I am in love with blogsites.

These nifty online venues are a combination of a blog and Web site. Typically, they are created in the Typepad or WordPress platforms, which allow you to create pages with your blog.

Why do I love them? Because I only have to go one place to find all the information I need about a person, product, company, book, or whatever I happen to be searching for.

Blogsites have (obviously) a blog, but they also include static pages that you usually find on Web sites, like the About and Contact pages. 

As a consumer, this is incredibly convenient. I don't have to search for - and visit - several sites to find what I need. I can get it all in one place. 

As a blogger and freelancer who frequently posts to the Web (and who is addicted to creating new blogs), I love blogsites for a few other reasons:

One program to update. I don't have to spend time updating several programs to make changes. Everything is in one program. I also don't have to spend a lot of time tracking down a Web designer to make costly static page changes. I can save cash by doing it myself. (This seems to be easier in Typepad - especially when dealing with photos and audio clips.)

One hosting fee. This is a biggie for my cheap Irish/German soul. For WordPress, I have one host that is extremely reliable. I keep all of my blogs with this one host for a reasonable monthly fee of $15. I don't have to pay a design company for hosting a product they created, which can run into some serious cost if you don't read your contract closely.

SEO. The more you post, the higher your search engine rankings on Bing, Google and the like. I find with some Web sites, it is tougher to fight for top rank positioning. However, blogs are updated frequently, which means they go higher in rank sometimes than a Web site for the same company. I have seen company blogs in the top five search results, while the static Web site appeared on the second page. If you combine your static pages with your blog, you don't have to spend time fighting for Web site rank; it is all tied up with your blog. (Of course, blogging frequently is a necessity.)

For authors on limited budgets, these are the perfect way to offer readers, reviewers and publishers all the information they need - and not bust the marketing budget. They are incredibly easy to set up and maintain in both Typepad and WordPress. (While I have fallen hard for WordPress, I still believe Typepad is a much more user-friendly system for busy professionals.)

Does this mean you should not have a devoted Web site and separate blog? Not at all. However, I think as communication streamlines online, these types of sites will become the norm.

Not exactly sure what I mean? Check out author M.B. Weston's site, which is hosted at Typepad. She also uses that platform for her media blog - which I found incredibly helpful when I hosted her last year at Pop Syndicate.

Over the last few weeks, several authors have asked me if blogging is really good for book marketing.

The short answer is YES!

Blogs are an incredible, free way to improve your search engine rankings, connect with readers and constantly promote your work. They are interactive, which makes them more interesting than the static pages of a traditional Web site.

Why do readers like blogs? 

Tidbits about authors. Blogs are personal musings that readers can devour to learn more about their FAV writers. Readers like personal details. It makes them feel like they know you.


Up-to-date information. Many times, authors will update their blogs more frequently than their Web sites. That makes an author blog the go-to place for info on the latest releases.

Contests. Blogs are a great way to share contest information - even if the contest is held on a social network like Twitter.

Social network links. Readers check out blogs to find author handles and links for social networks like Twitter and Facebook.

Scoops. Many authors share the cover art to their new books well before the street date. They also give tantalizing glimpses into coming stories, free short stories, and more - free items that readers eat up.

Comments. Readers love to chat, but they won't always have an opportunity to speak to their favorite authors at book signings. Comments are a great way to get feedback from fans. 

Free stuff. Who doesn't love free stuff? Readers especially enjoy a good contest filled with freebies like books, bookmarks, postcards, coffee samplers (with a cup) and more. They also like free short stories, original art and anything unique the author can post.

As a reader, what makes you check out an author's blog?

 2010 didn't start off amazingly well here at Market My Novel.

I could give you a lot of excuses why. I was burned out, I launched a new blog, was looking for more freelance work, etc.

The real reason? My blog wasn't working.

That's right. Miss Social Media Diva had a blog program that didn't work, and it was all thanks to a few little plugins that needed to be updated.

Without these upgrades I had to hand code nearly everything. Sometimes the hard break codes would vanish and I'd have to reinsert them several times until they stuck. This took up so much time - and caused so much aggravation - that I just let it go and worked on other things.

Normally, I upgrade my plugins like clockwork. However, I discovered the hard way that these little babies were paid plugins tied to my blog transfer last year. It wasn't very expensive, but it was an expense I hadn't planned for. I tried to work without them, but that didn't work, either.

I was also seriously aggravated at myself for not anticipating this expense, too. I had tried to ask every question tied to the transfer that I could think of, but still didn't think of them all. (I think I was mad at myself more than anything. You know how that goes when you try to plan things out financially.)

With $1K in dental and eye doctors expenses I have to finagle (Is that even a word?) in my budget, I just put it off... and put it off...until finally one day I couldn't take it anymore and ponied up.

Now, my blog is running smoothly, coding itself and making my blogging life that much nicer. It was definitely worth the money.

