Today I have a very special guest taking over my blog! The incredibly awesome and awe inspiring Alex J. Cavanaugh is here to share his ninja blogging skills. Take a look, he has some great tips and keep an eye out for his upcoming book release, CassaFire!
CassaStar by Alex J. CavanaughScience fiction/adventure/space opera
ISBN Print 9780981621067 eBook 9780982713938
Alex J. Cavanaugh has a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree and works in web design and graphics. He is experienced in technical editing and worked with an adult literacy program for several years. A fan of all things science fiction, his interests range from books and movies to music and games, and he covers those topics on his blog. His first book, CassaStar, was released last fall and is available in trade paperback and all eBook formats. The sequel, CassaFire, comes out next February.
How to be a Blogging Ninja
Amy asked me to share some of my blogging Ninja skills. It took me a while to figure out what I was doing and find my rhythm. Hopefully you are smarter than me!
Here is a list of things I’ve found work best. If it’s not your style, that’s all right. This is just how I roll!
Your blog - Make it you. Allow your personality to shine through. Make the text easy to read. Place the ‘Follow’ widget where others can find it. And above all else, make it easy for others to leave comments. (Imbedded comment boxes are challenging because the page has to load twice. Add word verification and now it’s three times!)
Posts - If you want readers, you need to be interesting. You can share information or just entertain. Either way, you need to be you. (Because it’s really tough to be someone else.) The key to a good blog post is interaction. Pose questions and give people something to discuss. And a long post once in a while is all right, but I’ve found the longer the post, the less likely others will read it.
Following - You can’t expect people to follow you if you don’t follow other bloggers. Seems a waste to spend hours on a blog post no one will read…
Comments - Blogging is all about community. Get to know others. Visit and comment on blogs that interest you. Interact with others. Reply to comments on your blog - people really like to see interaction.
Blogfests - These are a great way to get to know other bloggers. Participate in blogfests that interest you. Even more fun - host a blogfest! (Be sure to remind everyone a few days in advance, because people do forget.)
Feature others - Feature other bloggers and mention their accomplishments. Invite guest posts. (It’s a win-win situation.) Goodwill towards others goes a long way.
Consistency - Have some sort of a schedule, either when you post or post topics. Allow for spontaneity though. Remember, this isn’t a job - it’s supposed to be fun!
That’s pretty much it!
Now, get out there and make some blogging friends!
Alex J. Cavanaugh
http://alexjcavanaugh.blogspot.com/
http://twitter.com/AlexJCavananugh
Amy asked me to share some of my blogging Ninja skills. It took me a while to figure out what I was doing and find my rhythm. Hopefully you are smarter than me!
Here is a list of things I’ve found work best. If it’s not your style, that’s all right. This is just how I roll!
Your blog - Make it you. Allow your personality to shine through. Make the text easy to read. Place the ‘Follow’ widget where others can find it. And above all else, make it easy for others to leave comments. (Imbedded comment boxes are challenging because the page has to load twice. Add word verification and now it’s three times!)
Posts - If you want readers, you need to be interesting. You can share information or just entertain. Either way, you need to be you. (Because it’s really tough to be someone else.) The key to a good blog post is interaction. Pose questions and give people something to discuss. And a long post once in a while is all right, but I’ve found the longer the post, the less likely others will read it.
Following - You can’t expect people to follow you if you don’t follow other bloggers. Seems a waste to spend hours on a blog post no one will read…
Comments - Blogging is all about community. Get to know others. Visit and comment on blogs that interest you. Interact with others. Reply to comments on your blog - people really like to see interaction.
Blogfests - These are a great way to get to know other bloggers. Participate in blogfests that interest you. Even more fun - host a blogfest! (Be sure to remind everyone a few days in advance, because people do forget.)
Feature others - Feature other bloggers and mention their accomplishments. Invite guest posts. (It’s a win-win situation.) Goodwill towards others goes a long way.
Consistency - Have some sort of a schedule, either when you post or post topics. Allow for spontaneity though. Remember, this isn’t a job - it’s supposed to be fun!
That’s pretty much it!
Now, get out there and make some blogging friends!
Alex J. Cavanaugh
http://alexjcavanaugh.blogspot.com/
http://twitter.com/AlexJCavananugh
Coming Feb 28, 2012!
47 comments:
Great tips, Alex!
Great tips from a guy who knows. Nice overview of best practices for bloggers, Alex!
Great points, Alex!
Excellent tips. Thanks for sharing your secrets, Alex.
