Turning a Blog Into Your Blawg: Fourteen Steps to Finding Your Voice in the Blawgosphere

by Federalist No. 84

Nearly everyone reading this post knows what a blawg is. Indeed, a disproportionate number of you have your own blogs or blawgs. But I think these tips will be helpful to you, because, although I’ve been blogging in one place or another for over a year (and have launched or helped others launch 12 different blawgs), I need to remind myself of these tips. I’m going to focus specifically on blawgs. Although the usual tips about blogging apply to blawgs, there are some important differences.

First among these differences is that lawyers, more-so than any other profession, have little time for leisure reading. Lawyers are also generally more discerning and skeptical. These tips should help your keep the attention of legal readers.

1. Pick a Topic.

Your blawg’s topic could be narrow or broad, but you must write about what you know. But don’t think that because you know something, we do too. Although the rule against hearsay might be second-nature to you, remember that most of us don’t deal with that issue, but may still find it interesting. Or, a busy trial lawyer may turn to your site for a quick refresher on evidentiary issues.

The beauty of starting a blawg is that the legal market is diverse. Indeed, you could probably start a blog about the Rule Against Perpetuities. Granted, your market will be limited at the outset, since only so many people want to read about RAP. But, there is a market. Best of all, it’s targeted. What better way to establish yourself as a trust and estates lawyer than to blawg about RAP?

Some of the most popular blawgs have a general scope. Some popular of these popular blawgs include Ernie the Attorney, Bag and Baggage, and Notes From the (Legal) Underground. My favorite blawg--The Yin Blog -- may just as likely talk about baseball as Batson. Rain Main 2--another favorite--is also very broad, but also very good.

Goldstein & Howe’s SCOTUSBlog is a little of both. It’s narrow because it focuses only on cases before the United States Supreme Court. But since the Court dabbles in everyone’s business, you can also see how that blawg is very general. And SCOTUSBlog receives a lot of hits.

You could also blawg about your life. Your day job might be mundane to you, but fascinating to us. The Uncivil Litigator primarily handles insurance defense cases, but he thoroughly enjoys his job and successfully shares his joy with us. Anonymous Lawyer writes about his less-than-fulfilled life at a large law firm, thus entertaining us all. An evil blawg, And What Thanks Do We Get was filled with malice. But we loved it.

Also, check out other blawgs. Evan’s blogroll would be a good place to start. Spend a few hours getting a feel for what’s covered, and do note that there is likely room for your blawg. For example, Nomination Nation was recently formed to discuss judicial nominations--something that has been very relevant since President Bush took office. Yet it is the only blawg on this controversial issue and it was just started about 4 week ago. Underneath Their Robes--started only a few months ago--is the US Weekly of the federal judiciary, and the two highest profile judges in the country read it. So, you are not crowded out. Chances are, you can pick a topic that no one else has covered.

2. Keep it Interesting.

If you’ve picked a topic that you know and can write about well, then you’ve taken the first step to having an interesting blawg. To keep it interesting, you have to interest me. I need at least one post every weekday to stay interested in your blawg. I need to read one thing on your blawg that I can’t find anywhere else. I won’t go to your blawg if all you do is aggregate news. How Appealing has the market corned on that. You need to interject yourself into the cases and stories you write about. Consider yourself a junior-varsity syndicated columnist.

3. Brand Your Blawg.

You need a unique name for two reasons. First, you want something to stick in my mind. Second, you want me to be able to find you on Google. Thus, “lawyer blog” or “criminal law blog” would be a very bad idea for a name. For Ken Lammers, CrimLaw works well, but that’s only because of his terrific Google ranking (which resulted from all of blawggers linking to his first class blawg). A fledgling blogger needs something distinct. For more information on Google rank, see Anthony Rickey's many fine posts here.

Your unique name should be in the URL of your blawg. Lawdork used to known as Law, Politics, and Press with an according mismatch between name and URL. That’s a mouthful, and a mistake. Chris is a savvy guy, he fixed this problem, and we’re all better off.

Our good friend David from HaikuEsq is the worst culprit. I can’t remember his URL, so every time I want to read him, I need to Google him or click-through from my blogroll. However, if I’m were not a blogger, he might have lost me as a reader, since I would have forgotten the title of his blawg.