Finally, all of these ideas and links and stories I've wanted to share, I CAN share -  without the hassle.

The morals of this story?

Whenever you ask questions about Web design, you will NEVER think of everything, no matter how hard you try.

Your blogging will suffer if you don't have a program that works. It is better to pay up fast and keep content flowing, than to let things slide. 

If you are on WordPress, update your plugins regularly! If you start to have issues, go back and uninstall the last plugin you added and see if that is the issue.

Image credit: David Beaulieu, About.com

Recently, I've encountered several really cool blogs that haven't updated in months - sometimes years.

Like homes caught in the midst of the bad economy, these blogs were abandoned for whatever reason by their creators. Many times there are no explanations, no caveats, no links to a new and improved blog, just a lot of content from cyber yesteryears. It's a shame, too, because many times the archives offer a wealth of incredibly important information - some that still pertains to cyber marketing today.

Some of you might be wondering what all the fuss is about. Seriously, someone stops blogging, who cares? There are millions of other blogs out there waiting to fill the niche.

Fact is, some can't fill the niche provided by these dead blogs. Some niches died, but the archives are incredibly valuable for research. Without some notice, it seems like the blogger just vanished - gave up in the midstream and left everyone hanging - which is not good for the blogger's brand.

If your blog is dead or dying, there are a few things you can do for current and future archives readers:

Tell readers why. Create a final post telling folks the blog is dead. Make it simple. "I don't have time to blog anymore." "I want to focus on writing." One book reviewer did a very blunt post three years ago about being completely burned out by the pace and work it took to review books for his blog. Another blogger wrote that his blog was for a class project and would only be up for nine months.

Link to new sites. Some bloggers switch platforms, but for whatever reason, are unable to carry their archives over. Make certain there is a prominent link to your new cyber home so future readers will know where they can find you.

Leave the archives. If your blog is dead, it is still a good idea to keep the archives active - especially if you write reviews, provide downloadable products to readers or host other guest bloggers. This is easy if it is built on a free platform like WordPress or Blogger, but some may not want to pay hosting to infinity for a dead blog.

Sell it. If you have a devoted readership, you may be able to sell your blog to someone with the time and energy to take it to the next level.

Give it away. For blogs with several contributors, it is a good idea to check with everyone a few times a year to be sure the blogging schedule still works. If not, the blog may die, or individual bloggers may leave and others take their place. If you are the site administrator and no longer have time for those duties, it is a good idea to find a replacement, rather than close the blog without discussion.

Here are a few good articles on dead blogs:

How to Kill Your Blog Successfully (ProBlogger)

How to Know When to Stop Blogging (Lorelle on WordPress)

Have you ever killed a blog? How did you do it?

J.R. Turner

In a follow up to yesterday's post, The Trouble with Trolls, Dead Friends Forever author J.R. Turner talks about her experience with online trolls.

In your online marketing ventures, when did you run into trolls?

Trolls are pretty much everywhere, so it isn't the venue as much as it is those running the venue that one has to be careful about. MySpace is the worst I've ever encountered at enforcing their Terms of Service. They're directions are to engage in an email exchange whereby you offer evidence, and they copy and paste in the appropriate script which essentially states they won't get involved. When I finally managed to get someone on the phone, the man there admitted to me that his only job was to answer the phone and tell people to use their email system.

What got them started on your site? What types of messages did they leave for you? Were they public messages?

I had the temerity to stand up to a bully when a teenager became his target. From then on, it turned into a gang of three, with supporters, stalking me across many forums and working behind the scenes to ruin my reputation. I was compared to Shirley Fine and accused of preying on new writers to bilk them for hundreds of dollars. This is simply ludicrous.

The posts ranged from obscene language on forum posts, to sexual vulgarities about me on a personal blog—all of it public.

How did it make you feel when you saw their vitriol?

Disheartened is the word that comes to mind. I've always strived to remain professional in my interactions on the internet. I haven't always maintained that professionalism, as I am human after all, but never did I find it appealing to engage in negative exchanges. Cyber-bullying, especially when supported by others, is constant and unrelenting. After a time, I gave up any expectation these particular people would move on and leave me alone so I might enjoy MySpace freely.

This hurt in many ways, including the sacrifice of the work I had done to help others with my MySpace blog, promoting and aiding new writers for the most part. I had reached upwards of 600 blog hits a week there and had many subscribers. The group I created as a haven for those who weren't interested in the constant bullying was hacked and lost as well. When one works so very long and hard to create something wonderful for others, and it's destroyed, it is extremely sad.

Did their cyber maneuvers damage your brand as an author? Did fans say anything to you about what they said?

I'm sure that their 'followers' now believe terrible things about me. As an author, however, I believe my work stands on its merit and by and large, readers don't really care about what these people did. However, it was the intention of these people to harm my sideline business (offering very cheap critiques to new writers who may not otherwise be able to afford similar services.) It's impossible to know for sure how many potential clients I lost during this time, or how many people I wasn't able to help, but flat-out it was their goal to destroy the possibility of more.

