5 Things I Have Learned Blogging

Beyond Reviews by MackenzieJuly 27, 2021July 27, 2021

Lit Lemon Books is four years old! I cannot believe how quickly the time has gone by. Here are 5 things I have learned in my short time running a book blog.

1. Plan

This is probably the most obvious thing to do, but I promise it will make your life easier. I try to plan for a month at a time, but weekly planning works well too. I like to set time aside to draft ideas and then to write. I like to work through a simple process of three steps–

Planning. For me, this means jotting down ideas on paper

Drafting. At this point I have started writing a draft of my soon to be post. This could be in google docs, the notes app on my phone, or a draft on wordpress.

Editing. The final step in my planning process. This is where I format the document and schulde it to post.

I normally have multiple pieces at different places in this process. So on the days I work on writing I jump around. This works for me 🙂

2. Schedule your post

Scheduling your post will save you time and sanity. You can schedule your blog post through the wordpress publishing settings.

You can Schedule your social media post though various apps and websites. I like buffer. It is nice to have a few things ready to go for the week, but I try to not rely heavily on scheduling social media post because I find it tedious. It is a wonderful tool to have access too when you need it.

3. Say “No.”

If you have a review based blog, at some point people will start to reach out to you for reviews. For me, this happens in waves. It is okay to decline to review a book. It may not be a good fix for you, or you simply do not have time. It is okay to decline a book tour. Whatever the reason is, you can say no.

4. Twitter/Instagram are a must.

I have learned so much from the book community on twitter/instagram. You can find other bloggers, but also engage with the community and in “the know.” I have met many indie authors and jumped on book tours on twitter. Twitter is a great place to share your ideas, but also find people to collaborate with.

I personally do not enjoy Bookstagram but many bloggers do. Instagram is another great place to meet and follow fellow readers and writers.

Whichever platform you prefer be sure to interact with authors and bloggers!

5. Have fun!

It feels silly to have this as something I have learned.If you are not enjoying the content you are producing then why are you doing it? Write post that make you happy, read that makes you happy, do what makes you happy.

Keep in mind, take breaks when you need to. I have gone weeks and months without posting on my blog or social media. Life happens!