DRAGONS DISCUSS: BLOGGING DO’S AND DONT’S

Hullo! Your fiercest bookdragons are here for another Dragons Discuss post. This is the second post for our series and if you want to read the first post, head over to Clo’s blog and roar to the skies if you’re part of the bookdragon movement too.

To those smol beans who are still confused:

What is Dragons Discuss? 

Dragons Discuss is a blog series formed by two bookdragons drawn together by fate and the Internet. These bookdragons in question are Rain and Clo. They both believe that book lovers deserve to be called “bookdragons” instead of “bookworms” and are possibly planning to take the world by fire and storm. 

Dragons Discuss was launched last August 27 on Clo’s blog.  This series aims to entertain and give wisdom to humans and bookdragons alike. Posts will be alternately published between Clo’s and Rain’s blogs. 

Look out for their posts or risk being turned into ashes 😈

Just kidding. 

 

Well thank you for that information, ominous third-person narrator. For our second post, Clo and I are going to share some blogging wisdom that will feed your last two brain cells. Clo’s been blogging longer than I have but I have learned a lot of things in my 4 months of blogging.

*Words of wisdom in this color are from Rain

*Words of wisdom in this color are from Clo

Here are some blogging do’s and dont’s that may or may not help you rule the world:

DO’S

1. Lists are the keys to success

I love lists because they’re easier to read. Pure paragraphs just make my head ache because I have a short attention span. Lists also make your post more organized plus they’re more fun to write! Take it from me. My blogposts are 90% lists and I regret nothing.

2. Blog Hop

Being interactive is great on social media, like Twitter and Instagram (bookstagram) but you need to blog hop too, without that, you’ll probably suffer in silence and not find the rest of community. Which would be sad cause we’re a great community, we’ll support you, join in on your fangirling but we can’t do if we don’t know you exist.

3. It’s okay to use an informal tone

Your blog isn’t an essay you need to pass to your temperamental English teacher. Be your quirky, fun, and dragon-loving self! People will remember you more if your posts make them laugh or smile. Keep your tone light. This will make it easier for your readers to interact with you. 

4. Stick to your niche

By this I mean if you’re book blogger don’t post a ton of posts talking about lifestyle unless you’ve made it clear somewhere you’re both a book and lifestyle blogger. I post about books, writing and I also have a series of posts which allow me to discuss topics which may not link to books, blogging and writing.

5. Keep your blog informative

Every blogger should remember that their blog is for their readers too. Don’t just write about yourself. Write for your readers. Give them tips, recommendations and advices that will take them one step closer to conquering the world. 

Blogging becomes really fulfilling if you can impart bits and pieces of wisdom to the people who take the time to read your content. 

6.  Post length doesn’t matter

No seriously, some posts can be short others can be long, don’t worry about the word count. A lot of my posts sit around the 1.2k word count, which is ok, but it’s your blog. As long as you write content you’re doing great 😊

7. Post regularly

I already pointed this out on my previous post but I’ll say it again: MAKE YOURSELF KNOWN. People will easily forget you if you post just when the blood moon is out. Posting regularly can be difficult if you’re busy with other things in life but alloting even 15 minutes to blogging can work wonders. 

Write posts whenever you can. Don’t ignore your blog. Do the necessary rituals. Summon the right monsters. You’ll be fine. 

8. Experiment!

Starting out your blogging journey is daunting, we’ve all been there, all had blogs which were…well pretty messy to look at. You’ll only know how you want your blog to look through experimenting.

9. Keep the faith.

Blogging can be disheartening especially of your stats are getting lower but as long as there is one person out there who reads your posts, keep blogging for them. If people can see your passion for blogging, they will realize that you’re worth following. 

Being discouraged is entirely normal but DO NOT GIVE UP. That’s what dragons do. We spread our wings and roar even if there are circumstances that will attempt to put out the fire inside us. 

(I’M GETTING GOOD AT MOTIVATION GUYS. WHERE’S MY CHOCOLATE?)

