It’s time once again for
Featured Blogger Friday.
Today I’m pleased to welcome Dee White, here to talk about one of her blogs (yes, she’s a busy lady with multiple blogs), http://deescribewri
Firstly, why do you blog?
I set up deescribewriting.wordpress.com because I wanted some way to communicate with the readers of my books. Blogging seemed a good way to tell them what I was up to, and give them a chance to respond and tell me about themselves.
What do you blog about?
I wanted to be a writer since I was seven so I am a keen advocate of young writers. I also know what a difficult journey it can be for adult writers trying to break into the market.
So my blog has kind of evolved into something that I hope all writers; whatever their level of experience can get something from. I provide a lot of tips on writing techniques and how to get your work published. Some of my information is about agents and publishers and I also interview other authors and share their tips with readers.
Who is your target readership?
Writers of all ages, styles and levels of experience.
How often do you blog?
A lot. When I was doing my May Gibbs Fellowship, I blogged every day for 28 days. Now I try to blog at least two to three times a week. Every Tuesday, I have my Tuesday Writing Tips and on other days I talk about things I have discovered about my own writing.
How much time do you devote to blogging?
For this blog, about five hours a week.
Do you have a favourite blog post?
My favourite blog post was called How Not to Scare Away Agents and Publishers and it was published in February this year.
This post was read by over 400 people and there was over 50 comments. So apart from being fun to write, it was great to generate so much discussion.
I’ve done around 180 blog posts so it was hard to narrow it down – can I mention another one? It was a post I did on the day of my Cyber launch of Letters to Leonardo (1st July 2009). Matt Hudson, the main character from the book interviewed me about why I used Leonardo da Vinci’s paintings to tell his story.
What do you see as the benefits of blogging?
As well as connecting with my readers, I get to read lots of great new books and meet some fantastic authors and other industry professionals.
Blogging helps get your presence out there and raise the profile of you and your books. I had direct sales of Letters to Leonardo relating to my cyber launch of the book on my deescribewriting blog. People who had followed my cyber launch came up to me at a writer’s festival and bought copies of my book. They also said how much they enjoyed the online launch and blog tour.
Blogging also enables you to connect with other bloggers and take your books on blog tours. It is a great networking tool and source of links to other fantastic blogs.
Blogging is something you can do from the comfort of your own home at a time that suits you, so it doesn’t have to interfere with family or other commitments.
When I do school and author visits, teachers often comment on how much useful information there is for young writers on my blog, so blogging is also helping me to support the next generation of authors and creators.
What blogging platform do you use and why?
I use WordPress because I can run it like a website with multiple pages. As well as the home page which has current information, I have pages on writing tips, how to become a writer, blogging and blog tour tips and information about me and my work.
Do you have a favourite blog to visit (other than your own)?
I have many blogs I enjoy visiting, but probably my favourite one at the moment is Steph Bowes, Hey Teenager of the Year. It’s always so vibrant and beautiful to look at, and constantly evolving visually.
I love how Steph writes and what she talks about. Steph is a 16yo author whose debut novel, Girl Saves Boy is coming out in September this year. Steph’s blog is always well written, entertaining and sincere.
She tackles teen issues with honesty and humour and she also has some great author interviews on her blog.
Lastly, when you are not blogging, what else do you do?
When I am not blogging I am writing novels for children and young adults. I also do writing coaching, author visits and run a blog for Boomerang Books called Kids’ Book Capers
Thanks for inviting me to visit, Sally. Talking about blogging is almost as much fun as well…blogging.
Thanks for dropping in. I hope you’ll come back and talk about Kids’ Book Capers some time.