Written on April 2nd, 2007 at 03:04 pm by Lorelle VanFossen
Blogging Is About Writing
By Lorelle VanFossen of Lorelle on WordPress
When you visit Google, do you click a picture to begin your search? Do you face a screen full of images like in a grocery store self-checkout? Click fruits, then apples, then scroll through pictures of apples before you find the Jonagold Apples you want to buy, and select those?
Of course not.
The web is about words. No matter how visual and audible it becomes, it continues to be about the words.
Blogging is about writing. Many claim that content is king. If content is king, then the army that protects and defends the king is the written word.
Here are some things to think about next time to put your army to work on your blog.
- Don’t Just Show, Show and Tell: It’s time to get back to show and tell. Blogs offer amazing ways to present multimedia information, but you still have to tell us about it. You must show and tell in order for your point to be fully understood. Words may not do it alone, but a picture is not worth a thousand words when fed through feeds and search engines. You must have the words.
- Keywords, Keywords, Keywords: With the recent public release of the Google Patent for Blog PageRank, your keywords are more important than ever as the algorithm applies multiple content matching, content relevancy, search relevancy, and link-to-content relevancy tests to determine if the keywords match the content. Learn how to write keyword-rich content to increase your page ranking. More importantly, write with keywords to help your reader know exactly what you are writing about.
- Write Clickable Titles: The keywords you use in your post titles tell potential visitors what your post is about. If they don’t get it, they won’t click it. If they do click, and the content doesn’t match, they won’t be back.
- Make Your Point in the First 200 Words: You have less than a second to capture your reader’s attention. If the user on your site, feed, or search engine summary doesn’t “get the point” in the first two or three sentences, you’ve lost them.
- Blog Writing Is About Editing: A great idea does not translate automatically into good writing. It’s the editing that clarifies your writing so the idea comes through. It’s as much about the words you add as the words you take away to increase the post’s clarity and power.
- Make Your Words Timeless: Blog writing isn’t like words you throw out into the air and expect them to vanish. The words you fill your blog with tend to last. Make sure the words you use and the things you say are worth reading twenty years from now.
- Don’t Waste Words: A powerfully titled article drew me from my feed reader and I was greeted with this first sentence: “I still have to take a shower, and I’m late for work, but I wanted to tell you about this because I think it’s important, so I’ll just rush this off before I jump in the shower and head to work.” Don’t waste words. Don’t tell your readers things they really don’t want to know. Get to the point and stop wasting your time and theirs.
- Explain Jargon: We get so caught up in our little world of acronyms and industry jargon, we forget few outside our clubhouse know what we are talking about. Stop once in a while and explain to us what these terms and letters mean. It doesn’t have to be a paragraph, just a few words. Don’t assume we know what you are talking about.
- Use Descriptions in Images and Links: Blog writing isn’t limited to just the words. If you aren’t using titles in links and alt in images, you are missing out on a very valuable use of keywords and content building. You are also not in compliance with web standards.
- Use Descriptions for Flash, Podcasts, Videocasts, and Screencasts: If you are using any audio or visual multimedia on your blog, help us understand what we are going to see and hear. Convince us to click to play. A picture may speak for itself, but you have to do the writing for it.
- Present a Problem, The Solution, and The Results: Don’t present a solution before the reader understands there is a problem. Present the problem, give us the solution, and then lead us through the results and the benefits of the results. When readers follow along with the process, they better understand how it works and why it works for themselves.
- Just the Facts, Ma’am: Everyone has an opinion. What makes your opinion different from other opinions is that yours is based upon the facts. Wild accusations, suggestions, and analogies do not build trust and respect. Make your opinions be based upon valid facts and identifiable references and citations. Be prepared to back your word up with the truth.
- If You Have 100 Top Priorities, You Have No Priorities At All: If there are 40 topics you want to cover in one blog post, all unrelated, what are you writing about? As a guide, write on three points, all related, and publish that. Want to write about 40 different unrelated topics? Don’t stuff them all into one post. Publish one for each topic.
- Originality Will Always Win: Original content will always win over redundant, blockquoting, and echo chamber content. Even if you can’t write well, the attempt to say it in your words is always appreciated and welcome.
- Move The Reader Through the Story: A blog post or article has something to say. It begins, has a middle, and ends. Move the reader through the content, as well as into it. Let each word lead to the next word and the next. Make each sentence lead the reader to the next sentence, and each paragraph draws them into the next. They want to “turn the page” and consume the words as they read along. Make them want to scroll down for more.
- Blog Paragraphs Are Short: Blog writing lends itself to shorter sentences and paragraphs for easier reading on a web page. Web readers want information fast and in small digestible chunks. Huge bulky paragraphs make reading online very difficult, however single sentence paragraphs can make the reader uncomfortable.
- Use Command Verbs to Teach: If you have something to share, a lesson to teach, advice, or guidance, use command verbs to energize your “how to” words. Words, like “make”, “do”, “write”, “take”, and “build” are active instruction verbs. When people are searching, they like to be told “what to do”. Tell them.
- No Wishy-Washy Passive Voice: Avoid wishy-washy passive voice instructions like “If you would like to maybe you should think about checking the spelling of your post before you think about publishing it because…” Write with authority, like you know what you are talking about: “Check the spelling before you publish your post.”
