Thanks for wanting to blog for Hudson Valley Parent!

This is your opportunity to share your personal experiences, everything from raising your kids to healthy eating. If you have lots of ideas and have always wanted a forum to present those ideas, blogging may be for you.

“How-to” Suggestions for Bloggers

Word Count: 300 to 500 words is enough to get across a single idea. If your blog runs over 500 words consider dividing it into two blogs or do a really good edit job.

Intro: Start your story off with an engaging sentence.  Saying something general doesn’t grab attention. Use a personal story to set the tone.

Subheads: Add short and snappy subheads to your story so that at a glance, a reader has an idea of what the blog is about.

Photos: We cannot emphasize enough how important photos are to your blog.  Take photos wherever you go.  Since this appears on the web, photos taken with a cellphone are usually great.

Read over your story: Before uploading your story, read it to yourself.  You will not believe the number of mistakes, typos,and things that don’t make sense you may have included. Wait a few hours before editing … don’t do it right after you write it.

Story ideas and editing: When choosing what to write consider whether you think it will be of interest to others.  The blog is your space to offer your point of view. We do not edit blogger’s posts, but we will let you know if we identify any problems with the topic or grammar.

Frequency:  Regular postings are important for attracting readers. We ask that you post a blog at least once a week. If you are unable to meet that commitment let us know.

Attracting readers: We will let our readers know about your blogs and encourage them to visit your postings.  You also have a responsibility to increase your blog traffic. We encourage you to let your friends and family know about your blog. If you use any social media outlets, tell your friends about each blog and link to the posting.

How am I doing? We will send you regular reports so you can see which of your posts draw the most attention and which topics are of interest to your readers.

How do I start blogging?

If you want to blog, email our editor Katy Weber at editor@excitingread.com.  If you already have a sample blog, please send it.  If not, then in a 100 words or less, tell Katy what topics you would like to blog about and why.  Also, create a sample blog for her to review. Be sure to include your name, address and phone number.

She will be in contact with you about moving forward.

Once Katy accepts your blogging request,  go to http://wordpress.com. If you don’t currently have a WordPress account, sign up for one. It is free and you do not have to create a WordPress blog page.  Also, upload a photo as your profile image.

Email Katy once you have a registered WordPress account and tell her your user name and email. She will send you a WordPress invite to blog. If you accept  the request, then your blogs will automatically be published on Hudson Valley Parent’s website.