PURPOSE: The most obvious purpose of writing a blog is to write to an audience. I don’t mean that you are going to conform your writing to a specific audience. I mean that even if you have an audience of of only one, that audience is the primary focus of your blogging. What information you want to share needs to be adapted to that particular audience, to keep them returning to your blog, interacting with your blog and recommending your blog to others.

ADDITIONAL REASONS: Businesses use blogs for promotion of their services and products. They present useful information, free resources, related links, educational events and other related events that will continue to draw their potential customers back to become actual customers. Personal blogs can cover any theme, as determined by the author. You can use any of the styles mentioned in part one or create a unique combination blog of your own. Online blogs give you a little more room to explore the visual aspect of blogging, because there are so many tools available to you. It’s not necessary to be extremely artistic or creative to set up a blog online. Sites that are very user-friendly and accessible are important selling points to would-be bloggers.

PERSONAL EXPRESSION: How will blogging help my writing? (or other creative discipline) Blogging allows you to ‘let go’ of issues that just won’t go away. The ones that you can’t get out of your mind, when you want to relax. The issues that you may worry about when no one is looking, but can’t seem to solve. ‘Letting go’ of those isssue by writing about them, lifts some of the burden on your mind, boddy and heart. Your body carries the weight of your worry, just as it carries the lightness of your positive thoughts. You will begin to feel some relief once you start blogging regularly. You can record important events. You can also record times of celebration. What’s there to celebrate? Anything good. Anything that you consider positive and helpful. A work success. A new relationship. A great book. Anything goes. Well, use some discretion with some subjects, remember that your words go online quickly when you blog. You can’t take them back once you’ve finished editing your entries. For those of you who have privacy concerns, you can find a blogging site that allows you to use password protection. You can protect your writing from anyone or just from people you don’t know. Remember to check the FAQ of a site for use of password protection before you sign up. Also, if you are not too comfortable with using HTML and similar skills, then make sure to find a blogging site that fits your skill level. When I was looking for a blogging site for this blog. I accidentally signed up with one, that turned out to be very challenging for me to use. I didn’t realize it until I returned to look at it the next day. I didn’t want to have to worry about using my HTML skills to post. I wanted a blog that would basically do the work for me. I knew I would be writing frequently and sharing lots of information, so finding a simple format was essential for me. I’m also on the impatient side, though I have some basic HTML skills, I didn’t want that to be my sole concern when I posted my entries. I wanted room, space and time to post helpful information without worrying about formatting it.

I will leave you with two blogging sites that I’ve used in the past:
Diaryland.com this is a perfect site for a new blogger to use. There are variety of people who blog here, both old and new. Bloggers use a variety of techniques. You can upgrade your membership anytime to use more of the advanced services. However, the free membership should provide you with enough tools to start your blog.

Word Press Word Press is a more advanced blog. It requires a software download to your computer. It also restricts non-Word Press people from signing up to read your blog. I don’t read these types of blogs much, because I really like being able to receive updates in my email. Feedblitz
is a service that provides some bloggers with email updates. I prefer to receive updates by email, because I am interested in many types of blogs. Word Press offers a great service, but personally, I prefer not to add more software to my computer and not to complicate the posting process too much, even though Word Press provides a great variety of tools and flexibility.

Several social networking sites now offer spaces to blog. It’s one of the reasons that people join them. Your free membership usually includes some space in your profile for setting up and using a blog. Some of the more popular ones are DirectMatches.com and Powerful Intentions. If this is of interest to you, then take some time to surf other social networking sites for those that include blogs are part of their membership. I think that you will be pleasantly surprised at what you discover.

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HUMOR RESOURCE: November 8, 2006

24 Hour Comics.com

This site looked interesting when I found it on one of my surfing adventures. I have yet to check it out thoroughly. I hope that you’ll enjoy it.

“The most all-around, practical, long-wearing illusions are the ones that you weave yourself.”
Peg Bracken

(Continuing on Friday, Part 3)

 

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