To Blog, Blahg, or Blargh

The Blog. One of the greatest literary inventions of the...

Wait, which century did blogs start in, anyway?

Ah well. So much for waxing hyperbolic. But I've been thinking a lot about blogs lately, triggered in part by my visit with my publisher last month. One of the things that everyone (from marketing to the President of Harper Children's) brought up was my blog.

They loved it.

Which kind of made me giggle, since most of the time my blog borders on ridiculous. But, believe it or not, there is method to my madness. I've got a plan. I've got a focus. And my blog reflects that. However, before I go into the Wonder that is my Blog (oh, crap, Carrie's blog is the Wonder...gotta come up with another ridiculously inaccurate title), I thought I'd spotlight three types of blogs.

TeenBlogger, my favorite girly magazine, complete with perfume samples and free background templates, recently published the following quiz:

What's Your Bloggy Style?

1. Most of your posts
a) ramble about friends, what you did with them, and what you ate for lunch
b) rage against the injustices of [school, work, the publishing industry, etc.]
c) read like a fun, short essay--there's a point, and every paragraph supports it

2. If a stranger were to read your blog, they would
a) quickly grow tired of references to people and things they don't know about
b) either agree passionately with you (YES! [insert thing here] IS THE WORST THING EVER) or be turned off by your aggressiveness
c) be able to follow along and enjoy that day's post without any background reading

3. Your blog features
a) backgrounds so busy with patterns and butterflies and flowers it makes readers a bit dizzy
b) paragraphs so long they're like a big, black stain on the page, bludgeoning your readers
c) regular posts with fairly consistent tone and topic

Okay, TeenBloggers, are you ready to find out your bloggy style? Just count up your answers!

Mostly a: Congratulations, you have a Blahg! As in, blah, blah, blah. This isn't a bad thing, though! As long as your target audience is friends and family, they'll enjoy your personal ramblings and love your funny photos. Blahgs are a great way to practice storytelling and save time emailing everyone your latest funny tale.

Mostly b: Congratulations, you have a Blargh! As in, ARGH! I AM SO INTO RAGING ON THE INTERNET! Blarghs are both cathartic and fun, giving you an arena to vent your frustrations. Although the comments can be both satisfying and enraging, that's kind of the point of a Blargh. However, Blarghs may come back to bite you in your cute little butt should you rage on something you maybe sort of shouldn't have and the wrong person reads it. Still, it's your Argh. Own it, baby.

Mostly c: Congratulations, you have a Blog! Regardless of your particular "theme," your blog is focused, easily read, and has broad appeal. You may not be able to tell endless stories of what your adorable Puddlekins, hamster extraordinare, did the other day, but you'll probably attract a loyal following and have a professional blog to boot.

Whew. Thanks, TeenBlogger, for yet another scintillating look at blogging today!

So, what did you get? And, umm, you do know I'm being facetious, right? Right. The point of this is, if you have a blog you are hoping to use as a sort of platform, good for you! Publishers like that. They really, really do. But...and here's the but...it means you may have to give up blahging and blarghing.

You might not think it matters right now if you are unagented/unpublished. But you never know who will find your blog, or when they'll look. Say, for example, you write a parody screenplay for a Teen Drama. Just for fun, of course. Imagine your embarrassment when an actual television producer looks you up and reads it!

Not that, uh, I have any experience with that.

But really, you never know who will read what on your blog. I can't imagine how devastating it would be to have an editor considering your book, only to visit your blog and see you ripping into one of the books they edited. Guess how much they're going to like you then? And trust me, editors and agents do read blogs. Maybe not every day (Hi, Michelle and Erica! What's up? I adore you both), but they'll look you up.

So, I give you my personal tips for creating a blog that is not only fun to write (because if you aren't having fun, why are you blogging?), but will be a bonus when, in the glorious and hopefully not-too-distant future, you get a book deal.

1. Focus. What is your blog about? It doesn't have to be about writing (mine usually isn't), as long as it has a general focus. Not every single post has to be under that focus, but in general, does your blog have a theme and a voice? It is writing, after all, and the same rules apply.

2. Personality. What is the tone of your blog? I've gotten a lot of comments (and trust me, each and every one makes my heart burn with the heat of a million extremely grateful and humble suns) that basically say the person is excited to read Paranormalcy because they enjoy my blog.

While I don't go into personal specifics that I think most people wouldn't be interested in (for example, my baby sister's upcoming wedding, or my son's design for a car that includes "a machine that will grab people and give them butterfly stamps"), I am personal. If you feel like you know me by reading my blog, you do. And I'm glad you feel that way. Because I like you, too! (Seriously. Being a stay-at-home mom is kind of a lonely business, and I'm so glad people are willing to interact with me here.)

Do be careful what you put on your blog. Things that are too personal can be a bit overwhelming. I know, I know, this coming from the woman who put a cartoon illustration of her internal reproductive organs in a post. (No, I'm not going to link to it.) But there is method to my madness, and I promise I do carefully consider what I put up and what I don't.

3. Writing. And this is probably the most important of all. Regardless of what topics you post on, blogging is still writing, and you should be careful what writing you are showing the world. Proof-read. Write as clearly and concisely as possible (Kiersten says, knowing full well this post is verging on ridiculously long already). There's never an excuse for sloppy writing, because even if no one is reading your blog now, that doesn't mean they won't be soon. Plus, blogs are great practice.

4. Consistency. Whether you blog once a day or once a week, be regular. If you don't blog regularly, people will stop checking.

Hopefully this is helpful. Because sitting around that table with fifteen publishing professionals, I was really glad that my blog was something they saw as beneficial rather than detrimental.

After all, I'm having fun, and hopefully my readers are, too.

(Okay, you are all now excused to search my archives for that cartoon.)