While it’s tempting to post your flash and short stories to your blog, if your goal is to go the traditional publishing route—submit your work, get accepted, get published and earn publishing credits—I don’t recommend it. The first reason is that many journals don’t accept previously published work, and the second is that publishers want your work vetted by editors in the form of publishing credits.
Instead, create a page on your website with links to your published stories, and leave your blog for what your readers really want—your secrets!
That’s right, your readers (and readers who write) see you, someone who has been published, as kind of magical. After all, you’ve been able to do what everyone says they’re going to do one day—write a story, submit it to a magazine, and get it published. They want you to lift the veil on what it’s like to be a writer, how you come up with such inventive prose, and how they can do it too.
So, to help you stave off temptation, here are ten ideas for your author blog that aren’t stories, complete with examples from five of my favourite author blogs.
I. A day (or week) in the life.
Short posts outlining what you got written today (or this week) is a great way to stay accountable to your goals and lift the veil on writing life at the same time. These posts give your readers a sense of what you’re up to and a way to cheer you on.
- “Well, here we go again,” by Finnian Burnett
- “Oh Look. It’s Still Dark Out,” by Mary Robinette Kowal
II. The Update.
Sometimes you will be very consistent with your blog. You’ll have lots to say, and the ideas will flow. Other times, you will be so busy with writing and life that you won’t have anything left for the blog. Rather than writing an apology post, write an update. For some inspiration,
- “General Writing Update,” by ES Raye
- “World Con Wrap Up,” by MRK
- “A Year of Writing,” by Finnian
III. What I know.
As I lifelong reader and an author who’s clawed your way from first draft to publication, you know shit. And your readers (especially those who write) want to know. Maybe struggles with your last story taught you the difference between the omniscient point of view and head-hopping. Or you’ve seen some writing related things and feel you should share.
- “Shame” by Finnian
- “Verbal Suffixes in nêhiyawêwin,” by Chelsea Vowel
- “I am a Level 56 Human Today,” by MRK
IV. TIL (Today I learned).
One of the top forms of procrastination for a writer is learning more about the craft. (I like to call it professional development, personally.) You take courses, watch YouTube videos, and read books—why not share what you learn and make your procrastination work for you? It’s another way of lifting the veil, this time on the eclectic patchwork of education that makes each writer unique. And who knows, you might inspire the readers to do more than just read.
- Here’s Finnian’s “For Writers, Students, and Teachers.”
- John (Athena) discusses video essays in “What You Should Be Watching: YouTube Edition: Shaun.”
V. What I learned from …
An extended take on the TIL post. Every writer experiments with little changes in their writing process. Sharing what you learn in the process is a great way to explore whether the technique is effective for you and create compelling blog content in the process.
- Finnian’s “A Year of 100 Rejections.”
- Chelsea’s “How to Create a Book or Story Outline.”
VI. Behind the scenes.
As readers, we almost never get to see what goes on behind the scenes of our favourite stories, at least until the author is dead and their archives are made public in their alma mater’s library. Weird, right? As a writer, you can share whatever you want about the drafting/editing process. Your readers will be stoked to see how a published story started out, what kind of feedback was helpful, and what made you decide it was ready to submit. Here’s
- MRK’s original outline for Glamor and Glass.
- Finnian’s partial flash fiction.
- John gives a compelling glimpse into his creative process.
- Chelea shares a little peek at what she’s been writing.
VII. Feelings.
Writing life can be a rollercoaster. You’ve got the highs of inspiration, cool new projects, and acceptances beside the lows of rejections, deadlines, procrastination, and the constant intrusions of “real” life. And you know what, readers and writers are here for it.
- Here’s Finnian’s “May Meltdowns.”
- Here’s John’s “The Scalzis go Corporate.”
- Chelsea’s “From Burnout to Freedom.”
VIII. My personal philosophy.
In this strange time of finding out that our heroes are actually abusive assholes, readers are craving clear messages about what you believe in. While it might be a bit much for fiction writers to make their entire blog about all the shitty things going on in the world (unless that’s your niche), I do recommend using your platform to stand up for what you believe in.
- MRK tells Twelve Rabid Weasels of SFWA to please shut the fuck up.
- John’s “I Hate Your Politics.”
- Chealse’s “Revisiting ‘Beyond Territorial Land Acknowledgements’.”
- ES Raye’s “Why I’m Publishing Gas Giant Gambit Traditionally.”
- Finnian’s “Save the CBC.”
