Many individuals—myself included—have aspirations of writing a witty, fun, insightful personal blog and it becoming a wildly successful digital memoir. It’s a romantic idea, really: baring your soul to the world and the world eating it up with a spoon the way an enthusiastic child devours an ice cream sundae. One can only hope said metaphorical dessert of a blog has the success of, for instance, Neil Gaiman’s Journal, which recently won the 2008 Weblog Award for Best Literature Blog. Gaiman is a prolific author whose comic book series The Sandman and New York Times bestselling novels American Gods and Anansi Boys, among others, have created an obsessive cult following—and Hollywood has taken notice too. An avid reader of all things Gaiman, I was thrilled (though not surprised) to learn of yet another award in his impressive résumé. Gaiman’s success in creating and maintaining a fan base has allowed him to grow and thrive creatively, about which he could only say: “[L]et’s put it this way: it’s a very, very good thing for me that I am a bestselling author.”
I’d say it’s also a very, very good thing that you’re a blogger, Neil.
One of the first blogs I discovered and still follow to this day, Benjamin Rubenstein’s hilarious and deeply moving story of cancer survival, was his response to being told that a book about his struggles with cancer could not be published because no one knew or cared about his story, unlike, say, Lance Armstrong’s. Rubenstein’s response? A scathingly funny blog, which I’ve heard is set to be published sometime later this year. Take that, and that, and that.
For the aspiring or published author, blogging has become the cheapest and easiest method of self-promotion (and a little self-love along the way). A blog is a home on the web whereby visitors may knock upon your imaginary door and enter your mind, learning about you and, more importantly, your books. Cultivate a digital following and you have taken the first step toward success—or at least infamy.
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Auburn Rutledge works as a Publishing Assistant for Greenleaf Book Group, learning the ins and outs of the publishing industry one day at a time, and meanwhile labors at her own artistic endeavor: namely, the Great American Novel. Or something like it.
Tags: benjamin rubenstein, blogging, coraline, ice cream sundae, infamy, lance armstrong, literature blog, neil gaiman, weblog award
[...] via computer and phone, day or night. Tweet, and your followers shall hear the call. As I have mentioned before, authors and would-be authors creating and maintaining a digital presence—a way for people to [...]