Writing

Seriously Considering Blogging Like Crazy

november writing pencils

November, apparently, is the month for writing bonanzas. There’s Nanowrimo, where the goal is to write an entire novel (well, a draft of one) in a month. And my friend Javacia runs this wonderful writing group called See Jane Write; every November, they do a promotion called Blog Like Crazy where you’re supposed to post a blog every day in the month of November.

The timing makes sense — the days are getting shorter and colder, and it’s more tempting to curl up on the couch with a book than to work on writing one. As the holidays start to ramp up, maybe November is a month where we need a strong commitment to accomplish our everyday tasks, let alone meet new goals.

I’ve always been more of a Nanowrimo girl — writing fiction at a breakneck pace is really fun, and it fuels my not-so-secret dream of publishing a novel someday. But this year, I’m thinking Blog Like Crazy might be a better pick. Both my blog and my social media posts have been a little anemic lately, and I’m hoping coming up with writing topics might help me jump-start posting about on social media, too.

I’ve been thinking about getting back into blogging without actually blogging for too long. Jumping head-first into a month-long blog sprint seems extreme, but maybe extreme is exactly what I need to figure out my next move.

I’m also hoping that posting regularly might have another side effect, too — to get me out of my proverbial shell and visiting local businesses again. It’s not that I’ve stopped shopping local since The Localist promotion died down, but I haven’t been prioritizing visiting new local businesses the way I used to, and I definitely haven’t been sharing my experiences through blogs and social media like I did when I ran the Shop Small blog. I miss being a virtual tour guide through the local businesses of Birmingham, and I’m wondering if there’s a way to incorporate that spirit of adventure again.

The first time I tried Nanowrimo, I jumped into it a few days after November had begun. It seemed too big of a goal, and I felt completely unprepared — but it ended up being one of the best things I ever did for my writing. I’m not sure if Blog Like Crazy will be that transformative, but I don’t think it needs to be. Blogging like crazy doesn’t have to change everything for me; but if sparks a new idea or two, that’s good enough for me.

Want to try it yourself? Find Blog Like Crazy here, or read my tips for Nanowrimo here.

Carrie Rollwagen is author of The Localist, a book about buying from locally owned stores. She’s Communications Director at Infomedia, a web development company in Birmingham, Alabama. Find her as @crollwagen on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.

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