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1. It’s OK to spend the time blogging, even if you aren’t sure how many people are reading. Blogging replaces my personal journal. It teaches focus, titling, brevity and hooks. How can you argue with something that helps you record your life and thoughts at the same time that you practice writing?
2. But beware wasting time.
3. Be concise. With so many blogs out there, you have a lot of competition. Besides, you owe it to your readership not to waste their time wandering. Get to the point and get done.
4. Make it meaningful. I’m always astonished by how much fluff is out there—and by how many hits it gets—but for me, substance is key.
5. Make it count. Carnivals/memes are great for networking and exposure, but don’t waste your time and your readers’ by simply joining them without something substantive to offer your faithful readers. Find a way to make those entries serve two purposes. For example, this week I wrote my Tuesday post to combine a photo carnival and two “wordful” ones. I came up with this rule when I realized I was joining four or five carnivals a week, and I was writing to the carnivals instead of saying what was given to me to say.
That said, this post probably does not serve most of my faithful readers, for which I apologize. I promise something more substantive tomorrow. After all, yesterday was Julianna’s first day of school. What more poignant motherhood moment is there than that?
Kathleen M. Basi 
I think your tips are fantastic and I totally agree! I know that most of my carnival post also were directed right at that carnival and while it brought over readers it jut was too much of carnivals and too little me!! Wonderful tip!
These are great tips – and some really resonated with me. I will have to print them and put them on an index card. Following them will help me make my blog better, and, will also help me keep that balance I so need to find! Thank you and have a blessed day! 🙂
Great tips and food for thought. thanks!
Good tips!!…I can’t stand when some bloggers have to write SUPER LOOOONG posts EVERY time they post. There is a blog I go to occasionally, every post is EXTREMELY LONG, she is constantly harping to her readers about how they need to do “this” to follow her and do “this” so she can reply to them blah blah blah…she does this at the beginning of most ever post, or she posts a few times a month about the trouble she has with followers/subscribers and how people wont make their names clickable….blah blah……..
and on top of all of that her blog AND her posts are VERY cluttered……….
just a mess!
And you visit her…why? LOL
#5 is a great idea…I hadn’t thought about trying to cover multiple carnivals at once.
And being concise. Um…I have to edit myself ruthlessly to be concise. And even then….LOL. But I do try to keep the posts only helpful and interesting.