- Use Nouns and Synonyms: When you are writing about it, you can add some of this to it to help it along. Huh? What’s “it”? If you are going to name something, name “it” what it is. Call it by its name. Use nouns and synonyms to help the reader know what you are writing about and increase the keywords in your content.
- Comments Are Content: Make sure comments speak well for your post, your blog, you, and your readers. Edit comments for misspelled words and obvious flubs. Your commenters will appreciate it. Clean out trash and inappropriate comments, and definitely get rid of comment spam.
- Visualize Who You Are Writing To: Writing to the “air” is fine for some, but most people need to know “who” they are writing to, and for, in order to begin. Visualize a person or small group and write as if you are talking directly to them. If that’s too formal or uncomfortable, imagine you are writing to a friend.
- Clean Up Old Posts: As your blog writing improves, go back over your old posts and clean them up. The fresh perspective will help you edit and improve the content. You might find new life in your old posts and direct more traffic their way.
- Write Kinda Like You Talk: It’s important to write in a conversational style because your readers will relate to you, the person behind the blog. Your writing should give the illusion you are speaking directly to the reader without including all of the stutters, “ums”, and “likes” we hear in every day conversation. Don’t write like you have a dictionary or thesaurus sitting next to you. Match the writing style with the content.
- Mind Reading Writing: Do you have a friend or co-worker who starts a sentence in the middle of a paragraph? Don’t leave your reader wondering why she is on this page. Make your point early. Make your point obvious. Back it up with the details.
- Avoid Screaming: Writing with CAPITALIZED LETTERS INDICATES SCREAMING, so don’t do it for the length of an entire post. Learn the basic rules of capitalization. The beginning of sentences and proper names are capitalized. Just because you Like a Word doesn’t MEAN you have to capitalize Every Important Word. That went out of fashion a couple hundred years ago. and writing all in lower case may look cute for a young girl’s diary or personal blog, but it is old. out of fashion. people think you are a girl under 16. stop it. now.
- Punctuate Properly: Use commas, quotes, and apostrophes in line with the grammar rules of your language. In English, there is no space at the end of a sentence before the period or question mark . Learn the difference between “its” and “it’s”, and while you are at it, learn “their”, “there”, and “they’re”, along with “your” and “you’re”. People will condemn writing for less. Don’t give them a chance with careless grammar mistakes.
- Blog Writing Isn’t About Smiley Faces: Write emotions, not emoticons. ;-) Too many :D smileys are :\ annoying and :) distracting.
- Teach Your Readers: Share with us your thoughts, feelings, experiences, and knowledge. Teach us, oh, great blogger, how to live and function in this crazy world.
- Make Me Think: If you make your readers think, you’ve succeeded in interacting with them. If you make them write, you’ve succeeded twice over.
- Write With Conviction and Passion: Even if you write badly, if you write with conviction and passion, then we will read you.
There are two ways to hold your reader’s interest. Show them something they’ve never seen before, or show them something in a way they’ve never seen it before.
Blogging that gets noticed and linked to is all about seeing things in a new light. A university advertising professor once told me there are “no new ideas, only new ways of presenting old ideas”. Present information from a unique perspective and writing with a fresh angle and you will attract attention.
131 Responses to “Blogging Is About Writing”
Keith
April 2nd, 2007 3:45 pm
In complete agreement with number 25. It hurts my ears ;)
Biking Bis
April 2nd, 2007 4:03 pm
Lots of good rules to follow here, Lorelle. Except for the words “blog,” “keywords,” and “links,” this is essentially what my professor in journalism 101 told us 25 years ago.
Good writing is good writing, regardless of the medium.
James
April 2nd, 2007 4:04 pm
Great to see your post here Lorelle.
As always, very helpful and motivational. You have given me an idea for a post.
praguebuzz
April 2nd, 2007 4:08 pm
thanks for the tips. and also for your wordpress wisdom.
Lorelle VanFossen
April 2nd, 2007 4:42 pm
Thanks, James. Always glad to help be inspiration. ;-)
Write well!
Mark
April 2nd, 2007 4:53 pm
It was very cool to read a post about writing and content. I love learning about SEO or advertising development, but sometimes the focus on content is lost. I think developing a certain “voice” is as important in blog writing as it is in more traditional writing areas like book publishing or writing for magazines.
網路賺錢
April 2nd, 2007 5:47 pm
Good points! I’m learning how to write well.
Jesper
April 2nd, 2007 6:34 pm
You are one of my absolute favourite writers. Your writing is clear and consice, easy to follow. You set an admirable example. Great post!
Collis
April 2nd, 2007 6:58 pm
Nicely written Lorelle, I rarely read such a long list from top to bottom, but I did this one
David
April 2nd, 2007 7:50 pm
Hi Lorelle,
Thanks for the post. You provided us with a lot to consider, in terms of how we approach the content of our blogs.
By the way, I completely agree with #25 and # 27 :)
Regards,
James Andrix
April 2nd, 2007 8:27 pm
The passive voice would be ‘the spelling of your post should be checked’
-writing like I know what I’m talking about.
KidBlogger
April 2nd, 2007 8:27 pm
I agree with #25! I AGREE!
