there are several steps to creating a good writing blog for yourself & your readers. some steps may be obvious but we’re hoping to help out anyone that wants to maximize their potential as a writer on this site. (more under the cut)
have a clean & easily navigable theme.
many tumblr writers choose minimalistic and clean themes with sidebars/header bars to display their writing since it’s the words doing the talking. some of these themes have header displays if you want a little more color to your blog. (there are many more good themes but these are the ones i’ve tested personally and found that they’re aesthetically very pleasing.)
some recommendations:
if you have a little more experience with coding, you might want a little more to your theme. i personally prefer to display updates, extra links, quotes, projects i’m working on for my followers. most of these are fansites as they offer the most variety.
some recommendations:
@odeysseus: winter, melody
@ladmilk: oceanus
@sorrism: helium
@pohroro: square one, edelweiss
@magnusthemes: midnight sun
@1204px: can’t kick up the roots, nancy mulligan, wild, tokyo drive, try me, 4ever, crybaby
have an about page so people can get to know you.
this is pretty important because two of the most important things is that your readers like your writing and that they like you. so make sure to be personable, let your readers discover who you are. (as stated before, these are the ones i’ve tested. there are many more out on tumblr.)
some recommendations:
odeysseus: raspberry, dream, shadow
ciralism: satin, here’s my card, coups et blessures, introducing me
enchantedthemes: nepenthe, about iii, about ii
nemurou: daylight
karmaplus: alicio
navigation page for your readers.
this is recommended especially if you write both poetry & prose. you can link poetry series, your general poetry tag, your novels, and all your pages. (as stated before, these are the ones i’ve tested. there are many more out on tumblr.)
some recommendations:
odeysseus: mist, divide,
ciralism: compass rose
enchantedthemes: tags ii, tags iii
southcodes: somewhere
have pages for your characters and novels.
this is especially important if you want a chance for your readers to engage with you and have fun on your blog. a lot of people love going through novel pages and character pages just to get a feel for the story. (as stated before, these are the ones i’ve tested. there are many more out on tumblr.)
character pages:
aeducans: archetype
odeysseus: cynical, blueberry, ease,
ciralism: beaux rêves, the crew
nemurou: 4AM
peachthms: soul
macfustythemes: unnamed
ofmanyworlds: network page two
southcodes: tess
novel pages:
odeysseus: peppermint
ciralism: the circus,
enchantedthemes: media i
southcodes: alice, rain drops, garage kids
link all your non-tumblr sites.
preferably right on your theme! it’s one of the main reasons why many tumblr writers choose themes with a lot of extra links. if you have a fictionpress, wattpad, archiveofourown, anything, you need to link it for exposure!
join networks to get your name out there.
our network is currently no longer considering members but there are others! if you search around writers who are very social within the writers on tumblr community, you’ll find they are all at least on one network. make sure to search some of your favourite tumblr writers & check to see if they’ve joined any networks or have any starting up. there is always at least one writing network open or beginning. keep an eye out on your dashboard for those network posts.
tag bigger writers in writing that you’re sharing.
there are many bigger writers that reblog poems & prose from smaller time writers. make sure to send in an ask to see if they’re tracking any tags and if they’re okay with you tagging them to your heart’s content!
keep your writing well tagged and organized.
make sure your poetry is marked as #poetry or #words, anything that will keep it under a certain tag when you link it on the navigations page. maybe you have a series or several excerpts of your novel, make sure you tag it consecutively without missing one.
talk to other writers!
even if you don’t plan on joining a network, try talking to other writers or following writing advice blogs. reblog other writer’s works to your other blogs, give little comments within the tags, this will guarantee that people will check out your blog. (make sure to link your writing blog in your description or somewhere on your main blog’s theme if you’re not reblogging other people’s content onto there.)
a guide on how to begin writing, by growingnovelsnet (credit to admin aimi)
this is not a guaranteed way to get you to start writing since you have to want to write and force yourself to.
get comfortable.
light a few candles, have a few snacks ready, get a drink going, turn on some music, or go to a coffee shop, do anything to set the ambience you need. writing should be a mildly enjoyable process at the very least even if you do end up wanting to tear your hair out.
important note: make sure you have everything at hand so you don’t find excuses on getting up and avoiding writing.
learn about your writing style.
are you a plotter or a pantser? do you need a full outline, background, character stories/arcs, or are you just going to wing it with a few notes here and there? this is important since it will set the tone for how you’re writing. maybe you prefer pantsing at first and slowly plotting as you get deeper and need more information as you’re entrenched into the story.
find your style or happy medium and stick with it.
links: explanation & advice | advice | advice
develop your characters.
there is a saying that many reviewers on goodreads say; the plot may not be interesting but characters carry the story well and that’s why people keep reading. there is a reason why, even after the story ends, people stay with the characters. so develop your characters and develop them well because while your plot maybe generic, may have been done millions of times, but if you have well developed characters that challenge the plotline, it’s a completely new story.
links: development sheets | more sheets | questionnaire | questionnaire | fleshing out characters | advice |
begin the first draft.
when you’re beginning a story, you need to make the audience ask questions that they will want to see answered throughout the story. remember, when writing you’re trying to peak interest. after that, write anything and everything. don’t think you can write too much because you can edit things out and cut it when reading it over; all that matters is that you’re writing and that you keep writing. so ask questions, answer those questions, and pretend you’re your own audience as you’re writing.
hello, it’s aimi here! since i’ve started my new network @growingnovelsnet, i decided to make a personal contribution in the form of writing printables right before nanowrimo begins. a little bit of my studyblr side mixing in with my writing side. they’re focused on characters & novels with different colors and go in depth. all that i ask is that if you use these printables, reblog the post!
everything you need is under the cut.
