Natalie On the Six-Blogging

Welcome to another edition of Natalie on the Six. After last week's about relationships, (miss that one? Check it out, here.) I couldn't wait to write another one. Anyways, without further adue, here's the latest addition to the On the Six feature!

Today's Topic-Blogging. 
Social Media and Blogging; It seems like everyone has a social networking account. Everyone's on Facebook, tweets, and takes tons of selfies for the Instagram. However, other than tweeting about your nutty professors, or the wierd things that your friends do, you as a blogger can use these to help you build up a larger fandom! If you follow me on Twitter, than you know that I tweet about my blog at least a couple of times a day. I definately can vouch that it helps build a more substancial audiences, and is responsible for about 10-20% of my total pageviews. If you're a new blogger, than I would definately try to make more social connections!
"Wait! I want to take a picture, so I can blog about this!" Blogging is wierd. My girl Rachel said it in her awesome post. As a semi-lifestyle blogger, I blog about some of the haps that go on in my life. Whether it's a post about my birthday party, a weekend, and a day at the beach, I blog all about that. My friends often give me funny looks as to why I'm always asking them to take a million and one pictures. And well, I have two reasons for it. One is that I just like to take a lot of pictures. Two is that when I do decide to blog about it, I have lots of photos. A blogger tip to just about anyone starting out with a blog would have to be to include as many pictures as you can. It's really need to have a visual along your many awesome things that you have to say.
Blogger Friends; The cool part about blogging is that you make a ton of friends that you meet on the Internet. Don't call Nev, because that's okay! I've discovered so many awesome things since I started blogging, whether it's a new blogger or brand. I love that part about blogging because then you get to make tons of new friends that you otherwise wouldn't have, and get to expand your horizons.
Getting your blog known. This part is the tricky part, I must say. It takes a lot of time and patience to get your blog up and running. A suggestion is to read the book "Blog Inc", because it's stocked up with awesome tips to get your blog up and running. I use my copy as a reference from time to time. The best advice that I have is to use lots of Search Engine friendly tags, comment, and use social networking to your full advantage. I also suggest joining a lot of linkups, because I find them to be super-helpful to getting more page views on that certain day!
Comment? One of the best parts about being a blogger has to be the comments that people give me on my posts. From the start of Finding My Voice, I've gotton close to 300 of them! It's such a great feeling to know that someone actually likes what you are saying. One of the worst things about blogging is that sometimes you feel like no one is reading your blog, and that's not true at all. Writing a comment to a blogger will without a doubt make their day. So, comment away!
#bloggerproblems  Blogger down? Can't find something to post about? Writer's block? Well my friend, those are all in fact #bloggerproblems..

So You Wanna Be A Blogger...?

Okay so on your list of resolutions, one is that you want to start a blog. That's awesome. But, now what? You've picked out a template, a title, but now you sit on an empty computer screen. It's blank, and the emptiness is taunting you. What do I write? How do I write?
Let me help you. Hi, my name is Natalie and I've been writing a blog for over three years. I guess you can say that I'm a pro at this. I call it a work in progress. I can help all of you wanna be bloggers, with some tips and tricks of the blogging game.

• Always carry a notebook. I'm not always near my computer because I work, go to school, and have a life. Half of my entries that I've written have probably been handwritten at times. One thing that I've learned through out the years is that you never know when inspiration strikes. By carrying a small notebook in your bag you can quickly jot down notes, in addition to things that inspire you. In addition to that, you can also make to-do lists, so you can cross things out and make yourself feel better when you complete the task. 

• Have a completely awesome playlist. I find that when I write for my blog, it helps to listen to music. My favorites include All Time Low, Mayday Parade, Sleeping With Sirens, Aerosmith, and Boys Like Girls. Everyone needs a writing playlist, to get the juices going. I don't know why. I guess all of the cool writers do. Did you know that Stephenie Meyer's playlist has Muse on it? Random fact of the day. 

• Get a BlogLovin account. Blog Lovin' introduced me to so many awesome blogs, and it helps you get your name out there to other bloggers. I think that's important because the more people know you're name, the better you are. I found this helpful because I ran into awesome blogs that I enjoy reading. 

• Write about what you love. This is the most important thing because this most important thing about having a blog is to enjoy it. Write for you, despite the fact that you have an audience. I find that people who write about what they enjoy tend to have better content. There's this saying called 'Dance like there's no one watching." Well write like no one's reading. Unless the content is X-rated or something. That you can keep to yourself.

So you wanna be a blogger. I wish you all of the best because starting a blog was the best thing that I ever could do. It's so fufilling and I am so grateful for all of my readers. I hope you have as much luck as I do!