Larry Keiler
April 2nd, 2007 9:56 pm
The difference between “show” and “tell”:
Tell: Lorelle was angry. She could feel the rising heat in her face.
Show: Lorelle snatched an antique cup from the counter and hurled it wildly at Larry. “Get the hell out of here you miserable SOB,” she screamed.
Kaj
April 2nd, 2007 10:00 pm
Great blogpost. It set me thinking about how I write and what is important for a blog. And that is writing. But be yourself as a writer. Great post!!
Steve Nguyen
April 2nd, 2007 10:16 pm
It’s amazing because I was just telling my wife today that probably one of the most important things I learned in school was how to write. It’s amazing to me how many “educated” people with graduate degrees, including Ph.D’s who, even if their lives depended on it, couldn’t compose a coherent paragraph. Beyond anything else that I learned in school (like the Calculus class I took twice, meaning I failed the first time), I thank my lucky stars for my 10th grade English teacher Mrs. Bennett. Little did I know that the skills she taught me then would still come in handy today.
lee
April 2nd, 2007 10:20 pm
Great post! This is essentially what Ernest Hemingway said on his blog. (I can’t resist! :) )
Lyman Reed
April 2nd, 2007 10:38 pm
Thank you for this… I needed these suggestions, especially numbers 1, 2, 3, 4… well, you get the idea!
Paula Mooney
April 2nd, 2007 10:58 pm
This is so good, Lorelle.
You’ve inspired me to go neaten up my post today and search even longer for great keywords on Overture.
Think I’ll mosey on over to your blog now…
Aaron Brazell
April 2nd, 2007 11:38 pm
I smell the Copyblogger lurking around here.
Mark Edwards
April 2nd, 2007 11:52 pm
Really interesting point about editing comments - but what’s a flub?!
Writing Online » Nuts and Bolts of Writing a Post
April 3rd, 2007 12:36 am
[…] Lorelle VanFossen is guest blogging on Problogger, stating, Blogging is about writing. Many claim that content is king. If content is king, then the army that protects and defends the king is the written word. […]
Wendy Piersall
April 3rd, 2007 12:57 am
Wow - I think I read too many blogs, because I’m not really blown away by posts too much anymore.
But this post really blew me way! Lorelle - this was an EXCELLENT piece I am sure to reference for years to come! :)
(Note I screamed ‘excellent’ because I wanted to ensure you heard it, and I only used one smiley, because I wanted you to know your post made me smile).
Lorelle VanFossen
April 3rd, 2007 1:01 am
I’m like so glad that this is like connecting with like so many, er, um, like totally cool. Wow! ;-)
Flub: An example of jargon and usage of a cultural and dated term probably not seen in print in 25 years. It means “mistake”.
Larry:
Show: __________ Flash
Tell: The following is a Flash video of Lorelle angry with Larry.
Show and Tell: See Lorelle as you have never seen her: Losing her temper! If you haven’t seen this Flash video of Lorelle furious with Larry, so angry she hurls an antique cup wildly at Larry, cussing and swearing - you are missing quite the show!
hee hee!
Blogging Is About Writing by Blogging Pro
April 3rd, 2007 2:00 am
[…] Lorelle VanFossen has written a huge post over on Darren’s Problogger. It covers the fact that blogging is about writing. Lorelle gives thirty suggestions on how to work your writing to create a better blog. […]
Tranix Web Directory
April 3rd, 2007 2:19 am
Whatever we’ve learned in school from our English teachers, just use that weapon to use on blog. It’s jsut simple as that :-)
Lorelle VanFossen
April 3rd, 2007 2:40 am
You are right, and not right. Blogging is writing, and should use the proper skills and tools for your language’s grammar, but it is also very different from other styles of writing. For example, shorter paragraphs and more use of the imperative.
Which begs the question. How is blog writing different from other types of writing? Do you write differently on your blog than you do elsewhere? How does your writing change?
Douglas Karr
April 3rd, 2007 3:09 am
What I love about blogging the most is the conversation that it stirs. This post is a great example… I read the tips and agreed with most of them, but what was really entertaining and educational were the feedback in the comments after the tips.
I’m going to respectfully disagree and state wholeheartedly that blogging is less about the writing and more about the conversation. Writing is important - you need to be able to communicate your thoughts effectively… but trackbacks, pings, and comments are far more important.
There are several (tons) of blogs that I read where the writing is, frankly, poor. I see this especially on blogs where English is not a primary language. However, the purpose of those blogs aren’t English or Writing.. they may be SEO, Development, Technology, etc.
Barbra Sundquist
April 3rd, 2007 3:41 am
Excellent post Lorelle. It’s a pleasure to read something with practical content that is so well written.
Normally I just scan blog entries, but the elegance of these two sentences caught my attention and hinted that this post would be worth reading more thoroughly: “Many claim that content is king. If content is king, then the army that protects and defends the king is the written word.”
George
April 3rd, 2007 4:59 am
Really excellent read.
I like number 12. So many “how to” blogs will tell you how to do something and then not back it up with any facts or with facts that don’t really prove their point.
I also really liked 13, 14, and 30.
13 because I find myself making that mistake all the time (I started making that mistake today and then split my post into two posts).
14. because the truly great blogs are original.
30. because it’s so true.
