Tips on How to Start & Write a Blog

So I've had this little 'ole blog here for going on 5 years now. Some of you have read every.single.one of my posts, but most of you probably have not.
I don't blame you, there's over a thousand. That's dedication. ;) And friggin' time consuming.
When I first started writing it I literally wrote about my daily life.
That's pretty much it. I was a newlywed with no children so I wrote about what I did every night.
I think 4 people read it. And 3 of them were my family members.
I started it for no particular reason other than to keep a diary of sorts.
As time progressed and I got pregnant I documented that. Then my weight loss after baby. Then my second pregnancy. And working out through that second pregnancy. And weight loss after that....
To what it is now...
A bunch of crap thrown into one cluster F of a space where I write whatever the balls I want to, dangit.

And sometimes I cuss. And say shit. And talk about how I run, and workout and make time for a healthy lifestyle while juggling a full time job, a man-child of a husband and 2 toddlers.
Kill me.

No, don't. My life is pretty amazeballs.

So how do I run this little blog that's turned into quite a frenzy?

Just like my workouts, I MAKE TIME FOR IT.
So I'm gonna give you my tips on starting a blog, writing a blog, and all the crap that goes with it.
Take it for what it is- tips from a girl who's managed to build a "brand" off of writing whatever the hell I want to.... mostly.

TIPS:

1. Don't hold back.  

Write what you want. And stand behind that.
I will never apologize for cussing, or speaking my feelings. If you don't like it, DON'T READ SUCKAAAASSS!!!
That said, I should address the negativity that comes with speaking your mind.
When your blog starts to grow and more people read (which they WILL if you follow these tips) the more opinions and people your words will come in contact with.
Everyone is ALWAYS going to have an opinion on what you have to say. Some will be mean about it.
Try not to let it get to you. I know it's hard (TWSS), but you've got to just let that shit roll right off your back.

2. POST PICTURES!!!

No one wants to read a post with no pictures. I try to add a picture to EVERY post. Sometimes I don't, I can be lame, too.
People want to see pretty pictures.
People want to see REAL pictures.
I am NOT a professional photographer and I don't have the prettiest pictures sometimes, but oh well! Ain't nobody got time fo dat!
I am not big into the blogs where the blogger appears to be a professional photographer and they have pictures all the time of their perfect looking house and children.
That's cray and is NOT real life.
Unless you're Martha Freakin Stewart. And you're not. She's hardcore. You're not. Quit pretending.
I post pictures of how dirty my house is and I DON'T CARE WHO SEES IT!
Y'all know I LOATHE cleaning. Like seriously. It's stupid.

3. Comment on other people's blogs.

There is a whole huge community of amazing bloggers out there. Comment on their posts. Take interest. They'll notice and check you out in return.
I've met some truly amazing friends through blogging. My BFF, Megan is one of them. :)

4. Be real.  

Did I already say that? Well do it.
QUIT PRETENDING TO BE JUNE CLEAVER! She's uber boring anyway.

5. Make your blog esthetically pleasing. 

There is nothing appealing about a dreary blog design. Make your readers WANT to come back. Pay the money and have someone professionally design your blog. Like THIS GUY. He rocks.

6. Put your pretty face on stuff.

I want to see the writer of the blogs I read.
I need that connection to "put a face to a name...errr... blog" so to speak.
I want to see what she looks like when she's writing, or taking her kids to school, or cleaning the house, or going to the gym, whatever.
This may or may not be why I post a zillion pictures of myself.
Oh, that and I don't look like a fat tub of lard like I used to. HOLLA!!!

7. Host giveaways.

Okay, I know some people HATE giveaways, and that's all fine and good. But a lot of people LOVE them, too.
I get so many people that ask me how to get followers. I never cared about the number of followers I had. It was never a goal of mine to have a big blog or a lot of followers, it just came with me being REAL.
Giveaways did drive a lot of traffic my way, though. Then those new people would click around and see they were interested in my story, so they'd follow, and so on.
Contact people you know or small business owners and see if they'd be interested in hosting a giveaway on your blog. The worst they can say is no.
When I first started out and my blog was fairly small I'd just contact people and ask to send me something (to make sure I liked it) and then to host a giveaway.
I have found some of my FAVORITE products that way and built some great business friendships.
Which brings me to my next tip...

8. Know your worth.

Look, my blog reaches a lot of people. I am not tooting my own horn here, I'm being honest. And when it started getting "big" I had to realize what I was doing by hosting these giveaways.
Essentially, I was advertising for these companies for free. Once I spoke with a few other bloggers and figured out how they turned their blog into a business is when I realized I was selling myself short.
So they'd send me a free product and I'd pimp them out, and they'd get thousands of sales, traffic and exposure. Again, I'm being honest here.
It's not something I ever wanted or knew was possible, but it's turned into that.
I get to make some extra change off of doing something I already WAS doing and something I enjoy. It's a win win for me.
I've gotten some flack for that, and that's okay. But I can tell you this... if you were in my shoes, you'd be doing the exact same thing. Uhthankyouverymuch.

9. Know what to write about.

I don't really like to classify this blog into a certain genre. I'm a mommy blogger. A running, mommy blogger. A full time working running mommy blogger. A fashion obsessed full time working running mommy blogger. A hold-nothing-back fashion obsessed full time working running mommy blogger. .... you get it.
So I have a wide range of things I can discuss. I like having the versatility to be able to talk about my kids one day, fashion the next, working out the next, and so on.
Write about what you like. Be genuine. And readers will come back if they like what you have to say.

10. Network, Network, Network.
Social media is your best friend when networking. I have a Pinterest, Instagram, Facebook (personal and for the blog), Keek, YouTube. Yet no Twitter. Never have gotten into it. I'm maxed out as is, okie dokie.
Also- keep all your names the same as your blog on all these social media outlets. If you're "mamalaughlin" on Instagram (you're not though, because I am) then make sure you're "Mama Laughlin" on Facebook. Get it? Got it? Good.
Put yourself out there. Post pictures. Ask for feedback. This is networking and it will drive traffic to your site.
Speaking of your site...

11. Purchase a domain, dangit.

You can go through Google and it's $10/year. It's so much easier to remember for your readers, too.
Just do it.

Hope this helps!
Good luck and if you've got a blog, link it in the comments and I'll try and check it out!

Holla.

Enjoy the show...
gun show...
get it?
I'm a moron.

working on Jillian Michaels arms by summer!

my little turds.

I can't stand the cuteness.
Like I said, NO POST is complete without pictures! :)

Happy Blogging!