Wednesday, April 9, 2008

Picking up the Pace?

Back on February 4 I reached the 100-post milestone. In that post I sort of challenged myself to keep up the 1-post-per-day pace I had been on so I could reach 200 posts in my first year of blogging. Needless to say, I haven't kept up that pace.

This is my 146th post, which means I have to post 54 times in the next 35 days, or about 1.5 times a day, to reach 200 by May 15.

Why is this goal worth worrying about? I've got a few answeres to that question:

1. The more I blog, the more I process things internally. I don't usually just post something without thinking through it first. I believe that's a good thing.

2. The more I blog, the more creative I become. I'm not sure why, but it seems to be playing out that way.

3. The more I blog, the more I talk to my wife. That may sound silly, but if you've been married more than a year, you know the conversation can become quite dull or even nonexistent at times - especially if you've got kids. But when I blog, I like to share what I'm writing about with my wife since she doesn't spend very much time online.

So, how do I pick up the pace and start posting more than once a day? I've been trying to study frequent bloggers like Rob and Derry to see how they do it.

It seems like Rob relies heavily on series - such as Funny Picture Friday, Chazown '08 and his daily Bible reading. Derry definitely dabbles in series, but most of his posts come out of significant moments - whether it's something he sees on TV, at a movie or on the street. Both of these guys provide a good mix of profound and fluff - which is good because too much of either would make their blogs tiresome.

I'm going to try to implement their techniques over the next 35 days and see if it helps me reach my goal. So, stay tuned!

One last thing - here's a couple series ideas I'm thinking about:
1. Ways to get Derry to link to my blog
2. Ways to get Rob to link to my blog
3. 2-for-1: Two separate posts on the same topic (just kidding)
4. Vacation planning
5. Princess Diaries: Hanah's thoughts on life
6. Buzz cuts: Things I do with my son
7. Bucket list: Things I want to do before I die

Let me know which of these seems most intriguing to you.

2 comments:

Rob said...

I agree totally about blogging and processing...it's why I do my daily bible reading feature...it makes me not just read it, but apply it.

I also agree with feeling more creative. Since my job doesn't really require much in that area, it's a great outlet for me, and a nice stress reliever.

Series are nice if the ideas dry up...you've always got something to fall back on...Actually, FPF was just a one time deal that got such a big response that it became weekly.

As far as your idea list, I like #s 5, 6, and 7 the best. Your personal posts are my favorite...and posting consistently will help your hits, along with commenting on others blogs and linking back yourself. I tend to post in the morning before really diving into my day. You never know where you'll get traffic. About 25% of my daily traffic is links from Derry...that's pretty amazing. I also post my bible reading on Youversion, and I've gotten a number of hits from that.

You've got good stuff...it's just a matter of people finding and seeing it...that's the hard part!

Dan said...

It can be hard to be creative with that stuff. I like to throw in the occasional series, as it lends focus. Personally, I like your seasonal resolutions, and think you could do one for each winter/spring/summer/fall.