IX. The rest of you.
A great way to balance out the intensity of our world and become memorable to your readers is to show your personality and sense of humour. Bonus points if you can relate it to your niche.
- MRK’s “Reason number 4372 Why I Love My Dad.”
- Chelsea’s “My current obsession: beading.”
- Finnian’s “My Best Friend.”
- John’s “Ozzy Osbourne, RIP.”
X. Shameless self-promotion.
While you want to pay attention to the balance between giving and taking from your readers, the purpose of writing is to give your readers something to read. Every time you receive an acceptance, get published, give a workshop, or your face/voice appears on the interwebs, post it. This not only satisfies your readers’ need for new content, but shows publishers and content creators that you will reciprocate when they promote your work.
- Chelsea announces preorders for Buffalo Is the New Buffalo.
- Finnian announces the publication of “Red Shirts Sometimes Survive.”
- MRK begins blogging with the announcement of her second published story.
- John announces his new story, “Slow Time Between The Stars,” as part of an anthology (in a very clever way).
XI. Writing-related projects.
As your writing career evolves and your reader base grows, you will have less time to blog, and in a way, less need for it. This is a great time to transition toward the projects that are taking you where you want to go.
- A writing podcast, like MRK’s My Favourite Bit.
- Blogging about other writers, like Finnian’s Five Questions.
- Co-blogging, like John with his daughter.
XII. If you like me, you’ll like …
This one seems counterintuitive. You would think that once you get a reader, you would want to keep them, the subtext being all to yourself. But it’s not true! Put yourself in the reader’s shoes. While you’re waiting for your favourite author’s next published work, wouldn’t you want to read someone who writes similar stories? Hell yes! So, send them to other authors and make the quality of your recommendations one of the reasons they come back.
- Finnian recommends Anna Burke.
- John recommends Tobias S. Buckell.
XIII. Guest posts.
This is taking the previous idea even further. Rather than just showing their work, invite the writer to write a post for your blog. This works especially well when they have a list to share your post on and send readers your way.
- Chelsea invites David Schulze.
- John invites Guy Gavriel Kay.
- MRK invites Elsa Sjunneson-Henry to talk about Writing Deaf and Blind Characters.
XIV. Ask for input.
Can you imagine if a writer you love asked you for your input on a project, then used it? Yeah. There are no words!
- MRK’s request for favourite lines.
- John asks for puns (purely for pleasure).
XV. Spotlighting others
Writers are often introverts who prefer that their work take the spotlight rather than themselves. Thankfully, you don’t have to be the central voice of your blog. Instead, you can write reviews or interview other authors, editors, magazines, publishers, and even readers.
- Another plug for Finnian’s Five Questions.
- John writes “Small Business Saturday” posts and interviews.
Well, there you have it folks. Feel free to suggest other types of blog posts or links to your favourite examples in the comments.
The Bloggers
Chelsea Vowel.
Chelsea hails from manitow-sâkahikan (Lac Ste. Anne) Alberta, and resides in amiskwacîwâskahikan (Edmonton, Canada). She is the author of the short story collection Buffalo is the New Buffalo, but short stories are only a very small part of who she is and what she does. She posts about everything from writing to Cree language instruction, and while she doesn’t write often, everything she does is worth reading. Read Chelea’s blog.
ES Raye.
ES is a fellow Canadian, occasional short story writer, novelist, and editor of Perseid Prophecies. He began blogging in 2023 and updates often with thoughts on writing and the latest news on his emerging career. I highly recommend checking him out (and reading his lit mag). Check out ES’s blog.
Finnian Burnett.
Finnian is a flash fiction writer, novelist, instructor extraordinaire and super speaker. They began their blog in 2012, writing about life as an emerging writer. They use it predominantly as a home for their Five Questions interviews with other writers, editors, and readers these days, but we still get a good dose of the life of Finnian at times. Read Finnian’s blog.
John Scalzi.
John is a short story writer and novelist. He’s been blogging since 1998, and his archives go back as far as 2002. He writes how he writes—funny, opinionated, and curious. His blog began as a nonfiction imitation newspaper column and has evolved to include everything from reviews to advocacy. These days, he co-blogs with his daughter Athena who really seems to like food on Whatever.
Mary Robinette Kowal.
At the time of this writing, Mary has written nearly 400 blog posts dating back to 2004. She began writing about her writing and life as a puppeteer on the day of her second short story sale, and before she sold any novels. Since then she’s published fifteen books and numerous short stories. Read her journal.
