What's Up Wednesday

 This week...

My Current WIP (Work In Progress):  I only did about 5 pages of new material last week. I took my normal writing time to really take a look at where I am and where I want to be. I've been going back and forth on whether I want to continue blogging. If it's worth putting my time and effort into. 

Quote of the Week:  "A dream doesn't become reality through magic; it takes sweat, determination, and hard work." ~ Colin Powell

What I'm Reading:  I started reading The Beast of Beswick by Amalie Howard on Monday afternoon. This is the first book I've read by this author and I'm thoroughly enjoying it. 

Random Thoughts:  I harvested the lone cucumber I grew this summer. We had no female flowers on any of the squash plants and only 2 female flowers on the cucumber plant. One grew quite well, the other only grew to about two inches or so and then withered away. The plants themselves grew like crazy. It was disappointing that there were only male flowers though.

Random Photo of the Week:

                                 Mrs. Green like to pretend she is the TV remote.

To Blog or Not

I've been writing this blog since 2011 and counting this one, have written 1,251 posts.

Back in 2011, every writer was advised to write a blog. It was a must we were told. Now, 9 years later, blogging is supposedly dead. Various writers groups I belong to all say not to waste your time blogging any more. That people don't read blogs, that it doesn't help you reach your current readers much less potential new readers.

Now newsletters are the must do thing. All those same writers groups have conversations at least once a week about how important newsletters are. Some say you should send a newsletter weekly, others say monthly, some say quarterly, and a small percentage says to only send them when you have news to share such as a new release, are having a sale, etc.

So now I'm debating with myself -- should I continue this blog? Should I let it go? Should I start a newsletter? Part of me says no. no, no, don't do the newsletter, that it'd be too much work and take too much time to find ways to get people to sign up for it.

It's definitely something to think about for a few weeks before I make a decision either way.

The Art of the Blog

There's definitely an art to writing an interesting and engaging blog. I've been blogging for almost 4 years now and I'm still trying to find my way in terms what to write about that would be of interest to you.

Sometimes I go off topic, but for the most part I try to keep the subject of Monday posts writing related whether it's a piece on research, my experiences doing hands on research, the mechanics of writing, promotion, or just writing in general.

My Wednesday posts have changed a few times. I was doing book reviews but wasn't always able to read a complete book and put together a review in time for the next Wednesday post. I started posting items and links to articles I found interesting. I've modified it a bit to include how my writing has gone the previous week, a random item that occurred or item that popped in my head during the week. I kept the motivational quote that I was posting before because I find them to be inspiring and hope you do too. The hardest part of the Wednesday post is the random photo of the week. I'm not a person who takes pictures on a regular basis. Even when I go on vacation, the last thing I think about is "I should be taking a photo of this." Sometimes coming up with a photo to post is harder than I thought it would be. I also still host guests on Wednesdays when I'm asked.

The "This I know for sure" posts on Fridays are my favorite to do. It could be because the subject of the posts can be about anything or nothing in particular at all.

When you visit a blog, what keeps you coming back or subscribing to have the post sent to your email?  I'm always looking for ways to change my blog and keep it interesting so I'd love to hear your thoughts.

Etiquette

I apologize for this post beforehand because it's a bit of a rant on etiquette or the lack thereof. Being a writer, I know how hard it is to get the word out about your book, to try and reach an audience that wants to buy and read that book. I host other romance authors on occasion for that reason. Recently, I signed up on a blog that lists bloggers who will host romance authors. We are able to specify what type of sub-genre of romance, if any, that we'd like to have as well as a heat level so authors looking for places to promote know what we're looking for, or not looking for.

The last three times I've been contacted about being a guest here have gone against some of the big no-nos I learned when I first started writing and submitting work for publication. Admittedly contacting a blogger, even a fellow writer, is a lot different than contacting an agent or editor/publishing house. However, it was impressed upon me how important it was to follow certain submission rules so that I would be deemed a professional.

One of those rules was not to send mass emails out to agents and/or editors. It was best to take the time to email each person I wanted to contact individually even if it seemed time consuming. Another rule, probably even more important than the one above, was to send a query letter first before submitting my manuscript unless the publisher's guidelines specifically stated to send a certain number of pages or chapters along with the query letter. One other rule was to make sure I did my research and contacted those agents and/or editors that represented the type of writing I did.

Those last three emails I received about guesting on my blog I mentioned above...well they broke all those rules. The first was a mass email to just about everyone on the list, the second was an erotica author looking for a place to promote. (I specifically have no erotica listed under my restrictions and the reason why.) And finally, the last person didn't even ask if I could host him/her but sent me a Sign Up Genius link where I could download an interview, guest post, etc and sign up for a date without even an introduction email as to who she/he was or asking if I would consider signing up for the promotion tour.

All three of these emails left a bad taste in my mouth so I can just imagine how an agent and/or editor might feel when they get these types of emails. I realize we all only have a limited amount of time to write new material and promote our books and that I'm just another writer out there with a blog, but the lack of professionalism in this area just grates on my nerves.

This I know for sure...

I don't know how to reach new readers.  That I definitely know for sure.  I blog, belong to Goodreads, have an author page on Amazon, have a fan page on Facebook, and a regular Facebook page.  I also guest blog when I can. I have a Twitter account but I haven't really done anything with it at this point. But in doing all this, I usually only reach the same people.  At least it's usually the same people who leave a comment etc.  Not that I'm complaining.  I'm very, very grateful for those people who read my posts, comment on or like my Facebook status, etc. I'm just not sure how to expand my reach.

I'd love to hear any ideas you might have or things you've done that you think helped  :o)