Blogophobia Conquered - bloggingbistro.combloggingbistro.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/01/Blogophobia-Conquered...BloggingBistro.com •PO ox 1254 • Snohomish, WA 98921 • [email protected]

Blogophobia Conquered Overcome the 7 Most Common Fears

And Create an Amazing Blog

Laura Christianson

BloggingBistro.com • PO Box 1254 • Snohomish, WA 98921 • [email protected]

Blogophobia Conquered • Christianson 2

BLOGOPHOBIA CONQUERED Copyright © 2013 by Laura Christianson Published by Blogging Bistro, LLC Snohomish, Washington 98291 All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means—electronic, mechanical, digital, photocopy, recording, or any other—except for brief quotations in printed reviews, without the prior permission of the publisher.

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

Introduction ……………..……….……………………………..……….………………………………..……….…….… 4

Chapter 1

Technophobia: I’m Technologically Challenged ……….………………………………..…………….…… 6

Chapter 2

Decidophobia: I’m Not Sure I Need a Blog ……….…………………………………………………………… 11

Chapter 3

Scriptophobia: I’m Afraid My Writing Skills Ain’t Strong Enough ………………………….……. 20

Chapter 4

Formatophobia: I Don’t Know How to Format Blog Articles …………………………..…………… 32

Chapter 5

Socialphobia: I’m Worried About the Attack of the Psycho Commenters …….……….…… 52

Chapter 6

Borophobia: I’m Thinking Nobody But My Grandma Will Read My Blog ……………….……. 67

Chapter 7

Addictophobia: I’m Terrified I’ll Get Addicted to Blogging ……………………..……….………… 82

About the Author ……………………..……….……………………………..……….………………………...……..… 87

About Blogging Bistro ……………………..……….……………………………..……….…………………………… 88





“I don't know how to begin. I don't know how much

a blog costs, how to get started, or if it is worth the

time. Can you help me?”

“HELP! I would like to start a blog but I'm scared.

What happens if I get ‘flamed’? Will my stuff be

copyrighted? How do I choose a name for my blog?

What if I run out of material after the first week?”

Introduction

“I’m scared.”

People sidle up to me at conferences and whisper it. They confess it over the phone.

They even admit it via e-mail:

Most conversations with wannabe bloggers boil down to that telling admission: “I have

blogophobia!”

Let’s say it out loud together. Repeat after me: “I’m a blogophobic.”

Feels good to get it out in the open, doesn’t it?





Let’s take it one more step, and pinpoint exactly what about blogging sends shivers

down your spine. As you read the following list, check any items you relate to:

I’m technologically-challenged and I’m worried my computer will eat me alive.

Everybody else seems to be blogging, and they tell me I should be blogging. But I’m

not sure whether I even want to blog.

I don’t know how to get started. I don’t know how to set up a blog and I don’t know

what a blog post should look like.

I’m wonder whether I’ll have enough time to devote to blogging.

I suspect blogging might be a waste of time.

I’m not sure whether I write well enough.

I’m not sure whether I’ll find enough to write about.

I’m worried no one will read what I write.

I’m scared that people will read what I write, and they’ll bombard me with hate mail.

Do any items on the list describe what you’re feeling? I’ll bet they do, because, well…

I’ve had those same fears.

Fear is a powerful force; when you allow it to creep in, fear squelches you, paralyzes

you, and keeps you stranded on Someday Isle in the middle of the writing ocean.

It’s time to conquer your fears about blogging. In this book, I’ll expose the seven most

common blog phobias and explore their underlying causes. I’ll equip you to assuage your fears

and empower you to confidently launch your own blog.





Chapter 1

Technophobia Fear #1: I’m technologically-challenged

I began my career as a high school journalism and English teacher in the early 1980s,

during the infancy of the personal computer revolution. My classroom was equipped with one

Apple computer and one TRS-80, neither of which had hard drives.

In today’s mega-gigabyte world, it seems inconceivable that those user-unfriendly

dinosaurs didn’t even possess hard drives. For a person like me—who had zippo background in

computer programming—deciphering the mysteries of those perplexing machines was truly

frightening.

But I put on a brave face and confidently—on the outside, anyway—informed my

students: “You are in charge of your computer. It doesn’t tell you what to do. You tell it what to

do.”

That same advice holds true today. And, wonder of wonders, our computers obey us—

most of the time. Yes, the darned things seem to crash at the most inopportune times. They

work more sluggishly than we want. Our e-mails sometimes disappear into the black hole of

cyberspace. And it’s way too easy to delete hours of work, simply by pressing the wrong button

(I’ve done that more often than I like to admit). But by-and-large, our computers comply with

our orders.





The first fear you must overcome before starting a blog is the suspicion that your

computer is going to take on a life of its own and control you. It ain’t gonna happen.

“But… but,” you stutter. “…I don’t have any technological know-how. I don’t know

anything about programming.”