Larry Keiler
April 3rd, 2007 6:17 am
Lorelle, yes, true world wild web show & tell…flash video…shoulda thoughta that!
Blogging Well Means Writing Well | The Best Online Earning Strategies
April 3rd, 2007 6:45 am
[…] Lorelle VanFossen has written an excellent guest article at ProBlogger in which she claims Blogging is about Writing. […]
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April 3rd, 2007 7:19 am
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Mr. Self Destruct
April 3rd, 2007 9:00 am
Exactly what I learned as an English student in college. Although I must say you do have one consistent error: punctuation ALWAYS goes inside of the parenthesis. No exceptions in American English, anyway.
Fantastic blog and sound advice for any writer.
Dave
April 3rd, 2007 9:49 am
These rules get violated all the time. MichelleMalkin.com does nothing more than blockquote stuff and say “Look at this” or some other equally inspiring comment and she gets 100-200K/day! Well-written, original content doesn’t always win.
Blogging Is About Writing « //burnz.blog
April 3rd, 2007 10:08 am
[…] [ Source ] […]
Tony
April 3rd, 2007 10:18 am
I hate it when people write comments to correct your spelling and grammar, but here I am doing the exact same thing.
I think you’re using the wrong term in Number 18. The “Passive Voice” isn’t using “maybe”, “kinda”, “sorta”. And it’s not using “could”, “would”, “should” either.
The Passive Voice is where, instead of saying “The snake bit the dog” you say “The dog was bitten” (ie you don’t even mention the snake). I know I’m explaining this poorly, but my point is that the Passive Voice is a technical term in grammar - consider revising #18 with a different term.
Not So Fast » Who knew?
April 3rd, 2007 10:40 am
[…] Apparently, blogging is writing and writing is about words. I learn something every day. […]
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April 3rd, 2007 10:50 am
[…] read more | digg story […]
Adrian
April 3rd, 2007 10:53 am
Thank you very much! Some of these I have never thought of!
Mark Robinson
April 3rd, 2007 11:10 am
Wow. Is that all I have to do? Seriously though, I hear you. The Internet is getting way too cluttered up with crap.
John Chow Ads on Darren Rowse at » PINOYHACK.COM
April 3rd, 2007 11:15 am
[…] A while ago, while I was reading an article by Lorelle Vanfossen at Darren Rowse blog I found a Google advertisement with huge words saying ‘Make Darren Rowse Money’ directing to John Chow’s own blog. That’s really a good phishing strategy huh! I like John Chow’s style, I was thinking what keyword did he use on his adwords…Darren Rowse maybe? […]
Firehed’s Blog » Blog Archive » Link roundup - April 2
April 3rd, 2007 11:51 am
[…] Write better blog posts @ problogger.net […]
AstralSin
April 3rd, 2007 12:13 pm
Good info, I’ll keep this in mind. I sometimes have problems with being a bit long winded and I need to work on that. Keep also in mind that informational blogs are very high-hitters. People like to learn things so if you can teach someone something, someone will listen.
Moses Francis
April 3rd, 2007 12:14 pm
Excellent article, yet another really good post by Lorelle.
Thanks, it has given me some ideas.
Jen
April 3rd, 2007 12:18 pm
Applause for all 30 points! And a standing ovation for the overall theme — words are the power.
I say — don’t just embed a YouTube thingie in the page and expect me to hit the play button — tell me about it and give me a convincing reason to invest the time, instead of moving on to where I can scan words quickly and pick up much more value.
Derek
April 3rd, 2007 12:20 pm
Thank you for writing this post - I hope to be improve my blogging ability with each new week of writing (and I know it was not that pretty when I first started!) and this is a great piece of reference to continually draw back on.
alyce
April 3rd, 2007 12:21 pm
Excellent prose. OK, so I’ll work on #21, won’t do #25 except in extreme situations, but do love #23 and it is kinda me to scream AARGH (in red) when experiencing a particularly frustrating day.
Being a ProBlogger most of your tips are great. But sometimes I enjoy simply reading another’s “diary”, so the concept of “SEO” and keywords lose me.
Thank you for sharing.
Mark
April 3rd, 2007 12:51 pm
Very informative, thank-you!
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April 3rd, 2007 1:09 pm
[…] Update: I found this and it’s interesting. http://www.problogger.net/archives/2007/04/02/blogging-is-about-writing/ […]
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April 3rd, 2007 1:32 pm
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Joe
April 3rd, 2007 2:30 pm
1. Yes, tell. With U-tube, now anyone can show.
2 & 3. Blend together in title. Keywords and clickable title.
4. Better yet, make your point in the first 100 words.
5-7. I agree completely.
12. Relavent, accurate facts. A very small percentage of bloggers really research what they write.
14. Originality. My comment here, while low on the totem pole, still has a better shot of being read because of a slightly different comment format.
18. I think maybe possibly a couple of people, or maybe even some, write sort of in this wishy-washy way. But not all, of course. Please understand, not all.
25. I WILL SCREAM ALL I WANT!…but then nobody will listen.
27. Smiley faces are excuses for poor wording. I haven’t found one exception.
Great post.
Declan
April 3rd, 2007 3:53 pm
[blockquote]The web is about words. No matter how visual and audible it becomes, it continues to be about the words.[/blockquote]
This is a load of old cobblers.
