I looked through all my posts and I just have to say ... I think it's super cool that I've now been blogging for two years. You know why? It doesn't feel like two years. When I look at each post's title, I remember writing it. I remember what my thoughts were behind it, why I chose to write that post.

Which makes me think about blogging in general. Blogging is awesome, guys. We have this chance to share our thoughts and hopes and ideas with the world. We can tell others revelations we have, things that help carry us through life, and we will be able to look back years later and see exactly when we posted it and read it all over again.

Isn't that just so cool?

So this post is (kind of. I mean, bloggers can read it too. I won't kick you out ;P ) for you guys who don't have blogs.

Get a blog.

As I reflect on what was going through my mind when I started Stan, let me share with you some advice I took when starting, and am very grateful I heeded.


Blogging is not the kind of thing you should just wake up one day and decide to do. It takes time and thought. It takes intentionality and dedication. I spent months thinking up my blog. I didn't start it until I knew the perfect title for it, what my first five-ish posts were going to be, and what I wanted to say, overall, with the blog.

Let me explain why that last one is so important.

If you don't know what your underlying message is--the core reason behind why you're doing what you're doing--you're not going to last long. You might post those five posts you planned when you started, and maybe even three more after that. But you'll eventually stop posting and fall off the blogging train.

You have to know why your blog matters to you. Because blogging takes time, and we only make time for the things that matter to us.


This is probably my top piece of advice for new/wannabe bloggers. Not everyone posts on a schedule, but I know personally I appreciate it when a blogger sticks to some sort of consistency. Not only does it give readers knowledge of when to stop by your blog, but it also gives them a date to look forward to, and it gives you motivation.

If you start, and have great ideas, but just say, "I'll post whenever I feel like it" you could likely go weeks without posting a single word. Life happens, things come up. If you don't have a date you have told yourself you'd post on, then you'll have no reason to post. When you push off posting for a day, there's nothing to stop you from pushing it off till the next day. And the next. And the next ...

If you know when you're going to post and stick to it, you won't miss often. You'll keep up consistency. And it might sound hard (I thought it would be nearly impossible) but it is so satisfying to commit to something. You're in charge. You have the power. But one good thing is, you're blogging. Readers will look forward to those weekly posts. And if you don't post, they'll keep you accountable.


I still remember those first few posts I put up. I would stare at that publish button, gnawing on my lip, wondering if I should risk it. Would anyone even read this little blog? Why would they? No one cares about the words of an insignificant little sixteen year old.

But they did. I'm almost at 100 followers on Google now! *cheers for you all and throws coffee beans and confetti* Stan has been slow going, but he's grown steadily. And I honestly don't think he would have grown if I hadn't kept posting.

Running a blot takes a certain amount of guts. You have to surrender part of yourself. You have to let go of perfection: perfect writing, perfect formatting, etc. In order to post regularly, you can't spend hours upon hours tweaking every post to utter perfection. That would be awesome--you guys deserve the best!--but it's unrealistic.

So you have to dust yourself off and say, "I'm going to post this now, and I'm going to be proud of it." And so you do the thing, and you lift your chin. Because you put your words out there for the world to see, and that my friend is absolutely epic.


I hope you enjoyed my little blogger tips! I may have been blogging for two years now, but I still have so much to learn. 'Tis the beauty of writing, I suppose.

February is a special month for me. Not only is it Stan's birthday, but it's also the anniversary of when I started writing novels. Next week I'll talk about what I've learned from the last seven years of writing. Stay tuned!

Do you have a blog? What is your number one tip for bloggers, new and old? If you don't have a blog, are you considering getting one? *cough* do iiiit *cough*