I’m a nice guy. I believe in peace, love and harmony. But I also want to be a successful blogger. It’s no secret that controversial posts that take an unabashed stance on a hot-button issue generate serious traffic. If we’re going to be completely honest, sometimes being a pr*ck, is the best thing you can do for your blog. Since nice guys finish last, here are two ideas on how you can blog out of character. read more

I often read about how at-home bloggers, and other work-at-home-preneurs, are prone to feeling disconnected from society. Personally, that has not been my experience. While I might not be meeting my newly found ‘blogging buddies’ for drinks anytime soon, I feel that since I started blogging, I have made more connections than I would have otherwise.

Aditya Mahesh recently blogged about How To Overcome The Disconnection of Working Alone.

And it is going to be the tipping point for me when it comes to blog conferences. read more

No, it’s not a new reality show, it’s real life.

Blogging saw a busy week to round out the first month of the new decade. Between the announcement of Apple’s “truly magical and revolutionary product,” the first State of the Union address by President Barack Obama, and Pope Benedict XVI’s plea for priests to embrace the Internet to communicate with followers, I think it might be time to ask the question…

Has blogging peaked? read more

So most of us bloggers are not rich and famous…yet. But that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t get to enjoy the self-aggrandizing, masturbatory ritual known as the award show acceptance speech.

It’s actually not a total waste of time… read more

I spent a couple of years working at FOX News where I had the opportunity to hone my headline copywriting skills.

My boss at the time would plead with us to read Reader’s Digest, claiming they had mastered the art of “catchy” headlines.

The way we digest our media has changed, but the tried and true methods of creating a powerful headline have not. Effective elements include… read more

There is no magic calculator that will tell you how much your blogging services are worth. We each have an interdependent relationship with money that is uniquely our own. The $7.50 you just earned for that 500-word blog post might be worth your time. Or not.

During discussions with bloggers, I have found that the average blogger (not a superstar, but not a slouch) earns around $10 per 250-word post. Of course, most people exceed the word count to please their employer. (Heck, this post is contracted for 250 words and it’s closer to 500!).

So we’re looking at $.04 cents a word. But there are other factors that bring down that fee considerably. Here are a few things to consider when trying to determine if a blogging job is worth taking/keeping. read more

My wife coerced me into watching Julia & Julia last night. It’s not a movie I recommend, but there was a line that got me thinking. One of the characters states that you’re not a writer unless you’re published (implying print publication). As someone who has been published – and blogs regularly – I think that statement it absolute rubbish.

Seeing your work in print no longer guarantees wide distribution. There are plenty of blogs and Websites that get traffic a published author can only dream of. It might be gratifying to see your name in print (at least it will be for your parents), but it is no longer a benchmark of true success for a writer. read more

Setting goals is easy. Being held accountable for them is another story. Last year I set some serious blogging objectives for myself. And while I am pleased with the results, I recognize that I could have performed even better. All I needed was a cheerleader.

No, not the pom-pom wielding, short-skirt wearing type. (Though I wouldn’t complain!) But the fellow blogger who understands how important these items are to achieving my goal of going into business for myself.

Here were my 2009 blogging goals:

- Earn an additional $5k from freelance blogging
(I fell short by 35%; darn economy)

- Grow blog traffic by 10%
(Traffic grew by over 30%) read more

On March 15, 2007 I wrote my first article for The Blog Herald. It was a very basic piece about fair use and blogging, sticking to my “home field” of copyright and blogging legal issues. Since then, nearly every Monday, I’ve written a column, well over 125 total.

During all of this time, I made a lot of great friends and covered a lot of topics. Though I started in just the legal field, I quickly branched out into other areas that might be of interest to bloggers including WordPress-related news as well was tips, tricks and applications that I discovered as well as blogging news.

However, today is the day where I announce that my time with the Blog Herald is now at an end. It has been a wonderful two-and-a-half years, but a lot has changed in that time. The biggest change is that, in August, I joined CopyByte.com, a Web startup I now manage that deals with practical copyright enforcement. It is that project that now takes up the bulk of my time.

As the year winds down to a close, with Paul Scrivens taking over as SplashPress’ Media Publisher and a bright future ahead for the Blog Herald, as well as all of SplashPress’ sites, the time has come for me to step aside both to focus on my new ventures and make room for the new faces and ideas to come to the site.

So, in this, my last column for the Blog Herald, I wanted to take a moment to give thanks to everyone who has helped me over the years here, especially Mark Saunders for taking a chance on an unknown bloggers such as myself, the many editors I have worked with over the years here at the Blog Herald and the other writers here who I have worked with proudly.

Thank you very much everyone for two and a half great years and I’m looking forward to seeing what great things come from the Blog Herald in the coming months and years.

I may not be writing my usual Monday columns, but I will definitely be around…

Whenever writing about a religion or philosophy, things get sticky, and that’s why I often avoid it. There are many arms of Buddhism, and I don’t pretend to be an expert – only an always-improving student.

Buddhism doesn’t care if you were born into another religion or whether or not you believe in a God. It is a practice rather than belief. I propose that you can improve your blogging skills if you travel the The Noble Eightfold Path as you write. This is the road Buddhists travel down as they strive for enlightenment.

RIGHT VIEW: Buddhism is based on the Four Noble Truths (1. There is suffering. 2. I recognize that there is suffering. 3. Suffering can be stopped. 4. The way to stop suffering is The Eightfold Path.)

As you write, look deeply at your subject and keep in mind that nothing is permanent. Understand the law of karma. Karma is determined by everything we do, say and think. By providing your audience with mindful blog posts, you will increase your Karma credit. (And this comes in handy, because no one is perfect!) read more