduction, the main points you want to elaborate on in your body, and a conclusion.
All these elements are vital for a great article. The introduction will allow your reader to get the general idea of the post; it can be a sentence or two, a quotation…etc.
Of course, the body will be your main text, which will include everything you want to discuss or write about. Make sure to keep your ideas in order; you do not want your reader to be confused in the middle of the article.
Finally, the conclusion. A conclusion can summarize either what was written earlier or some final words on the topic. It is essential to let your readers know that the post is ending, so it all comes together nicely rather than being abruptly cut off.
The process does not end after you finish writing. No writer, good or bad, is immune to mistakes. Moreover, no post would look appealing if it had many spelling or grammatical mistakes, so it is essential to proofread your post at least twice. We also recommend letting someone else proofread it for you. The human eye is not trained to spot its own errors; someone else might notice a mistake you did not.
Now that you have revised your draft several times, it will be ready for publishing. The whole writing process gets faster as you become more familiar with it. Our last piece of advice is to accept feedback and act upon it. Just as your readers listen to you, it is also vital you listen to them and any feedback you receive, as it may improve your blog and content.
Now that you are well equipped with how to start writing for your blog take a few minutes and read several.com’s blog on how to start a blog. It includes all the technicalities you need to consider on how to go online and which hosting service suits you best. If you are interested in a detailed comparison between two worthy hosting services; siteground vs. greengeeks are compelling options to get you started.
Good luck and start writing!
