I will complete 12 years of blogging this October. It is a chance to appear knowledgeable and widely successful, but blogging turned out differently from what I expected. It is also directly affected by AI slop and the churn mechanism, but that is a story for another day.

When I started blogging, I learned from some amazing bloggers. The strange thing is that some of them stopped blogging, completely changed their blogs, or disappeared over the last 12 years, while some stayed. Between these two groups, there were many variations. What stuck with me was that two of the blogs that stayed had podcasts. Is that a coincidence? I do not know, but it is definitely food for thought.

This is a wisdom post for those who are on the brink of taking the blogging plunge.
1. If you want to do good and do not know how, start a blog for free on WordPress. If you stick it out for a month or two and can afford it, get self-hosted.

2. This brings us to the next tricky topic: money. Don’t spend money on blogging until you can afford it. Self-hosting costs money, and a good host won’t be cheap. Plus, the backend of hosting  requires a little bit of tech knowledge, the ability to go down a rabbit hole, the capacity to survive sleepless nights, and patience.
I am still looking for a budget-friendly, assisted, fast-loading, no-worries self-hosting platform; it is like an oxymoron.
I have been using a web host for the last year, having changed from HostGator after 11 years following a renewal payment. You can read my horror web hosting story in all its glory, but I won’t scare you today. Because blogging, at its heart, is writing your heart out, you do you with what you can afford. But remember about rented land; Momspresso and Women’s Web are examples you must learn from.

3. If you wonder how much money you can make blogging, it is an undefined question with way too many clauses and subclauses. But can you make money blogging? Yes. Will you make money blogging? How much? It depends on your writing, your traffic, the SEO part of your writing, the topics you write on, what you are willing to promote, your minimal price, and your selling price.

4. Blogging is a medium, a creative expression, and a way of reaching more people than your immediate surroundings. The internet archives will have a backup of this (most probably) if you do not delete it or make a mistake, so be careful about what you write. You will be held accountable by the law of the land and in the future too. It is one way to become famous, infamous, or immortal, at least as long as the archives work. Journalistic integrity needs revising even here.

5. That brings me to another important lesson I learned: don’t say or write things on the blog you wouldn’t say to someone’s face. Maintain etiquette online and offline.

6. Do good through your blogging, and the universe will remember. It won’t ever be a simple equation, but that is the beauty of the world.

7. Remember, bloggers are just people. They lie too—about their work, names, qualifications, personal lives, money, and everything else. I learned this the hard way. Be careful that you don’t associate with shady people knowingly. It is okay if you make a mistake, but move away once you know.

8. Be kind to yourself while blogging. You will make mistakes, and that is okay. People know you are real, not AI. It is easy to look stupid, but not easy to accept it. If it helps you grow, you will be okay. Only AI is polished and perfect grammar-wise, but soulless otherwise. Work on your soul through your writing and blogging.

9. Blogging for business is amazing and it works. However, you will need to curate topics, keywords, and work on SEO, GEO, and AI visibility. It looks like work because it is work. But as an ENT surgeon who blogs, the people who read my blogs and visit are often the kind of people I will be able to help. You will attract those who need you. Your blog will not be a “one size fits all,” and it need not be. The world is big enough for your tribe to thrive; focus on that and things will work out.

10. Blogging is your life story online, for people to read, learn from (or not), laugh with, cheer, cry along with, and grow. Make it a good one.

I am writing this for the Blogchatter  Half Marathon and Piyush Plotters.

Blogchatter and the Indian Blogger Revolution

Get the ebook

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STARTING A SUCCESSFUL BLOG|Blog writing,Blogging Basics: 10 Secrets to take your Blog from Kick start to Awesome!(Bonus content) (Blogging in India Book 1)

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About my books

Writing has been another part of my lifelong love affair with learning and storytelling. My books range from health and wellness to blogging, creativity and fiction.

You can explore my books, including How to WALK, Write & Garden for the Healthy Life You Want, Starting a Successful Blog, Blogchatter & The Indian Blogger Revolution, and my Krishna Mishra Mystery series, on my author page.

Find my books on Amazon:
Dr. Amrita Basu
https://www.amazon.in/stores/Dr.Amrita-Basu/author/B072LSGYJ8/

Books for Kids

Science for kids
https://www.amazon.in/dp/B0DFMGYSF2/

Royals of Rajasthan-Ashwin Rashi Mystery
https://www.amazon.in/Royals-Rajasthan-Adventure-Ashwin-Mystery-ebook/dp/B09CF3Q1ZV?

The Young Detective Mystery series by my daughter
https://www.amazon.in/dp/B095FSN341/

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