Which is the best social media for a blogger?

Published on August 2, 2018August 1, 2018 by Jean M. Cogdell27 Comments

Which social media do you use to promote your blog?

There are so many personalized reader/news websites, how do we choose? I can’t keep up with all of them. New ones, old ones, coming and going every day. It’s exhausting.

Flipboard, StumbleUpon/Mix, Medium, Feedly, Facebook, Twitter, Google Plus, Linkedin, Reddit, Tumbler, Pocket, Pinterest or…

StumbleUpon. I loved this one until they changed. Every time I added my blog post to their website, I found other great writers. Now that they’ve migrated over to Mix, I’m not so sure. Changes aren’t always for the better. At 40 million users, I can’t help but wonder how many will make the transition.
Flipboard. Another one I like. But, I don’t use it as often as I probably should. I find the format a bit intimidating and that easy to use. With over 100 million users, maybe I need to stick with it.
Medium, ditto to Flipboard. Unless you have a paid subscription, reading the articles is limited.
Google Plus, I’m not sure how much traffic it generates. But with over 2.2 billion users, I hope to get a few.
Pinterest. I’ve just recently started linking more often and I’m pleased with the traffic. So, I’m going to try to continue with this one, after all, they boast over 2oo million users. I’ll see how it goes.
Facebook, meh. Lots of controversies, but lots of traffic go through this site. My results have been mixed with it. However, with over 2.2 billion users I’m not quitting.
Twitter. Now I’ve had good success with Twitter. Plus I enjoy reading and discovering new bloggers/writers.
Linkedin, I am signed up for this site, but not real active with it.
Tumbler It’s been so long since I looked at this one. I’m not sure how active this site is. With over 400 million users, maybe I need to look again.
Feedly, I’ve never used it. Looks good, but to share your blog through IFTTT requires the paid service. Still with over 14 million users, might be worth it.
Reddit, confusing. I’ve tried to use Reddit in the past but had little success. And of course, as with so many websites, they’ve changed theirs too. But with over 1.5 billion users…

This is just a drop in the bucket. There are even more feeds to connect our blogs. However, there are only so many hours in a day. I do want to grow my blog but can’t be everywhere all the time.

Now it’s your turn, help a girl out…

Which website do you link to your blog posts?

Which one gets the most referral from?

Do you have a favorite?

Want to read more about ways to generate traffic to your blog?

Go to the bottom and keep reading.

PLEASE TAKE ANOTHER MINUTE AND LOOK ME UP ON SOCIAL MEDIA BY CLICKING ON THE LINKS BELOW.

AND STOP BY JEAN’S WRITING ANYTIME, I’LL LEAVE A LIGHT ON.

Facebook, Twitter, Amazon, Pinterest, Stumbleupon

What are the best news readers?

Feedly vs Flipboard By ABHISHEK MACWAN

How to Use Flipboard as a Traffic-Generating Machine by JANICE WALD

It’s Time for an RSS Revival By BRIAN BARRET

Goodbye, StumbleUpon, one of the last great ways to find good things online By Megan Farokhmanesh

StumbleUpon is closing down and moving to Mix – Here is your Mix getting started guide by Dexter Roona

Do you need ideas to round off the summer?

Published on August 1, 2018July 31, 2018 by Jean M. Cogdell

School will be starting back soon. And your kids are getting bored. Time for more ideas.

I know the summer goes too fast for most moms and dads but you still have a few weeks left to encourage reading. And I’ve got a couple of suggestions.

My best memories as a kid were curling up with a good book during the summer.

So if you’re searching for ways to entertain those busy beavers at your house, check out Mundie Kids Childrens for great recommendations.

And don’t forget the best-underused resource is your local library. They have something for everyone.

Do you have a book to recommend?

How are you entertaining the young ones?

PLEASE TAKE ANOTHER MINUTE AND LOOK ME UP ON SOCIAL MEDIA BY CLICKING ON THE LINKS BELOW.

AND STOP BY JEAN’S WRITING ANYTIME, I’LL LEAVE A LIGHT ON.

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What will suspend the disbelief of readers?

Published on July 31, 2018July 31, 2018 by Jean M. Cogdell3 Comments

The character or the story?

Kind of a chicken and egg question.

My husband loves action movies. Lots of action with special effects and death-defying stunts. The bigger, higher, louder and most incredulous the better. Me, I can take or leave them. However, good actors are a must for me to sit through any movie.

So with the promise of dinner, I agreed to go see Equalizer 2 with Denzel Washington. A win-win for us both. Hubby gets lots of action and I don’t have to cook plus I get to watch Denzel. Be still my heart. Beating heart Later that evening, over dinner, we discussed our likes and dislikes. Hubby could use more action. Sigh… But, our conversation did get me to thinking about the suspension of disbelief. About how I can accept a temporary acceptance of a particular reality or situation that normally strain credulity? Because that’s what it takes to keep me in my theater seat or turning the pages in a book.

Now everyone knows movies like Mission Impossible, and Equalizer aren’t real. So, what is it about these movies that keep fans coming back? That gets us so involved we jump in our seats every time there is an over the top explosion? Cringe when an actor leaps from tall buildings in a single bound, and he isn’t Superman?

For me, it’s the actor and he must sell the story. Same with books. A reader cannot get lost in our story unless they become invested in a character. Hate or love doesn’t matter. But the reader must have strong feelings about your character.

Which brings me to my writing.

What is it in a story that enables a reader to suspend disbelief?

Is it the character, plot or storyline?

For me, it’s the character. If I feel an attachment to the character, he becomes life-like. I want him to survive and succeed or die and disappear off the face of the earth. See what I mean about strong feelings?

What makes a character life-like when there are unbelievable stunts and wild special effects that we know are not possible?

Is there a way to show a vulnerability that will make a reader care?

Yes. Through everyday events. Back to my movie example. In the Equalizer 2, a lot of regular, believable, and even mundane things give the Robert McCall depth. He drove a Lyft car, lived in a simple apartment, helped neighbors, cared for an elderly customer, made tea, cooked, read books, etc. You know, normal stuff. With these normal human activities scattered throughout the movie, I liked the man. And when the wild, out there unbelievable began to happen, I gladly suspended disbelief to cheer in on.

What do you do to get a reader invested?

How do you connect with unbelievable stories?

Got any tips for me?

Go to the bottom of this post and click on the links.

Writing Fiction: How To Write Evocative Characters Through Action And Strong Language

Suspension of Disbelief

FICTION AND THE SUSPENSION OF DISBELIEF Eva Schaper

PLEASE TAKE ANOTHER MINUTE AND LOOK ME UP ON SOCIAL MEDIA BY CLICKING ON THE LINKS BELOW.

AND STOP BY JEAN’S WRITING ANYTIME, I’LL LEAVE A LIGHT ON.

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How to keep all the writing advice in perspective

Published on July 26, 2018July 23, 2018 by Jean M. Cogdell12 Comments

Do you feel besieged with advice?

Overwhelmed and unsure where to start? Well, keep reading.

Writing is hard. Writing well is harder.

But cutting the process down to bite-size pieces helps. So, if your feeling a little overwhelmed with the do’s and don’ts of writing, reading this great post by K.M. Allan will help. At least she helped me.

How? What did I get out of her post?

Get the story down first. Fix later.
Not everyone will love my story. So, what.
When editing, take one issue at a time. (bite size)
Listen to the advice that is helpful.
Consider the source of the advice.
Last but not least, take a break and then get back to writing.

You may get something totally different from I did after you read her post. That’s okay. We all see things through different filters. The important thing is to keep writing.