I was reading responses to comments the other evening and sharing them with my husband when he came up with this idea for an article. I’m sloping towards part of the reason for that being that he was still working and I was running my mouth disturbing his concentration. Yeah, I am on to his tricks already

He did have a pretty good idea though so here I am, typing away, because I am going to take you back in time. I will take you back with me to the day when I started Bunny got Blog – and from there, I will tell you how I approach writing a post: where I get my ideas from, what I pay attention to when writing a post, and how something that started with an idea turns into something that’s worth to read, and hopefully fun to read.

1. The story behind Bunny got Blog

I have always loved to learn new things. I can’t get enough education and I have an assortment of interests. Before Bunny got Blog, I worked too much. It was suggested to me by my girlfriend to start a blog. I am not sure if she knew what a blog really was at the time though. I for one had no idea. Then my husband said “do it, you have a lot to say”. So I did.

So I had the design made and set it all up and went live. In the beginning, I found that many articles I read on other blogs were about personal experience and interests. As I started reading other blogs, and discovered StumbleUpon, I got more ideas about interesting topics, but mostly I didn’t want to follow the same path that so many have taken. I wanted to find something new and be unique.

2. How I found my niche

Having different categories is a blessing. You are flexible. If you haven’t noticed, I don’t stick to writing about one thing alone. I write about the things I’m interested in, be it business topics, health, or science.

Another field I enjoy studying and writing about is history. You can read the outcome of this passion in my ongoing series, Great Women of the Past and Present. Writing such an article takes a lot of time for research, and is quite time consuming to write, but it’s well worth it. I have to say, when you compile so many facts you have to decide on what to add to the article, and what is better left out. You really don’t want to just keep adding what you find and lose sight of the topic you are writing about. That could end up being confusing to the reader, and you risk having them lose interest continuing to read.

My first rule when writing a new article is to use an outline. Make your subtitles, or “stops”, and go from there. Bookmark all your research sites so that you have their links, and link often. Keep a journal for new ideas you have thought of, and always take the few seconds to write an idea down the instant it comes to you.

3. My first article

My first article was Why Your Boyfriend Knows You’re PMSing Before You Do. Yes, pretty lame… Innocent days. Then he became my husband

4. My best sources of inspiration

If I find myself having difficulties to come up with an idea for the next post, I have had two resources to go to. I have to give credit where it is deserved: my husband inspires me very much. He is responsible for bringing out the passion I now have for writing. He is my biggest fan and critic. Thumper doesn’t hesitate to tell me if something is off with my writing when he reads it. He is more of a perfectionist, and he also knows that I want the articles to be the best they can be.

Then I got lucky to get to know more people online, and to make new friends. One of the people whose friendship I cherish most is Besia. She and I have similar interests and we started sending each other articles. As our friendship grew, we emailed and she became my muse. Besia, living in Poland, has even helped me with translating for my Nobel Prize Laureate Wislawa Szymborska article. That was one of the most difficult posts I have written, simply because there isn’t too much information on this great woman to find. That, on the other hand, made it very interesting to write – and fun, since I got to exchange a lot with my friend Besia.

5. Special things I like to add when blogging

When I write an article, I like to add pictures, quotes, and sometimes even videos. Pictures and videos can fulfill two different purposes: they can be a prominent subject of the story, like in my recent Coco Chanel feature, where writing about fashion without displaying the fashion wouldn’t feel right. But pictures can also occupy a much less prominent, yet equally important role: they can help portray a message by putting the surrounding text in a context, giving it a background, and setting a baseline for the content. A good example for that is Lost in a Sea of Identities, which was written by Zeenat of the Positive Provocations blog.

Use only pictures you are allowed to use, or you will get into trouble. Take copyright seriously; just like you wouldn’t like some kid stealing your content, photographers don’t like you stealing their art. More often than not, you can simply ask for permission, but get it in writing. I have often emailed and called for written permission to use photos. If you use Flickr, remember to read the license information and link to the author’s website. Keep your photos together in a folder named with the title of the article.

