Regularly producing useful content for a blog can be a challenge. Should we post lists of suggestions for solving a problem; links to content on another site with accompanying added value comments; personal or local news; maybe an embedded video from a YouTube account; or a guest post from a friend or someone else with similar interests, but a different viewpoint? These are standard suggestions, and all can be used to deliver good quality content.
No matter which form is chosen the initial posts usually go fairly well, propelled by enthusiasm and the spirit of new adventure. But the problems arise when settling into a regular pattern of posting. It’s then that the writing can feel like heavy lifting. This is even truer when there’s a personal commitment to posting so many times a week. Even relatively simple link posts to third party content must be carefully considered as this linked content must not only be nourishing, but wholly relevant to the host blog’s niche topic. Maintaining a high quality posting standard is more important to meeting reader expectation than the quantity of posts produced.
So what can we do to lighten the load? The first thing to do is to back off on the pressure. Relax. The universe isn’t going to implode if a self-imposed posting schedule isn’t met. I know it’s often stated that regular post submissions are a must for maintaining reader interest, or the audience will go elsewhere. I’m not so sure about that, and it doesn’t matter too much if you’re writing for yourself. Of course you should post with some regularity, or the site will appear abandoned when new visitors stop by. But blogs can be subscribed to through either RSS feed readers, or email subscription, so it’s rarely necessary to visit the actual blog site after an initial viewing. When a new post rolls through the feed, great; it gets read!
So, how do we reduce the sometimes-suffocating pressure to produce? Writing teacher Natalie Goldberg suggests in one of her essays* that we start by writing simply. Use simple words, simple ideas; be awkward; let the ideas out on their own terms. Writing is hard enough without the added burden of overly high expectation before the fist few words have been written. And yes, there are times when you have to wrestle wild thoughts and ideas to the ground. But we’re more likely to find our target if we start out in a low gear and then ramp up the effort, building an enthusiastic head of steam for a subject. Do that, and your posts will write themselves.
* Writing Down the Bones, Natalie Goldberg, p36, Writing is Not A McDonald’s Hamburger