Ive always wondered about the new window thing for comments. Sage advice.
Awesome tips, Alex!
Thanks, everyone!
And thank you, Amy.
Great tips! Keeping it fun and interactive works for me too. It's time consuming, but you can't let it take over - gotta have limits!
Love these blogging tips! Thanks for hosting the good and great Cap'n Alex, Amy! The Captain's blog is a joy to behold, truly! And look at the cover oh his new book - awesome! Take care
x
Great advice.
... and that's why he's the man :)
I agree with Laura. :-)
I wish people would turn off word verification. I wonder how many of my comments haven't posted because I thought I was done when I hit the submit button and moved on to the next blog. I've had very few problems with spam since turning word ver off over a year ago. The easier it is for people to comment, the more likely they will.
Thanks for sharing these!
I'm a big believer in short posts. Good tips, Alex.
Great tips, Alex! Thanks, Amy, for having Alex share his thoughts!
I agree that short interesting (or humorous) posts are better. People are really in a hurry as they zip through the blogosphere. Longer doesn't mean better. Having said that, I have a really long post on the blog today. LOL.
Great tips.
I agree with all these, especially the "be yourself" comment. So important.
Jemi, I'm still working on limits...
Thanks, Kitty!
Thank you, Laura.
Kristie, me too.
LG, I read your posts no matter what.
What gets my goat is when the cooment will not post because it needs to be approved first. Long boring posts do suck. Pictures are cool. You left off answering the most important question. How do you find time to visit 800+ followers? And do you do it all in one day?
'worked with an adult literacy program for several years.'
A very nice detail to know.
All of your tips are very straightforward. I can't think of another I'd add!
Great tips Alex. Trying to be consistent... I think I fail that one big time. haha
Too many ideas rolling around in my head that I find it hard to focus for too long.
Thank you for stopping by today Alex - your blogging tips are great! :)
Alex, you aren't a blogging ninja - you are THE Blogging Ninja!
Great tips, Alex... and I really love the blogfests that you do! They've been a big help for me. Thank you.
Thanks Amy!
Yay, great tips. Have I mentioned how much I like the cover of CassaFire?
Laila, I don't! I can't. I visit about a hundred, including my blogger buddies, those who comment, and a few random interesting posts.
Thanks, Suze!
TS, you always visit me though, and I appreciate that.
Thanks, Tara!
Doralynn, once I discovered blogfests, I was hooked.
Thanks, Nicki - I really dig it as well.
Thanks for the blogging tips!
I have had trouble with consistency; I posted randomly when I started out, but the fell into a kind of loose schedule. It does make things easier to plan in the long run.
Excellent tips from the blogging pro!
I think I do most of them, but I'm not very consistent with my blogging lately...
Fab tips, Alex. It is about community. :)
Hello! I'm definitely with Alex on this. He pretty much summarized my process. Except that blogfests are the first things to go when I don't have a lot of time.
:-)
All excellent tips, Alex! I'm going to share this on The Blog Entourage on Facebook!
Golden, that's why I do just three days a week. It's my comfortable rut.
Misha, I will say not sometimes, but often I'm the one hosting!
Christina, thank you!
I'm am already doing all that but I am not as cool as you yet. I must be missing something. Do I need to write a book?
Always great to get tips from the expert.
great takeover, amy and alex. and well said! i love being part of it all!
one note i would add regarding aesthetics...please do not use cursive handwriting fonts and reading white on a dark or bright background is hard on the eyes =) happy blogging!
It IS all about community, I agree. Alex is the best at building community.
PTM, it couldn't hurt.
Tara, those are good points!
helpful hints! hopefully i can be a blogging ninja one day.
Fab tips from a man who practises what he preaches! :)
Uh oh ... I try to be 'me' I still don't attract many readers ... what does that tell you?
Thanks, Talli!
Christopher, just need to adjust something somewhere...
Great tips, we can only be ourselves! Authentic is always the best way to go~ Well Done!
Best advice: Blogging is supposed to be fun! Hear! Hear!
Alex ... you mean like 'tighten down a few loose screws'?
Ali, if it's not fun, why bother?
Christopher, yes!
I agree hosting fellow bloggers is a win win situation. They bring their followers over while gaining exposure to your followers. Also, hosting guests frees up time if you are working on a deadline such as a WIP or editing a manuscript.
Stephen, I always seem busier when hosting someone, because I want them to get a lot of comments.
Thanks again, Amy!
Your very welcome Alex! :)
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