Doing It By The Numbers

Hands up who enjoys interacting and chatting, debating and dueling and all the fun activities you discover when you join the blogging world. [pause for a hand count] Ok those of you with your hands down I think that if you’re like me you started this as a venture to talk about things you were interested in, explore writing in various forms and to connect with others who enjoy the same things.  I love writing and always have but I have fallen hopelessly head over heals in love with blogging.  It’s crack baby – that rush when someone responds for the first time to a post, that OMG moment when you see [cue heavenly choir] you have ‘A Follower’ all of it is an affirmation that your work has value and interest to at least one other person.

There has been a lot of debate about blogging for ‘Purity of Purpose‘ and ‘Power Blogging‘ but I think there is another path that in the rush to pick a team some may have overlooked.  It’s ‘Doing it by the Numbers‘, and this is for those who fall into that well-known void of ‘middle ground’ [not to be mistaken for Middle Earth]. Writing is what I do and what I love but strip all pretense at ‘Art’ aside a writer is nothing without readers.  You don’t have to give up what it is that brought you to blogging to increase your numbers and audience.  What you can do is increase the number of people whose lives you can touch and whose live can touch yours. Writing in a protected ‘sacred‘ bubble is wonderful if you don’t like risks but if like me you’ve lived quietly too long and now wish to push the boundaries you may wish to look around for those who understand quantity of followers does not reduce the quality of work.

Harsh Reality was one of the first blogs I came across when I started this little foray into the unknown and for all the snark and snipe [hands up who finds it fun anyway] it is a model of what can be achieved through time and dedication to speak to and reach as many people as you can with your work.  OM has been working with me for the past 48 hours to teach me some of the ropes as well as some VERY useful tips regarding formatting and how to make the most of the WP.

The new look is courtesy of his suggestions as is the sudden increase in the number of people who have been coming to visit. Now here is the important thing – you can get them to come once but it is your work, your content and your ideas that will encourage them to stay.  I would never suggest changing what it is you do or feel strongly about, I certainly haven’t but what I can suggest is that you consider what it is you could achieve with a larger following.  Surprisingly for me it wasn’t the number of followers that interested me the most at the end of the day it was their response to my work and to my blog. I’ve had more comments and repeat visitors in the last 2 days than in the 2 months since I started this.

It was OM’s model that got them here but it was my work that got them to stay.  If you want to chat with him you can follow this link to his post on Harsh Reality or contact him by email: aopinionatedman@gmail.com and ask him to come and have a look at your site and see what he suggests. It’s worth the investment if you have faith in your own talent and belief in your blog.