Tag Archives: tips for bloggers

  • FAQs: tips for aspiring and emerging bloggers

    I get asked questions about blogging, photography and food styling regularly. Eventually I’ll create some sort of FAQ page but in the meantime, I thought I’d cover some of the most frequently asked questions in this post.

    It’s longer than I expected so you might want to grab a cup of tea. Here we go!

    Blogging

    How long have you been blogging?

    Just over three years.

    Do you have any tips about food blogging?

    I do. Check out How to Blog about Food: useful tips for new, emerging and aspiring food bloggers and The Business of Food Styling: a Denise Vivaldo food styling workshop and 12 tips for new, emerging and aspiring food stylists.

    How do I build a following?

    Create great content, promote your content, engage with readers, get to know other bloggers, be helpful and share information.

    How long does it take you to do a blog post?

    On average, four to six hours. Longer travel posts can take up to two days. If it’s a recipe post there’s research, concept and development. Then shopping, recipe development and testing. Then cooking and food and prop styling. Then photography and editing. Then writing up the recipe. The story comes first or afterwards and it can take days, months (or years!) to get right. Then final edits, publishing and promotion. A lot of work goes into it.

    Can’t anyone start a blog?

    Yes. But that’s like saying anyone could write a novel. In theory that’s true but not everyone has the self-initiative, skills and talent to actually start one, much less the commitment and determination to persevere with it.

    No, what I mean is, you don’t have to be qualified or anything…

    That’s the beauty of blogging. You’re not judged by your qualifications or by who you know; you’re judged on your talent, skills and story-telling ability.

    No, I mean, some blogs aren’t very good…

    People blog for all kinds of reasons. What you might deem ‘not very good’ might make its creator very proud. It might be his or her way of sharing their stories and memories or meeting like-minded folk. In any case, I’m sure you’re intelligent enough to work out which blogs you like and want to follow for yourself.

    How do you make money from blogging?

    Some bloggers run advertising on their blogs or affiliate links. Some do sponsored posts or become ambassadors for brands. Some freelance and consult. Some write books or create products or virtual courses.

    Most of my income is derived from work that I do off my blog and I’ve deliberately set it up like this. However, it’d be fair to say that new clients often find me via my blog.

    Do you accept unsolicited guest posts?

    No.

    Why don’t you do more restaurant reviews?

    First of all, I don’t do reviews. I will blog about my experience in a restaurant if it’s part of a bigger travel post like this, this or this, or if it’s also a personal story like this. But I don’t do restaurant reviews per se because I like blogging recipe and travel stories more.

    salmon and soybean salad

    How did you do it? How did you create a successful blog?

    Firstly, everyone has a different idea of what success means. I started my blog because I thought it would help me become a better writer and it has. So from that point of view my blog is a success and everything else has been a bonus.

    I think when you do something you love, you pour your heart and soul into it, and you work really hard, it shows. Having said that, while I haven’t been blogging that long I got my first paid writing job more than 17 years ago and this writing experience was definitely helpful. I also have a background in marketing and this was also useful.

    Being a slightly obsessive perfectionist is not bad thing when it comes to blogging. There are a lot of stories that I haven’t blogged because I don’t think they’re good enough yet. At the same time I constantly see flaws in my published posts so I’m always driven to improving what I do.

    Knowing what I want to do with my blog and where it fits into my bigger goals is also important: it’s easy to get distracted by all the emails, press releases and invites that drop into your inbox and change direction all the time. I say no to a lot of things that would be fun to do because there are only so many hours in the day: I prioritise where I put my time and energy.

    Lastly, I am a fairly confident person and I’m content to tread my own path. There will always be bloggers around who are more talented and/or successful. I may admire them and look to them for inspiration but I don’t get caught up in comparisons and I don’t try to imitate what they do: I’m happy to do things my way, in my own time.

    How do I turn my blog into a career and/or business?