One of the most underrated blawgs, I’m A PD, has a weird Xanga URL. I know how to find the blawg, but imagine the hapless reader who wants to find her but can’t, because Googling “public defender blog” brings up a lot of results, but I’m A PD is not in the first 100. She has a catchy title, but a crappy URL. Accordingly, she has probably lost of a lot of readers. Worst of all, her blawg is among the best. Everyone loses when you don’t brand your blawg.

Thus, in branding your blawg, ask two questions: Will my readers remember me; and will they be able to find me on Google?

4. Be Prepared to Learn.

The one--and likely only--thing all successful people have in common is a broad vocabulary. The most well-known and well-respected blawggers all also have something in common: They’ve spent hours learning how to link to other blogs, how to build a blogroll, how to install an RSS feed, and dozens of other tricks of the trade. You might be the greatest appellate lawyer in the land, but you probably have a lot of to learn in this new world. I find learning about technology gratifying. I think that you will too.

5. Link Early, Link Often.

In this post I link to nearly 30 other blawgs. Do you think I do this because I want to run the risk that you will click on the link, find a better post, and forget all about me? Of course not! Every blawgger can find out who is linking to him (See, Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell, below). Since blawgging is such a lonely enterprise, we are flattered when other people link to us. We read the post to read about ourselves, much the same way that you always look for your own face in a group picture. Thus, I’ve enticed a couple of dozen people to read this post on Notes From the (Legal) Underground, all by doing the right thing, namely, linking to other people.

6. Build a Blogroll.

On the side of Evan’s blawg, you’ll see a lot of blawgs. They’re all part of his blogroll. You should have one too, for at least two reasons. First of all, I click through other blawgs from my site’s blawgroll. Thus, these other blogs can see that I’m linking to them, and wonder why. (See, Link Early, Link Often, above). Second, your favorite blawg might not follow this advice and cause you to forget about them. You want to be able to find your favorite blawgs? How better to do so than to put them on the one blawg you’ll always remeber?

7. Use Typepad.

Blogger is free, and free is appealing. But Typepad blawgs look better and Typepad is easier to use and more reliable than Blogger. Typepad gives you a 30-day free trial. If you’re still blawgging after 30-days, you will be hooked on Typepad. If you ignore and go with Blogger, you will regret it. You may end up with a popular blawg that many other blawgs link to. And then you will be afraid to move to Typepad and thus lose your Google ranking. You will regret having not started with Typepad. And you will deserve your agony, for being cheap.

8. Find Out Who is Linking to You.

Okay, so maybe you can’t find out whose linking to you. There are three main ways. First, go to Technorati and click the button that says “Get Listed.” Once you’re in the database, you will be able to find out whose linking to you. Second, instal the Javascript version of Sitemeter on your account. If you don’t know what either of these are, then click the links above to learn. (See, Be Prepared to Learn). Third, if you’re using Typepad (and you should be), you’ll be able to find out who is linking to you from your “Visitors and Stats” section.

9. Speak with Your own Voice.

One of the most popular feature from The Uncivil Litigator was his “My First Trial” serial. Readers of Ken Lammers’ CrimLaw enjoy his “A Week in the Life of a Criminal Defense Attorney.” The point is that we can read news stories and check news.google.com ourselves. What we want in a blawg is you.

10. Offer a Free (But Valuable) Service

I generally read every published federal criminal law and Section 1983 appellate decisions and digest them for my own records. One day I thought, “I’m doing this anyway, why not post my work for everyone else?” I added this feature and it’s become very popular. Many prominent criminal and constitutional lawyers check my site for my case digests, and to see if any interesting cases came down that day. Even though I’m not doing something they can’t, I save them a lot of time by pointing out a 20-30 page case’s highlights. Jeremy Blachman offers us a daily (and free!) dose of humor. Is there any wonder we check him out, instead of paying extra for Comedy Central?

11. Remember, It’s Only a Blawg.

Don’t be depressed if you don’t have 1000 daily readers, or if the more prominent blogs don’t link to you. Don’t ignore our spouse or children to work on the next Great American Blawg. Don’t be depressed if you don’t get dozens of fan emails. There are numerous people who spend hours on my blawg but never bother to say hello. It’s part of the trade. Indeed, it would be prudent to have a section entitled: Prepared to be Lonely.

