For a debut novelist (me) these words are not only axiomatic but a good objective to keep in mind when writing fiction—or a blog post.
Since this is my first post, perhaps introductions are in order: I am a regular hardworking family guy (who doesn’t look a thing like Stewie, okay, maybe a little like Peter, and I do hang out in Rhode Island a lot!); who happens to have written a novel; and who promises here and now to stop the dreaded overuse of exclamation points in these blog posts!
Oh, and you’ll never see the equally abhorrent letters LOL here. (Sorry if you’re a user but I can recommend a few good detox programs for you.) Sounds like a future blog post: “A 12 Step Program for gaining control over your texting, blogging, letters to your mother, and missives to the parole board.”
So, here I am. Blogging. It was Woody Allen who famously said “Eighty percent of success in life is just showing up,” but I am afraid, as in his dubious take on family life, his axiom is incorrect when it comes to writing. I know you must earn your readers respect and, as Lincoln said, be worthy of recognition. Hopefully I’ll earn yours.
When it comes to posts, I’ll be more like Emily (the writing, not the etiquette) and less like mushy breakfast cereal. And more lively than a fence post. Seriously, did you know that thefencepost.com is an actual web site? It features “All you need to know about rural life in Colorado & Nebraska.” Under the category of you can’t make this up: a recent feature about rodeo sheep riding, otherwise known as “mutton bustin’.”
Okay . . .nuff said.
The experts will tell you that to build a following for your blog you must write consistently about a particular topic. I’m violating that rule: my only goal in future posts – should that be goal posts? – is to write well consistently. But you’ll be the judge of that.
In the future, yes, I’ll write about some of the subject matter in my novel, Extra Innings, but you’ll also see a bunch of other stuff and discussions, ranging from ephemera to Efram Zimbalast Jr. (Bonus points if you’re not escaping to Wikipedia right now.)
The posts will vary; they’ll be serious and informative, relevant and irreverent. We all need a little humor in our lives.
Perhaps most importantly, I want to receive your comments and questions after any post and will do my best to respond, if appropriate. Of course, I’d be happy to answer your questions here about Extra Innings as well. You can also reach me privately at [email protected]
How’s that? – an entire post without mentioning the word baseball once. (LOL!)
-- Cheers!