What Is A Great Quilting Blog?
So my question for you today is this – Why do you stop by the Blue Nickel? How can the Blue Nickel become a great quilting blog? Or maybe the question is what can make the Blue Nickel blog a better quilting blog? The other day I read a couple of my First posts (10 years ago!) and I thought about how much some things have changed and some have not changed that much. I think my “voice” is pretty much the same, but the photos and sometimes even what I write about are better quality now. I hope they are at least!
Even so, I have been wondering if I should just stop blogging as it seems as if nobody visits anymore.
BUT, don’t fret, I will not quit blogging!
It could be people still read, but they don’t have time to comment, so I just don’t really know who is stopping by!
And really, I do still love getting a good post out! So much so, that I splurged and enrolled in a course on how to create a more engaging blog. So far the course is helping me get better at Search Engine “stuff” so I can reach more people more effectively. This also helps me (or will help me) get a better feel on how traffic is flowing on my site.
Look for New, Improved Posts
The course has also helped me to come up with some new content ideas. I love sharing my quilting life with you all, but I never seem to find the time to share more than just fabric lines with you. And too much of that feels a little bit spammy to me, you know? There is so much “noise” out on the internet — I don’t want to just add to that chaos. So watch for the new variety that I am hoping to work up for you! I am planning to create posts similar to articles that I used to do for Generation Q Magazine here on the Blue Nickel Blog. We will have some interviews, maybe some puzzles and hopefully more tutorials as well. I hope you will stick with me as these things evolve!
This class keeps re-iterating that I need to stick to my “niche” (Frankly I am already sick of that word, but the course developer says it is important) So yeah, Quilting is definitely my niche, but sometimes I like to veer a bit outside of that and talk about things that inspire my quilting. And that is the whole world, right?! The other day, I picked up two books at Costco that I thought were awesome! They are Home Dec books, so I think that is close enough to Quilting to be in my niche, isn’t it? Can you tell that I sometimes stress out about “rules”? I know….hard to imagine that because I usually really don’t care much for rules in quilting!
Oh, and I will be sharing about those books soon!
And even though I don’t have specific things to say about all of the photos on posts of THIS nature, I will continue to put up quilting-related photos for your “Quiltspiration” as always.
You can help make the Blue Nickel a Great Quilting Blog!
So maybe you can assist me on these things! What do you like about stopping by here? What do you want to see more of? Are there things that I am doing that bore you and you would like to see less of? Are there things that you think I should be doing more of? Let me know of other sites you think qualify as Great Quilting Blogs and why you think they are. That will help me get to know what you are looking for as well.
And as an “informal” reward for taking the time to comment here, I will from time to time come to the comments here and pick random winners for a free downloadable PDF of one of my patterns. These will be occasional drawings and done with no fanfare or announcements. Just random thank you prizes.
So that’s it for now, please let me know what you think will help me make the Blue Nickel Blog a great quilting blog! I thank you in advance for taking the time to comment here!
Keep Sewing, Keep Happy,
Scott
Nancy
I always enjoy your posts and wish you posted more often. The posts don’t have to be long; one picture and a paragraph is enough.
Dianne
Don’t be discouraged. I Enjoy your blogs.
Ann
I enjoy pictures (bright fabrics in particular!), projects, how-to info, and a moderate amount of text. I often browse through a blog and enjoy the contents but don’t comment. So lack of comments doesn’t necessarily mean no one is looking!
Patty
I love seeing your little vignette’s. You have such eclectic taste. Wish I had your Aurifil thread collection!
Selina
Hi Scott – one of my favorite blogs, which has nothing to do with quilting, is The Pioneer Woman. Her pictures are wonderful, she has a great sense of humor (just like you), and even though her main focus is cooking and recipes, you learn something new about her family, her ranch, her real-life struggles, every time you visit. Also, when posting a recipe, there are pictures of every step, which might be helpful, albeit time-consuming for any pattern you’re showing. I was a fan of her blog long before she had her show on Food Network. You’re an engaging person. Every time I see a post, I’m always intrigued enough to “click for more”. Can’t your niche be your creativity? 😉
Carol Nelms
I follow you, I do not comment sometimes because I figured that you get tired of “beautiful fabric and pattern” comments. No advice, just be yourself not try to do what another blogger does. That being said I love “beautiful pattern and fabric ” posts with occasional tutorials.
Pam Durant
I have no idea how creative people have time to do what they do AND have time to write about it. Love getting a peek into the thought process and WHY you do what you do.
Quilting Tangent
Happy Thanksgiving! Tutorials and videos are very helpful. Like seeing pictures.