Blog Azeroth

I always get comments or emails from people asking me how I'm able to come up with so much material for my blog. I know all of us at some point have hit bloggers block. In fact, I'm kind of in a funk right now. I'll let you in on a few secrets that's worked well for me before =).

Post anything that's interesting no matter how dull you might think it is.

1: Respond to Emails Publicly

If you ever get an email from someone asking for advice or guidance, don't hesitate to put it up. Oftentimes they'll be grateful. It's like raising your hand in lecture and asking a question. Chances are, someone in the class had the same question in mind.

2: Highlight a Comment or dozen

I've noticed that not a lot of readers look at comments. They just read the post and then flip to the next page and they might miss out on something truly exceptional. If you ever get a comment that's like "whoa", then by all means copy it and use it. One of my next posts involve highlighting some comments from my Disc Priest column a while back.

3: In Game Commentary

All of us are familiar with this already and we practice it to varying extremes. We write about our characters, future goals, achievements, and such. Keep the tradition going!

4: Refer to Your Colleagues

About 40% of my inspiration for posts come from reading your posts and your blogs. Often when I find myself writing a long winded comment, I'll copy it and paste it into my blog as a full fledged post and address it as a direct response. I'll add another perspective to it or something.

5: Change Your Surroundings

Usually I blog at home in my room. Now it's at the point where I'll blog in the library or at school or at Starbucks. You never know when Inspiration will proc.

6: Expand on Older Posts

Take a post that you've written a while back and take a good hard look at it. Read the comments that were said. Look at it from a different angle.

7: The Problem Post

This one's been another slight trend that I've noticed. You're stuck on a boss and you need help. Blog about it and what's stalling you. It's Kael for me .

8: List Posts

I looooove writing list posts. I don't know why! And you get great feedback for them as well since other readers will tend to add more.

9: Teach

Have a nifty technique or tip for playing a particular class? Share it! There will always be people interested in it.

Good ideas Matt, I find many days I just don't post because I'm not a raider (much), I think I'm boring, or what happened feels non exciting. Reading you all can be very intimidating...lol

Jess, the key thing about blogging is to remember that there are always interested readers. Just because you don't raid doesn't mean your boring or not appealing. You do appeal, but you appeal to a different subset of WoW players. I target raid healers and GM's. But I still like to touch base with the casual world from time to time. Everyone has a unique perspective about WoW and wears a different "lens".

You'd be hardpressed to find any of us here calling you boring or non exciting 8P.

And the ones that do? Well who cares about them anyway? =D

@ Lady J =Heck... I'm intrinsicly boring. All me and my wife talk about is what we did that week, we're low level silly soloers. Yet somehow people read us. I think. That or I click on my blog 83 times a day.

/slips into a daydream where he writes his blog and posts on it and comments on it and no one ever knows it exists and the ramifications of that.

@Matt = I like the idea about using comments. I think I may have to start doing that.

@Matt- good ideas, something I am trying to work on with my blog.

Another thing that I found helps out some is pictures. They don't have to be great, amazing pictures or screen shots but something that ties into your post. I am finding that people tie into something they can visually look at while reading your post a lot better than just a post itself.

This is an awesome reference, and it has already been bookmarked. I think it may actually give me inspiration to get blogging regularly. I have a few top 10 or top 5 lists bouncing in my head and a lot of tips I have found people sometimes forget in their playtime, or even that no one bothers telling them. I also might use a bit of this post for a topic on the next podcast episode. My first priority is actually getting around to designing the blog, as it is the default interface for the version I run. I do, though, want to make it noticeably different from my podcast blog. Anyone have any ideas?

I spent 6 months at 60 in a VERY small guild and we had to pug even places like UBRS and we had some of the goofiest adventures you can imagine. Plateless, tankless HU Strat. Scholo with no casters. Me, the hunter, tanking Dire Maul East with Aspect of the Pack on.

Just because you're not fighting Vashj doesn't mean you're not doing anything of interest to others. There are so many more facets to the game.

I usually have more stuff that i can write about that i probably will never get to. Everyday i think of at least 2 new ideas for posts. All i do is just make a note on my IPhone and go back to what i was doing. All ideas some i will never get to.

Here's a tip I can share: keep an index card and pen handy, and when you think "oh, I must blog about XYZ", write it down. I have a couple of index cards' worth of ideas for blog posts, and that way I know I'll always have something to talk about.

Edit: Or, yeah, make your notes on an iPhone... if you're lucky enough to live in a country where they're available.

Here's a blog post about how to overcome bloggers block that I found interesting. It mentions some of the things that Matt and others have suggested above but I figured I'd still post it as a good resource

http://www.lifeclever.com/10-tips-for-b ... ers-block/

i totally do what siha does. Got that pen and paper in the pocket. And the times i thought, oh well, i dont need the pen and paper that i left at home today, i can remember this... Those are the times I forget.