JVN Rules for writing a blog

I have been writing this little blog for over 21 months. It has just over two months of life left in it before I shut it down and move back to Chicago. It's been fun. It has grown and taken on a life of its own in ways that I never expected.

I realized that along the way I have developed some rules about blogging for myself. I sat down the other day to reflect on those rules. I wrote them down for my own benefit, but I thought that you might be interested in taking a look as well.

As always, thanks for reading.

-keep it short. The reality is that your life is not that interesting. You’re lucky you have any readers at all. Respect their time.

-keep it focused. One idea, story, or point per entry. No aimless musings. You’re not Jack Kerouac. You're not Don Miller.

-Keep it funny. You’re allowed to make fun of anybody you choose as long as the person you choose is you.

-you get to use one exclamation point per month. Choose wisely.

-Be consistent. You have to blog regularly. It doesn’t matter if it's every day, every-other day, or every week; but be consistent.

-No dumping. If you haven’t updated your blog in a month and a half (see above), no vomiting onto the page an overview of what you've been up to since last summer. Save the summative overviews for the annual Christmas letter.

-In the words of my sixteen-year-old niece: “Good grammar is sexy.” And spelling, too.

-Tell stories. If you have a point to make, that’s great, but embed it in a story. People like stories.

-Compose your blog entries in Word. Let them sit for at least a day or two. Go back, re-read them, tweak them, and then post them.