    Trying to turn a blog into a career/business is like trying to build a career as a writer/photographer/stylist in highly-competitive market while simultaneously trying to launch a small business as a blogger/entrepreneur in another highly-competitive market. In other words, it’s not at all easy.

    Minimum requirements? A lot of hard work, excellent marketing and business skills, a strong sense of professionalism, lots of passion, useful street-smarts, and bucket-loads of determination. Originality always gets noticed, too. Bloggers that set trends, rather than follow them, will always get more attention.

    If you look around at the bloggers who have managed to build careers off the back of or alongside their blogs they often have had interesting life experiences and are skilled in lots of areas, not just blogging. Most of the really big food bloggers — and I’m not one of them — have been doing it for a really long time and had the advantage of being one of the first. Many of them are also exceptional photographers, writers, stylists or cooks, or a combination of all of the above.

    I’m not trying to dissuade you from going after your dream but I do think that people under-estimate the amount of skill and hard work required with blogging. People think that because anyone can start a blog that it’s easy. Nothing could be further from the truth! And yes, timing and luck also play a part.

    A friend recently told me about his friend who was discussing her 16YO daughter’s career options when she left school. Apparently ‘fashion blogger’ was one of the possible occupations on the table. I was amazed. I’m guessing that her daughter looked at popular fashion blogs and was seduced by the effortlessly cool, front-row, jet-setting lifestyle those bloggers lead. But what they didn’t see was all the years of hard work and honing of technical skills that went into producing those highly professional and polished blog posts.

    I would never advise someone to give up a full-time job to try to become a ‘career’ blogger without any relevant experience. If you start a blog and you’re super-talented and original and it gains traction and you turn it into a full-time gig then all kudos to you. But in that case you’re the 0.0001%, not the norm.

    So do blog because you love whatever it is you’re blogging about and you want to share your passion with the world. And if it turns into something more for you then that’s wonderful. But don’t blog because you think it’s going to make you famous and/or rich. It might, but if that’s the only reason you’re doing it you will almost certainly be disappointed. 

    Isn’t blogging a bit self-indulgent and narcissistic?

    I got asked this on a date once. Seriously. I replied, “um, well, I guess some blogs are a bit like that and some aren’t.” Then I tried to use telekenisis to make my mobile phone ring so I could fake an emergency and leave. Sadly, I discovered that I don’t actually have telekinetic powers. Unless they’re still dormant…

    How do you decide how much to share?

    If I’m just writing about me I focus on the story and if I’m doing justice to it – whether it’s personally revealing or embarrassing is unimportant. If I’m writing about my ex I always let him see what I’m writing about him before I publish but he’s never felt uncomfortable with anything I’ve written. If I’m writing about my family or friends I just blog it and hope that they understand that even if it’s quite revealing or confronting it comes from a place of love. They’re still talking to me so I think we’re good. There is some stuff that is off limits because of the effect it might have on my kids.

    I have a personal blog. Can you take a look at it and give me some tips?

    Sorry. I don’t feel comfortable giving specific advice to bloggers unless they’re also close friends* because blogging is such a personal thing. Giving someone advice about his or her blog without knowing anything else about that person would be like me coming over to your house and telling you how to arrange your furniture or how to edit your closet. I’m happy to share general tips as I have done here and in other similar posts but I don’t comment specifically on personal blogs.

    If you have a business blog and need some help with it I do offer consulting services.

    * If you’re a close friend you’ll receive unsolicited advice about pretty much everything.

    Writing

    Do you have any tips re: how to improve my writing?

    Yes, check out 8 Writing tips for Bloggers and How to Blog about Food: useful tips for new, emerging and aspiring food bloggers.

    How do I get into food writing?

    Read this post by Amanda Hesser from Food 52. I think she’s pretty spot-on.

    In my case I started off writing about music in the mid 90s for my university newspaper (I had a thing for guys in bands). Then I moved into more general features. I started writing about food when I started my blog and then started freelancing for various print and online publications.

    christina soong

    Photography

    What camera and lenses do you use?

