How to devlop the writing style and voice in your blog. Explain in very easy words. (Part 3).

However well designed your website is, and however many technical gimmicks you might have on your website, nothing is more important than your writing style, which should be readable and entertaining. In the past, most people would keep a diary at least for some periods of their lives, but nowadays this is less common, so people find it quite difficult to write about themselves. At first, you may find yourself freezing up in front of the computer screen or becoming awkward and unnecessarily formal, or just writing too much! Here are a few suggestions you can use to develop your own voice and style for your blog First, remember that a blog is a conversation. Try to write the way you speak. Avoid jargon and clichés and don't try to be too clever by using unusual, strange words just to make it interesting. It may be helpful to speak your entry out loud before trying to type it, and you should definitely read it aloud after you have written it. If you find it awkward to read aloud or if it sounds awkward and unnatural, think about what you might have said if you were talking to a friend rather than writing. Second, write your blog as if you were writing for a specific friend or family member. Thinking of someone you know well, and who might want to read your blog, will help you to relax your writing style. The goal is to get your writing to sound more like you and less like an academic essay or an exam answer. Always write for your audience. If you are writing for close friends and family, you don't need to explain that Linda is your eight-year-old sister. But if your blog attracts a wider audience, you may want to create references or glossaries to help new readers to understand your world, rather than explaining each time you mention people and things that often recur. Update, update, update Most people don't really like writing, in any language! It is hard work, and takes discipline to make yourself do it regularly. However, it gets easier and easier the more you do it, and the more fun it is. It will help your English immensely, as you will eventually get confident and fluent. As you go about your day, keep the blog in the back of your mind. You may even want to carry a notebook where you can jot down reminders for topics you want to blog about later. Start paying attention to the parts of your life that are most interesting to you; those will likely be the areas your friends and family are most interested in as well. Don't be afraid to write about everyday activities exam results or family dramas-but always focus on what you are thinking and feeling. Some people find that having one or more 'co-blogger' can help if you are finding it difficult to stay motivated and disciplined. But if you are going to be working with several people on one blog, you will need to decide how often you expect each other to post and on the range of topics so that you can keep some focus and cohesion to your blog. Dealing with responses An important aspect of blogs is that they feature the writing of the blogger as well as the comments of readers. When you visit a blog, you often find a comment link under the text. Clicking that link enables you to read comments from other people, and to add your own. Usually bloggers make their own comments in the posts on their site, but sometimes a blogger adds a response in the comment section because it is a more direct way to address someone else's comment.

Some bloggers choose not to use the comment option, but if you want to develop a relationship with your audience, comments are the best way to do so. It is an easy way to make your readers feel involved and get valuable feedback about your blog. If you choose to allow comments on your blog, be sure to check them regularly. The comment feature makes it possible for anyone to add comments to your blog and you may not always like what they have to say. All good blogging software makes it easy for the author to remove comments. Take some time to find some good free blog software and familiarise yourself with how it works and the various functions available. Then write a blog for the next month and encourage your friends to do the same. Use the comment feature on each other's blogs. This may become addictive! There are blog websites like www.livejournal.com, www.wordpress.com, www.blogger.com or www.blogs.myspace.com which allow you to create your own blog quickly and easily.