It doesn’t matter.

You may have heard the acronym HTML bandied about in conversations about blogging,

and assumed HTML is some personalized license plate version of the phrase “hot meal.”

In reality, HTML stands for HyperText Markup Language. Did I just see a bead of sweat

appear on your forehead? Fear not, dear almost-blogger. You do not have to have a close,

personal relationship with HTML in order to create a blog. You do not have to know any

programming languages to be an effective blogger. You do not have to know a lick of HTML;

you’ll get by just fine without worrying about what HTML is or what it does.

Blogging purists may scoff, sneering that HTML is a required skill. I beg to differ. I’ve

been successfully blogging for years with only a rudimentary knowledge of HTML (it’s the

language used to create Web pages). If you know how to copy and paste, you’ll be fine.

“That’s it?” you say. “All I have to do is copy and paste?”

Yep, pretty much. And I’ll show you exactly what to copy and where to paste further

into the book.





I’m supremely grateful for the programmers who write the HTML code for us non-

coders, so when we want to add text or a photo to our blog, we simply push a button, and

presto, it appears.

So, let’s review exactly what technological capabilities you must possess in order to

blog. Take this short assessment:

If you answered “yes” to any of the above questions, you passed with flying colors.

Easy as Pie

Okay, so now you know you can do it. But how do you do it?

You use the Ready-Made Pie Crust Method.

Huh?

Let me explain.

Homemade pies happen to be my husband’s favorite treat. But during the first 25 years

of our marriage, I baked him a total of two pies. Why? I was afraid I wouldn’t be able to make a

Are you good at clicking buttons that say, “Click here to publish”?

Are you willing to stop and ask for directions? (men, you can just skip this

question)

Are you proficient at copying and pasting?

Are you willing to experiment?





flaky pie crust. I grew up in a family where my mom made everything from scratch. If it wasn’t

made from scratch, it was deemed “unacceptable.”

During my teenage years, I produced several hard-as-a-rock pie crusts. When I got

married, I avoided the shame and

disgrace of replicating those gut

bombs (which would likely have sent

my dear husband to the dentist… or to

his death). Convinced I’d never be able

to create a tender crust, I gave up pie

baking altogether.

But recently, a friend

introduced me to a nifty invention called ready-made pie crusts. You simply purchase a two-

pack of the little buggers—already in tins—from the supermarket’s frozen foods section. You

thaw the crusts, dump in your pie filling, stick the whole thing in the oven, and presto—you’ve

got a delicious, semi-homemade pie!

Since I discovered ready-made pie crusts, I’ve baked marionberry pies, strawberry pies,

and apple pies. And I’ve earned many, many brownie points with my husband.

How do ready-made pie crusts relate to blogging?

Consider this: Most blogs are hosted by a blog hosting service (Typepad, Blogger, and

WordPress.com are three services you may have heard of). A blog hosting service is like a





ready-made pie crust. Someone (not you) does the dirty work and prepares a handy, simple-to-

use container to house your creation. All you do is add your unique ingredients and bake to

perfection.

Even if you’re the ultimate technophobe, it’ll take you only an hour to get your blog up

and running with a hosting service. If you have some computer savvy, you can launch your blog

in 30 minutes. Honestly, it’s as easy as pie. And I’m going to give you the recipe. Stick around.

Blog hosting services:

Are free or low-cost (we’re talking $0.00 to $30.00 per month).

Provide you a variety of ready-made templates.

Include a user-friendly text editor and one-click publishing.

Give you the flexibility to customize colors and type fonts, all

with a few clicks of a button.

Archive all your articles.

…and much, much more!





About the author

Laura Christianson Laura’s career includes stints as a high school Journalism/English teacher, corporate communications director, freelance journalist, award-winning blogger, and business owner. She’s authored three non-fiction books and contributed to several others. Mentoring emerging writers and pre-adoptive parents energizes Laura, as does swimming, rollerblading, walking, photography, and camping with her family. She lives in Snohomish, Washington with her husband and their two sons.





Blogging Bistro, LLC provides an array of services and products to help you maximize

your blogging and social media marketing.

Our master’s-level staff:

Coaches individuals and groups in brand development, social media marketing and

blogging.

Builds custom WordPress.org websites. We use responsive website design

technology, which makes your website easily to navigate from a PC, tablet, and

smartphone.

Writes content for websites, blogs, direct mail pieces, brochures, e-newsletters, and

more.

Trains individuals and business teams to become better Internet marketers.

For a complete list of our products, services, and clients, visit

www.BloggingBistro.com

Interested in trying out our services?

Ask for a free 15-minute consult to assess your needs.

Give the Blogging Barista a jingle:

Laura Christianson – 425.244.4242



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Blogophobia Conquered - bloggingbistro.combloggingbistro.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/01/Blogophobia-Conquered...BloggingBistro.com •PO ox 1254 • Snohomish, WA 98921 • [email protected]