I run some very successful photoblogs which can pull in 10,000 to 15,000 visitors a day. Many of those visitors come from image searches. The problem with many bloggers like yourself is that they start to view the web through a bloggers lens and think that everything comes down to keywords, SEO or copywriting / articles.
There is so much more apart from (pro)blogs. You just need to open your eyes a little…
vatu
April 3rd, 2007 6:34 pm
thanks for the tips.
And By the way, I completely agree with #25 and # 27 :)
Superb Work
http://www.technobuzz.net
煎蛋 » 30 个增进 Blogging 的 tips
April 3rd, 2007 10:09 pm
[…] 链接 | 来源 Tag: Tech Industry News […]
notrick
April 3rd, 2007 10:32 pm
I observed one thing.
After reading such a long post, most fo the people who commented had 25th point as their fav. one.
Though there were many other points in the post which are worth being Favs. yet people had 25th and some also had 27th.
Can someone explain me is it becuz the thing which we say last is remembered more then what we say first, provided that your post is read completely?
Lorel can u explain me this?
Ajey
April 4th, 2007 12:10 am
When you read the title, you think you already know … read through the article and you wonder- how much there is to know !
Karl
April 4th, 2007 12:31 am
Great post here. Lots of useful tips that could help me out, thanks!
Lazlow
April 4th, 2007 12:41 am
Fantastic post with plenty of great tips. In fact, I can’t find one that I don’t agree with!
Ted
April 4th, 2007 12:54 am
Thank you for providing these tips on writing. These writing hints can help blog authors produce better and more interesting pieces. Words can convey ideas in a precise manner - this article will help writers share their thoughts with their audience.
Lorelle VanFossen
April 4th, 2007 1:21 am
The power in blogging is the ability to self-publish. That power means we are the writer, editor, producer, publisher, advertising and marketing director, and printer. We can say anything we want, however we want, with whatever words we want. If we want to be found, then good SEO writing techniques help. If we want them to return for more, good writing skills and content organization increases your return rate. If none of those apply to you, and you are happy with what your blog is accomplishing, go for it. Express yourself. You are doing what works for you. Spice is the variety of life.
notrick: As mentioned in the article, good writing pulls you into it and through it. It makes you want to read the whole thing. As for the “long” length of this post, it’s is relatively short compared to the top 101 Thing You Need To Do to…whatever lists. I also recommend you read Shattering The Myth of Short Posts.
Declan: Images and multimedia are indeed sweeping the web. Currently, these items are found by using “words”. An undefined image file name of img45ab32.jpg has a hard life on the web. Unless there are words in the file name, link text, and/or around the image, the image has a hard time being cataloged and found. I’d love it to be otherwise, but this has nothing to do with blogging and a lot to do with the humans ability to currently search on the web. Has an image recognition search engine been developed? One that will look at an image, not any written data, and automatically group it with like others making it searchable? It’s coming. But I haven’t seen it yet.
Yakito
April 4th, 2007 1:35 am
I am so afraid this kind of posts will make me so rich :-p thanks for posting this useful article!
Seo Practices for Beginners
April 4th, 2007 5:33 am
I’m relatively new to Blogs and SEO, English is not my first language, but I’m blogging as a learning process of SEO and the English language, plus help some people on the way and build reputation online. Just like many of you famous guys I’m at the beginning of the process, but hope to get into the big leagues, thanks for your article.
Simon
April 4th, 2007 5:48 am
Fantastic post you’d expect from Lorelle
However I don’t agree with number 12, with humorous blogs the funniest article can come from heresay, non factual type sources.
Rumour on celebrity blogs can also make for fantastic reading.
So truth and fact aren’t necesssarily paramount for some blogs.
Great post though :)
Jen
April 4th, 2007 5:59 am
Declan, you’re spot on about the blog-navel-gazing trap — but “cobblers” is surely too strong a word! I must stand up once more in defense of words as fundamental to the Internet’s essence. Okay, there’s the searchability tech thing with images, as Lorelei points out, and surely that’s only a matter of time… Overcoming the human addiction to words may take a lot longer — Just think, Declan, of your 10,000-15,000 photo viewers a day, how many feel a powerful urge to comment or discuss amongst themselves or otherwise react to what they’ve seen on your blogs? And that comes back to words… no?
Andy
April 4th, 2007 6:35 am
Yeh,
Blogging is quite easy, but its the traffic that you need.
- - Andy - -
http://www.allsortgroup.com
Escrever é a alma do blog... Será?! « De repente
April 4th, 2007 7:48 am
[…] Para o Problogger, as palavras são imprescindíveis. […]
Karen
April 4th, 2007 9:51 am
Great article. Thanks a lot.
JennDZ
April 4th, 2007 12:48 pm
Really great tips! I love writing which is why I started blogging, and I am amazed and enthralled by how many different writing styles and voices people have out there - I love the individuality!
Mark Baratelli
April 4th, 2007 4:57 pm
What would have made this post twice as good (and twice as scandalous) is providing a link to an example for each of her thirty points.
Webmaster Labor
April 4th, 2007 5:12 pm
I love your tips. I’ll try to incorporate as much of the reader feedback into our blog entries. They are great sources of blog topics as well as personalization and ‘connection.’
