Kelly has been gracious enough to feature me in the Wattpad Block Party before. For previous editions, I've written general advice on Wattpad, writing and creating characters, a sneak peek and a character interview so for this party I wanted something new... Well, at least new for me. And then I remembered how people compliment me on my blog and ask me for advice on how to start their own. I'm not tech savvy, but I have a couple of years of experience with CatMint5's World (dilyanakyoseva.wordpress.com), so why not?
I'll give you ten tips on creating and running a blog, and share with you ten book-related topics you could write about.
And since the readers of my Dogs, Bats & Monkeys Paranormal series were really hoping for something related to those stories, I'll end this post with the character profile of Detective Callum.
5 THINGS TO CONSIDER WHEN CREATING A BLOG
1. Is it going to be a professional blog or a hobby? If it's a professional blog, you'd want to invest some money into getting a domain name, a professionally made banner and even maybe a site theme that would be exclusive to you and reflect who you are and what you are going to write about; if it's going to be a hobby, then the free version of a site like wordpress.com should be enough.
2. Make sure there's an email sign-up/follow blog option.
3. When picking a theme for your blog, make sure it's mobile-optimized/mobile-friendly. That means that no matter on what device you look at the blog (PC, phone, tablet), the layout will be optimized for that device.
4. Pick a theme that shows who you are, but also what your site will be about. If you love browsing through dark, gothic pictures, but on Wattpad you are writing a light-hearted Romance that you want to promote through your blog (for example, through character interviews and exclusive side stories), then don't use the gothic images as background and header for your blog. Instead, pick something that will go with the book you'd like to promote.
5. I can't stress this enough: use CC0 (Creative Commons, a licensing type) images and fonts! This is especially important for blogs that you'll be earning revenue from, but even if you aren't making money off your blog, don't risk it and check the licensing on the images you'd like to use before you put them up on your blog.
5 THINGS TO REMEMBER AFTER YOU'VE CREATED YOUR BLOG
1. Post regularly. I aim for at least two posts per week, but I usually end up with three. On Tuesdays, I upload a Tuesday Tiny Writing Tip (the series covers writing, editing, productivity and more), and I also post each Sunday. When I have the time, I'd write something for Fridays as well.
2. Keep it consistent. If you are going for a bookish/writing-related blog, then post about books and/or writing. Yes, you can occasionally upload something else (that's what the Others/Miscellaneous category/tag is for), but if your posts are 60% recipes, 30% funny pictures of your cat and 10% writing tips and book reviews, then yours is not a book-related blog.
3. Read the comments. Or even better yet: reply to them. Unless someone is obviously trolling you; then just delete the comments and save yourself a headache.
4. Check your SPAM. Sometimes comments that are left on your blog are automatically labeled as SPAM (usually the comments that include links in them). Periodically check your SPAM folder to make sure that a non-SPAM comment hasn't been buried there.
5. Even if you've already built an audience for yourself, don't forget to promote your posts. After I click the PUBLISH button, I check if the formatting on the post is right, whether the links I've given are working and then I always share the post on social media.
10 THINGS TO POST ON YOUR BLOG
Note: These are in no particular order and are aimed at an audience that consists of writers and readers.
1. Writing tips. We all need help, be it with some advice on how to be productive, stay inspired or structure our books/stories. Even if you are not confident enough to blog about the last of those, you can always write about what gets your creative juices flowing or how you keep yourself motivated to stick to a writing routine.
2. Writing prompts. Do I even need to explain this one? Writers inevitably fall out with their muses at some point. Come up with a writing prompt, post it online and be someone's new muse.
3. Book reviews. One of the best ways to get your creativity going is to read and since you read anyway, how about reviewing the books? A lot of people are not sure if they should start a book/story until they hear someone talking about it or read a review of it. So why don't you help your readers out by posting reviews of books they might like? Positive reviews also help the authors as it brings them more reads.
4. Author interviews. Given that you are on Wattpad, you've probably already talked to some authors; why not ask them for an interview? This helps you because the author is probably going to give the interview a shout-out, thus sending their readers to your blog and it helps the author because you send your readers to them, being their blog, Wattpad page or both. Not everyone will agree to an interview (I imagine bestselling authors are pretty busy so I suppose they are more likely to decline), but you'll be surprised at how often I hear "yes" when I ask someone if I could interview them. I personally wouldn't say no to an interview, unless someone asks me in the last moment, right on the day before they want to post it. Even then, if it's only a few questions, I might still say yes.
5. Character interviews. You already have readers and they'd love to know more about your characters. That much is obvious, but did you know that this is also a way to find new readers? If the interview on your blog grabs your blog readers, then they'd want to check out the book the character is from so remember to give a link to it in the interview. Remember: if the interview contains spoilers for the book, add a warning.
6. Sneak peeks. Okay, so most of you are probably posting sneak peeks on Wattpad. However, if you tend to do that often, it can clutter your profile, so why not consider posting them on your blog instead? You can still give links to them on Wattpad.
7. Book sales. Who doesn't like a good sale? If you find an interesting book and see its price is lower than it usually is (or even better: it's free), give the book a shout-out.
8. Bookish events. Everything from a book release party to announcements about Book Cons and events like the Wattpad Block Party.
9. Wattpad. A lot of my blog readers found me through Wattpad which means that yes, they are interested in Wattpad. Whether you give them general tips on how to upload a story here or give an event (for example, The Wattys) or a community profile a shout-out, you might help them settle in on this site or discover new aspects of it they might enjoy.
10. Top 10. Most people I know love lists and Top 10-s. Whether it's Top 10 Wattpad Stories You Must Read or 5 Ways to Battle Writer's Block, people are likely to click on these types of posts.
This is what I have for those of you who are interested in blogging. And now, for what my Wattpad readers are looking forward to...
DETECTIVE CALLUM CHARACTER PROFILE (Dogs, Bats & Monkeys Series)
Thank you for reading!
I hope you liked the tidbits about Callum and that the blogging suggestions will be useful to you!
If you have any questions, don't hesitate to leave a comment; if you liked the post, please consider voting for it and/or sharing it.
Before you go, make sure to CHECK OUT THE GIVEAWAY I'M HOSTING:
I will give away four prizes to one lucky winner:
• a Wattpad chapter dedication
• a Wattpad shout-out
• critique on five chapters of your story
• a follow on Twitter, Instagram or Snapchat!
My giveaway is open internationally.
Have a blast at the party everyone!
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Enter the #WattpadBlockParty Giveaways for Your Chance to Win Amazon Gift Cards, Signed Paperbacks, E-Books, Shoutouts from Your Favorite Wattpad Authors, and Much More!
Link: https://goo.gl/2x2anC