12. But Please Remember, it’s Your Blawg.

Taking pride in your work is good in itself. It's also good because it's necessary for your credibility. Double-check citations and facts before posting. And please use a nice template that is easy on our eyes.

13. Establish Your Street Credibility.

You might be Gerry Spence in the real world, but to us, you’re just another blawgger. Don’t talk smack unless you’re prepared to risk getting smacked down. And put blawgs you enjoy, and the more prominent blawgs, on your blogroll. No one is going to link to your posts if you’ve never linked to them first. Your somebody to somebody, but you’re nobody to us - until you’ve proved yourself.

14. Finally, Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell.

Trust me. It will save you a lot of time if you do these things without asking me why I’m telling you to do them. Just do the following:

Install a Sitemeter or Statcounter. Though it will be depressing at first to see how few people read your blawg, you should know track how many people read you to find the overlap between your posts and traffic.

Install an RSS feed. It’s easy. Go to Feedburner. It will only take 5 minutes. Trust me.

Get Google’s spiders crawling today. Click hereand do it.

Email Evan, me, and other blawggers to let us know about your blawg.

About the author: Federalist No. 84 is the pseudonym of the quasi-anonymous blogger for Crime & Federalism. He should have graduated law school last May, but decided it was so much fun that he stayed for an extra semester. No. 84 has helped launched, contributed to, and been the sole proprietor of over a dozen blawgs. His favorite aspect of blawgging is meeting people across the country. “Blawgging is like throwing a bottle with a note in it into the ocean. You never know who's going to find you, or who you’re going to meet.”

Comments

[Matt Homann]

I have just one more suggestion to add to this already great list: Use Blogjet (www.blogjet.com). Combined with Typepad, it makes drafting and editing posts unbelievably simple. The best piece of software I've purchased (less than $20.00) in the last year.

[Prof Yabut]

Just couple questions, Fed:

After checking out Evan's weblog, I wonder: does a professor have to have an overweening ego to have a weblawg?

After reading Bob Ambrogi: do I need to have ads about computer-cable organizers and sex-personals, to have a "viable" weblog?

Finally, do trial lawyers and law students with weblogs live on a planet with more than 24 hours per day? Where do they find the time?

[Martin]

I don't think a professor has to have an "overweening ego" to have a weblawg. In fact, I had to look the word up and I am not afraid to admit it! However, don't tell my students -- otherwise they will think I have an "underweening" ego.

[No.84]

After checking out Evan's weblog, I wonder: does a professor have to have an overweening ego to have a weblawg?

Not a condidition precedent, but there is a substantial overlap. (The Yin Blog is egoless, though.) Then again, many professors do write about what they know, namely, their views of their own superiority.

After reading Bob Ambrogi: do I need to have ads about computer-cable organizers and sex-personals, to have a "viable" weblog?

Viable? It's all relative.

Where do they find the time?

Probably in the same place a lawyer turned mediator/social critic/haiku poet would find the time. ;^>

[Prof Yabut]

Hey, Fedsie, I'm emeritus. remember. Before I retired, I had never used email nor soifed da Net, much less left little Commentoids around the blawgiverse. Work and a weblog? I was never that underemployed.

Prof. Martin: I thought all us good little Catholic boys studied Greek heroes and gods in high school and learned about "overweening pride." I shall certainly use "underween" some time soon in idle conversation. Great word. I'm pretty sure you're neither underinsured nor underweened.

[No.84]

Work and a weblog? I was never that underemployed.

Hmmm...has Prof. Yabut turned his critical lens towards blawggers? Contingency fees are fair game. But blawgging? That's a sacred cow, my friend. ;^>

I take it that you also never watched television, went to a baseball game, took a vacation, read fiction (other than the Great Books series), talked at the water cooler, had a long lunch with a co-worker, or otherwise had any leisure time?

I'm highly productive and I'd put my record of success up against most lawyers with 10 years' experience. So I'm not underemployed - I just choose to spend my time differently than most folks. (Plus, I have a hard time unwinding. Thus blawgging is as close a thing to a break as I'll take).

Other than hanging out with my wife, pets, and (once a week) a couple of friends, I'm reclusive. Whether or not my choices in spending time are correct or not, it is how I spend it. Thus, blawging and talking about blawging may not equate with underemployment, though I don't doubt that it correlates.

