I have been collecting topic suggestions from my readers this week and one of the replies I got was not a suggestion for my forthcoming content but a cry for help.
This blogger had been notified by a visitor that some of her old posts were, while funny, likely to land her in hot water. She quickly thanked the visitor and unpublished two or three of the worst offenders.
That wasn’t where the problem ended though.
Later in the week the same visitor came back to check on progress only to find a fresh post with all the same problems. The blogger realised she had a problem.
The problem wasn’t so much her snarky, ranting, writing style. That is, for good or bad, why her readers subscribed. Her problem was she posted her articles quickly, off the cuff and with zero fact checking.
She saw something she didn’t like, assumed she knew what she was writing about, and posted. We all know what “assume” leads to.
Thankfully there is an easy solution!
- Check your facts
- Write the post in draft
- Cool off
- Come back
- Publish if still looks worthwhile
Another solution, my preferred solution, is not to write negative posts about other people, but that wouldn’t suit everyone.
What do you think? Do you write quick-fire rants or do you consider posts carefully? Have you been on the receiving end of this kind of blog post? Please share in the comments …
