Writers’ Armour!
By: Mohitha B G
Tags: Tools, Getting Started, Writing, Blogging, How To Write

Hello again! 😊

Do you know when was the first time I wrote online?

2008.

I was in my ninth grade and one of my friends told me about this free domain service provider called blogspot.com and a free publishing platform blogger.com. He told me how it helped him create his first blog, how he wrote his first article and how he made contacts through that.

I was so inspired as it was very new to me. I immediately linked my Gmail account to Blogspot and started writing random thoughts and even stuff like what success is, in terms of the mathematical formula : (a+b)(a-b)=a²-b² !!

I was a school kid ok?!

Fast forward 2018 and we have WordPress and GoDaddy who can help us with cPanel hosting and maintaining our blog. Follow a few simple steps and you’ll be amazed to know how easy it is to set up your first blog.

cPanel hosting:

To create your domain name and make your website go live, you could create an account on GoDaddy.com. Remember to choose the option that gives you only cPanel hosting. It might charge you a nominal fee of INR 800 for an annual subscription. After a few verifications from their side, you will get your domain name after almost a week.

WordPress setup:

Once your domain name is ready, you could start adding products from your GoDaddy account. Add WordPress to your account and you’re all set. Make sure to remember all your passwords and keep them safe.

You can customize your WordPress account and install necessary plugins, add themes and can begin writing on anything that you would like to.

Medium:

Well, if you’re skeptical about following the WordPress setup and get the domain to make your blog go live, there’s an easy but an equally amazing alternative for you. Just create an account on Medium and start pitching in your stories to publications (like maice) that give a good platform to showcase your writings.

coffee-unlock the brain-write-repeat!

Tools for good writing:

One of the most helpful apps that are in the market today is Grammarly. You can add this to google chrome as an extension and proofread your articles before posting them on your blog. To check for plagiarism, you could use any of the free plagiarism tools online such as smallseotools.com.

You can also install Evernote which comes in very handy when you like to jot down notes during your research on a topic before you start writing. I use Google’s Keep application on my phone and make a list of ideas as and when they arise.

You can add images and infographics to your blog by creating them on canva application or link to free images from unsplash.com or shuttershock.com.

SEO:

In lay man’s terms, Search Engine Optimisation or SEO refers to increasing views on your website or blog. To achieve this, you can make a list of keywords wrt the content that you want to write on your blog and use them as naturally as possible in your writing. You should make sure not to just stuff all your keywords in one place and also avoid repetitions because it will make your reader say bye.

The above-mentioned tools can be used once you get accustomed to writing. Make time for yourself every day and relax to bring out the writer in you.

If coffee stimulates you, make yourself an espresso and just expresso!

Immerse yourself into your thoughts, talk to your heart, make your mind instruct your hands to type and start writing!

Until next time! 😊