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A big stumbling block for authors and aspiring authors to blogging is the mistaken perception that each blog needs to be a thousand word essay. In fact, today’s blogs are more concise than ever — a quick check in with your readers and fans, perhaps about your upcoming appearances, your newest writing project, characters in your book or fun links to articles that deal with issues relevant to your themes.

We need to be aware that reading content online is “drive-by reading” on the information super highway. Which means folks don’t curl up with a good blog post like they do a good book. They scan, look for what they can glean from your words, and move along.

Not only will long posts not be fully read, but someone who continues to write long, laborious posts will be relegated to the time suck file (like those phone calls you won’t take because you know you’ll never get the other person off the line).

200-500 words is more than sufficient – 750 if you have a loyal following and/or a lot of broken up text and bullet points. Hint: if you find your topic absolutely can’t be covered in fewer words, find a good breaking point and call it Part 1 and Part II (an added incentive for folks to check back in!

Blog on, writers… we want to read your words, but save the long passages for your book.