David
April 4th, 2007 8:11 pm
Really useful article. That’s obviously taken a lot longer than your average article on the web to write. And it shows.
Blog News Watch » Blog Archive » Wednesday Roundup - 04/04/07
April 4th, 2007 11:58 pm
[…] Lorelle VanFossen of Lorelle on Wordpress travels over to ProBlogger to remind us all what may be so obvious it’s been lost - the internets, she is all about the words and the writing of the words. She then kindly helps us get better at both to improve our blogging by offering up 30 tips to think about. You should go read them and implement those tips immediately. (Like how I used #17 right there?) […]
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April 5th, 2007 1:00 am
[…] I found this article by Lorelle VanFossen on Digg a while ago, about blogging being about writing. I couldn’t agree more, although blogging and creative writing have different goals and different means of getting to those goals. As I read through her 30-item list, a good number of them called out to me, having been victim/champion of those items previously. […]
Arpi Armenakian Shively
April 5th, 2007 1:29 am
Hi Lorelle, thanks for your prolific and practical post. It’s heartening to read your emphasis on words and passionate content over techno-wizardry. Sometimes I feel like a ‘me-too’ blogger, 40-plus, living in a Spanish mountain town - media no man’s land. Then reading your points I remember that people are searching for authenticity, honesty, clean good writing with the ring of truth, and I Begin A New Post.
Keep up the flow of wisdom,
Regards,
Arpi Shively
30 Tips Every Blogger Should Know | kirkwalsh.com
April 5th, 2007 2:51 am
[…] 30 Tips Every Blogger Should Know Lorelle Van Fossen from Lorelle on Wordpress has a fantastic guest article at Problogger on 30 writing tips that every blogger should know. Basically, the article goes through 30 tips that apply to writing in general but apply especially to bloggers. I don’t follow all of these tips as many of my posts are written and edited in one session (which you should never, ever do) due to time constraints. Today, I wanted to focus on a couple of her tips. […]
Wednesday’s Link Round-up
April 5th, 2007 4:37 am
[…] And finally, Lorelle VanFossen of Lorelle on WordPress has written, in my opinion, the definitive guide to what makes or breaks a blog - The Writing. She has posted a great article on ProBlogger with 30 things to think about before you sit down and write. This is a must read for any blogger. […]
Shawn Blanc
April 5th, 2007 2:05 pm
This is an excellent article Lorelle. Thanks for the great read.
우리만의 천국 » Blog Archive » 블로그에 좋은 글 쓰는 방법
April 5th, 2007 11:27 pm
[…] 호주의 problogger라는 사이트에 올라온 글이다. 외국뿐만 아니라 국내 블로거들도 참고하면 좋을 것 같다. 블로그를 하면서 가장 중요한 것은 역시 내용이지만 그 내용 중에서도 바로 글이다. 사진만 있거나, 동영상만 있거나, 음악만 있다고 좋은 콘텐츠가 되지 못한다..바로 좋은 글을 올려야 한다는 것이다. 그러나 좋은 글을 쓴다는 것이 얼마나 어려운지 모두 경험하였을 것이다. 그런 분들은 이런 가이드라인을 참고하기 바란다. […]
物流
April 6th, 2007 12:16 am
Great blogpost. It set me thinking about how I write and what is important for a blog.I feel like a ‘me-too’ blogger, 40-plus, living in a Spanish mountain town - media no man’s land. Then reading your points I remember that people are searching for authenticity,
Alfa King
April 6th, 2007 3:32 am
Lorelle, you conquered me. Your straightforward, concise and clear exposé hit right on the target. Yes, now I can understand what a blog should look like. I was under the impression that anyone could write anything in any way. I just started, some three weeks ago, and I hope to keep up with the schedule thanks to your professional advice.
Neeraj
April 6th, 2007 6:52 am
Lorelle its really a great post. Really I have no words about this post may be i am a beginner in blog world but good things are good for every one.
Sonu
April 6th, 2007 6:55 am
Lorelle thanks for the tips. Its a superb post.
Building Relationships With Your Most Popular Posts at The Blog Herald
April 6th, 2007 7:45 am
[…] How do you write a popular post? Well, that takes good writing, timely content, and a unique perspective on an issue. It takes keyword-rich content easily found by searchers looking for topical information to help them solve a problem, find an answer, or just to know how. […]
Jerlyn
April 6th, 2007 7:52 am
true they are great guidelines
Blogging is About Writing | Fighting to Stay Awake
April 6th, 2007 2:59 pm
[…] Lorelle wrote an article for ProBlogger on the fact that the web is word based. When you’re online, you are reading. Which is why it is important to write well on your blog. My favorite point from the article was #7: “Don’t Waste Words A powerfully titled article drew me from my feed reader and I was greeted with this first sentence: “I still have to take a shower, and I’m late for work, but I wanted to tell you about this because I think it’s important, so I’ll just rush this off before I jump in the shower and head to work.” Don’t waste words. Don’t tell your readers things they really don’t want to know. Get to the point and stop wasting your time and theirs. […]
Claude / Les Explorers
April 8th, 2007 2:01 am
Lorelle,
Thanks
helpful and great process
Weekly Digest: Guest Blogging on Problogger, WordPress Plugins, Getting Naked, and Relationships « Lorelle on WordPress
April 10th, 2007 4:04 am
[…] Guest Blogging on Problogger: My second guest article on Problogger was Blogging Is About Writing, and appears to be a resounding success. It was dugg by Digg and has over 80 comments and, according to Technorati, 63 sites linked to the article, and Google shows 42. I checked because I wanted to leave thank you notes on the appropriate linking blogs. Wow. […]
Ivory Power » Blog Archive » Wordpad.org gone :(
April 10th, 2007 10:19 pm
[…] Yes, I know, I use smileys and frowns very often and promiscuously, BITE ME BITCHES […]
Jeb Blount
April 12th, 2007 5:47 am
These are excellent tips for writing. Well done!
