Today I’m participating in Getting To Know You by answering the following questions about my blogging experiences and how they relate to creative writing.

When did you begin your first blog and what inspired you to do so?

My first blog was a simple online journal called Linda’s Life. It started back in 2000; I updated it manually just like any other site. It served as a record of my family life and activities from 2000 through 2006.

In 2002 I graduated to Blogger.com for Linda’s Life and started a few other blogs there as well. Most of my early blogs are no longer online, but they inspired me to write about many different topics. I wrote about homeschooling my children, my spiritual beliefs and experiences, my reactions to the world’s news, Coast to Coast AM (yes, the radio program I used to be addicted to), creative writing, and many other aspects of my life and experiences. Anything that gets a writer to write is a good thing, right?

Do you have more than one blog? Why? How are they different?

Yes, I have a collection of blogs because I’m interested in many different topics:

Linda Jo Martin: Perspectives on Writing – my writing website includes this blog which is intended to inspire writers and give helpful creative writing tips.

FightCPS – a popular family rights site where people who are falsely accused of child abuse can find helpful ideas on fighting for their rights through the legal system.

Klamath Design – I used to be a web designer, but I’ve transformed my design site into a blog that tells people how to start a web design business.

Happy Camp News – a small town news website that I’m transferring to WordPress blogs. I’m in the process of selling this business so I can do other things.

Bigfoot Sightings – my Bigfoot research. I live in a town well-known for Bigfoot sightings so I got interested in the topic; I wanted to know if they really exist near here. I think I’ve found the answer.

I also have a MySpace blog that I use to keep in touch with friends and family members.

How would you characterize your blog?
Creative
Political
Informational
Community-oriented
Or something else?

This particular blog is about creative writing. I started blogging on this site in 2001 to keep track of my progress in writing a novel. As it turned out, I used the old writing blog for quite a few novels. That blog is no longer being used as it was powered by blogger.com and I wanted to switch to WordPress.

This newer version of my writing blog is intended to share what I’ve learned about creative writing with others.

To paraphrase Oprah, what is “one thing you know for sure” about blogging?

One thing I know for sure about blogging is that it is a great way to practice and develop creative writing skills.

Is it important to you to get feedback in terms of comments or pings? Why or why not?

Yes, I love comments because I like to connect and communicate with others. To thank those who comment I’ve installed the DoFollow plugin for WordPress on all my blogs.

What 3 blogs would you recommend to our readers and why?

There’s a lot of blogs I love. A few I read often are:

Copyblogger – a blog that teaches copywriting skills. I recommend this because copywriting ability is essential for any blogger who wants to have a great blog.

Dosh Dosh – a blog about how to make money online. I recommend this for anyone who is thinking about monetizing their blog. I have monitized a few of my blogs and eventually will add advertising to others. But there’s a lot more to it than just putting AdSense on the page, and Dosh Dosh comes up with some great ideas.

SEO Moz – a blog about search engine optimization. I recommend this because it gives good quality information about how to make your blog more visible through the search engines – another skill I feel is essential for blogging enthusiasts.