BLOG YOUR WAY TO A FIRST DRAFT
Added: (Thu Aug 17 2006)
Pressbox (Press Release) -
From blog to book: Branley shares tips to sensational blogging
BAINBRIDGE ISLAND, Wash. ---- The word ÔblogÕ found its way into Merriam-WebsterÕs lexicon in 1999, but it wasnÕt until the last two years that blogging Ð a word that combines the ÔwebÕ and ÔlogÕ Ð became a national pastime.
At age 50, Bill Branley, a New Orleans native who has lived on Bainbridge Island for two years, is older than the average blogger according to a recently published report from the Pew Research Center. His creation of the serial web log, ÔPeggy Finds a FriendÕ and converting it to the novel ÔSea ChangesÕ (One Sock Press, ISBN 0-9778561-0-0, July 2006, $14.95) also sets him apart from the other 56 million adults who read or document their thoughts and experiences online.
His exercise is a success-in-progress. On the heels of ÔSea ChangesÕ rolling off the presses, Foreword Magazine named it a 2006 Beach Read.
Branley now speaks to others about how to develop characters and their stories via web log. His top five tips to create an entertaining blog are:
1) Establish a main character.
2) Create a simple, straightforward storyline.
3) Write something interesting in each episode.
4) Use humor and suspense.
5) Get ideas from real life.
ÒThe No. 1 cool thing about writing serialized fiction as a blog is that you can reach readers directly,Ó said Branley, who began his blog in May of 2005 as a writing exercise while he traveled by ferry to work in Seattle each morning. ÒThere are no publishers or agents or bookstores sitting between you and the reader. I decided to take the leap from safe writersÕ environments such as writing groups and workshops with ÔPeggy Finds A FriendÕ because I had been in several and wanted to see if I could appeal to the public at large as a writer.Ó
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