There are people that consider Tenkar's Tavern a popular blog - and for the corner of the RPG hobby that is the OSR, it is. I'm pretty happy with how things have worked out and I'm happy to share the secrets of its success.
The first secret is - there are no secrets.
Really.
If you read this blog on a regular basis, you know it is probably popular because of the passion I have for the subject matter. I love RPGs and I fucking love the OSR. If you enjoy writing your blog's content, there is a good chance your readers will enjoy it too. If posting is "work", that will be obvious to your readers too. Blog about something you have passion for and you've already passed the first and largest hurdle.
Engage your readers. Engage other bloggers on their blogs. If you enjoy reading forums, engage the readers there. Engage, engage, engage.
Establish a posting frequency. I'd suggest at least once a week, but whatever it is, try to stick to it. Multiple times a week is even better. I'm not suggesting multiple times a day like I tend to do, because the trick to that isn't just "blogging in the moments between", it also requires a certain type of controlled ADD and perpetual multitasking. I blame it on the chemo from a few years back - I used to read a book a week on average, now I'm maybe a book a year. I am still a voracious reader, but now I look for it in smaller pieces.
Be yourself. That may not be the person you are in everyday life or it may be, but it needs to be a true aspect of you. Nothing is worse than a blogger putting on a false show. It's hard to maintain and sooner or later, the facade will fail.
Do NOT expect to get rich off of blogging, especially in a niche the size of the OSR, or RPGs in general. Heck, don't expect to make any money doing it - this way, if you do make some nickels and dimes, you'll be thrilled as opposed to disappointed.
My personal observations have shown me that Adsense and Amazon are just not worth the hassle for the minimal income they will generate. I have found that referral sales from OBS / RPGNow have raised sufficient funds to allow me to run contests and give away gift credit and the like to my readers. A win / win if you ask me.
Most of all?
Do.
Do it. Start blogging. The only failed blog is the one that never was. Even a blog like Grognardia, long since silent, has a voice that still resonates across the internet.
Tower in the Wasteland v2
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I recently asked my patrons what posts deserved a sequel and Tower in the
Wasteland was one of the first replies. So here's an updated version of
that d...
1 hour ago
Excellent advice.
ReplyDelete"Even a blog like Grognardia, long since silent, has a voice that still resonates across the internet."
ReplyDeleteYeah, and it says "Where is my megadungeon!"
I thought you were going to say: "and more obscure Imagine Magazine reviews" ;)
DeleteGreat comments. Write about what animates you and the rest will fall in place. if you love your subject matter and can communicate that, chances are you will find a following. Frequency of posting helps builds a stable community of conversation. Grognardia encouraged me to look into blogging, your blog has remained as the most faithful window into a hobby I really enjoy.
ReplyDeleteSound advice. I'm a strong believer in regular posts (just need to make more of them about gaming!)
ReplyDeleteI think one of the reasons your blog is popular is because it gets linked as a reference on several Wikipedia pages.
ReplyDeleteThe Wikipedia links are a result of The Tavern ' popularity, not the other way around.
DeleteHits from Wikipedia account for less than 1% of the traffic the Tavern gets.
Oh well, it was just something I noticed.
DeleteI am inadvertently following your advice. After I saw my summary on the great OSR blog roll I felt like I was being lazy when it came to my blog so I've concentrated more on writing this past month.
Excellent post, I am always trying to increases the traffic to my blog, and I agree with every thing you just stated. I saw a definite uptick in hits when I went to a pretty solid three post a week schedule. Also I love game mechanics and dickering around with that part of the hobby in turn I think my best posts are really on that subject. I don't cast a wide net because of my limited subject matter but those who do read tend to leave really good comments.
ReplyDeletehttp://dustpangames.blogspot.com/
if any one is curious.....