[Prof Yabut]

You've got nothing to be defensive about, Fed84 (as far as I know). The rest of us are pleased that you give so much attention to weblawgging and weblogs.

When I was twelve, and my mother told me to stop studying and go to bed at midnight, I replied: "Nothing worthwhile was ever accomplished without having bags under your eyes." I think Einstein said something similar about needing fanatical attention to get big things done.

[No.84]

It's raining in California, which means I'm in danger if I leave the house. Being from Illinois, I can handle the rain. But I can't handle the people in Cali who can't handle the rain. My point? I'm going to spend some time in the comments section today. I have an alternate computer, too, if Evan tries to pull a TalkLeft on me.

In fact, I had to look the word up and I am not afraid to admit it!

Yeah, so did I! I like to go to Google and type as my search term: define:WORD. It's not as comprehensive as m-w.com, but the definitions, when they are there, are much more precise.

I hate it when I sound defensive. It means I still feel I have something to prove to the world. That type of outward need is not psychologically productive and causes a dissonance between my view of self (independent) and my actual self (perhaps not so independent).

Does anyone else use Blogjet?

Evan, are you going to tell us who sent you the bar review course comment spam?

Why is David Prof. Yabut today?

[Evan]

No. 84:

Good post. I'm trying to get some things done so I can head to the (Cardinals) baseball game, but anyway . . .

(a) I didn't know about the Google "define word" search; I'll use it;

(b) Blogjet looks interesting and I'm going to investigate it tonight; sometimes it's hard for me to get things just right using html code with typepad;

(c) I probably won't be divulging which bar review course left me the comment spam; I got my irritation off my chest with the post, and don't want to spend any time investigating the product on its website;

(d) David's identity changes from time to time depending on his mood or what he has to say; as for his jabs about the time it takes to weblog, I learned to ignore those long ago. I think he's just joking anyway.

[Evan]

Isn't Evan the best name ever? Nice work.

[Evan]

Evan: Yes, Evan is a good name. If you're crediting me for it, however, there's no need--my parents chose it. If you're crediting me for writing this post, there's still no need--Federalist No. 84 wrote it. Thanks all the same.

[David Giacalone]

You know how I feel about the word "blog." So, you can imagine that "blogjet" has me thinking about terms like "projectile" and "Exorcist".

I have to let Prof. Yabut out of his cave every now and then, or he wants to start posting at f/k/a.

I think the Professor is a bit defensive about all the spare time professors seem to have, so he brings up the subject a lot when he thinks other folk are goofing off or double-billing. ethicalEsq is in awe of the apparent productivity of many working blawgers (although he wonders if that O'Keefe guy is moonlighting; and, he occasionally speculates on the effective hourly rate of contingency fees some blawgers must be making).

Hardly any overweening types left at my weblog, I hope, but hubrisEsq might stop by here once in awhile.

p.s. I like the OneLook Dictionary -- it indexes almost 700 dictionaries, and presents results by type of dictionary, as well as offering a Quick Definition on the main result page.

[-Dave!]

"I can’t remember his URL, so every time I want to read him, I need to Google him or click-through from my blogroll."

You, my friend, need to start using a newsreader. There are several on the market, most free, and even the fine on-line Bloglines (www.bloglines.com). If you are still reading blogs by going to each site by hand or searching for the blog on google and reading it, than you have *far* too much free time on your hands! I read nearly 60 blogs daily and I couldn't tell you the URL of one of them, which frankly, is the way it should be.

[David Giacalone]

Fed84: I just noticed (how did I miss it -- lots of senior-CFS-moments lately) your mention of my many aliases as a weblog. It is a point well-taken. That is precisely why it is now called "f/k/a". Of course, if I wanted to keep my readership, I might have stuck with ethicalEsq.

The URL has never changed.

[No.84]

If you are still reading blogs by going to each site by hand or searching for the blog on google and reading it, than you have *far* too much free time on your hands! I read nearly 60 blogs daily [].

Hmmm...using a blogroll means too much time on hands...reading 60 blogs daily does not mean too much time on hands... :^>

Your point is noted, and I'll incorporate it into a updated version of the post. I wasn't going to go into blog readers because I thought it was a bit much, but you're right - bloglines is very simple.

I also took artistic license. My point was not "Can Dave! find you?" The point was, "Can the average reasonable netcitizen find you." I simply used myself as an example of TARN.

