Jen's Writing Journey

With the end of the year approaching, it seemed like a good time to look back at the year and see which posts you found most useful. Here are the top 5, based on traffic and repeat visits.

(Side note: The writing roundups are typically the most visited pieces, but because of their cyclical nature, I didn’t include them here. If you would like to re-read them, click on Writing Roundup in the tag cloud.)

Build Your Online Press Kit
This post gives you a skeleton to use to build your own online press kit. I continue to refine mine, but getting it up in the first place was the major step. If you don’t have one, think about adding it to your list of New Year’s Resolutions.

Women and Sci-Fi
This rant, written in response to an asinine and sexist blog post that argued that we girls had ruined sci-fi, continues to draw readers. Maybe we did ruin sci-fi by insisting that it be more than just a “my machine is awesomer than your machine” pissing contest. I, for one, welcome the addition of characterization and depth.

How to Be a Healthy Writer
Many of us have seen our waistlines expand now that we have become “serious writers.” This collection of links provides ideas for shedding the pounds, inspiration to live a healthier lifestyle, and even some arguments that a more active writer is a better writer. Timely for anyone who wants to be healthier in the new year. BTW, I haven’t had a Rock Star in over a month.

Why Should You Blog?
Many writers try blogging as a means of platform development and, well, because they think they are supposed to. Christina Katz makes a big deal of giving back to the writers who come behind you, and I like to think that is what my little blog has become. My two cents? Blog if you love to blog, have a clear purpose, and can do some good in the cyber-world.

Book Review: On Writing by Stephen King
I’m cheating a little by including a review I wrote in 2008, but it still gets great traffic. On Writing is still my favorite writing book. What is yours? What writing books do you want to read in the coming year?

What have been your favorite posts this year? What cool lessons have you learned over the past year?

• How Often to Post? I came across an interesting post about blog frequency, and it got me thinking.I have set up a posting schedule for Pop Culture Curmudgeon--I post three well-thought-out analyses per week plus little bits here and there as the fancy strikes me.But, this blog has been a little harder to schedule.......
• Good Resources for Writers I'm test-driving a concept for my Thursday posts: a listing of Websites/blog posts that have some useful info for fledgling and fully fledged writers. Let me know what you think in the comments. Also, point out any good sites or blogs I should be visiting to find content.This week, I'm......
• Writing Roundup, August 21 We've got a lot of interesting news posts this week in addition to the regular blog suspects. The Business of Writing The Limits of Control This article from the American Journalism Review provides a good synopsis of the ethics policies and guidelines major newspapers are asking their reporters to follow......
• Writing Roundup Ten Characteristics of a Good ClientUse these tips when evaluating whether you will continue to work with your current clients. Also, the comment from Kelly Parkinson has great tips to evaluate a potential client.Proving You're Worth More MoneyIn this post, Heather Boerner helps you negotiate for higher rates from current......
• Guest Post by Christina Katz: Platform Resolutions for Writers Thanks to Christina Katz for sharing her platform-building wisdom. I hope you get some good action steps from this guest post. Platform Resolutions for Writers 2010 Before writers establish an author platform, they typically establish a writer platform. Over the past decade, thousands of writers have parlayed established influence into......

• Tips for Writing Your Blog Whether you are blogging for business applications, or for personal growth, the process of writing daily is a rewarding activity in many ways. The individual...
• Top Blogging Strategies Whether your blog is about general interest topics like how you washed a crayon in your son's pocket and there's a new bank going up...
• 4 Ways to Keep People at Your Blog The longer you keep someone at your blog, the more they read, the more they see your message. If you're selling something on your blog,...
• Hire Lazy Man to Manage Your Blog... (sort of) When I had started blogging in 2006, I never expected to be any good at it. In the 10th grade, I had one teacher (hi...
• 2010's Top 50 Romance Novel Blogs part 5 The final ten romance novel blogs. You now have all 100 blogs, 50 from last year, and 50 new ones from this year. I hope...