    For most of my regular food and travel shooting work I use a Nikon D600 with these lenses:

    For spontaneous, on-the-go shooting and Instagramming I use a Fujifilm X100T and an Apple iPhone 6.

    What photography gear do you use?

    At home:

    When travelling:

    • Lowepro bag. This backpack fits two camera bodies, 4 lenses, an Ipad and wireless keyboard or laptop, keys, wallet, water bottle + more. It’s not chic — unfortunately, it make me look like a uni student — but it is functional.
    • BlackRapid camera strap
    • Hoya lens filters if I’m shooting by the beach or into the sun

    What editing software do you use?

    I use Adobe Lightroom 4 on an Eizo Coloredge CS240 monitor.

    Where do you do your food shoots?

    Mostly at home. I have a studio set up in my front room which has two walls of ceiling to floor windows and I have converted one massive bookcase in my lounge into my props cupboard.

    How did you learn about photography? Are you self-taught?

    Mostly, yes. It’s taken lot of practise. A lot of reading of books and blogs. A couple of custom lessons with more experienced photographers.  I shoot mostly in manual (M) and aperture (A) priority. If I’m shooting some fast-moving action, I’ll shoot in shutter (S) priority).

    Do you prefer natural or artificial light?

    I only shoot in natural (available) light at home. I am keen to learn about artificial lights  and will probably purchase a kit at some point but I prefer the look of natural light on food.

    Food and Props Styling

    Where did you get your table-tops, backdrops and props from?

    I made the tabletops out of the wood from my rotten verandah that my handyman cut into lengths for me. My ex made me a double-sided backdrop using wood and paint material from Bunnings. Props are from my personal collection, Spotlight, Ikea, Ebay and op shops. I covet most things from Mud Australia and Anthropologie.

    How did you learn about food styling?

    Mostly through trial and error although I also attended a two-day food styling intensive workshop with Denise Vivaldo at the Sydney Cooking School. I have also read lots of books and articles on the subject.

    Do you have any tips re food styling?

    Yes, see  The Business of Food Styling: a Denise Vivaldo food styling workshop and 12 tips for new, emerging and aspiring food stylists.

    Recipe Development

    Are you a trained chef?

    No. I’m a home cook.

    How do you develop recipes?

    I start with an ingredient or flavour combination and then build it from there. A recipe might be inspired by a dish I’ve eaten, something I’ve read in a cookbook or blog, the weather, or most often, some spectacular produce at the market.

    I have a great nose and a food memory – I can remember the taste, texture, look and feel of dishes I ate 25 years ago. I also read a lot of cookbooks and blogs and have attended numerous cooking classes and food and wine workshops.

    I have always cooked by tasting the dish and adjusting the flavor as required, even when loosely following a recipe.

    My recipes are created with the average home cook in mind and most can be prepared without too much fuss and bother after a crappy day at work. If you want fancy, complicated recipes or molecular gastronomy you should go to a nice restaurant to eat because nobody eats like that at home.

    sponge cake with berries

    Working with PRs and Brands

    I want to work more with brands. How do I develop these relationships?

    There’s no trick I can tell you. Work hard. Do good work, consistently and steadily. Put it out there. If people/brands like it, they’ll approach you.

    Personally, I don’t try to create relationships with brands – I just blog what I want to blog. Keeping my blog a place where I can explore things creatively is incredibly important to me: I care about creating stories that I can be proud of and that readers might respond to. That’s what’s most important to me – not creating PR-friendly stories.

    If people/brands like what I do and want to work with me, great. If not, equally fine. I only want to work with brands that ‘get’ what I do and whose work or products I equally admire. Over the years I’ve turned down a lot of paid work because it simply wasn’t a good fit or I felt I would be compromising my ethics and/or credibility.

    I’ve published some tips for bloggers who want to work with brands here – Bloggers and Brands: why we’re mostly doing it wrong,

    Do you eat out for free all the time?