But I did suggest that people "Install an RSS feed."

[Dave!]

"Hmmm...using a blogroll means too much time on hands...reading 60 blogs daily does not mean too much time on hands... :^>"

No, not using a blogroll... looking up blogs you read regularly on Google... it's only through using a reader that I can possibly read so many blogs... well, that and since I'm a law student, all I really have time for is blogging and getting smashed. :)

[Rufus]

I followed Matt's suggestion and checked out Blogjet. I got pretty excited at first when I saw what it could do, but then realized it's only for Windows. Damn you Gates and your hegemony. Damn you!

[Jeremy Richey]

Rufus: I agree - us non-Micro$oft people will just have to forget about Blogjet. (Unless we use a Window$ emulater).

Evan: Cards Win! Cards Win! Cards Win!

[Abnu]

Federalist No. 84: Congratulations on a great guest post. You started from the premise that the usual tips about blogging apply to blawgs, and then elaborated an excellent offering of tips specifically for blawgs. A good approach for Legal Underground, I think, and complete enough if most readers have a good idea what you mean by "the usual tips about blogging."

No doubt, many will be encouraged by your post to start a blawg of their own; some without the benefit of those "usual tips about blogging."

So, as a complement to your list for blawgs, here's a summary of Mark Bernstein's 10 tips on writing for the living web.

1. Write for a reason.
2. Write often.
3. Write tight.
4. Make good friends.
5. Find good enemies.
6. Let the story unfold.
7. Stand up, speak out.
8. Be sexy.
9. Use your archives.
10. Relax!

[Jeremy Richey]

Fed. and others,

The title of my site is Jeremy Richey's Law Blog. Would it make more sense for it to be Jeremy Richey's Blawg?

I formed the title of my blog before I understood that "blawg" meant a law focused blog.

Thanks.

[Nipper]

I still think one of the best uses of your blog is for storing links you want to find later and/or want to refer people to later. A giagantic note pad that people who have similar interests will enjoy reading.

[Abnu]

Jeremy: What is "Jeremy Richey's Law" anyway? Is that like "Murphy's Law" or something?

A bit of quick googling around shows that Evan Schaeffer has secured the top result on Google for the text string: jeremy richey's blawg [or] jeremy richey blawg

Jeremy has the top spot on Google for: Jeremy Richey's blog [or] Jeremy Richey blog

I'd recommend the title "Jeremy Richey's Blawg" because the term is now well-established in the minds of your readership, and it shows you appreciate the distinction. You should keep the word "blog" in your description tagline: "This blog contains opinions and information regarding U.S. law and the U.S. legal community."

Law blog aggregator www.blawg.org provides a definition of the term: "Blawg, n, a weblog with emphasis on the law or legal related issues and concerns, often maintained by an individual who studies, practices or otherwise works in the legal field."

[Aaron Larson]

This is some great advice for building a weblog that can help boost your reputation or business. (I don't much care for the term "blawg" - at least to me, it suggests... well, let's say onomatopoeia for "regurgitation".)

A comment on branding - as with any URL, you can think of your brand as being directed at two markets: Those who have previously been to your site or weblog, and those who will be coming for the first time.

If, for example, you are a business lawyer, and you have a lot of clients who tune in to your weblog for interesting tips and legal updates, you would probably want to focus on a brand that is easy for them to remember. The same principle applies if you are looking to build a roster of lawyers who read your blog and might refer cases to you.

If, on the other hand, you are primarily interested in generating new business, you may wish to focus on a blog name that includes keywords, or which people might find if searching for a lawyer in your field of practice. An example which comes to mind is "Michigan Medical Malpractice", a blog with a relatively mundane, keyword-oriented name, but which gets great placement in Google on that search phrase. Granted, if you are too generic you'll be both hard to remember and subject to being displaced in the search results pages if others optimize for the term.

If you're lucky (or ingenious), you may be able to come up with a name that does both. Or, if you're like me and your blog is where you blog off some steam or jot down some random thoughts when you're *not* in work mode, you may not even care. ;-)

[Jeremy Richey]

Abnu,

Thanks for the advice, which I followed. My site is now Jeremy Richey's Blawg.

-Jeremy-

[http://www.worldbusinessforsale.com/]

You would probably want to focus on a brand that is easy for them to remember