AUTHOR'S CORNER: 

TO BLOG OR NOT TO BLOG, THAT IS THE QUESTION!

I remember being very happy and excited about the prospect of getting published; this is it, I thought, the whole world will know Sammar Ally!  I've made it, I secretly chuckled to myself, all my dreams have come true; at last my name shall be up there in lights!  So you can imagine my confusion when my publisher sent me a list of 'To do's' so that I can promote myself and therefore make more of a success of my book!  Amongst the various websites that I was advised to visit and join, such as Facebook and Twitter, I was also advised to create my own blog And fill it with interesting and mind tantalising reads....

HOUSTON, I THINK WE HAVE A PROBLEM!



Now I know I'm supposed to be a writer, I know that words and topics should come easily to my mind; it is after all what I do.  But writing for a fictional audience is a lot less daunting than writing for a virtual audience!
I do not know when or how people are reading my books, but I know that when I post my blogs people will read them (hopefully) and judge me, and even post their opinions!  I am rendering myself vulnerable to the cyber people and their critical eye and over opinionated remarks!  YIKES!!

And what do I write about?  How do I entertain and tantalise the masses and get myself a healthy cyber following?  I mean, nobody wants to read about my day, which I may add is not at all exciting, for all I seem to do is sit at my computer and push the hoover around just before the kids come home from school!  Nobody is bothered much about what I had for breakfast, or indeed the colour of my socks!  They don't care that I have awaken this morning and noticed the beauty of God's creation, or whether the weather has changed my literary mood any!  They don't want to know what my household chores are and they certainly don't want to know what I've had for dinner!

THEY WANT ME TO BE INTERESTING!

And even when I do find witty and interesting topics to write about; I am hard pressed to get more than twenty viewings a day!  ONLY TWENTY?

'Blimey mate, you might as well be reading it out in Hyde Park!'  I hear you say.  'At this rate your audience are going to take forever to build up and even then only about two percent will actually buy your book!'

YOU MIGHT AS WELL CHUCK THE COMPUTER!



NO WAIT, HERE ARE A FEW REASONS WHY YOU SHOULD IN FACT BLOG!

1.  By blogging you are getting yourself known out in cyber world and you name will soon ring familiarity amongst cyber folk!

2.  You are practising your writing skills and that can't be a bad thing!

3.  You are improving your writing skills, practice makes perfect!

4.  You may possibly become somewhat of a celebrity if you persist!

5.  It only takes one person to read your book before they tell another and they tell another, word of mouth people!

6.  If you capture one person's interest, they will always come back.

7.  It is rather fun to be able to write anything you want on your own blog page!

8.  Remember most famous or well known things started off very small with a very small clientèle; Marks & Spencer's was a market stall, Woolworth's started off small, Boots was owned by Jesse Boot, and many, many more.  Growth takes time, nature has taught us that!

9.  When you finally get someone posting a comment on your blog, the feeling of reward will be enormous!

10. Social networking and blogging is like being given a free pass on the Arena stage of the world, use it wisely!

SO DON'T GET FREAKED OUT BY IT ALL!

JUST WRITE YOUR BLOG AND ENJOY YOUR GROWTH!