I recently came across the Book Blogger tag on Bookwyrming Thoughts‘ blog and I loved the questions. So here I am answering the Book Blogger Tag, which apparently is ancient. But better late than never right?
I am gonna take this chance to talk about the things that happen behind the screen of this blog. And this tag is a good way to keep off my slump that might be around the corner now. Let us get on with it shall we?
How many times do you check your email every day?
I check my mail box twice a day, or less. But I also view them on my mobile notifications as they come in. Unless it is very important I do not respond right away.
I just wanted to mention this, I do not respond to review requests unless I am interested to review it. And looking at the number of unread mail I have currently, I definitely need a better system.
How many times a day do you go on Goodreads?
I don’t use Goodreads as much as I used to, a few years ago. I still go on to the site to post my reading updates as soon as I finish a book and to post my reviews.
That comes to almost twice a week, at the best.
How long does it take to you to edit your posts?
I recently updated my site’s theme, mainly to address this.
It took me way longer to edit my posts and do those formatting than I liked. So now I have made it much more simpler.
And also I love the Gutenberg editor as it makes the formatting much simpler, especially from other apps like Notion or Evernote.
Answering the question, it takes me anywhere from 10 to 45 minutes to get a written post up and live on the website.
What kind of laptop do you use?
I am currently using HP laptop, which is lighter, faster and definitely easy to use. But it is definitely an upgrade from 5+ years old Dell I used to have. It doesn’t hurt that this one has a touch screen and Tablet mode.
How often do you check your Twitter?
To be honest, I spend about 15 minutes or so almost daily on Twitter for MY BLOG. But I spend a LOT more time on book twitter during the day and while commuting (at least before the Covid virus lock downs).
I love Twitter, but it is also (one of) my big time sucker(s)!
Why do you use Blogger, WordPress, etc?
As much as I loved Blogger and customizing it, I took a call to move to self hosted WordPress in 2017 and it has been one of the best decisions I have ever made.
I use(d) everything that I learnt from Blogger – HTML, CSS and generally keeping the blogging system (kind of) organized and I am loving it.
Are you good at keeping up with your reviews, tags, etc?
Reviews
sure, I have a spreadsheet (among the many) to keep a tab of the books I have read and I want to review. And I fairly have it under control – yay me!
Not so great at this but I catch up with them eventually. I can attribute it safely to the fact that I write up a very few tag posts and since they are far and between, many of the tags disappear and forgotten.
Have you ever done the Book Blogger tag before? If you have not, or want to do it again, feel free to answer these questions here or on your blog. Let us talk.
Welcome to the final part of the series on making blogging schedules work for you, and this is where I tell what works for me and what doesn’t. Here is my typical day as a book blogger to inspire and help you make your own blog schedule that works.
Typically I spend more than 30 hours per week on my blog and book blogging related works, making me a part time blogger and more. I also juggle between beta reading, writing and content development work for my clients. And none of this would be possible without a proper blog schedule that works for me.
I normally post four times a week and I have a bookstagram where I post thrice a week. And I am nothing if not being consistent. Yes that sounds like a lot for a hobby blog, but fortunately Elgee Writes is not just a blog that I work on for fun.
To put it in perspective, I work so hard on my blog because it acts as my portfolio and this is where I generate my paid clients from. You will understand it better if you start substituting “content marketing” every time you call it “blogging”.
I have an almost set routine, though the COVID19 situation has thrown the balance a little off. But it still works with minor tweaking here and there.
My mornings
My typical day begins around 6 30 AM. I am not a morning person, but I have come to realize that waking a bit early gets a lot of things done and you can always slack later in the day, if you want to.
I love spending the first hour or so on writing, so that I can actually focus and not worry about answering texts or calls.
7 to 8 30 AM: Usually I have prepared outlines for the blog posts or article for my clients the previous day or so, and I just have to put my thoughts into words without having to use the browser for research (AKA the distractions) much.
8 30 to 9 30 AM: Once that is done, and as my family wakes up I make a quick breakfast and coffee hustle. If you personally know me, you would understand when I say “I need a breakfast before 9”. Else, you will have to believe me when I say “HANGRY” was made up to describe me.
Since we are all working from home at the moment (and possibly until the end 2020 at least), things are kinda slow for now. Else this would be my peak time in terms of household chores.
9 30 to 11 00 AM: This is when I write down my to-do list for the day and check if any weekly goals have to be changed. Speaking of goals, I also do a check in of my Google analytics and social media stats on a daily basis.
I also quickly hop on to the social media to check if my scheduled posts are getting posted and answer any DMs or mentions I have received. This invariably ends up with my scrolling my Twitter and Instagram feed for a while.
If there were any client calls I schedule them here, so that I can alter my schedule if needed.
Depending upon the day and the work schedule, I usually spend the morning reading something for work (AKA beta reading a manuscript) or a non fiction.
11 00 AM to 1 00 PM: This is the time I spend on cooking lunch, catching up on errands and household chores. I also have a very long curly hair routine which I try to squeeze in here too.
