I do miss reading blogs! It definitely feels like there's a collective desire to get back to real thoughts from authors. I struggle with feeling like my thoughts are "worthy" of a newsletter, but I'm starting to realize that readers are craving simplicity so maybe I don't need to be quite that deep or profound. I can talk about my plants and birdwatching, because it's more about community and finding relatable things people can grab on to.
Yes, I think we can get too in our heads about crafting the perfect newsletter, but ultimately it's about connecting to readers human to human instead of "brand or message" to human. I would read an author's thoughts about their plants or their birdwatching.
So nice! I think most of my sales this month have come from there. I've been working on exposure there and also incorporating more Bookfunnel and StoryOrigin group promos/newsletter swaps as another way to get away from socials.
**nods** Count me in as one missing the ease of connection we found in blogging. I am finding my way with Substack —both writing here as well as reading and interacting—and I do enjoy it. Like you, I’m wishing more romance writers would join in here as well.
I used to love blogging. I started in 2009 because we were "supposed to" build a platform, according to agents/editors. I accidentally did when I started writing about Scrivener, but those posts are also a great record of my thought process as I learned the craft and business of writing, and later self-publishing.
These days, I tend to reserve most of my writerly thoughts for my newsletter subscribers, but I miss the connections I made from people finding my blog and commenting (or me finding theirs). It gave me a deeper sense of community than I get from social media. There are still a few followers who've been around from the very beginning, and I love hearing from them when I do the rare post. Anyway, I'm enjoying your blog-like endeavor. ;-)
Thanks, Gwen! And yes, I think the community aspect is the key. We had a community we could fully engage with. We saw everyone's posts if we scanned our reader regularly. Conversations could happen in the comments. The social media algorithms took that away. Now even if you want to read someone's stuff and follow them, it's a roulette wheel on whether you'll actually see their content or not. (Except for newsletters of course.)
I miss those blogs too! I spent way more time on them and commenting than I do with social media. Back then, we didn't have to worry about algorithms and how what we were reading would ultimately mess up who saw our posts. So things felt fresh. Exciting.
Aww, thanks, Stina! And yes, it was so nice to know that we'd see each other's posts as long as we scrolled through our blog reader regularly. It meant we didn't have to be so promotional or strategic about everything. We could just blog about whatever we wanted to talk about and then people could choose whether to read or pass it by. It felt more casual and authentic.
I do a mix of things (with a sense of which of them drops if I'm low on time/words/ resources)
- Newsletter (weekly, sales but also "here are fun links I came across while researching things this week" which go over really well with my readers)
- Blog : Longer comments on books, worldbuilding details, etc. I link these in the newsletter after they go live. I don't think they particularly drive sales, but they give me a way to highlight stuff for readers, share longer-form stuff. I've been doing a series of 'idea to book' about the ideas behind each book (now caught up to what's out) and now I'm swapping between character overviews for characters in multiple books and some other worldbuilding stuff. They also make it easy for me to point to something if I get some kinds of reader questions - brief reply in email, link to more details on the blog.
- Patreon, which this year (2024) is two worldbuilding/research/behind the scenes writing posts that are public, and then one post each of two extras (neither of which depend on books that haven't come out yet: one is a precursor to something that's now out, one is tracing a character in multiple books through specific events over about 15 years). The two sets of extras are paid, but I have very low tiers. I've been getting increasing numbers of comments on these, which is great. I link to the Patreon posts (and note paid/public) so people remember I have a Patreon.
- And then I also have a Discord, which is great fun. I don't comment about it all the time, but if we've just had a detailed conversation about something interesting, I'll reference it, or give credit to conversation there if it's helped in something I was pondering.
There are days when I feel like it's a lot, but they're all doing slightly different things in my ecosystem, and I've got a routine for dealing with them. If I'm short on time, I ditch the blog post first, then keep the newsletter super simple.
Sounds like you have a good system working for you! I've always loved writing my newsletters and that has been a great way for me to connect with readers over the last 12 years or however long I've been doing this. I think I miss the casual conversation blogs would inspire though. It felt more community like.
I miss blogs in general. They hit different. I've recently started a Substack, Courageous Pleasure. It's a little about romance writing and a little bit about pleasure. Hope you'll check it out. https://thienkimlam.substack.com/
Thanks for subscribing. Since we're lamenting about blogs, I have to lament about Google Feedreader which was my all time blog reader. I use Feedly now but it's not as good
I'm so glad to have found your newsletter on Substack. I too missed the blogosphere time, but I do have a few author blogs that I follow and read over a coffee on Sunday morning. I write on my blog sporadically because I enjoy. I'm just not comfortable only writing on Substack and not having my own real estate. My blog and Substack are how I reach my readers. Social media has turned to be too much noise.
