This week marks the two hundredth anniversary of the birth of Charles Dickens. February 7, 1812.

And if Charlie D. were a young man today, he’d definitely be a blogger.

How do I know?

Let’s examine the facts.

1.    He wrote every day.
2.    His works were serialized in publications over a period of time.
3.    His posts—oops excuse me—his writings brought out the problems of the times.
4.    He wrote colorfully using great detail to get across his ideas.
5.    By age 25 he was the most popular writer in England.

He even has a back-story, perfect for a website About page: he was in a major train wreck in an express train speeding back to London from Paris with his mistress and her mother in 1865.

To avoid the press, he quickly left the train with the two women, escorted them to safety and went back to help with the wounded and trapped. And then he amazingly re-entered his train car, which was perilously perched on a bridge, with several other cars dangling into the water, to rescue a partial manuscript of his last novel.

Dickens died of a stroke five years later at the rather young age of 58.

All this is a quite entertaining. And not at all exaggerated. Really.

But let’s think about these “facts” and blogging

Remember last week when I asked if you were muttering or if you were speaking to your readers?

Remember when I wrote that you needed a signature piece of writing—your weekly email—to speak directly to your prospective client who willingly handed over her email address to you?

And that you also needed a blog post?

Why a blog post?

Because you need to have content.

And why content?

Because content will do many things, among them:
• Help your reader through the topic you’re writing about
• Increase your likeability and your expertise in the eyes of your reader
• Help position you as an expert in your field to everyone
• Definitely raise your search engine rankings.

So let’s think about Charles Dickens and consider what you must do when you’re blogging:
1.    You need to write every day. Even if you only post once a week. Writing every day will improve your skill.
2.    You need to write colorfully, with detail and even incorporate story, if that story helps drive home a message
3.    You need to have a point to your writing. Not like Miss Lou from last weeks post, whose mutterings and musings served to pass the time. But like Charles Dickens whose writings were often pointed at correcting society’s wrongs. He had a purpose. And he was rewarded with a loyal following. Charles Dickens works have never been out of print.

So when you begin to blog or write your blog post for this week, ask yourself “Am I speaking to my readers?  Do I have something to say? And are they listening?”

Tell me about your blogging outreach in the reply section below.