12 comments

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  L.L. Barkat

  1 year ago

  Go, Marcus. You're my blog hero.
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  Randy Ingermanson

  1 year ago

  Well said, Marcus! A blog does not need to be a marketing tool in order to be worthwhile for a novelist. You can blog for any reason you want.
  
  The series I'm doing now is of course for those novelists who want to use it as a marketing tool. I think this is possible, because a blog can be a great marketing tool for nonfiction, but I don't yet have a blog for my own novels. I will in time, when the time is right. And I'll know what my goals are.
  
  The problem I see is that a lot of publishers tell their novelists--"Go start a blog! It'll really bump up your sales!" LOL, that won't happen automatically.
  
  See ya at Mount Hermon!
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  spaghettipie

  1 year ago

  *applause* Nicely put.
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  Heather

  1 year ago

  Amen!
  I had this conversation with a some people a few months ago. They were talking about setting up their own blog and stressed about "the brand."
  Don't stress! I said. It's about community. Blogs are friends chatting.
  One of the girls said it is about brand. She only reads blogs about certain things.
  But she also reads those blogs like you would a newspaper. She doesn't interact either through comments or her own blog.
  Here's what I think about branding in general, whether as a writer, a product, or a blog (and, you know, I am the expert and all): it's a lot like a writer's voice.
  It's who you are, what you're passionate about.
  At least, that's how I think about it so that I can stop stressing about it.
  My "brand" will leak through, whether I'm talking anthropology, musicology, or washing machines.
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  Robert Treskillard

  1 year ago

  Thanks, Marcus, this is good advice. It's the reason I felt comfortable giving the details on my water-well problems on my blog, even though it had nothing whatsoever to do with writing fiction.
  
  In fact, even the "well pipe parts list" that I posted about has had a lot of readers. And the neat thing is that I was able to share truth in the process. I've had a few people learn about the "Water of Life" when all they were searching for was "endopure pipe stiffeners". So if my blog blips into bits and is never heard from again, and if my book doesn't even sell one copy, the chance to share things like that make it all worthwhile.
  
  And meeting people is nice, too!
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• 

  Camille

  1 year ago

  That's a relief. You mean, I can blog just to blab? I can meet people just for fun? I don't have to shamelessly bait unsuspecting readers like notches in my marketing headboard? What a load off, and what fun we could have just talking! But on the other hand, that means I have to be really, really interesting.
  
  I only have time to read a small handful of blogs regularly (yes, fiction writing IS social. Randy's blog is pure par-tee. Some of us get all tingly from learning something new) . So I choose blogs of utmost interest to me.
  
  If I had a choice, I wouldn't read my blog. Hmmm.
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  Sally Ferguson

  1 year ago

  Heather said it well, when she affirmed that our voice would shine thru. I am learning about the "sound" of my voice as I blog. I am learning to interact with people more, and I am learning from other bloggers.
  Keep up the good work, Marcus!
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  Eve

  1 year ago

  I'm glad it's primarily community. I'd hate to have someone sell me on something at every blog I stop at.
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• 

  Marcus

  1 year ago

  L.L., you are such a nice person. I am really looking forward to presenting with you at Mt. Hermon. Thank you for asking me! In fact, you were the first person I met through blogs.
  
  Randy, you are quite the gentleman to stop by here. And you sum up the problem well in your comment. Publishers are part of the problem when they tell writers to start a blog as if it is a magical cure-all for sales. I hope we can chat about fiction blogs in March. I'm thinking devices like the Kindle will open up that market. We'll see.
  
  spaghettipie, thank you, ma'am!
  
  Heather, you got it right. "Blogs are friends chatting." At least that is the most powerful effect of blogs. I also like your insight that people who read blogs as brands don't interact with them as much. Problogger and Copyblogger are case in point for me on that issue. I never comment there.
  
  Robert, people like you are a good reminder of why I blog at all. How would we have ever met if not for the CSFF group?
  
  Camille, thanks for coming over! I love the vivid imagery. It comes down to confidence for me. I don't try to sell anything here--unless I do it naturally the way I might tell a friend about one of my favorite movies. But otherwise, I try not to manipulate readers to do anything--unless I tell them upfront that I'm manipulating them just to see what would happen. Also, I wouldn't sell your own blog short. The first chapter posting struck me as particularly brave. I hope to take a closer peek at that later.
  
  Sally, ditto on the comment to L.L. and Robert. We met via blogging. How cool is that? And you are absolutely right about voice. Because blogging provides such quick feedback, it is easier to learn what works and what doesn't. Even crickets in the comment section tells you something.
  
  Eve, alas the vast majority of the millions of blogs out there exist solely to sell stuff. Thankfully, a huge chunk of them are automated and easily spotted from afar.
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• 

  real live preacher

  1 year ago

  Amen dude. There is a ironic truth that applies in much of cyberspace. Whatever you're trying to do you probably won't be able to do. You'll be too late to the game. Instead, just write! Write write write write write. Let your words speak or not speak. If you're a serious writer or blogger, you probably won't have time to do very much branding work.
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  Ann Voskamp @Holy Experience

  1 year ago

  These are things I wonder about. Much, lately.
  Which makes me think of Jesus who served in out of the way places, like Nazareth.
  I wonder: Doesn't God give platforms to the humble?
  Prompting other lips to praise?
  If He gives the words to write, oh, to be faithful to that.
  I wonder what it would look like if we took up the Jesus brand: Authentic Love. Relationship. Humility.
  
  Thank you, Marcus, for a place to think on these things.
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  Gina

  1 year ago

  Well said, Marcus, now all you have to do is tighten it up, draft it for your week at WI and save me the trouble of reminding you when your turn is up! :)
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