Blogging Ain’t Perfect: Your Blog Voice
Posted by Nile | Posted in Blogging | Posted on 22-02-2012 | 36
I was an English major the first time I was in college and I have to say that my writing style is far from what it use to be for my blog. I was the one pointing out the errors and being a real grammar snob. And you know what? It was a put off for other people.
The thing is, blogging ain’t perfect and that comes to your blog voice. Your blog voice is what shines through when you write. Blogging already takes guts to do, especially for newbies. It takes time to develop a voice that resonates who you are and for your readers to become comfortable with you.
Now, that does not mean your blog voice is the same as how you speak, but it definitely is something that should come naturally.
I have some advice for both the visiting grammar snob and the blogger when it comes to blogging and the reader.
For the Visiting Grammar Snob
For those who are grammar snobs, it is not okay to be a complete jerk, even when the post is about teaching people something. Believe me, I had to fiddle around in my mind for a civil word. You can however send an email or leave a comment about a post about suggesting a correction. If you are doing that, you should also leave part of your comment directed toward the topic. And if you are selling services to copy edit, that is wrong and it is spam to even do that.
You can be as strict as you want, but you cannot control others. Get over it, be open minded, be helpful, or just click that ‘X’ in the top right of your Internet browser window if you are that turned off about a person’s post because of their grammar and punctuation.
For the Blogger
Do not be afraid to write. Be natural and just in case you do have trouble writing, proof read your post before publishing. Some browsers have spell check extensions that you can install, which will even pick up spelling errors while you type a post in your WordPress backend. If you are more comfortable typing outside of your blog platform or content management system, use Microsoft Word and take advantage of its spell check tool.
In the case that you have trouble proof reading and have a few buddies online, ask if they can skim your post and do a quick proof read. You do not need to hire someone to peruse your post and correct it unless you are trying to write a professional copy that needs to be perfect.
Do you still worry about your writing style? Or are you the grammar snob?