I pick up books based on personal recommendations either from friends and readers or through searches.
I haven't been able to find a romance author community either on Substack.
I still put things on my blog too for the same reasons you do, but it's definitely harder to drive traffic there. And I agree with you on social media. So. Much. Noise. There's good stuff mixed in sometimes but it's getting harder and harder to find it in the tornado of content and ads. I subscribed to yours so maybe the romance author community will eventually find their way here lol. :)
I too, miss them. And I hate writing and receiving newsletters because you're right - their basic purpose is to try to sell. I very seldom buy books based on social media; I'll look up and borrow books based on fellow reader recommendations on sites like Smart Bitches or Fresh Fiction, but I'll only buy if I've tried the author and like her (or him).
I like well-written newsletters, but yeah, I'm out on ones that are nonstop promotion. I don't mind hearing about someone's book, but I want the newsletter to have actual content beyond that.
You’re not the only one. I’ve been trying to get back to blogging. I even thought about opening a substack but balked at putting content anywhere but my website. I just get tired of tapping away for no one read it. I don’t blog for ME. Plus, Squarespace makes it hard to subscribe to a blog but I figured out how to create a subscribe link.
Yeah, it's slightly painful to not be blogging on my own site, but I do get more discovery with Substack, plus it doubles as a newsletter, which is nice. The key for me is that I can take these posts with me if I leave (which is how it was with Blogger back in the day.) So I at least feel like I still own my content. On my website (Squarespace like yours), I do have the blog tied to my Goodreads profile, so at least it sends it out there if I put something up and I will sometimes get some comments that way. But yeah, discovery on our own Squarespace site is ROUGH.
I do miss reading blogs! It definitely feels like there's a collective desire to get back to real thoughts from authors. I struggle with feeling like my thoughts are "worthy" of a newsletter, but I'm starting to realize that readers are craving simplicity so maybe I don't need to be quite that deep or profound. I can talk about my plants and birdwatching, because it's more about community and finding relatable things people can grab on to.
Yes, I think we can get too in our heads about crafting the perfect newsletter, but ultimately it's about connecting to readers human to human instead of "brand or message" to human. I would read an author's thoughts about their plants or their birdwatching.
Connecting human to human vs brand/message to human, that's such a valuable perspective shift! Thank you!
Same here—I have remember simple connection is everything!
I keep a blog as an author: https://www.torrancesene.com/blog/
I do it mostly as a way to get traffic from searches and Pinterest (content marketing), so I'm not depending on socials to find readers.
Another really good blog is Tasha L. Harrison's: https://tashalharrisonbooks.com/blogs/news
Nice! I'm starting to explore Pinterest again too. It's a nice non-social media way to drive traffic.
So nice! I think most of my sales this month have come from there. I've been working on exposure there and also incorporating more Bookfunnel and StoryOrigin group promos/newsletter swaps as another way to get away from socials.
**nods** Count me in as one missing the ease of connection we found in blogging. I am finding my way with Substack —both writing here as well as reading and interacting—and I do enjoy it. Like you, I’m wishing more romance writers would join in here as well.
I used to love blogging. I started in 2009 because we were "supposed to" build a platform, according to agents/editors. I accidentally did when I started writing about Scrivener, but those posts are also a great record of my thought process as I learned the craft and business of writing, and later self-publishing.
These days, I tend to reserve most of my writerly thoughts for my newsletter subscribers, but I miss the connections I made from people finding my blog and commenting (or me finding theirs). It gave me a deeper sense of community than I get from social media. There are still a few followers who've been around from the very beginning, and I love hearing from them when I do the rare post. Anyway, I'm enjoying your blog-like endeavor. ;-)
Thanks, Gwen! And yes, I think the community aspect is the key. We had a community we could fully engage with. We saw everyone's posts if we scanned our reader regularly. Conversations could happen in the comments. The social media algorithms took that away. Now even if you want to read someone's stuff and follow them, it's a roulette wheel on whether you'll actually see their content or not. (Except for newsletters of course.)
I miss those blogs too! I spent way more time on them and commenting than I do with social media. Back then, we didn't have to worry about algorithms and how what we were reading would ultimately mess up who saw our posts. So things felt fresh. Exciting.
I used to love reading your blog posts, Roni.
Aww, thanks, Stina! And yes, it was so nice to know that we'd see each other's posts as long as we scrolled through our blog reader regularly. It meant we didn't have to be so promotional or strategic about everything. We could just blog about whatever we wanted to talk about and then people could choose whether to read or pass it by. It felt more casual and authentic.
