“Pleasure in the job puts perfection in the work.” — Aristotle There’s a myth about Michelangelo working on the Sistine Chapel. One day, someone was watching Michelangelo spend an insane amount of time laboring over a small, hidden corner of the chapel’s ceiling. Surprised by Michelangelo’s persistence to make that obscure corner as perfect as possible, […]
Haruki Murakami is one of the most celebrated authors of our time. He is also a man of tremendous focus and discipline. He wakes up at 4 a.m. and writes for 5 or so hours. Every single day. Kurt Vonnegut would wake up at 5:30 a.m. work until 8 a.m., eat breakfast, and then work […]
A short essay about falling in and out of love with your muse. CLICK HERE TO READ I can tell you only that when you find this muse, every civilized instinct in your soul will disappear. You’ll suddenly feel this itch, impulsive as hell, a complete disregard for rules or consequences. Work without mercy. Forget […]
In 2009, during an interview, radio host Ira Glass shared rare insights into what it means to be a creative. The kind of insights that are just at the edge of our mind’s peripheral vision, he managed to pull into focus an often overlooked element about the act of creation. What drives us to create […]
I only ever experienced real writer’s block once in my life. An article about pain and writing, about the things that break one’s heart and makes it impossible to turn them into words. CLICK HERE TO READ
Hey guys,
What made you want to start blogging? What was your very first blog post about?
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The need to build a platform as a blogger.
My first post? Something about it being my first post, and who I was, and that was it.
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Thanks for offering to help. I am a new blogger. How do I convert my likes into comments?
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1. Write more engaging content. Emotionally speaking. Make your readers feel.
2. Ask questions at the end of your posts. Relevant questions.
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Thanks so much for the advice. Following it right away 🙂
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If you had a time machine that allowed you to talk to your younger self just as you started blogging, what would be your top three points of advice?
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1. Never stop learning.
2. Try to branch out as soon as possible.
3. Focus more on content and less on promotion/networking.
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I like Pareto’s principle: the idea that about 80% of your results come from only about 20% of your efforts. In terms of growing your audience, what are the Pareto principle actions that gives a blogger the best return for the time invested?
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Focus on the quality of your interactions, not the quantity. Don’t comment “nice post” on hundreds of blogs, but offer thoughtful and interesting comments on a few dozen posts.
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Cristian, can you please tell me on what should I focus on – Blogging or Studies? I’m a student of Grade 10.
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Both.
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Thank you bro!
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You always use strong images in your posts. How/where do you find these?
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Unsplash.com
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At what point did you realized you need to monetize your page
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Well, I started monetizing early in my blogging career. Six months in, something like that. I was doing just that, as blogging was taking almost all of my time, so I HAD to monetize.
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wow,thank you for the information
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Hey Cristian,
First of all, thank you for doing this. I am overwhelmed with all the information the internet provides for new bloggers. And I am sure so many of us are. So, this should be helpful.
I have just started about a couple of months ago and I am taking it slow. I was getting some visitors initially, however, my last 3 posts have literally zero visits. This seems unusual. Could you please suggest how new bloggers can get some traction in the beginning?
Also, how important are tags? I thought they were getting me visits initially, but I am not sure anymore.
thanks in advance,
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Focus on creating great content, and then network with fellow bloggers. Read and comment on other people’s blogs.
Also, tags are extremely important. Never more than 10 tags. Try to make them as general as possible.
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How did you get into blogging? For me it was the idea of helping and making people happier. What was your fuel ?
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Idealistic, but… to change the world. To leave my mark. To share my words and ideas and stories.
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That’s a great goal to achieve x
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Thank you so much.
How do I know if I have a writer in me, if I must continue this route?
In this fast and furious age and time where do writers stand?
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You don’t. You just do your thing. The more you do it, the more you end up loving it. After a while, the love is still there, or it’s not. You will know. But you can only do by doing it.
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When it comes to publishing, what do you think of the online route? In the sense of first publishing on a site like Goodreads.
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Well, online is the way to go, but I wouldn’t put too much faith on Goodreads. Try Amazon’s KDP. That’s where I release all my novels and short stories.
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Thank you for the advice!
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How many followers do you need until your site monetization is actually profitable?
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It’s not about followers, it’s about what you are selling, and how much your readers trust you.
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What do consider a successful blog? Is it a numbers game or a less tangible marker?
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It’s more about engagement levels, how much your readers trust you, how much you enjoy writing about the topics you blog about, stuff like that.
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Hi Cristian, I was wondering what a blogger needs to do to monetize their blog in terms of set up. I read that you have to set up your own company and do your own taxes? How does that all work and where does one start? I am thinking about monetizing my blog in the future, but am a bit scared to take that next step as I do not know where to start.
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I am not based in the US, so I cannot offer you advice on setting up a company and all that. I am sorry for such an useless answer, but there are surely better resources out there, especially from someone who lives in the US and pays taxes there.
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Haha, I am based in the UK. Does that help? 🙂
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I know even less about UK tax laws and such, so I am even more useless.
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Fair enough. It was worth a try 😉
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My question is about word count. What is the ideal length of a blog post to keep readers engaged? (I know that if a post is too long then it’s called an essay or an article.)
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Hi Darlene,
It’s not about word count, it’s about how engaging your writing is. Also, it’s about the way you format your posts (subheads, bullet points, etc.). Paragraph length also matters.
These factors matter more than just word count.
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Thank you, Cristian.
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First, thank you so much for offering your help, I really appreciate you doing something like this! 😄
Second, here’s my question: Other than commenting on other people’s posts, and using tags, what are some other ways that can get my blog really out there, and make people want to follow it?
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Hi Mary,
Lots of things. You can promote your blog offline to folks you meet, you can use social media, you can pay for ads, you can interact at conferences/meetings, you can guest blog on other people’s blogs, be interviewed, or work on different projects with others.
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Ooh, these are some great ideas, thank you, I’ll be trying them out whenever I can! 😄
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Hey Cristian! Thank you for all your mentoring posts on this platform
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My pleasure, Ernest. I am glad you enjoy reading my content.
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What are your Goals in blogging overall?.
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To reach as many people as possible.
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I am writing poetry in my blog and i want to know am i protected by any copyright laws once i post it privately . Not interested in followers at the moment .thanks Jj nathan
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Copyright law protects intellectual property from the moment you create something.
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What do you think of the different WordPress plans? Which plans create the most bang for your buck and why? Thanks!
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I’d say the Premium one. I had the Business, but asked for a refund. The plugins integration didn’t feel right, and it just wasn’t worth the investment.
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Thanks so much!
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