Measuring Up
November 27, 2007 by John Hewitt
A while back, Michael Stelzner over at Writing White Papers started a comment-based contest to name the Top Ten Blogs for Writers. He has now posted his official list of nominees, which I have included below. I was happy to see that my blog made the initial cut and I thank those of you who nominated it. For the final vote, Michael is planning to judge the blogs based on the following criteria.
- Quality of posts: (55% of decision)
- Frequency of posts: (15%)
- Reader involvement: (15%)
- Technorati.com Ranking: (15%)
The criteria prompted me to think about my own blog and where it is going, so I thought I would conduct a quick self-assessment and see what my readers think as well.
Quality of posts: November has, due to my commitment to participate in NaNoWriMo, not been my best month for quality of posts. I am, however, very happy with the posts I wrote in September and October, especially those concerning the 30 Poems in 30 Days project and the 10 Days of Character Building Project. Overall, I would give myself a B in this category, and plan to move back toward an A in December, once my NaNoWriMo participation is complete.
Frequency of posts: Again, this has suffered a bit this month, due to the novel commitment. In September and October, I held myself to a daily posting schedule, but I have slacked off a bit in November. Again, I would give myself a B.
Reader Involvement: Right now, I have about eight readers who comment with some regularity. That isn’t bad, but it certainly could be improved. I don’t know how I measure up to other blogs in this category, but I would give myself a C+.
Technorati Ranking: My current Technorati rank is 29,043. That beats everyone on the list except Copyblogger (which has an ENORMOUS following I won’t be surpassing any time soon) and Copywriting Maven. I think that Freelance Writing Jobs might have a bigger following than mine but for some reason Technorati won’t give me a rank for that site. I’ll give myself an A in that category.
Overall, I think my blog earns a solid B overall. A month ago, I might have rated it higher, but I am not thrilled with my November posts.
Now, I ask for your feedback:
- How do you think my site compares with the others?
- What would you like to see me writing about in the future?
- How frequently would you like me to post?
- Do you like ongoing projects or individual postings?
Be sure to visit the other nominated blogs below. They are all worthy of consideration.
- Catalystblogger
- Copyblogger
- Copywriter Underground
- Copywriting Maven
- Freelance Parent
- Freelance Writing Jobs
- Get Paid to Write Online
- Golden Pencil
- Heather Strang, Writer
- Ink in my Coffee
- Renegade Writer Blog
- The Urban Muse
- Web Content Writer Tips
- Web Writing Info
- Write From Home
- Writer Mama
- Writer’s Resource Center
- Writing for Writers
- Writing the Cyber Highway
Related links
- Blogging as a Publishing Business: What is a blog? (0.500)
- Blogging as a Publishing Business: Who should try it? (0.500)
- Blogging as a Publishing Business: How Much Money Can You Make? (0.500)
- Blogging as a Publishing Business: Personal Blogs (Diaries) (0.500)
- Blogging as a Publishing Business: Political Blogs (0.500)
Contact John Hewitt
Writing Content and Web Consulting
Email: hewitt@poewar.comPhone: (520) 261-6104
LinkedIn: poewar
Twitter: @poewar
Facebook: pwar2
How do you think my site compares with the others? — I have a few others I visit, but yours is my favorite because it fits me and what I’m doing right now.
What would you like to see me writing about in the future? — Since I’m doing Nanowrimo, too, I’d like to see more information on re-writing and how to look at your own writing objectively.
How frequently would you like me to post? — Every other day would be fine. Every day is hard for me to keep up with.
Do you like ongoing projects or individual postings? — Ongoing is my favorite, but I like individual as well, so a mixture is cool.
Thank you for the feedback, Joni. I appreciate your comments.
I read your blog quite frequently and find it to be very good. Quick, simple tools and tips that I know have helped me. i will make it a point to comment more frequently, as I think your blog deserves the attention. thanks.
I like yours far better than any of the others, most of which I seldom if ever look at (except that I too like Copyblogger, who transcends his ostensible brief). (a) I already know about spelling, punctuation, and grammar and I have a good vocabulary. (b) I’m a literary writer not a marketing writer.
I agree with Joni on what I’d like to see you writing about. Even though I did NaNo last year, I still have to revise that work. And I still like the poetry exercises of course. They’ve helped me be so much more productive, and go in new directions.
In fact, I agree with Joni one very point!
er, that’s “on every point”.
Thanks for the link love! I hope you’re in the Top Ten
John, I love your site. You do a magnificent job. This is by far my favorite of all sites. I have you bookmarked, and I check in here often, although I haven’t written any comments until now because I didn’t see that I should. Your posts are first-rate, but I never saw a need to respond. For that I am sorry, because now that I know, I can give feedback if I think it would be of value to you. Please let me know if there are other ways I can help you.
You offer so much invaluable information and have helped me tremendously in my transition from my first career into becoming a real writer. Thank you.
Ellen “EJ” Sackett
Leaving aside November which I’m sure has given you a whole sleuth of things to write about now, this is still my favourite, practical writing blog. I like the mix of topics you cover and I like the depth of resources which can be found here.
Regardless of the number of commenters you are getting (which is, of course, very important) I do not think that you could do more to encourage it. Perhaps your readers should get a C+ but you deserve an A for the level of commitment and the engagement you have with those who do comment.
I have been a bit slack in this area of late but I know how dedicated you are in responding and relating to your commenters.
What would I like to see more of in the future? Hmm, I wish I could answer, because I know that it is helpful, but I just like what you do. I wonder whether perhaps you should dig up some of your older stuff every now and then, because you’ve been doing this for a long time. I’m sure there are a lot of things that deserve going back over, reworking, updating, or just bringing to our attention. That’s the thing with blogs. It’s always now.
I think a mix of projects and individual posts are best. The projects really give us something to build on, but you provide a wealth of information as well.
Eh, bah! to Copyblogger. You, John, are the Maestro.
Hi John,
I loved your poem project.
Your blog, Deb’s and Anne’s are my favorites. I’m sure Copyblogger will be at the top, too. I’m certainly not knocking the blog, because I know it’s popular. It’s just not one I enjoy as much as yours or Deb’s or Anne’s.
Thanks Amy,
There’s only a couple of nominees on the list that I am not impressed with (and I won’t name them). All in all, I think is is an excellent list as it stands, and really doesn’t need to be trimmed down to ten. I’m not particularly worried about making the list. By that, I mean whether I do or not, I’ll keep bouncing along. I only returned to real blogging last June (for a long time I just posted jobs) and I am very happy with the progress of the blog over the last few months.
I think you’re doing a fantastic job here. I’ve only just discovered your site, thanks to the fantastic list of top ten but subscribed to your feed right away because I could see the value you provide for readers and your easygoing, encouraging voice. I’m looking forward to exploring more and I’ll be sure to comment when I have something worth saying.
I wanted to mention here that just because you can depend on 8 regular commenters you’ll find you have many more readers. I’ve found that most blogs get about one reader who comments to every 9 who don’t. So 8 regular commenters means about 80 regular readers. That’s a wonderful base and I’m sure it will continue to increase as you continue to provide insightful and interesting entries.
Congratulations on your nomination and good luck for the final results!