How to Write a Great Blog Post: A Beginner’s Guide

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There are more blogs in existence than ever, yet more and more people are seduced by the idea of sharing their thoughts and ideas with the rest of the world.

As a matter of fact, it does seem as if there’s a war out there. Everyone is fighting for attention, there are so many things to learn and master. So many social networks, marketing techniques. There’s even an awful lot of content on blogging itself, which makes it even more frustrating.

How do you write a great blog post?

I wouldn’t be asking if I didn’t know the answer. Or would I …

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The Ultimate Guide To Blogging

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Those of you who follow this blog for some time know that I am not a big fan of “how to” guides, rules, and funny little checklists that should magically do everything for you. There’s no substitute for hard work, dedication, time, energy, and passion, and those of you who want a shortcut will be disappointed by this guide of mine.

Of course, there are some things that you must do in order to be successful as a blogger. I recommend reading my golden rules of blogging before you start reading this post.

That being said, let’s get down to business. Continue reading →

What I learned from years of high functioning depression, anxiety, and low self-esteem

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Disclaimer: this is going to be a long and (somewhat) harsh post about certain realities of life most of us are trying to evade by all means possible.

I am not writing this post out of empathy. I am not writing this post because I read some articles and now I am trying to pass along the knowledge.

I am writing this article because I understand.

I understand the difference between the burning pain of suffering deeply and the general apathy and hopelessness of depression. The emptiness. The lack of interest, joy, passion. I understand the despair, the loneliness, the reluctance to discuss about it all, the very fatiguing job of hiding it all behind a smile, or an “I’m fine” delivered in the worst way possible. Continue reading →

closer: a novel

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closer is the story of a man who is so seduced by the desire to get rich that he becomes involved in a world where anything is permitted. His journey to the top is interrupted by the consequences of his past actions. Things become darker, more violent and more sexually disturbing than he could ever have imagined as he tries to break himself free from his past.

Deft, shocking and unforgettable, this gripping tale about risk, consequence and the treacherous balance between the two reveals a world where there’s nothing to separate right from wrong.

***

If that description is not enough, I’d like to say that closer is not going to be everyone’s cup of tea. It’s more like a shot of whiskey. There are parts that describe certain aspects of beauty — the way we perceive something or someone around us as being beautiful — but then I insist on breaking your heart.

Stare at something long enough, there’s nothing magic left of it. Truth is, nothing in this world is as beautiful as we can imagine it. Continue reading →

Dome: Episode One [FREE DOWNLOAD]

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A heartbreaking portrayal of ambition, betrayal, and intrigue, Dome is a serialized Science-Fiction Thriller that tells the story of a small group of people who try to figure out the reason behind the construction of this dome-city in the center of the world’s harshest continent.

Prologue

For a man who knows that our worst nightmares are about to come true, Jack Riddell has no trouble sleeping at night. “It is said that Caesar wept when he found out about Pompey’s death.”

“What’s that got to do with anything?” the host of the show, a woman in her mid-thirties, asks. For the last hour or so, the richest man in the world has avoided giving her a straight answer.

Jack laughs. “A man’s character is determined by how he reacts in the face of adversity. By how strong his enemies are.” Ignoring the dumbfounded expression of the host, he adds, “I believe people should realize Dome is a simple reminder that we can fight against insurmountable odds and win.” Continue reading →

What I learned in five years of blogging

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Five years. Five years of daily blogging. Five years since I decided to never give up, no matter what. To keep writing, to keep blogging, to just keep at it for as long as it took.

And what a ride it has been. Around the world, indeed. 200 or so countries. Lots and lots of people, lots and lots of stories… Continue reading →

How to Improve Your Writing… Right Now

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irevuo

Many of you would love to write better short stories or poems, more compelling blog posts, more intriguing articles. And you’ve probably heard all the old advice by now. Practice makes perfect. Get your 10,000 hours in. Just show up and write.

And of course, these are all great ideas, but implementing them takes a lot of time. It’s not like you can write for 10,000 hours in a week or so. It’s not physically possible.

Or as they say…

What if I were to tell you there are a couple of ways you can improve your writing right now? No years and years of practice required.

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Show Customers Customers

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Gareth Roberts

People think like other people so customers think like other customers.

A psychological phenomenon takes place when we make decisions.

In any such situation, we determine what’s right or wrong for us.

We look for answers to give us confidence in our decision-making and we usually look at the actions and experiences of others.

Others who have been in similar situations to those we find ourselves in.

