Would you like to start genealogy blogging?

Have you got fascinating family history tales to tell? Or would you like to write about genealogy – the research, the how-tos, dos and don’ts, the brick walls and frustrations, the gadgets and apps?

I’ve enjoyed reading two great blogs recently which will help if you’d like to join us geneabloggers. This is just a short post, but they’re both such good introductions I wanted to pass them on.

(Image via Wikipedia)

First, what  to write about? You might have a firm idea. like I did for this blog. It started out being about my ancestor, the Irish rebel and transported convict Nicholas Delaney, but it’s grown to touch on other branches of my family tree on the Australian side. I was lucky to have a focus – but what if I hadn’t?

That’s just one reason I love Genies Down Under’s latest podcast and shownotes. Episode 8 is all about starting a family history blog. It’s full of useful information and links. Don’t just take my word for it – Aillin at Australian Genealogy Journeys has a good review of it.

So – you know what you’d like to start writing about, but what platform will you choose? Two popular, free ones are Blogger and WordPress. Maria at Genies Down Under helps you with starting on Blogger, but if you prefer WordPress (which is what I use), take a look at The Genealogy Workshop‘s three-part introduction. I learned some new tricks from Nicola’s easy-to-follow but detailed guide.

Once you’re published, you might like to join Geneabloggers, where Thomas MacEntee pulls together a community of worldwide bloggers and dispenses information, links and ideas tirelessly. Read other blogs, submit your own one and let us know what you’re doing!

I’ve put together a list of blogs that relate to my own area of interest on the online resources page of this blog’s sister A Rebel Hand website.

PS: More great blogs! Inside History, the Australian magazine run by the excellent people at Irish Wattle, has an article by Jill Ball aka Geniaus about her top 50 genealogy blogs. Have a look here. And here are 2013’s top 50.

May 12th update: And the conversation about genealogy blogging is growing! Geniaus has added The Blogs that Got Away, with some more great ones to read on top of her original 50. Cassmob at Family history across the seas writes about her experience of family history bloggers. And at The Armchair Genealogist, Lynne Palermo has some advice on 8 Ways to Get Involved in the Online Genealogy Community.

May 16th: Aillin has written a great post about her experiences with social media, concentrating on her blog – read it here.

June 8th: Family Tree magazine has published its top 40 genealogy blogs around the world. Some of my favourites are on it – do you recognise any? What would you add?

July 17th: Copyblogger has published its own guide to creating a WordPress website, with your own domain name, here. Thanks to DearMYRTLE for the tip-off.

 

 

 © Frances Owen and A Rebel Hand, 2010-2014