Give your newer sisters and brothers-in-WordPress one piece of advice based on your experiences blogging.

People ask me this all the time, and I’m always at confusion on what to reply to this question. Well I’ve been blogging for over 7 years now, and yet I feel like I know nothing of the subject, or more appropriately, a way of life.

Relax
Yeah that’s rule #1 if you ask me. As I said, blogging isn’t just a hobby, but a way of life. Okay that might be too much to comprehend at the first go, so let me put it simply – don’t stress out too much. You’re doing it because you like it, and it makes you feel good. And a bit of money if you’re at it.

“There is nothing to writing. All you do is sit down at a typewriter and bleed.”

― Ernest Hemingway

Or in our case, computer keyboards, tablets and even mobiles. Not that hard eh?

Versatile Interests
You might just stick to one genre, or none at all, but that doesn’t matter. Suppose you are writing about cooking and suddenly once your post becomes more towards book keeping (okay that wasn’t the best of examples so kindly bear with me), don’t panic or think of re-editing or removing it. I have observed despite the fundamental rule of inevitable editing a dozen to hundred times, sometimes the beauty of the uncooked version is like no other. Welcome the change. Your inside knows you well, better than yourself. You might surprise yourself.

“A bird doesn’t sing because it has an answer, it sings because it has a song.”

― Maya Angelou

Read

“If you don’t have time to read, you don’t have the time (or the tools) to write. Simple as that.”

― Stephen King

Wasn’t that sufficient? Read more books, of various genres, and even those which you never tried or you might not like. You might end up liking. At the very least you’ll know what or what not to do.

Language
Now don’t worry about not being an expert in English or whichever language you communicate in best. I have read some of the best posts which completely butchered English, but the reason they were so enjoyable were because of the content, the simplicity and honesty in writing and this makes it just more hilarious. While even I sometimes many-a-times feel like hanging myself at what people say, don’t pressure yourself. But remember, that is no excuse for not using proper language, and in time you will learn as you read (see above) and write more. Remember:

“So avoid using the word ‘very’ because it’s lazy. A man is not very tired, he is exhausted. Don’t use very sad, use morose. Language was invented for one reason, boys – to woo women – and, in that endeavor, laziness will not do. It also won’t do in your essays.”

― John Keating

This is applicable to women too, just saying. I get turned on by intelligence. 😛 Language can be seductive unlike any other. but alas, in my case, such females either don’t exist around this part or already taken. 😥

Enjoy
Now contrary to popular belief, my first point and this are not the same. Relax is the first rule and after everything in becoming a master, the conclusion is – Enjoy! What’s the use if you don’t enjoy what you do? I have no quote to re-quote here as well, just sit up and start writing!