Should Writers Blog? ~ If They Do, What Are The "Rules" . . .

There are many reasons for writers to blog…

One was explored in my previous post, Blogging ~ Can It Really Fulfill The Writer’s Dictum: “Write Every Day!”?

As I pointed out in that post, the maverick in me had to punctuate that tile the way I did…

As far as “rules” for writers, you’ll see why I had to put that word in quotes if you read these two posts:

Rules for Writers Are Slippery and Shifty . . .

More On The “Rules” of Writing . . .

I’m going to leave the many other reasons for writers to blog to readers who are brave enough to share what they know in the Comments—I love challenging folks to comment—once they learn it doesn’t hurt, they actually like it… :-)

Thanks to Kristi Hines from Kikolani.com and to her guest poster, Steve Aedy, I can share some “rules” for writers-in-general from some relatively well-known other writers.

The article Writing Tips of Famous Authors you can use now for Blogging has various “rules” for writers; then, Steve translates them into rules for bloggers.

I’m only going to put the “rules” from other writers here because so many writers don’t seem to have the time to blog…

If you are or want to be a blogging writer, just take that article’s link to read the bloggy stuff :-)

Some “Rules”:

“Try to leave out the part that readers tend to skip. Think of what you skip reading…thick paragraphs of prose you can see have too many words in them.” – Elmore Leonard

“Don’t wish ill on your colleagues.” – Richard Ford

“Try to be accurate about stuff.” – Anne Enright

“Never complain of being misunderstood. You can choose to be understood, or you can choose not to.” – Neil Gaiman

“Hold the reader’s attention. This is likely to work better if you can hold your own.” – Margaret Atwood

“You most likely need a thesaurus, a rudimentary grammar book, and a grip on reality. This latter means: there’s no free lunch. Writing is work. It’s also gambling. You don’t get a pension plan. Other people can help you a bit, but essentially you’re on your own. Nobody is making you do this; you choose it, so don’t whine.” – Margaret Atwood

“Remember you love writing. It wouldn’t be worth it if you didn’t. If the love fades, do what you need to and get it back.” – PD James

“Do it every day. Make a habit of putting your observations into words and gradually this will become instinct.” – Geoff Dyer

“Put one word after another. Find the right word, put it down.” – Neil Gaiman

“Don’t just plan to write – write. It is only by writing, not dreaming about it, that we develop our own style.” – PD James

“Don’t write in public places.” – Geoff Dyer

“Find your best time of the day for writing and write. Don’t let anything else interfere. Afterwards, it won’t matter to you that the kitchen is a mess.” – Ester Freud

“Work on a computer that is disconnected from the internet.” – Zadie Smith

“Protect the time and space in which you write. Keep everybody away from it, even the people who are most important to you.” – Zadie Smith

So…

Even though I’m a writer and I blog 5 days a week, I don’t “write” every day—unless you count the larger Writing Process in my head as “writing”—which I do count—and, there are a few more of those “rules” that I can’t abide :-)

Sure hope some of you are brave enough to comment………
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