I often get asked a question about how to tie blog posts in general into a blogged book you might be writing. Whether you are writing a blogged book, a printed book or an e-book, your blog provides a great way to generate interest in that book. Each post offers one more opportunity to drive traffic to your website (or blog), so you you can build more of a platform or fan base or potential readership for your book. When you blog a book, you might occasionally write a general post–especially if you’ve finished the book and are trying to keep the blog alive.
What’s the best strategy? Write only about your blogged book? Or write about all sorts of things that relate to the topic of your blogged book?
If you are blogging a book about, werewolves, for example, you don’t necessarily have to write every post about the werewolves in your particular book. Do, indeed, write about those werewolves. However, you will generate more traffic to your blog–more readers and fans– by writing about everything and anything possible to do with werewolves in general. And by writing about popular werewolf movies and books, for instance, or news of werewolf sightings, or the newest werewolf fashions (or even when to stay home because it’s a full moon), you will draw more readers to your blog.
Things that are in the news always draw more attention to your blog if you mention them. I once mentioned Billy Elliot in my blog, www.mysoncandance.net, and I got thousands of readers for a few days. But don’t forget to also write about your book, too. Keep your readers interested in your blogged book, but become the source…the hub…of everything werewolf. Become the expert on werewolves.
Oh…If you want to be sure you know when the How to Blog a Book printed book is released–and are aware of any pre-release or post release hoohah, be sure to subscribe to this blog using this form:
I haven’t forgotten that I said I’d write about my revision process. Still revising….I’ll write about it next time…promise.
Do You Know What Your Competition is Doing?
How long has it been since you checked out what your competition is doing? Way back when you were in the planning stages of blogging your book, I told you to check out your competition. Doing so would ensure that your blogged book would be unique in the cyber marketplace as well as in the book store. However, you want to continue checking up on your competition from time to time. Bloggers blog, after all, and their blog content may change. Book stores get new books on their shelves.
I mostly want you to be concerned right now with what other bloggers might be doing as you blog your book. Not that I don’t want you to be aware of new books on your topic hitting the market; I do. Because your book is taking shape in cyberspace, though, I want you to be in touch with what is going on in this marketplace. I want you to know what other writers are writing about when it comes to your subject.
First, do this to be sure you are continuing to blog a unique book. Stay up to date on what your fellow bloggers are writing about; this is the most current information on your topic to date. It’s probably current practically up to the moment. Compare their information to yours and to what is in your book. Are you providing something different? Are you coming at the same information from a different angle, with a different perspective or with a different process?
Second, insert yourself into their blogosphere. That’s right. Make yourself known in their world. Comment on their blogs. Email them and ask their opinion on topics you are researching. Ask them for a guest blog post on a topic about which they have more knowledge.
Why would you want to do this? Your comments left on their blogs provide back links to your blogged book. This helps increase your blog’s search engine ranking and helps drive traffic to your blog. Also, when another blogger provides a guest posts, he or she will promote that particular post, which also sends more traffic to your blog. Additionally, all of these steps help you develop relationships with those in your field who may one day be important promotional partners for your printed book.
So, make sure you know what your competition is doing–and create relationships with the competition if possible.
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