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1. You are a well-known writer for children. You've written picture books, stories, middle-grade fiction, and have
recently completed a forthcoming young-adult novel. How does blogging fit with your writing? Do you find it adds to or
detracts from your creative life and writing?
Unless I'm touring or teaching workshops, the quantity of my writing production stays consistent, no matter what else I'm
doing. I'm not a fast writer, and I do find a declining return after a few hours. But I am full-time, so I apply the extra
time to marketing, correspondence, and the more practical matters of an author's life.
Blogging is my warm up, my break, my outlet for sharing what excites me. It also provides me
a venue for critical study and creative reflection. On Cynsations
(http://cynthialeitichsmith.blogspot.com/),
I feature author interviews, links to noteworthy articles, and my own thoughts on various
reads. The blog encourages me to think in a focused way about others' art and process
(and, by extension, my own) as well as to keep abreast of industry news.
For example, when
I write a reading recommendation, I'm not only supporting an author/illustrator/title and
flagging a book that may resonate with my audience, I'm also forcing myself to really
contemplate why that particular story worked for me so I can articulate my perspective in a
thoughtful, persuasive manner.
Or when I feature an author/illustrator interview, I'm not only highlighting that book
creator and hoping their insights educate and inspire, I too am being educated and inspired.
Beyond that, when I quit my law job to become a children's/teen writer, my commitment was
not only to my own work but to youth literature and literacy as a whole.
Cynsations is an extension of the Children's/YA Literature section of my Web site
(at cynthialeitichsmith.com), offering
the opportunity for me to spread the word that great books matter and to post more timely
information than would practical to include on the main site.
Finally, it's come to my attention over the years that these efforts make a difference. My
site and blogs are currently attracting 30,000 to 60,000 unique visitors a month, more than
85% of which come back at least once that month, and both everyday readers and respected
professional gurus increasingly tell me that they benefit from what contribution I'm able
to make. They're interested to see which authors/illustrators are profiled, which books are
spotlighted, and the latest news that's caught my eye.
My other blog, Spookycyn (spookycyn.blogspot.com),
is more about my own process and writing life. It touches on the more personal and creative
side of my journey as well as offering some chatter from my daily doings. I'm always mindful
that it's not private, and that does affect what I elect to share. But
Spookycyn
nevertheless offers an opportunity to connect more informally with my audience in much the
same way that I might in a Q&A, a writing conference lunch, or a before-critique-group
dinner party.
I also touch on my on-the-road experiences, daily life in Austin, and pop-culture interests in hopes that these posts might
resonate with my teen and grown-up readers. It puts a personal face on my body of work, makes me more of a real person,
which I'm hopeful emphasizes—especially to YAs—that we're all human and have stories to share.
2. What about blogging has been surprising for you as a writer?
I tend to underestimate how many people read them! I'm forever surprised when someone—from coat to coast—will refer to
something I've mentioned in passing on one of the blogs. It catches me off-guard, and then I remember—Oh, yeah, Cyn, you
only told the entire World Wide Web about that!
I'm also surprised by how much it's helped me to focus on the critical and creative sides of my own work and experience.
As I mentioned above, having a venue prompts more thoughtful reflection.
3. Has blogging helped you market your writing? Do you think your blogs have raised your profile as a writer?
It's hard to separate the impact of the blogs and the site. However, after the major search engines, the
Cynsations blog is
now the top feeder to my main site, which suggests that reading the blog content prompts further interest. Whether it's in
my own work
or others' featured is unclear, but my hope is that folks will take a look at both.
I do know that many media requests—related to my titles, to topics in children's/YA lit (like, say, multiculturalism,
fantasy, censorship), and to compiling reading recommendations—can be traced to my strong online presence. I'm also sure it
plays a role in the number and quality of my speaking invitations.
My rather amorphous feeling is that my name recognition—gauged by media interest and, say, national conference author
participation and so forth—didn't really take off until 2003, and then it jumped sharply. I'm not sure what the sales impact
may be, though, because despite publishing articles in professional journals and short stories in anthologies, I haven't
had a front list book since. Once Santa Knows (Dutton, 2006) and especially Tantalize (Candlewick, 2007)
are released and the reader response/sales figures start coming in, I'll have a better sense of the potential impact of any
profile shift.
4. Do you have any advice for writers thinking about beginning a blog?
Think about your real-life time constraints and the kind of writer you are. For me, with my chatty nature and journalism
background, it's no burden to blog regularly. It doesn't have an adverse impact on my creative writing time or productivity.
That may not be true of everyone, and for most of us, a blog shouldn't steal center stage from other writing. If blogging
is causing stress or undue competition with your higher priority work, you can certainly live without it.
Ask yourself what the focus of the blog will be. As I mentioned, both
Cynsations and Spookycyn have their
own type of content, mood, and writing style. That doesn't mean that another writer shouldn't cast a wider or more informal
net, but it's helpful to have some idea what the nature of the beast will be. Also, if building readership is a goal, some
kind of "branding" is useful, so your audience knows what to expect and keeps coming back for it.
My experience suggests that writer communities are small and filled with creative people who may skew more sensitive than
the general public. I take care not to post anything that I foresee will cause hurt feelings. Perspectives on this vary,
but regardless of personal approach, it should be kept in mind that writers are sort of limited public figures. What you
put into the world (or World Wide Web) may have positive or negative real-space repercussions on your career.
But big picture, try to offer your readers something. A blog can be mostly about personal expression and self-reflection
(like Spookycyn), but if you're offering that to readers, remember you're still participating in a community. One of the
best ways to nurture your art and psyche is to reach out to others and do what you can to brighten their lives.
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