For being fairly new to the blogging world I sure have ‘met’ a lot of amazing women! The reason I started blogging in the first place is to become part of this huge community of positivity. To let moms know that they aren’t alone with whatever life throws at them, to become vulnerable in sharing real life, and to give encouragement through truth! Also to let my grandma know what’s going on in our lives since she and the rest of my family are in Texas (Hi Mimi!).
But starting a blog can be overwhelming. At least it overwhelmed me! I had so many questions about where to begin, how to network, do I have to have a niche?, SEO, blog organization, what’s a link party?… the list is never ending. If you’ve been reading my posts you may have noticed that on Mondays I occasionally ‘link up’ (this is another term I had to learn and I realize putting it into quotes makes me feel 78 years old) with Emily of Ember Grey. She hosts Grateful Heart Mondays, and I really enjoy reading the other blogs that link to her party and what they are grateful for. It has been a great way for me to find other blogs to read that are similar to mine. I admire Emily and especially enjoy reading her writing – she writes exactly how I think she would talk! Such a strong voice is awesome even if she calls it crazy. Maybe I have a crazy voice too, ha.
Anyway, I asked Emily a few questions about blogging and networking in general because I was in need of direction. I’d love to grow Midwest Southerner, but how? Maybe you’re thinking the same about your blog. Oh, and if you haven’t read Ember Grey yet — you should. She’s positive and encouraging. I split the interview up into sections because the questions/answers are kind of long, and I didn’t want to omit anything! So here’s 5 for you today. 
Interview – Blogging & Networking- Emily from Ember Grey
1) How long have you been blogging & how did you decide your niche?
I started blogging privately (for family and friends) 7 years ago but didn’t venture over to the public blogging world until about a year and a half ago. Truth be told, when I created Ember Grey, I didn’t even know there was a thing called a “Lifestyle Blog.” I think I really just started to write about things I wanted to write about, which… is essentially what a Lifestyle Blog is, right? 
My faith and walk with Jesus is really important to me as well as something I was excited to discuss and share in my new space and so, if anyone asks me what kind of blog EG is now, I will say, “a faith-based lifestyle blog where I hope to provide inspiration and encouragement to others.” I didn’t have that ‘blog mission statement’ in the beginning though. I’d once read somewhere that new bloggers should first figure out what category their blog fell under, and this really confused me because especially in the beginning, I didn’t really know yet – I just knew I wanted to write! And so, that’s kind of what I did and I think EG has really just sort of evolved into what it is today because of that.
2) Do you remember how much time per week you devoted to blogging in the beginning vs. now?
Shortly after I started Ember Grey, my former boss from the corporate world (a world I’d only just left to focus on writing full time) conned me into going back to work part time. (I say this jokingly as I was happy to go back for a few months to help everyone out.) Because of a part-time work schedule though, I was not able to put in as much writing time as I really wanted to – only about 1-2 full days a week. Once my part-time gig was over though, I dedicated many long hours to just writing in general, as well as growing my community via social media and in blogland. I also spent many hours finding and reading other blogs I really connected to.
Today, I’m still working on the balance between blogging and life, but feel like I’ve gotten a better grasp on my daily routine. I’ll easily spend anywhere between 40-70 hours a week writing, blogging, editing photos, answering emails/comments, or working on other things related to my blog or novel-in-progress. Most weeks I don’t even realize how many hours I’ve spent working because 1. this is my full-time job and 2. I seriously enjoy what I’m doing! My husband travels for his job occasionally and whenever he is out of town, I tend to work longer hours. It’s just he and I at the moment but I can tell you that when a little one comes along, those work hours will (happily) drop drastically.
3) About how long did it take your blog to grow from having 1 or 2 readers, to having 11,000 views a month? Was there a ‘turning point’?
The really important thing when you’re starting out is simply introducing your blog and writing to others in blogland. I joined many giveaways and linkups in the beginning; both of these things not only helped get my blog’s name out there, but helped me meet so many other awesome bloggers! I also did a lot of research and found other blogs to sponsor. Sponsoring blogs that fit a similar niche to yours can be really beneficial to growing your readers! There were some blogs I sponsored where my picture was simply on the side of their blog, and then others who featured me in a post (think: Q&A). The Q&A sponsor opportunities were typically more to purchase, but they helped introduce me to a lot of people, other bloggers, and readers.
It was in this time I also connected with my first ever blogging friend and I think we really helped each other in the beginning stages of our blogs. It’s hard in the beginning… it’s easy to doubt yourself and even easier to compare your blog and your numbers to someone else. This friend and I really helped push each other through those weird times. It was also during this time I read somewhere that you shouldn’t compare your beginning to someone else’s middle. I literally wrote that phrase down on a sticky note and taped it to my computer. It was the best reminder during those days I started to doubt myself or what I was doing.
By month two, I began keeping track of my numbers at the end of each week. (I eventually changed that to a monthly thing.) I think at that time, I had about 90 followers on Twitter, 12 on my blog’s Facebook, and 80 on Instagram. Something to remember with social media and your blog though is that you can only do so much active promoting; make sure your social media platforms are listed somewhere on your blog (I suggest under your picture) so that once people start making their way over there they can follow on their own.
4) I’m assuming that your Blogger’s Pow Wow girls are all your bloggie friends. How did you make those friends?
I mentioned my very first blogging friend earlier and I think the two of us introduced each other to some of the other Pow Wow girls and their blogs. Twitter was actually a pretty big source in connecting and introducing me… one person would tweet something, I would chime in, and then others would get in on the conversation too. Before I knew it, I’d gained 10 new followers and 10 new blogging friends. Once I was introduced to these gals, I saved their blogs to my Bloglovin’ feed and spent quite a bit of time reading their posts each week and really getting to know them. I would comment on the posts that resonated with me and in turn, they were coming to my blog’s space and doing the same. Comments quickly turned to emails, which then – at some point – turned into texts and phone calls. The Pow Wow girls are a special group of people… we are there for each other just as any friend in real life would be, and yet we share this mutual understanding of how strange the blogging world is. It’s a pretty cool thing!
6) I realize my blog will go unnoticed for awhile because it’s just a baby, but I’d like to eventually have people comment and engage in conversation on each post. How do you draw people to comment on your blog posts, and where have you ‘met’ these people? Or are they mostly strangers?
They all were most definitely strangers until they weren’t anymore You will find that the blogging community can be very tight; we encourage each other and cheer each other on. Find other blogs you like, comment on posts that resonate with you, and then be sure to also respond to any comments your own blog is getting. All of these things really open it up for more of a personal connection… which is what most of us want, I think. I’ve also found that if you ask your readers a question at the end of certain posts, it really does get a conversation going.
Huge thank you to Emily for answering all these questions!! Part 2 of the interview will feature her answers about blog photography, organization, and promotion, PLUS a few just for fun questions! I hope her answers will help you like they have helped me!
If you’re a new blogger like me, what things have been the hardest to learn/overcome? Post below! If I haven’t learned the answer I probably need to!
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