Dear Random Visitor:
Right now, you are the most important person in my life.
I don’t know how you found this blog. You may have been referred by a friend, you may have stumbled upon it while looking for something else, you may have clicked on a curious link searching for the love of your life. You may not know what this blog is all about, or the woman who writes it.
My main concern is getting you to stay here longer.
Maybe I’ll inspire you to bookmark me, add me to a feed, leave a comment or to click on just one more article. The blogging world is all about eyeballs and you, probably, have two of them.
Sure there are a lot of people who read this blog all the time, but I need you. I have seen the error of my ways and only you can help me redeem myself.
You see, I’ve been going about this blogging business the wrong way.
You know that old saying: Tis better to give than to receive? Conventional blog promotion follows that value system. I’ve followed it. I’ve given away a lot of stuff on this blog. The truth is, more people would probably be more successful if they followed the other maxim that goes like this: Those who ask shall receive.
This is the book that opened my eyes:
Yes, it’s a work of Chick Lit. Even by the relaxed standards of Chick Lit, Twenty Times a Lady is not a good book. Still, one should not be too quick to dismiss it. Chick Lit has it’s geniuses: Marian Keyes, Melissa Nathan, and Helen Fielding. Still, Twenty Times a Lady is just a quick and dirty rip off of Bridget Jones’ Diary. It’s final scene is straight out of the movie version.
I read it, as a writer, and wondered how it got published. And then, I read the author’s notes. It’s by Karyn Bosnak. Karyn Bosnak, you may remember, created a web site called Save Karyn asking people to make donations, not to worthy causes, but toward paying off her credit card balance. When the original site was launched, it attracted tons of media attention and Karyn Bosnak became the digital economy’s most celebrated panhandler. Since I have been trying to make my mark on the publishing world by writing articles about important issues, award-winning short stories and essays, my first response to realizing I’d paid money to support “Save Karyn” was to feel kind of sick. Luckily, I bought it at an airport in Bulgaria, so at least it was cheaper than buying it in Germany.
Sure, other people have turned digital popularity into book deals.
Catherine, Waiting for Birdy, Newman and Robert, Daddy Needs a Drink, Wilder both posted their hilarious essays on their blogs before they went into print. Both of their blogs, though, were always related to bigger media outlets.
My only hope is to take a page from “Save Karyn.”
The thing is, I don’t want your money. I don’t have an addiction to shoes or handbags or to buying new clothes. The blogging world has it’s own economy.
A cappuccino, where I live, costs 2000 page views.
A family admission ticket to the zoo costs 17, 793 page views.
But, all I really want are airplane tickets home for me and kids. My husband can pay his own way.
On the blogging economy, one adult and two children’s fares for the time we can travel will cost 1, 355, 637 page views.
Now, perhaps its counter-intuitive to believe that a blog with references to losing baby weight, postpartum depression and sleep deprivation really can appeal to everyone. Really, though, click around a little and give it a chance. We’ve got sex, action, adventure, comedy and a big-breasted heroine. Babylune is everything you want, just ask Hollywood.
Plus, you can be assured that every click you make, will be used to get us closer to home. On a direct flight.
Thank you in advance for your generosity (and eyeballs).
Love,
Kate
Only 1, 355, 636 page views to go.
Yes, this is another Project Blog Challenge. Go vote for me here (I would normally say please, but I am also trying out the treat ‘em mean to keep ‘em keen school of blogging…I’ll let you know how that goes).
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