10. Ask for help

If there’s something you’re not sure of, ask a fellow book blogger/blogger we’re always happy to help and may not get back to right away, but when we see it we’ll do our best to help you out.

DONT’S

1. Don’t comment for the sake of it.

We all love getting comments and we all like returning the favour. Sometimes though we just don’t have anything to add, which is ok, so unless you have something to add don’t feel obliged to comment. Like the post instead or share it on social media.

2. Don’t steal content. 

It’s okay to draw inspiration from other bloggers but give them the credit they deserve. Stealing content is highly inappropriate and will earn you a one-way trip to Azkaban. 100% will not recommend the experience. 

3. Don’t tag authors in negative reviews.

*this tip is for book bloggers

I can’t stress this enough. Authors don’t want to see negative reviews ok, if it’s say 4 stars + then sure go for it or maybe just tweet them saying how much you loved their book. Tagging them in a negative review is just a huge NO-NO.

4. Don’t ignore spam comments. 

Yes there are tons of nonsensical comments in your spam folder but once in a while, a proper comment actually gets lost there. I don’t know why but you should check on your spam folder regularly because you might find a hidden gem or two. That has happened a lot of times already. Who knows? Maybe you can find one proper comment among all the gibberish that can make your day brighter. 

5.  Don’t post a ton of reviews.

*another tip for book bloggers

I know you’re probably thinking, ‘but what else is there to post?’ The thing with book reviews is, they tend to receive the lowest amount of traffic. Spread out the reviews and pop in a few tags, a discussion post shake it up a bit. You’ll get more traffic that way (hopefully)

6. Don’t see other bloggers as competition.

There are tons of bloggers out there who receive better engagement that you do but you should not see them as competition. Instead, see them as inspiration. Envy is toxic and you should push it out of your system before it’s too late. LET’S KEEP THIS COMMUNITY NON-TOXIC, FOLKS THANK YOU VERY MUCH. 

You can even approach more successful bloggers and ask them to give you some tips on how to make your blog grow. Don’t be afraid of seeking for advice. The people who make up the blogging community are supportive.

7. Don’t post spoilers.

*important tip for book bloggers!

This is a pretty obvious one but in reviews and comments, make sure you warn people of spoilers. Not everyone will take kindly to reading a post or casually going through the comments, to see a spoiler.

8. Don’t be ashamed to share your content everywhere.

Your blogposts are your smol children and they deserve all the attention they can get! It’s completely fine to share your posts multiple times on your various social media accounts. If the people who follow you aren’t comfortable with that, they’re not worth keeping. 

Sharing and promoting posts can increase traffic and will help you to interact with more bloggers on the Internet. If you have a small follower count, don’t fear. The blogging community is vast. We’ll find you anywhere 😉

9. Don’t use graphics/pictures if you don’t know they’re available for free.

Copyright folks, it’s a pain but there are a ton of sites around that offer free graphics, pictures if you’re not artistic enough to draw your own. Don’t lift stuff from google images, please don’t because you could be in breach of copyright and that’s a headache. If you’re unsure on where to go ask someone.

*Pexels is a site that offers free photos

10. Don’t procrastinate. 

LOOK WE AIM TO MAKE THE IMPOSSIBLE POSSIBLE HERE OKAY??? I know this is as difficult as flying without wings or defeating that evil wizard who vows to destroy the world but it is undeniable that procrastination is a huge hindrance to making your blog more successful. Trust me on this. I’m the queen of procrastination who spends 70% of her free time on Twitter. 

It’s going to be difficult but at least try to make an effort to say goodbye to procrastination even if it says hi to your face every 10 seconds. WE CAN DO THIS. 

Hmm maybe I should just spend 68% of my free time on Twitter instead. This is me actually trying to make an effort. I deserve chocolates for this. 

AAAAND THAT’S IT! I hope you learned something from this post. Your resident bookdragons will be back next month so stay tuned for the next Dragons Discuss post! Next post will be up next month on Clo’s blog.

Have you learned something from this post? What tip did you like the most? Do you have additional blogging do’s and dont’s? Leave them in the comment section!