Vlad Tepes was Prince of Wallachia in the 15th century.

He ruled the regions of the Southern Carpathians and the Danube in modern day Romania.

During three reigns he fought battles against the Ottoman Turkish Empire.

In 1462, Sultan Mehmed II and his Ottoman army advanced on Wallachia.

As they arrived, they were met by the sight of 20,000 impaled corpses.

Vlad had impaled the torsos of his defeated enemies with stakes, erecting them in the ground for all to see.

It was…

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How to Turn One-Time Readers into Avid Fans

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Admit it. You’re guilty of checking your WordPress Stats more often than it’s healthy. And most times, a deep sigh escapes from your soul.

Why is your number of followers so low?

Why aren’t readers flocking to your blog?

Blogging is hard work, but what should you do when your efforts don’t seem to pay off?

Should you just keep writing regardless? Hope that things will change somehow?

You need a new blog strategy, not wishful thinking.

When your blog isn’t doing as well as you’d like, don’t simply step up your efforts. Don’t keep slaving away. Instead, take a step back and review what you’ve done so far. Do you have the right strategy to turn one time readers into avid fans?

If you want to create a simple blog plan that will help you win more readers, answer these four critical questions below. Continue reading →

11 Harsh Truths about Success

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There are two main reasons why this photograph of Jeff Bezos is interesting.

First of all, today’s richest man is working from headquarters located on the same street as a pawn shop, a heroin-needle exchange, and a “porno parlor.” His office, the badly stained carpet, the desk, made out of a door propped up on two-by-fours, all give the impression of the kind of hopelessness that people often encounter whenever they start something new.

The second thing about this photograph is even more intriguing: When this picture was taken, back in 1999, Jeff Bezos was already worth around 9 billion dollars. Yet he worked from that office, drove around in a Honda, and had a terrible sense of fashion.

Success is not easy. Overnight success is so statistically improbable that we might as well think it doesn’t even exist.

The struggle is real. Just imagine in what kind of conditions Bezos was working when he first started his company, if this was what his office looked like when running what had grown into a 30 billion dollar company.

The same way Elon Musk had to borrow money to pay rent in the early days of SpaceX, all successful people had to deny themselves pleasure and comfort in order to bring their dreams to life.

There’s no way around it, I’m afraid.

And there are certain aspects of success that rarely get talked about. We romanticize success to the point that it feels like a walk in the park. You do what you love, always a smile on your face…

Here are eleven harsh truths about success that no one ever talks about. Continue reading →

Stephen King’s 10 Best Tips for Becoming a Phenomenal Writer

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irevuo

The King has always been the sort of writer who can release one bestseller after another. He has sold more than 350 million copies of his works.

Wouldn’t that be nice? To be able to sell that many books? To be that productive?

Well, in 2002 King temporarily gave up on writing horror novels, and wrote a little book chronicling his rise to fame and discussing exactly what he believes it takes to become a good writer. Since then, it’s become the most popular book about writing ever written, which is understandable.

On Writing is not only about the basics of writing, and something that you should approach as a craft, but also a passion. Other writing books are focused on the mechanics of the written word, while King shows you how to capture the joy of the craft.

Yes, this little book will make you want to write, not for…

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354: Retiring…..in MOROCCO????

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Dirtdaubber Wasp

Morocco 078

Published February 25, 2014, in the Herald Leader, Fitzgerald, Georgia (USA) weekly newspaper.

Lately, most Islamic countries have been pretty much OFF the list as desirable places to live, work and retire. Political unrest is not attractive for those in the market for a place to live. This black eye, however, is undeserved in several cases, and Morocco is close to the top of the list as a pleasant place to consider living. Morocco is located in the upper north-western corner of the African continent. Morocco and the United States share a companionable history – did you know that Morocco was the first country to officially recognize the fledgling USA as a nation? Morocco is an Islamic country in that Islam is the official state religion, and the majority of its citizens are Muslim, but there are people of other faiths here as well, and tolerance is the theme, espoused…

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How to Win Friends and Influence People (As a Blogger)

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First published more than 70 years ago, Dale Carnegie’s guide on people skills entitled “How to Win Friends and Influence People” contains wisdom that is mostly true to this very day, because human nature, for better or worse, does not change much over time.

And even in this brave new world of the Internet and social media, we can still look to age-old truths in deciphering a code to grow an audience (win friends) and successfully engage readers via our blogs (influence people).

Here are eight of these truths … Continue reading →