Daniel Sitter
April 12th, 2007 9:45 am
Lorelle,
If content is king, you are royalty! Your tips are timeless and true, a wonderful benefit for all writers. Thank you.
Best regards,
Daniel Sitter
Mindtracks » Show and Tell
April 14th, 2007 7:05 am
[…] Something many visual artists forget is that in the end the web is about the written word. Lorelle VanFossen points this out in Blogging Is About Writing and proceeds to offer 30 points to consider as you write. The web is about words. No matter how visual and audible it becomes, it continues to be about the words. Blogging is about writing. Many claim that content is king. If content is king, then the army that protects and defends the king is the written word. blogging writing […]
Better Blogging : Serendipity and the Art of the Quilt
April 14th, 2007 11:38 am
[…] These days, my blog is an integral part of my website. I enjoy the ritual and discipline of writing regular posts. As highlighted in this excellent article by Lorelle Van Fossen: […]
Weekly Digest: Brags, Blog Relationship Conference, « Lorelle on WordPress
April 14th, 2007 2:55 pm
[…] Guest Blogging: Recent guest blogging events included two on Problogger, Blogging Is About Writing and Blog Translations: The Next Web Frontier, and Your Writing Persona: Who Are You? on Writing Great Ezines & Blogs from Patsi Krakoff, continuing to attract a lot of attention. […]
radiohode
April 15th, 2007 5:20 am
Great post. Lots of important points, but I do not agree with #23. When we do have the chance to think for more than a sceond about what we say, why don’t we use that extra time?
Mousetrapper
April 16th, 2007 9:58 pm
I love point 23: write just as you talk. Better posts are just one result, but not the only one. It also helps to save time. At least this is my personal experience. If I imagine myself talking to a friend, the first sentence of my post comes immediately. And most times, it is not a bad one.
James
April 23rd, 2007 5:43 am
“No Wishy-Washy Passive Voice: Avoid wishy-washy passive voice instructions like “If you would like to maybe you should think about checking the spelling of your post before you think about publishing it because…” Write with authority, like you know what you are talking about: “Check the spelling before you publish your post.””
I know Tony followed up on this, but I thought I’d add to what he said.
As atrocious and wishy-washy as that example is, it’s written in the active voice. If it were in the passive voice it would say “The spelling of your post should maybe be checked before you think about publishing it because…”
It is generally good practice to avoid the passive voice, but this doesn’t illustrate the problem. This example illustrates the lessened impact of unnecessary, apologetic language. The passive voice has a similar effect but for different reasons.
UNC give good advice on recognising and avoiding the passive voice. This post might be worth an edit, one way or the other, because it’s a little misleading.
Motorcycle Guy
April 25th, 2007 3:28 am
I think writing is one of the most healthy activities you can do. Its a good deal harder than it seems. However, to some people it does come easier.
Justin
April 26th, 2007 12:29 pm
Wow that is so true and useful. at first I had posted video only on my blog about Dubai. seedubai.blogspot.com
Thank’s and have a great day to all.
Justin
Befriending Bloggers - SEO Vision
April 28th, 2007 3:08 am
[…] and the best bloggers generate lively discussion with every post and frequently comment on and write for other […]
Myo Kyaw Htun . com » Blog Archive » Speed Linking 20 April 2007
April 30th, 2007 6:17 pm
[…] Blogging is about writing (Darren Rowse) […]
Avanade.Employees.JoeF.Blog::Title
May 9th, 2007 3:34 pm
On Writing…
Results of my research into writing a good blog entry. Evaluation of two articles from problogger.net and my thoughts on writing….
Announcement: Blogging Tips Book By Lorelle VanFossen « Lorelle on WordPress
May 19th, 2007 11:47 am
[…] write for many blogs, ezines, websites, and print publications. Recent guest blog posts included Blogging Is About Writing and Blog Translations: The Next Web Frontier on Darren Rowse’s Problogger, and Your Writing […]
EarnMoneyOnlineTips.Com
May 22nd, 2007 9:03 pm
Great tips for improving blog writting skill. any blogger should very much carefuk about these fact. As for example You can see tips #25. It’s about caplitaliziation. Ge4neral do the mistake occasionally.
Top Online Blogger Resources
May 25th, 2007 2:04 am
[…] This post has a great list of twelve tips to help you write content that will really draw people in, for example “Make Your Point in the First 200 Words”. […]
To Emoticon or Not to Emoticon
June 15th, 2007 9:57 pm
[…] do the pros weigh in on the use of emoticons? Darren Rowse’s stated opinion is: Blog Writing Isn’t About Smiley Faces: Write emotions, not emoticons. Too many smileys are […]
i.ndustrio.us - » Do You Write Like a 14-Year-Old Girl on MySpace?
