What is writing really like?
I really enjoyed this article about what makes great writers. Do check out the Scribble’s Worth blog.
We here at Scribble’s Worth are fortunate enough to be trusted with the reviews of many GREAT authors, from indie to traditionally published, from …
The 5 Traits of GREAT Writers
Although I am still very much learning about blogging, I have now established my little blog and am enjoying it. This post is designed to pass on some handy hints for daily maintenance of a newish blog.
This sounds really odd but every day I like to read all the comments and try and respond to every one. However, after a while I realised that some comments were not coming through. They were hiding in my spam folder and so I was missing some lovely comments and seeming to not value these contributions. Now I check the Spam comments every single day. Not one of them has so far been actual spam. I am glad that I have discovered this and engaged with more readers too.
You need to find a way to condense new images or they will slow down your page loading speeds. I have started using the free version of Smush, which I discovered as a WordPress plugin and have found very easy to apply. I simply press ‘Bulk Smush’ after I have created a new post and it does all of the hard work, making my pictures much quicker to load.
Make sure you use the ‘preview’ option to check through a post as you write it. Looking in preview gives you a fresh pair of eyes as the text will look different and you will find it much easier to tune into what is being written. By doing this I often spot simple grammatical mistakes that I may not have seen whilst reading in ‘draft’.
Search engines like blogs which have plenty of internal links. To begin with I didn’t do this but soon learned just how important it is to include links to previous posts in every article. When I add a link, it gives me the chance to write a word to replace the messy link itself. So I can say click here instead of https://jamieadstories.blog/2021/07/11/how-to-start-a-blog-easily/.
You cannot write without reading and, similarly, you benefit from checking out other blogs before writing your own content. I have grown to love reading other blogs and am learning a lot from the factual content and lifestyle suggestions. When you check out a blog that you like, drop them a comment to show some support and engage with the blogging community. You never know, you may come up with some inspiration from other blogs and even make those bloggers intrigued by your own posts.
If you start to love blogging then carry on and create plenty of content. Engage with the community and learn from others. If, after a few months, it gives you no joy at all then it may not be the type of hobby that suits you. I am absolutely loving the process and will definitely continue to do my best to improve my content and develop my blog.
A while ago I read a blog post about a book called ‘The Dragon of Ynys’ by Minerva Cerridwen. Not being one to read much fantasy fiction, I felt this one was intriguing enough to buy and try. Being relatively short and with such a strong recommendation in the blog (sadly I lost track of whose blog it was) I soon found myself enjoying this feel-good story of a dragon and knight who unite on a mission.
She wrote it originally in response to a call for submissions by a small publisher who celebrated LGBT+ stories. The requirement was for a story with a dragon in it and so along came the dragon of Ynys idea.
Summary
When various items of clothing and jewellery go missing in the town of Ynys, the local knight has to find the culprit. Eventually realising that a dragon is hoarding things in a cave nearby, he makes several trips to retrieve things and forms a friendship with the dragon, known as Snap.
Soon after, a missing baker causes the two of them to go and look for her. At the same time, whilst making new friends and coming up against hurdles on the way, the characters also deal with subjects such as gender identity.
Review
The way that acceptance is discussed and interwoven into the storyline is something Minerva can be very proud of. Her writing is sensitive and thoughtful with regard to these issues. Weaving a knight and dragon story of going on a journey and overcoming barriers with conversations about mental health and self image is very clever.
This is a short but fun story which makes you feel good about humanity. It draws to attention very relevant topics and also highlights characters who are rounded and lovable.
This fantasy book is very different to anything that I have read before. I found it sweet and enjoyable, and was rooting for the characters all the way along. I certainly suggest checking out the first chapter to see if it grabs your interest. I was pleasantly surprised and glad that I went with my gut instinct. Perhaps I may even try a few more fantasy books in future. The Dragon Of Ynys definitely got me interested in the genre.
For a review of some other short books that I liked, click here.