My noons
1 00 PM to 2 00 PM – I usually hit the gym on weekdays just before lunch. This is a practice that I am trying to build again, now that the gyms are open in the UAE and we are free to use them.
Being the bookworm that I am, I usually read on my phone while workout on the treadmill or so just to keep me distracted from the fact that I am actually working out. I will let you know when it actually works.
2 30 to 6 00PM – This is the time I completely spend on research and development which means I am doing email outreach and pitching for clients.
This is probably the second most productive time of my day.
The daily chores can range from clicking photos for bookstagram to logo designing for a client. And one day is like no other. There is always something going on and fire to put out.
Sometimes (though I am trying curb that habit too) I catch up something on Netflix while I do some monotonous task. White noise helps me too.
My evenings
6 00PM to 7 00PM – Depending on the weather, I take a walk or watch Netflix or just take a break from work.
7 00PM to 9 00PM – Dinner and family time. I speak to my parents who are back in India and would be retiring to bed around this time. So that helps.
9 00PM to 11 00PM – I catch up with whatever is pending from the day.
I usually spend the time prepping for the next day’s writing session in terms of outline, tone etc.
I usually hit the bed by 11 00 PM and read a bit (or lot, depending on the book) until I can convince myself to sleep.
On most days, I get most things on my list done. It is generally a full packed day and I rarely take off. But it is only because I love what I do and I love keeping myself busy.
What do you think atypical day of a book blogger looks like? What is yours like? On an average, do you get most things done on a daily basis? Let us talk.
One of the major blog goals I had when I started was to have a consistent post schedule and be more organized. While I have things in control, it took me so long to reach this place of peacefulness. Let us talk about a few tips that can help you create a blogging schedule that you’ll stick to easily.
In our next post we will talk about the blog schedule that I have been following for a while, so that you can use it as a guide to make your own.
Set your blog time aside
Everybody’s life and routines are different. So to start with, identify the best time for you and your blog and set aside a few hours to spend only on your blog. When I say blogging it may include everything that you do for a blog from researching a topic to scheduling your social media or answering your DMs.
Next, you have to make some tough calls. Note that there is no magic number or correct answer to these questions. You just have to choose what works for you. Remember we are aiming for consistency, so think of the long term when you choose your blogging schedule.
How often do you want to publish on your blog?
Who are your target audience?
What are the broad topics that you will write on and does that match with your audience’s interest?
What are the items that you depend on someone else’s input?; and
Which ones can you outsource or automate?
Once you honestly answer these questions you will have a realistic idea on what you can and what you can’t do.
Create an editorial calendar
An editorial calendar is the correct place to start with while creating a blogging schedule that you’ll stick to. A blog schedule and editorial calendar are closely interlinked.
An editorial calendar will act as the backbone of your blog and will keep a track on what is being published and when, and also what are you planning to publish in future. Usually it is filled for a month and I know bloggers who do it for a year even.
I use Spreadsheets for marking down the special days on the calendar and the blog content for the month. If you participate in any memes or link ups, you can put them down on it too. This will ensure you won’t forget what is pending and what’s written up.
Build an idea tank
How many times have you sat in front of the screen and waited for inspiration to strike to write a post? Not knowing what to write is one of the major reason why we do not post as per schedule.
And that is why you need to build an idea tank. Yes it is exactly how it sounds. You need a place to dump all your ideas without judgement.
Credit: Giphy
I use Evernote for that and any topic that remotely feels like it can be a blog post topic goes into a note. It is not the right time to think if it is a good idea or not, just dump it there and stop thinking about it.
A quick tip to get things done faster – batch similar tasks. If you are designing header images for a post, do it for the entire week or even month at a time. Work on SEO research for all the posts at a time instead of repeating the same task for each post.
This is one of the best things that I learned in the last few years and it only saves me time but ensures I don’t get bogged down by small tasks repeatedly, and thus keeps me on the blogging schedule that I have been following religiously for a while now.
Social media time
Like it or not, we spend a huge amount of time on social media, especially for our blog. We try to be everywhere at the same time. Promoting our content and responding to our DMs and mentions are just a tiny speck when it comes to blog promotion.
So ensure that your blogging schedule includes time for all these social media activities like following your peers posts and engaging with them. And these activities should not be affect your other blog schedule.
Get a partner or ten
Another quick tip to ensure you stick to your blog schedule is to rope in a partner or two to keep you accountable. Or you can quickly join a Discord or Facebook group of like minded bloggers who are also working towards similar goals.
While all the above tips might help you to create a blogging schedule that you’ll stick to, I believe everything starts from your inner self. So when the going gets worse and it feels like the blogging schedule is getting out of your way – slog through it. Because slump begets slump.
The more you procrastinate or cancel things, harder it gets to go back to your routine and schedules. So as much as possible push it through and get yourself on to that discipline of following the schedule.
Of course that doesn’t mean you have to overwhelm yourself. Just take one step at a time and get things done.
How hard is it for you to create a blogging schedule that you’ll stick to? What are the challenges uou face when you make a blogging schedule? Let us talk.
You have made the plans and post schedules for the blog. You have great ideas for new posts. You are ready to soar high and make blogging successful. But why does your enthusiasm wane and you struggle to stick to the blog schedule in the long run?