6. What I do with a draft when it isn’t good enough

Your work is never garbage. If you’re like me, then you have quite a few drafts or half-written posts sitting around, waiting to get finished. Sometimes an article gets overlooked or outdated. Don’t trash it – you may be able to come back to it later. Many authors, but also artists, professionals, and designers, have a boatload of unfinished drafts. In time, they may come back to it and finish it, making it a great end result. Often enough, it only needed a little polishing or maybe a twist. Remember, your articles are going to be around for years to come (hopefully). Make them authentic and original and a part of you!

7. With a little help from my friends

Thumper often helps me edit and publish my posts. He has a highly developed bullshit detector when it comes to sources, and he usually asks me a million questions. I highly suggest you have someone else read and possibly edit your work. If you don’t have anyone, read it a few times and maybe even hold out on publishing until the following day. With a clear mind, or just with some time to breathe in-between, you may find something you have missed the day before. The longer the article, the more of a chance you may overlook something, and if you’re like me – writing after work long into the evening – then of course you are apt to make a boo boo or two.

One of the many eye openers Thumper has brought to my attention is my language. I tend to use slang a bit. Since these articles are going to be around for a while, and will circulate the globe (Bunny got Blog is read in over 150 countries!), everyone should be able to fully understand what I am writing.

8. What do I do to get my blog noticed?

Joining social media sites are one proven method to go. I am on StumbleUpon (my profile), Digg, and Twitter (follow me). I was going to join FaceBook and some others but decided not to. I just stick to the three I mentioned; along with blogging that takes up much of my free time already.

Getting the word out about your blog is important, and when you find websites you like, start to comment. This will, in time, build a strong foundation of fellow bloggers who in turn check out your stuff. Don’t be shy to get involved with blog visitors, readers, commenters, subscribers, and other bloggers. Take a step forward and offer the bloggers you like a warm, friendly hug (or a hearty handshake) by referencing or showcasing their articles. If you like their writing and think it’s fitting for your blog, you may even ask them to write a guest post. This can help bring in diversity on your own blog, and for them, it’s added exposure. A win-win.

All of the above is the most beautiful part of being a community and showing appreciation for what you have learned and received from other blogger’s writings. Outgoing links are helpful for both you and who you link to.

To discover new blogs you might like, check the blogroll on the blogs you read. If you find them interesting, chances are you will find many new blogs to check out there. Subscribe to their blog. Following blogs that interest you will help you get new ideas, and improve your skills with writing.

9. What things do or do not freak me out about my blog?

Don’t worry about the numbers too much. When the numbers are down, there is usually a simple explanation. Check on your stats once a week. Use SEO insights and keep your content interesting. If it is interesting to you, it will be to half a million readers that will find your post. The crux when starting out is that they won’t come see your new post all at once. Later on – maybe? Hopefully?

Use spam filters and let me tell you, I detest spammers. And when blog content is stolen, that is just ludicrous. It’s copyright infringement, and it’s against the law. The problem is, tracking them down is very time consuming. And most of the time, search engines like Google do a decent job at putting a finger on the original and ranking that instead of the copycat.

10. How do I keep things fresh?

I just participated in a nice little game: you can read my contribution named Garbaolge. Things like these are fun and engage others. Also, don’t be afraid to try something different like a series. For instance, I was excited to write a series on advertising right up to the part where I watched a bunch of sexy video ads on Youtube one weekend, picking out what I believed were tastefully controversial. If that makes any sense. The evening that I published 17 Sexy Commercials in the Advertising Towards Dummies series, I was a excited. I was really taking a chance. I know some of my readers are high school students and I wanted to give them a clear message. And I received a wonderful response from most of them.

11. Do I have a favorite article I have written?

If I had to choose a favorite article, it would be hard but I do have a soft spot for the Five Blogs – Four Women – One Apple And Me as my favorite showcase post.

12. My final word

My bottom line is this: if you want to start a blog, or if you are blogging already, make it personal. How you make it personal is up to you – I like to add a personal touch at times with graphics of quotes (since I am learning a little more about graphic design every day). I often use imagery I have made, or made with my husband, and I share it on my blog. Be it graphics of quotes, recipes, or warning spammers.

I believe that if you blog with your heart, your visitors will notice and eventually turn into subscribers. If you keep blogging with your heart, no matter what topic, your subscribers will notice and eventually, turn into friends. And if you treat your friends well, they will soon start to give back the love.

After all, love is all we need, isn’t it?