Littlemummy.com

I’ve been following Michelle’s blog Scribbit since I started my own blog. When I saw that she had released her first ebook Blogging in Pink, I couldn’t help myself but do a quick review.

Now you should understand that Michelle’s writing is always engaging, enlightening and full of wisdom. I know, it’s sick for someone to be given all the blogging talent. So after that ‘bigging up’, as you can imagine I had very high expectations.

Blogging Platforms

Blogging in Pink is an ebook written for would-be, beginner, or intermediate bloggers. I’ve had various cyber conversations with Michelle and she’s very modest and definitely wouldn’t consider herself an expert (although she did go pro earlier this year!), that being said you don’t build a blog with a four figure subscribership without being pretty good. So if you have less than 500 subscribers there are lessons you can learn from Michelle.

The book begins with a basic overview of the blogging platforms available. The information on Typepad may be particularly useful to those wishing to start a blog seriously, but who’s tech skills are basic (or non-existant).

Etiquette

Many a beginner blogger has become so enthused in their early days that they end up getting involved in some heated conversation and perhaps leave comments that in hindsight they wouldn’t have. I’ve done it, and I’ve had it done to me. It’s not nice but it’s almost a rite of passage. Michelle highlights this ‘newbie’ trait and offers some of that wisdom I spoke about earlier.

Commenting

Before you’ve even started a blog, or even considered blogging you will probably become a reader or subscriber of a blog. You might lurk for a while before leaving your first comment, Michelle’s provides a few pointers to consider before going around leaving witty and sarcastic comments everywhere.

Privacy and Safety

Many non-bloggers worry about the information being divulged on a blog, some of my own family expressed some mild concerns in the early days. Michelle describes her own thoughts on the matter which come pretty close to my own. Well worth a read if you’re concerned, if only to establish where you stand on how much personal info is too much.

Chapter 6

I just loved chapter six. For so long I’ve felt like a bit of an oddity with my blog. I was one of the earlier British Parent Bloggers (we are much larger group now!), I remember when I could name about six fellow British Parent Bloggers, there are now 186 members in the above group, and who knows how many more. Michelle does well to succinctly describe why mum blogging could (will?) be huge, as she puts it “The hand that rocks the cradle rules the world” now doesn’t that make you feel powerful, and it’s true, mums wield a lot more power than we think, we manage the household finances, influence the next generation and are constantly sharing, gossiping and chatting about our experiences. It just so happens that Mums have moved on too, and are very much a part of the technological age, the gossiping, sharing and chatting is just happening online now, that’s all blogging really is. To those who are still sceptical, I would never have considered two years ago the opportunities that have come my way recently. An all-expenses paid trip to Disneyworld was a pipe dream two years ago, in fact, scratch that, it wasn’t even on the scale. I fly out a week today. Mum blogging has big potential, Michelle has helped to remind me of that.

The Ten Commandments

All I can say is I wish I’d had the chance to read these before I started blogging!

Organization

Blogging in Pink presents many tips and ideas on how to get, and stay organised. Everyone approaches their blogs differently. Me? I go from one end of the spectrum to the other, at times I have been highly organized with a posting schedule, to the other end where I write what and when I like. I feel it’s important to recognise ‘where you are’ with your blogging, there will be times when you’re highly motivated and enthused, like I am now, and everything will come so easily and you may want to be really organised. Other times your motivation may be low and other parts of your life get in the way (perhaps in a good way) at these times I think it’s important just to continue blogging on any level until you move through this period, you know, rather than giving up completely and regretting it. I may be way off here, but that’s how I work, and I know that I’m less committed than Michelle, and with the utmost respect most people are. Spending four to five hours a day on blogging (and I’ve been there) takes enormous commitment, organisation is therefore essential.

RSS, Subscriber Buttons, Feed Readers

All the above are covered in various spots throughout the ebook. I’d highly recommend you educate yourself on the above if you’re new to blogging. There’s nothing more disappointing than finding an excellent blog that makes it nigh on impossible to subscribe, it’s a bigger crime than no contact information as far as I’m concerned.

Basic HTML

I’m rubbish with HTML so I’ll be using Blogging in Pink as a reference point for some of my basic HTML needs in the future.

Search Engine Optimization

Advanced SEO is beyond most of us mums, but there are still basic things we should be doing. That sooo includes me (note to self: must work on SEO)

Blogging in Pink, is it worth the money?

Well at the excellent price of FREE (or $0.88 on Amazon)I definitely think it’s worth it. The ebook is an amlgamation of some of the blogging posts on Scribbit along with some new information. Some regular readers, like myself will recognise this and may feel a little deja vu, however, I like the fact that I can use this as a reference now rather than searching through archives. The ebook would be most beneficial to new mum (or mom) bloggers whether they read Scribbit or not. I’m looking forward to what Michelle comes out with next, there’s rumours of another book. Michelle, do you care to comment on that?

Finally, my favourite quote;

“the most successful blogs are the ones that are able to generate the most conversation”