So when things get hard or the initial enthusiasm to blog starts to dissipate it is natural that you let yourself off the hook easily. You start thinking what am I losing if skip once, and end up in a blogging slump before you know it.
Tip: Reward yourself for every successful streak, say weekly. Create a calendar and mark each day you blog on it, and try not to break your streak.
You are not accountable to anyone
Yes, not all of us have millions of monthly readers in our blog. Or maybe it is just your mother and her cat. And they are not gonna judge you if you post once in a month or NEVER.
Before I moved to Elgee Writes, I had had my blog for almost five years and never told anyone about it. I assumed I was writing for myself and that I was blogging pretty consistently. But guess what?
Within a year, I had published more posts than I published in the first five years. The difference? I had begun talking to others (bloggers, friends and even colleagues) about my blog and I started getting regular readers and engagements.
Credit: Giphy
Sure, you can hold yourself accountable too, but has it worked previously? If no, it is better to involve a friend or better, another blogger friend to hold you accountable.
Tip: Announce your next post topic to your readers. Put up an blogging schedule on the sidebar so that your readers would know when to expect your next post and hold you accountable to it.
You are waiting for perfection
I am no stranger to this flaw. I am not perfect and my blog posts aren’t either. But I can wait for the perfect word to flow, the perfect blog topic to spring in my mind and for the perfect time to write it out.
But they rarely come and my blog can’t wait until then.
Starting with an imperfect plan and then continuing to make it better, is so much more productive than to wait for the perfect plan.
Credit: Giphy
Tip: Aim for good, not perfect. Write down everything in your mind or draft an outline, and then you can edit and perfect it.
You are waiting for motivation
You cannot expect yourself to be always motivated and full of enthusiasm. The going will get tough and your initial enthusiasm will definitely wane.
But if you had planned to work only when you are inspired, then you will be working only for about 30% of the days. Following through any plan or goal, needs inspirations but most critically you need determination.
I am sure everyone has days that they don’t wanna work or go to the gym, but only people who step up and do what is needed to be, even when they don’t feel like, become successful.
Tip: Don’t look for external motivations – just hitting the publish button on your blog or being to be able to stick to the blog schedule itself can be motivating enough. And even if it, just do it because you are professional.
You want instant gratification
Often we want to see the effect of our hard work almost immediately. And when that doesn’t happen, it is natural to feel disheartened and we may even want to stop our hard work.
Sure the SEO techniques benefit the ranking of the blog, but you can’t see the page visit counts spike the very next day. Likewise you are going to not get your leads right away, because you posted on your blog for two weeks as per your schedule.
Credit: Giphy
But this lack of patience and attitude towards instant gratification is keeping from being able to stick to the blog schedule.
Tip: When you make plans, get into a mindset that you won’t see any tangible benefit right away. And have a visual reminder to see how many days you stick to the blog schedule to quench your thirst for instant gratification.
So go on, let me know what other blogging challenges do you face? What’s stopping you from achieving your blogging dreams?
It is no secret that many of us struggle with blogging consistently. And many bloggers consider putting out content regularly as a success parameter. Let us talk about why it is so important to have a blogging schedule to ensure that you are blogging consistently.
Blogging consistently: Why do you need a blog schedule
Why do we keep insisting that bloggers should be more consistent? Why is keeping up with the blog schedule so important? Here are a few reasons for you to consider.
Makes you look professional
Having a blog schedule and blogging consistently makes you look like a professional at what you do. And guess what! That means your audience and readers will take you more seriously.
Every time (or so) you add a post or update something on your blog, the Search Engine Gods (aka Google or Bing) make a note of that. And that is a good thing because they understand that you are still relevant and show yours more frequently on the search pages – and that leads to? YES, MORE TRAFFIC!
Builds trust and authority
We only take in advices and suggestions from people whom we trust.
Gaining that trust and subject authority from your readers takes a long time and needs hard work. And that comes from a portfolio of articles you have written on the topic by blogging consistently.
For instance, the index of all my reviews here usually acts as my portfolio for the authors before they ask me to review or beta read their books.
Having more than 200 book reviews somehow helps them make that decision. What do you think?
Keeping your readers happy
Oh we almost forgot the most important reason we are screaming into the void here blogging. Our dear readers!
Having a good number of traffic or ranking high on the Search Engine results would not matter if we are not able to retain the visitors on our site. And we can have happy and returning visitors only when we post consistently.
Credit: Giphy
If you post 20 times in a month and then go missing from your blog for the next three months, chances are your blog readers would forget you. There are thousands of other blogs they might move to, and it won’t be their fault.
Avoid that dreaded blogger burnout
We all have been there. The blogger burn out is real and it is so damn painful. You watch your fellow bloggers posting such creative posts and all you can do is stare at the blank screen.
Well, let us talk about how to finally defeat (or avoid, let’s be realistic here) the blogger burnout – blogging schedule!
Do you have a blogging schedule? What are your struggles when it comes to blogging consistently? What are your success parameters as a book blogger? Let us talk
