Why?
A “blog” (short for “Weblog”) is a bit like a newspaper or magazine, but online. Bloggers can write regularly about their personal interests, like a topic that fascinates them, or – in general – any kind of information that they want to share with the world.
On a website containing a blog, the newest articles are most often displayed at the top. That makes it easier to find the most recent blog posts.
Fun fact: In 2021, blogger Timothy Sykes made $1 million with his blog timothysykes.com – per month, that is!
Who for?
In general – everybody who is interested! You might choose a topic that generates a lot of interest, or you write about something that only hardcore nerds are interested in. Either way – the choice is yours!
How?
After you have decided on a topic – and maybe compared a little with what there is on the web already – just start to write. The more you write, the more you get feedback, the better you will become! Here are a few expert tips that should help to get you started:
Find an article type that attracts readers.
You have seen them all: Lists (“The 10 reasons why…”, “Top 5 places to visit”, “Here are my three reasons why…”) or checklists (“What to bring to a desert island”). Also, how-to guides are incredibly useful.
If you want to be more on the current side, news articles can be equally interesting. And, finally: You can choose a more personal approach by speaking about personal experiences or a person that you find inspiring.
Get your facts together first.
Many people write blogs. Make your articles more compelling by integrating some things that you have looked up and learnt.
Start a conversation.
As you want people to interact with your blog post by writing comments, by sharing it on social media, your article is a bit like a conversation. Include questions, be inspiring – and sometimes a bit provocative!
Be visual.
Use interesting visuals like photos, cartoons or graphs to illustrate your points. They can be funny – or thought-inspiring themselves. Great platforms like Pixabay help you with royalty-free images.
Style matters.
As your article is similar to a conversation, write as you speak. This is how your readers can follow along nicely.
Of course, your article should be free of mistakes. Check your grammar and spelling, and make sure your sentences are not too long!
A good feedback partner can help you with this.
What next?
Now, try your hand at writing a good blog article. It doesn’t need to be that long – as a start, about 120 words are enough. Make sure you follow the advice given above.
When you’ve finished your first draft, follow the improvement guide and rework your article. After that, another person can give you feedback using the peer feedback activity.