Know-How Exchange : Website Critique

A blog is a kind of online diary, or journal that you share with others and (typically) accept comments ... so it becomes interactive.

There are several blog sites that will host your blog free, and they have pretty good tools for adding images, editing, formatting, etc., so you can be as creative and distinctive as you want. One of the more popular ones is Wordpress (www.wordpress.com). There are certainly others.

Now about your book: I am skeptical that a blog will really help you write a book. It depends on what problem you're trying to solve. If you don't have the persistence to write a book (of, say, 50,000 words), why will you have the persistence to write 50,000 words on your blog? What's the difference?

That said, it can't hurt to try. Good luck.

Some background articles:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blog
https://technorati.com/help/blogging101.html

Perhaps one advantage to you would be your work-in-progress would be seen by the whole Internet, and you can get feedback as-you-go. If your book is interesting, then you'll have created an audience who'll recommend your book and have testimonials in-hand. But be warned - most people who blog have an audience of just one or two people - there are so many people blogging that are competing for eyeballs.

If you're just starting out in blogging, it makes sense to use a service that will syndicate your content. Wordpress.com, Blogger.com, and Typepad.com are three sites that will do that. You can sign up with them, and they will give you the software and tutorials or help files to get started.

If it were me, and writing a book was my goal, I would NOT put it on a blog unless I had a great legal team and could afford that legal team, because you are just asking for someone to rip it off. International copyright laws are weak and hard to enforce. A book as a by-product of your blog, or a blog about an already published book would be a different story, but I just wouldn't do it. Nope nope nope.

Write your notes, keep your files to yourself and keep plugging along. Writing your first book is kind of like being a stay-at-home mom. You don't really get to see the fruit of your labor for a long, long time, but it's really worth it to do it the right way, and sometimes you feel under-appreciated by your family and especially society, but you know the end result will bring more joy and fruit than you could ever possibly imagine.

Just my two cents, anyway.

Good luck!

Jennifer P.
XPRT Creative.

Jennifer has a good point. On the flip side if you need some motiviation and it will not get done unless you blog do it. Blogging is quite easy. As mentioned earlier you can visit www.wordpress.com or www.blogger.com to get started easily. If you want to have your "own" blog with total control get a web hosting account and install wordpress. This is very easy to due at www.bluehost.com and costs only $8.00 per month. When you do this you have total control over everything, but you have to do more work setting it up.

If you blog be sure to include a copyright statment on every page. You should be able to do this in the template.

Mike