    No. It’s very nice to be invited to events but I have to be selective about those I attend due to work and family commitments. I do eat at my parents’ house a lot though. Does that count?

    Do you get sent heaps of free food?

    No, but that’s because I only very occasionally accept samples.

    How do you respond to people asking you to blog in exchange for tickets, invitations or samples?

    I politely explain thatI don’t trade tickets or products for blog exposure as I only blog something if I can find an interesting story to tell. I tell them that I appreciate their understanding on this. Having said that, if they’ve asked me to blog like this then it’s unlikely I’ll work with them because it’s clearly not a good fit.

    Update: I refer them to my agent.

    What do you say to brands who want to work with you but want to ‘reward’ you with exposure, vouchers or links instead of payment? 

    I politely explain that I work with brands for compensation and that if they have a project with a budget I’d be happy to chat. I also direct them to Bloggers and Brands: why we’re mostly doing it wrong.

    Update: see previous question.

    General

    How can you be so small if you eat so much?

    I’m not sure. My cunning Asian genes? Running around after my kids? My mother tells me that I exhaust people. So there’s all the energy I expend doing that. I also try to practice hot yoga regularly.

    Credits

    All photos by me as usual except the photo of me by Kevin Khaw. Makeup by Celeste Wong.

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    Got a question?

    Did I miss something? Feel free to ask me a question below and I’ll do my best to answer it.

  • 8 Writing Tips for Bloggers and Spicy Lamb Wraps

    DSC_4054DSC_4036

    A few months ago I received an email from a blogger who wanted to know how she could improve her writing and photography. As you can imagine, it’s not a question that can be answered simply or quickly so I decided to do a series of posts on it: this post focuses on how to become a better writer. I’ve titled this post writing tips for bloggers but these tips are actually applicable no matter whether you’re writing blog posts, articles, short stories, novels, screenplays, or a memoir – ultimately it’s all about your ability to tell a story.

    1) Read a lot

    I don’t think you can become a good writer if you don’t like reading. Find authors or bloggers who make your pulse quicken and work your way through their back catalogue or archives. In terms of books I read very widely but I do love short stories and essays by authors like David Sedaris, Jeffrey SteingartenCynthia Heimal, W Somerset Maugham, Susan Townsend, BJ Novak, Dorothy Parker, and Truman Capote. I’ve also read hundreds of film and television scripts – reading screenplays will teach you about structure, setting the scene, the importance of visual storytelling and being economical with language.

    2) Look for inspiration everywhere

    A friend recently asked me what my creative approach to writing stories was. I had to stop and think about this because I don’t have a process, or if I do, it’s a highly disorganised one. Basically, an idea gets in my head and I have to puzzle it out in words. Or something happens and I think it would make a good story or blog post. An idea might be triggered by a conversation, an article, a funny coincidence, an unexpected windfall or a disaster. Look for inspiration and story ideas everywhere. If you can’t do anything with an idea right away note it down in a journal or draft post for those times when inspiration runs dry. According to Susan Townsend, someone once said, “Writing is easy. Just stare down at a blank piece of paper until your forehead bleeds.” Amen!

    3) Write about what you are most passionate about

    You can always tell if I’m really passionate about something or not. If it’s important to me, you’ll hear the enthusiasm in my writing and it’ll hopefully inspire and enthuse you, too. Conversely, if I’m writing about something I don’t really care about, you’ll finishing reading my story and feel unsatisfied. Because if I don’t care about it, why should you? So write about stuff that really matters to you. Write the stories that scare you because they make you feel uncomfortable or exposed. Push past your comfort zone and write the stories that make you feel a little weepy and sentimental. Write stuff that matters.

    4) Celebrate your individualism

    Don’t write the stories that anyone could have done; there are enough bland, boring and forgettable stories out there. Write the stories that only you could have written. Did you have a weird upbringing? Use that. Did you have a life-changing holiday experience? Write about it. Do you have an obscure hobby? Explain why you love it so much. It’s our quirks, eccentricities and individual journeys that make us unique: it’s your job as a writer to tease out all the useable material you have in your brain.

