Blogging is not only exciting, it can also be very addicting.  When you start to blog, be prepared for it to become part of your life. Of course you should have plenty of time (and lots of things to talk about) in order to blog everyday, but posting once or twice a week will do. The activity can also be one of the most fulfilling things you’ll experience since you will be able to establish your presence online. So what if you’ll not be able to publish a book or see your byline in a newspaper in your lifetime? Having your own blog ensures that you are there on the internet should somebody “google” your name or alias or any worthwhile topic you have written about. Your online writings can  be part of your job portfolio or it can  even be worthy of a book deal.

The possibilities are endless.

Those curious about blogging  will probably ask: “how do I start blogging then?”

1. Look for a free blogging service. Services like Blogger, LiveJournal, Blogdrive, Xanga and MSN’s spaces.com are very user-friendly and will take you on a step-by-step guide to setting up your own blog. They also have their own ready-made templates and all you have to do is select your preferences. Of course if you want to go a notch higher and pay a little bit more, there is MovableType or Typepad which gives you more options in  customizing your site.

2. Think up of a catchy name for your blog or a title that suits you. Starting to blog is like giving birth to a baby and it is important to pause awhile and think of a blog name that will be identified with you. It  can be about a place, an animal, a funny phrase or your name itself. If you want to write about food, you ahead and call it “I was just really very hungry” or simply label it as the “Diary of a Lost Boy.” It’s your own (creative) call.

3. Read up on everything about blogging. Blogger’s dashboard, for example, has a good reference library on all the blogging help and knowledge you will need such as “How do I edit my Link list?” or “How do I change my site feed settings?” Most blogging services, I am sure, will instruct you on how to change your templates, upload photos or optimize your appearance in search engines. Bloggers are also known to speak a different language, so be sure to check out sites like samizdata.net for the definition of common terms like RSS, XML, thread, meme and permalink, among others.

4. Don’t be afraid to tweak and tinker. Beginning how to blog is a matter of trial and error. Sometimes, it requires hours of sitting in front of your computer and learning how things work even if there’s a ready-made template on hand. Of course it is better if you have a friend who knows HTML development  but most of us, unfortunately, just get by with ourselves.

5. Jazz it up! Setting up your own blog is like accessorizing your clothes or dressing up your car. You should be able to come up with something that reflects your personality. There are a lot of websites which offer free tagboards, smileys, blinkies or anything that reflects your mood, the weather or the hour in the country where you are located. Don’t forget of course the disclaimer, stats counter (to see how many visitors are dropping by your site) and a Creative Commons License (to protect your intellectual property.)

6. Photos rock! Instead of just posting your thoughts,  rummage through your album and add life to your blog by uploading your photos.  I particularly like the much-acclaimed Flickr (www.flickr.com) but there are other good photo hosting services like Picasa and photobucket. Like Friendster, these sites enable you to add/accept contacts, see how many people are viewing your photo and best of all, enable you to blog directly from your photo link with the “Get Code” or “Blog This!” functionality.

7. Network and gain friends. One of the best things about blogging is that it enables you to know people from different countries and walks of life, with the same blogging interests as you. A good way to establish your presence is by leaving comments in the post or in the tagboard if you liked the thoughts expressed by the writer. A good link up engine like blogrolling.com will not only enable you to display your network of friends but you will also be alerted on when they have updated their posts.

8. Observe proper netiquette. This I think is self-explanatory. Having a netiquette means you don’t plagiarize somebody else’s post because it will be found out in one way or the other. And even if you have the urge to rant about somebody’s post, take care not to leave nasty comments because your aim, after all, is to gain more friends, not more enemies.

9. And for the ultimate question, what do you write about? You have the freedom to write about anything but  it’s better to make sense especially if yours is a public blog.   Posting sensibly ensures that you will be read and have a point of interaction with fellow bloggers. Determining your own parameters is also crucial: do you really want it diary-style  and letting your readers know about everything that’s going on in your life? Or do you want to filter your thoughts by only writing about the things that matter to you, such as your views on politics, religion and  the arts? You also have to know that blogging carries with it a lot of risks. Employees have been terminated and friendships have been broken because of what’s been written about in their blogs. Blogging is not dangerous per se but proceed with caution.

10. Having said so, good luck with your blog life. For comments and inquiries, email the author at annalyn.jusay@gmail.com