I miss those blogs, too.
I do a mix of things (with a sense of which of them drops if I'm low on time/words/ resources)
- Newsletter (weekly, sales but also "here are fun links I came across while researching things this week" which go over really well with my readers)
- Blog : Longer comments on books, worldbuilding details, etc. I link these in the newsletter after they go live. I don't think they particularly drive sales, but they give me a way to highlight stuff for readers, share longer-form stuff. I've been doing a series of 'idea to book' about the ideas behind each book (now caught up to what's out) and now I'm swapping between character overviews for characters in multiple books and some other worldbuilding stuff. They also make it easy for me to point to something if I get some kinds of reader questions - brief reply in email, link to more details on the blog.
- Patreon, which this year (2024) is two worldbuilding/research/behind the scenes writing posts that are public, and then one post each of two extras (neither of which depend on books that haven't come out yet: one is a precursor to something that's now out, one is tracing a character in multiple books through specific events over about 15 years). The two sets of extras are paid, but I have very low tiers. I've been getting increasing numbers of comments on these, which is great. I link to the Patreon posts (and note paid/public) so people remember I have a Patreon.
- And then I also have a Discord, which is great fun. I don't comment about it all the time, but if we've just had a detailed conversation about something interesting, I'll reference it, or give credit to conversation there if it's helped in something I was pondering.
There are days when I feel like it's a lot, but they're all doing slightly different things in my ecosystem, and I've got a routine for dealing with them. If I'm short on time, I ditch the blog post first, then keep the newsletter super simple.
Sounds like you have a good system working for you! I've always loved writing my newsletters and that has been a great way for me to connect with readers over the last 12 years or however long I've been doing this. I think I miss the casual conversation blogs would inspire though. It felt more community like.
I miss blogs in general. They hit different. I've recently started a Substack, Courageous Pleasure. It's a little about romance writing and a little bit about pleasure. Hope you'll check it out. https://thienkimlam.substack.com/
Subscribed! :) And yes to blogs in general. It wasn't just writer blogs. There was a lot of great stuff out there.
Thanks for subscribing. Since we're lamenting about blogs, I have to lament about Google Feedreader which was my all time blog reader. I use Feedly now but it's not as good
RIP google reader
I'm so glad to have found your newsletter on Substack. I too missed the blogosphere time, but I do have a few author blogs that I follow and read over a coffee on Sunday morning. I write on my blog sporadically because I enjoy. I'm just not comfortable only writing on Substack and not having my own real estate. My blog and Substack are how I reach my readers. Social media has turned to be too much noise.
I pick up books based on personal recommendations either from friends and readers or through searches.
I haven't been able to find a romance author community either on Substack.
I still put things on my blog too for the same reasons you do, but it's definitely harder to drive traffic there. And I agree with you on social media. So. Much. Noise. There's good stuff mixed in sometimes but it's getting harder and harder to find it in the tornado of content and ads. I subscribed to yours so maybe the romance author community will eventually find their way here lol. :)
Thank you! I didn't expect that. Hopefully, the word will get around!
I too, miss them. And I hate writing and receiving newsletters because you're right - their basic purpose is to try to sell. I very seldom buy books based on social media; I'll look up and borrow books based on fellow reader recommendations on sites like Smart Bitches or Fresh Fiction, but I'll only buy if I've tried the author and like her (or him).
I like well-written newsletters, but yeah, I'm out on ones that are nonstop promotion. I don't mind hearing about someone's book, but I want the newsletter to have actual content beyond that.
I missed my chance at being part of the blogosphere! I would have loved that community!
Aww, it makes me sad for newer authors. It was a kinder, gentler internet time.
You’re not the only one. I’ve been trying to get back to blogging. I even thought about opening a substack but balked at putting content anywhere but my website. I just get tired of tapping away for no one read it. I don’t blog for ME. Plus, Squarespace makes it hard to subscribe to a blog but I figured out how to create a subscribe link.
Yeah, it's slightly painful to not be blogging on my own site, but I do get more discovery with Substack, plus it doubles as a newsletter, which is nice. The key for me is that I can take these posts with me if I leave (which is how it was with Blogger back in the day.) So I at least feel like I still own my content. On my website (Squarespace like yours), I do have the blog tied to my Goodreads profile, so at least it sends it out there if I put something up and I will sometimes get some comments that way. But yeah, discovery on our own Squarespace site is ROUGH.
Maybe I can cross post. Anyway, the yearning for blogs is mutual! I miss your blogger entries! I felt less alone.
<3 It used to be so easy to actually connect with people.
It's so true.