Hello everyone and welcome back! Today I have another author who was kind enough to write a bit for me and came up with a guest post. Basically I've been asking him the same thing that I've asked other authors; his thoughts on blogging. And this is what he gave me;
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Behold, the power of the blog.
When I first heard of the word "blog", I thought, "Great. another new technical word to go along with email, tweeting, and texting." My second thought was, "Why would I want to read someone's blog? After all, isn't it just like reading someone's journal or diary?"
Once I became a published author, I started connecting with other authors. Almost without exception, they all had blogs. After studying them some, I began to realize the power of blogging.
I'm old enough to remember life before the internet. *GASP!* Back then, getting information about my favorite movies, authors, and musicians was difficult. Newspaper and magazine articles were really the only way. But now with the power of the internet, the ability to connect with the masses is easier than ever. Blogging is one of those ways.
When I post a blog, the topic can range from what I'm working on next, to observations about society and even to just plain silly things. It seems to be working as I am averaging over 7,500 hit a month on my blog.
But the most valuable part of blogging, at least to me, is the direct interaction I can have with people who like my work. Granted, it's not all, "You're the best author ever!" Actually, it's rarely that. However, I'll get comments or people will contact me directly about any number of things.
And it makes an impact. There is a character in my first book,
The Hidden Sun, who people really hate - which is a good thing considering he is the antagonist. While writing the second book,
The Waxing Moon, I had no intention of including him, but because of the strong feedback from readers, I created a sub-plot just for him. In the end, it made the book that much better.
And then there are those wonderful folks who have created blogs primarily to review books. I'm not sure if they understand the power they hold. Most of my favorite books were ones suggested by friends. I rarely buy a book based on a "professional" critic's point of view. In my personal opinion, bloggers reviews are more open and honest - and therefore more trustworthy. I choose books now based on what I read on blogs.
Publishers are taking notice. My publisher does giveaways of my new released on Goodreads. They will send out copies of my book to bloggers. The time and money spent on doing that has eclipsed sending out copies to magazines, newspapers and such - at least from what I've seen.
How long will blogging as we know it stick around before it evolves into something else? Who can say? In the meantime, I'm enjoying the ride.
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It's weird to think back what I thought about blogging myself before I joined in on the fun. I don't think I had an opinion on it so I jumped into this whole new world and still today I'm learning. I'd like to thank J. Lloyd Morgan for doing a guest post, especially on such short notice. Aside from being an amazing author he's an amazing person and his books are really good at that.
To get to know more about him check out his;
Website:
http://www.jlloydmorgan.com/
Blogger:
http://jlloydmorgan.blogspot.com/
Twitter:
@JLloydMorgan
Be sure to check back in half an hour for a giveaway!
Also, check out all of the posts for the Event from the beginning;
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