At times, I got notes asking me if I was aware that my name had come up again in forums I'd left months earlier—in an attempt to remove myself from the situation and hopefully have it die down. Many times I held silent, other times I didn't. Every time—it never mattered. They only got worse.

How did you respond to the trolls?

I tried every way I could think of to diffuse the situation. I tried posting demands for proof of their statements, I tried ignoring them, I tried leaving the groups, I tried forming my own group. At one point, I hired an attorney to send a cease and desist letter. Nothing worked and MySpace refused to take any action at all.

Ultimately, did you have to take legal action against these trolls? How difficult is that?

Yes. My attorney concurred that obvious libel had occurred, and also that this particular person was obsessed with me. Unfortunately, the cease and desist letter was all I could afford to spend on this matter, but had I chosen to follow through, there was ample evidence to prove the defamation and libel. These trolls rely heavily on geographical distance to protect them, and in many cases, it does—as in what happened with me.

Looking back, do you see better ways you could have handled the situation? Could you have diffused it by simply deleting comments?

Nothing I would have said or done would have changed what happened. When there is no moderation, no recourse available from the hosting site, no means of addressing through proper channels this sort of thing, nothing can be done. Once you've found yourself on the Troll's radar, no matter how innocuous the reason, they will work overtime to recruit and disseminate false information in order to harm you, your reputation, and your income if at all possible.

What else would you like to add?

My decision to leave MySpace was a difficult one and it took me over a year to fully decide. I encourage anyone and everyone to stay away from MySpace until they change and begin enforcing their Terms of Service. We shouldn't lend our support to places that knowingly and willingly allow these sorts of places to operate unchecked. I would also encourage people to be wary of places like Urbis—a writer's site the hosts the worst troll and cyber-bully arena on MySpace—as well as Writer's Café, who is second only to Urbis. For more than a year, both forums have gone unmoderated and they are just as culpable as MySpace in the perpetration of these illegal activities.

The New Yorker has a great humor column about book promotions. If you didn't catch my Twitter link earlier today, be sure to check out Subject: Our Marketing Plan by Ellis Weiner.

Book Reviewer Linkup Meme

John Ottinger's Grasping the Wind blog offers an incredible resource for speculative fiction, horror and fantasy authors searching for sites that will review their work. Today, Ottinger shares how his blog started.

In 2004, at the prompting of a friend, I began a little blog called Grasping for the Wind. After some time flailing around to find my voice, I finally settled on covering the literature of science fiction and fantasy, with occasional forays into other media.

During my flailing period, I used all sorts of marketing tools. One of these was something called the Z-list, a list of websites that when you found it, you were supposed to copy and paste to your own site and then add your name to the bottom. The idea was to use the linking power of the internet to increase everyone’s pageranks in things like Technorati and Google. And it worked.

So one day in December 2008, as I was pondering how best to promote my blog now that it had found its voice, the old Z-list idea came back to me, but with a twist. I would focus exclusively on science fiction and fantasy review blogs. I started the list with only 30 sites listed, and asked everyone to take the list, put it on their blog, and I would use the referring links to build up the database. So I built the SF/F/H Reviewer’s Linkup Meme. (i.e. science fiction, fantasy, horror)

This was a lot of work, and took me several weeks with multiple daily updates to keep track of all the links flooding in. But even so, it wouldn’t have gone very far except that GalleyCat, a premier publisher’s blog, picked up the concept and announced it to the world, and Tor.com, then in its fledgling stages, also took the list and posted it to their site. Between these two and all the mentions on other small to medium size blogs like mine, everyone’s page rank and Technorati rating got a boost. Many new readers were introduced to blogs they would not have found otherwise. The list even spawned a song and had one blogger review each blog in the list.

In August of 2009, I decided the list needed another update, and although the response was not as heavy this time, there was still a good response, even getting the list posted at Publisher’s Weekly Genreville Blog as the first place to go to look for other reviewers. This time, I added the ability to sign up through a simple form that made it easier and less time-consuming for me to collect all the information, and made it easier to add the new blogs rapidly to the list. The second iteration did well, and there are many new blogs on the list to find in all the various subgenres. I still get emails from people thanking me for the concept.

I expect that in the future I will have other iterations of the SF/F/H Reviewers Linkup Meme. Several ideas are bouncing around in my head for using the simplest aspect of the internet, the link, to promote all that is great in science fiction and fantasy.

About the blogger:

John Ottinger is an unemployed teacher who lives in Orlando, FL. His reviews, interviews and articles have appeared in Publisher’s Weekly, Strange Horizons, The Fix, Sacramento Book Review, Stephen Hunt’s SFCrowsnest, Thaumatrope, and at Tor.com. He blogs regularly at Grasping for the Wind.