Seven Sweet Side Effects of Blogging

Sure there's lots of discussions on whether writers should blog. In the context of the "to blog or not to blog" discussion, blogging is considered one of two things: 1) Advertising or 2) A Distraction. Blogging can certainly do a great job at those things.  
Fox in Box
(Fox bMarcin Rybarczyk,
Box by Billy Alexander, via sxc.hu)

I know you have lots of other priorities like feeding your family or earning real money or showering once a week...blah, blah, blah...but as a blogging convert, I can tell you there are many benefits of blogging for writers -and for anyone - to consider.  

Seven Sweet Side Effects anyone could experience from blogging:

1.      Share your knowledge about, well, anything with, well, anyone who happens by. You love Health Food? Great tell us about it and enjoy acknowledgement from others who do too.
2.      Build community with other people who love the same things (Stargazing? Pickle-making?) Discuss the most current topics and share insights on solving problems. ("My pickles wrinkled!")
Rocks in Box
(Box by Billy Alexander,
Rocks by Karin Lindstrom,
via sxc.hu)
3.      Learn more about your topic (Crafting with Lint, perhaps?) from readers who have experienced similar situations, reassurance from readers who agree with you, and lessons from readers who disagree with your points. ("I would never add glitter to my lint!")
4.      Be creative. Especially if you're in a non-creative day job, like say an accountant or engineer, you may not get to be creative for most of the week.  Let yourself have a break. Creative thinking is needed in every job and will help you shine.
5.      Hone your writing skills.  Expressing yourself on paper (or screen) is important for any career and even in your personal life. Being able to write well makes the difference between others supporting your ideas or not. 
Writer in Box
(Box by Billy Alexander via sxc.hu)
6.      Photography skills. Blog posts need pictures, because humans are visual beings and search engine robots like to know a human wrote a post. Whether snapping your own or editing pictures with free software like Gimp, photo skills are great to have for work and for home. (Okay, I'm not great, but I had fun putting these things in boxes-->)
7.      Gain confidence. Even 1 follower is 1 follower and having someone interested in what you say feels great. You do actually know some stuff. You have value to add to the world. You are uniquely you. And you are wonderful! (That's the picture book version of a pep talk...)

Bonus #8. I forgot one! Excitement. Perhaps not everyone is as easily amused as yours truly, but I get a little rush when I get comments or a retweet. Life can be a little routine at times, and blogging is a great way to spice it up!

All for the low price of a couple hours a week. That's one of the best deals out there!


Comments

  1. Great post! Yes, yes, yes - seven times, err eight. You've capture so sweetly the benefits of blogging, at least from my perspective! Keep the great posts coming. Cheers!

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    1. Excitement was the initial inspiration for the post, and I nearly forgot to include it! Err, whoopsies! Thank you for adding some excitement to my day with your comment and tweet.

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  2. Good job Lauri. Your post encouraged me to finish writing a post that had been lingering in my draft box! Happy Mother's Day!

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    1. I enjoyed your Mother's Day post - I'm so glad you finished it!

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  3. Lauri,
    I'm really glad you posted this. I began blogging for Perfect Picture Book Friday. I didn't do it to build a platform because at that time I didn't even know the term "build a platform". I did it because I loved reading picture books and I loved reading about new ones via blogger reviews. It kept my library list full of fresh new books to read. I was meeting all kinds of people interested in kidlit and I was loving it!!! Also, selfishly, I figured it couldn't hurt my writing skills as I decided why I liked certain books better than others. Wouldn't I want to try to write a book like I enjoyed reading?
    So with all the posts lately about to blog or not to blog, I decided I would just keep on blogging just for me. In fact, I don't even know how many followers or hits I have to date. I may go look...but I don't know that the numbers will change anything in my mind.
    Ok.............that was long...but mainly I just wanted to say great post and thanks for your POV!

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    1. Penny, I just love it when I read the exact post I need to read at that moment in time (like one about creating a great pitch which appeared in my inbox the other day when I was struggling with a pitch!) I'm glad this post reaffirmed what you already knew - blogging was worth it because you were finding lots of value in it.

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  4. These are all so true! I remember being scared to start a blog at first ("who will follow me?" I worried), but now, a year and a half later, I'm so glad I did.

    I always enjoy stopping by Lauri's Stories!

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    1. I love our visits too. I just wish it was such a mess around here, there's barely room to walk. And how come I never serve any coffee? or tea? or nachos? Ugh, my hostessing could really improve!

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  5. Lauri, I've been listening to the negative buzz about blogging and wondering if it's worth it. This post has reminded me of all the sweet stuff. (especially if I truly keep it to 1-2 hours per week!) Thanks for the reminders. Have a great week.

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    1. You will feel rewarded as long as you put in the right amount for the value you get out of it.

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  6. Thanks for this reminder, Lauri! Lately, I've been feeling bogged down by all this socialization. I think I'm getting too old for all this partying. What keeps me going are the friends I've made online. Maybe one of these days you and I can make a pickle together!

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    1. I would love to make a pickle with you. Then we can work on this new lint craft I found on Pinterest. One of these days maybe we'll run into each other at SCBWI LA or something. Let's pencil it in for 2018?!

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