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Thursday, May 30, 2013

ARE WRITER'S BLOGS DYING?

 
Remember MySpace? How about Google Plus? Squidoo?

They’re still around, but try to find someone who uses them heavily.

Author Alexandra Sokoloff makes the following observations:

The truth is, writers don’t seem to have enough time to blog any more.

It feels like diminishing returns, when there’s a fast and easy alternative conversation on Facebook.

The technology has changed. The conversation has moved. 

We’re having to reinvent.

Remember chat rooms and bulletin boards?

Ms. Sokoloff points out that Facebook made them largely redundant.

But when everyone is screaming, LISTEN TO ME!

is there any point in speaking?

Blogging itself isn't dying, but the number of committed bloggers is dwindling.

THE NEW YORK TIMES is removing many of their listed blogs. Oh, but those are political or news blogs you say.  And you are right.

Writer's blogs are different ... yet the same. 

In the end, all three kinds of blogs are trying to "sell" the
reader something:

A view point ... one side of an argument ... or an author's book.

The brutal truth is:

WE HAVE TO BREAK OUT OF THE GHETTO OF

"AUTHORS SPEAKING TO AUTHORS"

 IF WE ARE EVER GOING TO TRULY REACH A LARGE AUDIENCE.

Author Sean McLachlan
 http://civilwarhorror.blogspot.com/2013/01/indie-life-reaching-beyond-indie.html

calls it reaching beyond the Indie Authors Echo Chamber to speaking to reach the world at large.

I learned an important lesson from a non-author but avid reader fellow employee:

She skipped my writing lesson posts. 

As a non-author she was not interested. 

But as a reader,

she was absorbed by my ghost writers teasing me or writing on little known facts of famous authors or

my snippets of evocative poets who spoke to her heart but of whom she had never heard.

She emailed the link to my Memorial Day post (not for the writing lesson at the end but for the first half of the post.) 

She did the same for my Mother's Day post.

If we want to reach the world at large, we must speak to the world at large.  

Non-authors using Google Search will have a chance to see our blog pop up when they search for a topic that appeals to them.

Having our books listed in the sidebar will then point them to our work if they like our prose.

What do you think are good ways to reach beyond the world of authors reading authors?


9 comments:

  1. This has been my problem with social media as a platform in general: everyone is talking (writing, blogging, tweeting) and no one is listening (reading, commenting). What does that get you?

    And if you're talking about authors chatting with other authors, then you're preaching to the choir. And while these other authors will support you as a fellow writer, they're not going to buy your books. (Well, a few might, but most won't.) So . . .

    I don't have a solution. But I do see this as, maybe "problem" is too strong, but it's an issue.

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  2. What I see: many writers grouping together (for strength in numbers? and more clout?), does that increase one's chances of selling, or dilute the products being offered? (so many choices)

    Writers will comment, but readers often don't. Does your co-worker ever comment on your blog, Roland?

    Social media overload is causing many bloggers to stop or reduce blogging. That's to be expected. There's only so much time in the day. But refining interaction into bits and bites is superficial,IMO.

    What a conundrum for writers.

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  3. I agree, Roland, which is why I think I'll start posting about a variety of subjects. There's so many interesting topics to touch on. Why not use them? :)

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  4. I started gearing my posts more toward audience and less toward writers. But how to reach a wider audience? Shrug. It'll happen when it happens. We can keep trying and hope our author friends stick around long enough to boost our numbers... that may help.

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  5. I've been noticing this, too, and couldn't agree more! There really needs to be a better balance with posts in order to hook people as a whole. Variety is so essential, even if it can be hard to achieve sometimes...

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  6. It also seems like a large majority of followers are bloggers themselves. It is nice to see writers blogging about topics other than writing.

    Allison (Geek Banter)

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  7. Great post! My friend Marina and I were talking about the same thing a few weeks ago.

    This is why I wish more people knew about JukePop and all of you that put stuff out there. What a hook/tool that could be!

    I'm really behind this week. I'll be back to read what I've missed at some point! Hope you're taking care!

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  8. Hi Roland .. yet I read/heard somewhere that Facebook is too 'trivial' / social .. ie no-one is paying attention ..

    Authors certainly need to stretch the boundaries .. yet having a group that support you and will continue to do so within the blogging fraternity is wonderful ...

    Cheers - I wonder where we'll be in a year or so .. Hilary

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  9. M:
    As that poor girl found out in Maine, social media can be dangerous. To me, it is a problem. And one that I see no obvious solution to. Bloggers offer free gifts to subscribers, to reviewers, to those who buy their books with diminishing returns. What to do?

    D.G.:
    My co-worker comments on the job since commenting on a blog without a blog is difficult apparently.

    And if you join in yet another crowd, it makes standing out from the crowd that much harder.

    And how can you say anything of worth or of interest in 148 characters?

    Celeste:
    Yes, the world is so fascinating. If only to entertain and not bore, we must search the world out.

    M Pax:
    I've been listening to my friends at work to polish my posts. Lightning strikes where it will. We just have to be ready when it does. :-)

    Heather:
    Yes, you are so right: variety is essential. Even with my spotlights on friends' books, I try to make them different and entertaining as with Milo James Fowler's post on Friday. :-)

    Allison:
    I liked your A-Z posts just for that reason: something other than writing being spoken about.

    Words Crafter:
    I'm behind, too, what with all the weirdness at work (System wide changes WITHOUT S.O.P.'s! They will come NEXT WEEK while we make it up as we go along THIS WEEK!)

    Thank you for the reviews of LEGEND and UNDER A VOODOO MOON! They were a great surprise for me to find yesterday!

    Marina and you are correct. Something needs to change for those of us who struggle to be noticed by the reading public.

    One of our books to become popular at a high school with word of mouth. Something. Sigh.

    Hilary:
    Having my blogging friends with me on our mutual struggle is invaluable. But you are right -- we need to do something differently! :-)

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