Mummies caught onto the blogging rush some time ago, and now we have a world full of mummy blogs, sharing information on childrearing, life, juggling parenthood and general gripes of women aged 20-45. But when you look around for blogs by over 60s, there isn’t as much out there. In fact I struggle to find much at all, which is why we are all here together today.
I am thrilled to have found you all online and love seeing you here. And now, I want to encourage you and help you to become the best bloggers you can be… and blog for Starts at Sixty. If you fancy telling your stories, and teaching us your lessons, with a little effort, we can be your blog, your audience and your entertainment if you’ll let us.
But blogging isn’t something all people can do naturally and well, so I thought I would start you off with a little bit of blogging advice on how you write as a blogger. Hopefully many of you will be keen to try your hand. I’ve been blogging for 5 years now, in the business world, and teach companies how to run corporate blogs so I am fairly qualified I think to learn from… So let’s get started.
1. Set your tone and voice… Decide on the tone and objective for your blogging voice. Some people choose to write reflective blog, some blog in a more commentating style. Some are comedic, some dramatic, and some are deadly serious. But one thing is important when building a voice for your blog on our site… be consistent. People will read your articles here and get to know you and enjoy your style… and they’ll come back next time looking for more…
2. Think about the hot topic… Blogging is meant to be topical and current… it is meant to talk about issues that matter to you and to others, inviting them into a conversation… so think about this before you start writing an article… what are you inviting them in to read about and what do you want them to think and do at the end of reading?
3. Be unique… Don’t be afraid to give your blogs a feeling that people don’t see anywhere else… We’ve seen it already here on the site with some of our bloggers like Coral Drouyn, who has a very unique style of comedic writing, and it has touched people… keeping them reading on. Coral has chose her name “Girl on the Inside” and writes to this unique theme every week… which gives her a “specialness” we look forward to on Saturdays now. Jacqui and Brian Lee have a different flavour… talking about “Real Living”, and this too is bringing us back time and again…
4. Find controversy… People love to have their own opinions, it is human nature. So rather than avoid controversy, invite it in. Active discussion (in a polite and managed way that is respectful of all involved) can be very entertaining for all involved.
5. Get personal, if you want to… You might just find that by blogging regularly you become a minor celebrity in the audience… us. It is ok, if you want to share personal stories, pictures and human interest that help you build a bond with your reader… it makes us want more…
6. Be passionate…. It is always best if you write about something you are passionate about… you’ll have more opinions, more insight and offer more value. Whether this is the story of when you conquered cancer, or your grey nomad adventure… passion comes from the strangest places.
7. Create content people can’t find anywhere else… This speaks for itself… The internet is a big place full of writing… we want to stand out.. so lets be different and write for the people we have here, the over 60s…
If you fancy yourself as a “granny” or “grandad” blogger, we invite you to submit us your first blog of 600-800 words… [email protected] … Let’s start a movement of over 60s writing and sharing their thoughts opinions and experiences, just like the mummies and the business bloggers do. Don’t forget to send a 100 word blurb and headshot. Our community want to read real stories.
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