June 16th, 2007 9:19 am
[…] asks bloggers the question “To Emoticon or not to Emoticon“. I like the quote from Lorelle On Wordpress: “Write emotions, not emoticons”. Posted Under: Distractions Tags: BLOGGING, […]
satya
August 7th, 2007 1:40 am
I think web 2.0 is meant to help each others..so blogging about usefull tips will be best for this generation…..especially blogging about tips which u follow and your experiences……forums are blogs are web 2.0 sites.
The Art of Guest Blogging: Preparing Your Blog : The Blog Herald
August 10th, 2007 12:15 am
[…] I blogged about blog writing for Problogger, I had a lot of requests for more articles on writing and blog writing. Luckily, my blog features a […]
The Art of Guest Blogging: Blog Your Best Writing : The Blog Herald
August 15th, 2007 12:16 am
[…] Blogging Is About Writing […]
Cell Phone Reviews
September 3rd, 2007 5:28 pm
Great guest post Lorelle.
I’ve been visiting your Wordpress blog as well. I especially agree with item #2. Keywords are so important in getting your pages ranked higher.
Nadia sheikh
September 7th, 2007 8:59 pm
Great guest post Lorelle.
I’ve been visiting your Wordpress blog as well. I especially agree with item #2. Keywords are so important in getting your pages ranked higher.
nadira
Handiarts
September 13th, 2007 7:46 pm
It is generally good practice to avoid the passive voice, but this doesn’t illustrate the problem. This example illustrates the lessened impact of unnecessary, apologetic language. The passive voice has a similar effect but for different reasons.
Iliyas patel
Mahendra
September 19th, 2007 8:51 pm
Lorelle its really a great post. Really I have no words about this post may be i am a beginner in blog world but good things are good for every one.
HItendra
September 28th, 2007 2:27 pm
Blogging means it is a technique to write something about ourself and about any topic related to our interest.
Hitendra
Meteko
October 21st, 2007 5:24 pm
Blogging need alot of hard work to be put into work. Writing is the tools that a blogger need to be equip with and the wording are the honey that attract the readers to your blog. With sweet content, blogging can be easy! Great post.
Iliyas
November 26th, 2007 4:41 pm
I’ve been visiting your Wordpress blog as well. I especially agree with item #2. Keywords are so important in getting your pages ranked higher.
Ahdyant Patil
November 28th, 2007 12:30 am
Blogging need alot of hard work to be put into work. Writing is the tools that a blogger need to be equip with and the wording are the honey that attract the readers to your blog. With sweet content, blogging can be easy! Great po
Flex Development
December 10th, 2007 11:41 pm
Its a technique to show out thinking…
thanks
good article.
działki wrocław
December 19th, 2007 10:25 am
I think I should start writing my own blog (of course in polish, how can you see my english isn’t very well :P).
Nice article.
Thanks and greetings.
Best of ProBlogger - 2007
December 25th, 2007 12:46 am
[…] Blogging is About Writing […]
zeeshan
December 26th, 2007 9:07 pm
I am new to this site, i have find that it is a very goog bolg for me.
thanks
Posin
January 5th, 2008 6:48 pm
Blogging need alot of hard work to be put into work. Writing is the tools that a blogger need to be equip with and the wording.
http://www.posintech.com/career.php
Smith
January 17th, 2008 5:30 am
It is generally good practice to avoid the passive voice, but this doesn’t illustrate the problem. This example illustrates the lessened impact of unnecessary, apologetic language. The passive voice has a similar effect but for different reasons.
Apoorv Khatreja
January 31st, 2008 7:39 am
I think this list needs to be spread far and wide.
Conversations with an Underground Text Link Seller
February 21st, 2008 12:12 am
[…] http://www.problogger.net/archives/2007/04/02/blogging-is-about-writing/ - $150 […]
anderson
March 1st, 2008 11:51 am
My vote for the most important in #14. If your blog is a copy of others you won’t get very far in ranks.
Lenin
March 16th, 2008 8:08 am
Hi there, this is wonderful information indeed. I am an enthusiast writer myself, and have just started my work of promoting the best writing out there. Through my blog, posted here, I am trying to achieve high quality writing. Please visit my blog:
cute writing: good writing tips
Professional Matchmaking Service
April 1st, 2008 12:11 am
Great posting about blog writing, i find very good information here and good tips of writing techniques.
thanks..
http://www.lesbtogether.com
Vijay
May 6th, 2008 7:33 pm
Lorelle, your tips on writing effective blogs made my day. Your blog is a good illustration of preach and practice.
I untiringly read the whole article. All these tips on keywords help as well, while people are searching on a subject through the popular search engines, along with that the title tags are also important.
I hit your blog through the most popular blog search engine.
Is guerilla marketing a good ethical practice? What would be the best way to use blogs as a stealth marketing ploy if is not too harmful?
Also do let me know if I can be of any help in doing data entry or basic writing, so that you can concentrate on writing more blogs which would be of help to others!
SEO Expert India
September 25th, 2008 5:38 pm
My vote for the most important in #14.
thanks
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