Hey errybody! You may or may not already know, but writer DL Hammons runs a "blog blitz," where once a week an unsuspecting writer/blogger gets visited by pretty much a hundred-and-something people.
It sounds like a blogger's dream come true, right? So many commenters! And if you happened to write something particularly fabulous the day you're blitzed, you might get new subscribers and followers!
So that's what a lot of people join the blog blitz for--a pretty decent "lottery" chance to get new readers. You can join the blitz here.
But there is a wrong way to blitz.
Every now and then when I participate--which is every now and then--I see blitzers commenting like this:
"Okay, you've been blitzed! Now you must visit the blog of all of us who commented and leave a comment because that's only polite!" I think I literally read a comment that said, "I blitzed you, now you BETTER visit my blog!"
I choose not to paste screenshots here because I don't want to single anyone out. But are you serious? The poor blitzed person may not have time to visit 200 blogs and leave comments on every single one of them. Some people have jobs and kids. More importantly, your comment is irrelevant to their blog post, and therefore, really, it's just spam. Very demanding spam! This isn't about you, it's about the person getting blitzed. Who is not you.
Blog blitzing is way more fun and pleasant if you see it as a way to discover new writing blogs and spread some love.
That's it. Bottom line. If you're in it to win it, you will lose it.
When you blitz, try to find some way to actually interact with the blogger. It can be as simple as the, "Oooh, Thai food is yummy!" I saw one blitzer leave today, or as deep as a discussion on the value of the new NA category. If the blogger writes the same stuff you do, then I could see you directing them to your blog, maybe. As in, "hey, you write about flying cows? Oh man, me too! What's your favorite flying cow?" But see how I finished that with a question, so it's not all about me? So it's more genuine, and less, "aha! Let me just slip right in here and start blarghing about MYSELF!"
If you absolutely can't leave a real comment, maybe you should just limit yourself to Happy Blitz Day. But it's kind of a bummer if that's literally all we can come up with. Aren't we...uh...writers?
Okay, mean lecture over. I'm not the most consistent participator, and I'm a "happy blitz day" leaver, too, sometimes. But at least we can all agree never, never, never to bully other bloggers into looking at our stuff. Let's please stop being so frikking grown-up and market-y, and let's be more wide-eyed and explorer-y and child-y and just have fun. Come, my children, let us dance in the light of blog exploration and happiness, wherein there be found much chocolate and cookies and delights neverending kind of like how the french fries at Red Robin never end and I love them!
*deep breath*
Sign up for the funsies here.
It sounds like a blogger's dream come true, right? So many commenters! And if you happened to write something particularly fabulous the day you're blitzed, you might get new subscribers and followers!
So that's what a lot of people join the blog blitz for--a pretty decent "lottery" chance to get new readers. You can join the blitz here.
But there is a wrong way to blitz.
Every now and then when I participate--which is every now and then--I see blitzers commenting like this:
"Okay, you've been blitzed! Now you must visit the blog of all of us who commented and leave a comment because that's only polite!" I think I literally read a comment that said, "I blitzed you, now you BETTER visit my blog!"
I choose not to paste screenshots here because I don't want to single anyone out. But are you serious? The poor blitzed person may not have time to visit 200 blogs and leave comments on every single one of them. Some people have jobs and kids. More importantly, your comment is irrelevant to their blog post, and therefore, really, it's just spam. Very demanding spam! This isn't about you, it's about the person getting blitzed. Who is not you.
Blog blitzing is way more fun and pleasant if you see it as a way to discover new writing blogs and spread some love.
That's it. Bottom line. If you're in it to win it, you will lose it.
When you blitz, try to find some way to actually interact with the blogger. It can be as simple as the, "Oooh, Thai food is yummy!" I saw one blitzer leave today, or as deep as a discussion on the value of the new NA category. If the blogger writes the same stuff you do, then I could see you directing them to your blog, maybe. As in, "hey, you write about flying cows? Oh man, me too! What's your favorite flying cow?" But see how I finished that with a question, so it's not all about me? So it's more genuine, and less, "aha! Let me just slip right in here and start blarghing about MYSELF!"
If you absolutely can't leave a real comment, maybe you should just limit yourself to Happy Blitz Day. But it's kind of a bummer if that's literally all we can come up with. Aren't we...uh...writers?
Okay, mean lecture over. I'm not the most consistent participator, and I'm a "happy blitz day" leaver, too, sometimes. But at least we can all agree never, never, never to bully other bloggers into looking at our stuff. Let's please stop being so frikking grown-up and market-y, and let's be more wide-eyed and explorer-y and child-y and just have fun. Come, my children, let us dance in the light of blog exploration and happiness, wherein there be found much chocolate and cookies and delights neverending kind of like how the french fries at Red Robin never end and I love them!
*deep breath*
Sign up for the funsies here.
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