    5) It’s what you leave out that’s as important as what you include

    Not everything that happens would make a good story. Moreover, even if something would make a good story not everything that happened along the way is actually interesting. Be ruthless about only including things that serve the story and move it forward. I can’t stand writing that is like a verbal stream of consciousness, i.e. this happened and then this happened and then this happened. It’s lazy and it’s not interesting to read.

    6) Edit your writing to the bone

    I typically write a blog post and then I review and edit it 6-15 times before publishing it. I’m not kidding. A lot of effort goes into making my blog posts ‘simple and easy to read’, as my mother describes them. Even after I’ve published blog posts if I notice a clumsy phrase or something that could have been expressed better I’ll go back and change it. If you’re writing blog posts and then publishing them straight away you are not producing your best work because all early drafts can be improved. Tighten things up. Make the meaning clearer. Delete entire sections that don’t serve the story. I know you love everything you’ve written but you’ll only become a better writer once you’re prepared to kill your darlings.

    7) Don’t use fancy words

    Write as simply and succinctly as possible. If you can say what you mean with a one syllable word as opposed to a three syllable one then use the former.  Writing is not about showing the reader how many big words you know or how clever you are – it’s about telling a story and provoking some kind of response from the reader.

    8) Read books about writing

    These are some of my favourite books about writing.

    I also really like the post Thoughts on Writing by Elizabeth Gilbert.

    Do you have any favourite books or posts about writing? Please share your suggestions below.

    Spicy Lamb WrapsDSC_4059DSC_4068

    Spicy Lamb Wraps

    With the colder Autumn weather I seem to have turned into a raging carb monster, my body demanding starchy fuel at increasingly frequent intervals. Enter these Spicy Lamb Wraps, a re-working of two previously blogged recipes, Xinjiang Lamb Skewers and Fiery Smashed Cucumber Salad, into a healthy, filling and lip-tingling wrap.

    INGREDIENTS

    • 500 grams minced lamb
    • 2 cloves garlic, finely minced or grated
    • 2 teaspoons cumin
    • 1/2 teaspoon ginger
    • 2-3 teaspoons chilli flakes
    • 1-1.5 teaspoon Szechuan peppercorns, pounded fine in a mortar and pestle
    • 1 generous teaspoon salt
    • 4 wraps
    • 500 grams assorted tomatoes
    • 120 grams baby spinach leaves
    • 3 tablespoons rice wine vinegar
    • 1 teaspoon sesame oil
    • 1 teaspoon chilli oil
    • 3 spring onions, sliced, white part only
    • Fresh coriander and/or basil to garnish

    METHOD

    1. Mix lamb, garlic, cumin, ginger, chilli flakes, Szechuan peppercorns and salt in a large bowl until thoroughly combined.
    2. Using clean hands, roll into small balls (about 30) and place on plate. Refrigerate while you get on with making the salad bits.
    3. Wash tomatoes and quarter and rinse and spin dry spinach (if necessary).
    4. Make up dressing by mixing vinegar, sesame oil and chilli oil in a small bowl.
    5. Heat up a large fry pan and add a dash of oil. Fry meat balls in two batches until cooked through (6-8 minutes) stirring frequently to brown evenly.
    6. Remove to plate covered with kitchen paper to absorb excess fat.
    7. To assemble, place a wrap on a plate and top with spinach leaves, tomatoes, spring onions and meat balls and serve with chilli dressing for people to add themselves.

    NOTES

    1. Serves 4 for lunch
    2. Using the lower amount of chilli/peppercorns will give you medium-hot meat balls while the higher amount will give you hot meat balls.
    3. If you are serving these to little ones or people who don’t like chilli you can make up a version with only garlic, cumin and salt to season.
    4. You could also make the meatballs by themselves to serve with drinks.

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    Now it’s over to you. Do you have any writing tips or book recommendations? Please share your suggestions below.