Thursdays with Amanda: 10% OFF BLOG DESIGN!
Amanda Luedeke is a literary agent with MacGregor Literary. Every Thursday, she posts about growing your author platform. You can follow her on Twitter @amandaluedeke or join her Facebook group to stay current with her wheelings and dealings as an agent.
This week, for readers of Thursdays with Amanda, we have a SUPER SPECIAL OFFER FROM ELEGANT CUSTOM BLOGS!
Melanie from ElegantCustomBLogs.com has offered a 10% discount on her blog design services to readers of this blog. Just head over to ElegantCustomerBlogs.com and mention Thursdays with Amanda.(Melanie works on the Blogger platform only).
Melanie does a great job, and she even designed the website for an author I represent, Melissa Tagg. When Bethany House offered a 2-book deal to Melissa, they specifically mentioned how impressed they were by her web presences. And Melanie can certainly take some of the credit for that! So go check her out.
Sorry to cut things short today, but I have a conference in DC this weekend and a million deadlines. So I’ll leave you with this thought…
We talk a lot about putting the right content in our blogs…about catering to the reader, and knowing your audience, and flooding it with links and keywords and yada yada yada. But at the end of the day, a great blog VOICE trumps content every single time.
In doing your social media critiques, I’ve found this to be truer than ever. When I come across a great blog voice that draws me in and keeps me reading, I don’t think much about whether they’re connecting with the right audience or whether their topics are appropriate. I forget all that and get lost in the beauty of words.
So while you’re tweaking your content to hit the right reader with the right information that’s searchable and all that stuff, keep voice at the top of your blog’s to-do list. It really is the best way to gain readers.
What do you think about blog voice? How have you adjusted your writing to better fit blogging? What struggles have you faced while learning to write for the web? I want to hear from you!
3 Comments
I only blog about once a week (on each blog) as that’s about as much as I can handle. I have people – even strangers like store clerks who have just learned my name – who say, “I always like what you have to say and how you say it.” That’s encouraging! I know there are times that I just post because I need to get a post out. Sometimes those posts feel more like reports than from my heart. But I’ve found that I can’t be a total unbiased journalist when I post because my voice comes through – I have to get my personal view in somehow…I have to use my voice!
I’ve kept a personal blog for years, but in the last five months I’ve taken primary responsibility for writing the content for a kids’ blog for the organization I work for. I’m not sure I’ve ever had as difficult an assignment! I am trying to stay true to the organization’s voice, while adapting it to be both kid- and web-friendly. How can I make everything short, simple, and engaging? Obviously, I am still learning. And I appreciate your posts as they help me to think through everything just a little bit more.
Melanie just redesigned my blog (based on your awesome feedback, Amanda), and I highly recommend her. She is professional and works hard to make sure your blog reflects you.