3 Informative Topics for Digital Writers

Three Topics For Those Wanting to Earn as a Writer Online

Digital Writer- Writers for the Digital Age

What is a Digital Writer?

Digital Writer is a general sort of umbrella term. The simplest definition is anyone who acts as a writer or author online. The most obvious and popular example would be a blogger; being someone who writes posts in a blog. However, this term certainly does not apply to only bloggers. If you create downloadable PDF files for sale or to give away, you too are a digital writer. If you write books for sale on KDP or another online platform, you may be referred to in this way, or as a “digital author.”

Digital Content Producer aka Digital Content Writer

Another term you may often hear referred to is a digital content producer or digital content writer. Both of these terms cover most of the jobs, businesses, and individuals earning a living writing online. Usually when using these names, the refer to those writing content for a business online; usually a third party business and not their own. It is possible that a digital content producer will also be responsible for creating the digital content strategy as well as creating the content within that strategy.

Platforms to Post Your Written Works Online

Of course, it is important to talk about where you, as a writer, may be able to post your work and get paid for it. In that spirit, I wanted to provide you with a list of some of the most common (and not) and best places to post your content for profit. Consider any or all of these platforms:

Medium-
Vocal Media
Kindle Direct Publishing (KDP)
Your Own Wordpress Blog- click here to get started (new tab)
Creative Fabrica (pdf files)- click here to get started (new tab)

These are just four of the top available choices. You can literally find hundreds or thousands of ways to get your work online and become a digital author or digital writer now. Which platforms are right for you will greatly depend on the form your work takes. If you are delivering your work as a blog post, then Medium or Vocal Media would be best. If serialized stories are your passion then make your way to KDP. PDF downloads are sought after on Creative Fabrica. Of course, if you start your own self-hosted Wordpress blog… you are able to offer a customized way of delivering it all.

Blog Feed Initials- Web Feed for Your Blog

Blog Feed Initials aka RSS

The blog feed initials, also known as the RSS, refers to the web feed for your online blog or website. If you ever hear someone refer to blog feed letters, those letters are R.S.S. This is a streamed collection of all of the posts you place on your blog. Often times it is used for syndicating your content or sharing with a loyal group of readers. Some blog owners will utilize their RSS as content within a mailing list; usually restricting the feed to only a single or few categories from within the blog. It is worth noting that when setting up your web feed, you are able to set Wordpress to display either the full content of the post or only a summary. Why set to a summary only? Well, this can be to help encourage return visits to your blog in order to read the full content. Of course, you may also choose to set it to summary only in order to discourage blog syndicators from stealing your full content and placing it on other sites.

What is Really Simple Syndication?

The term, “really simple syndication” is the spelled out version of the simpler abbreviation, “RSS.” Again, RSS being the blog feed initials that the web has grown most familiar with. As the full name implies, the feed is a method of sharing your blog’s content in a really simple way. Think of it as your blog’s way of sending out push notifications to anyone who opts in to subscribing to it. Having said that, your blog’s web feed will never replace having a mailing list or newsletter. Using code or plugins, however, you may be able to design and organize your feed in a way that is more visually appealing. When sharing the raw version, you will find that it is very basic and not meant for human eyes. Generally, it is a plugin or software that will be reading and using your blog’s RSS feed. So, what does RSS stand for? Easy answer, it stands for “really simple syndication.” Realistic answer, it is a simple syndication of your blog posts that wasn’t meant for human eyes.

Wordpress RSS Feed URL

Assuming your blog is hosted on the Wordpress platform, you may be wondering what is your Wordpress RSS feed URL? If your blog is self-hosted, then to reach your main blog feed, you only need to add “/feed” to the end of your blog’s domain. For example, if your domain was “MyAwesomeDomain.com” then your main feed would be located at “MyAwesomeDomain.com/feed.”

Of course, if your blog is hosted on the main Wordpress site, you still only need to add the extention to reach your feed; it just won’t be as pretty. You can find more information on finding your Wordpress RSS feed URL by checking out the post on the main WP website; Just Click Here to open it in a new tab.

Blog Banners- How to Create Blog Banners and Graphics

Blog Banners and Blog Graphics- What Are They?

Firstly, what are blog banners and blog graphics? A blog banner is the wide image located at the top of a blog post. You may often find such banners atop an article as well, however; they are most commonly associated with blogs. Blog graphics are simply any image that is placed within the content of a blog post, that is not a PPC advertisement.

Banners and graphics are generally used to enhance the reader’s experience when reading a post, or to emphasize or illustrate a point. Creating a visual representation of your topic or point is a great way to help readers to understand your content.

3 Ways to Create Blog Banners and Blog Graphics

Now that you know what they are and what they are used for, you may be wondering how to create banners and graphics for your blog. In this post, we will cover three different ways to make banners and graphics for your blog.

We will go over how to use MS Paint or Paint Brush on a Mac, Photo Director, and Canva for all of your blog’s visual elements. However; before we get into how to use each of these software and online services, we must first go over one important detail. You will need to know the proper sizing for each of the graphics you want to make.

Proper Dimensions For Your Graphics

Each of the specific visual elements for your blog, has a proper size and dimensions in order to render correctly. You do not want to use a square image as the header, or a full header image as a button. Using the correct dimensions will help keep your blog looking professional and well laid out. Sizing for each image remains the same for Wordpress blogs as well as Medium or Vocal Media posts.

Proper Dimensions for Blog Images: (in pixels)

Banner = 2240 x 1260
Graphics = 800 x 1200
Button = 650 x 100
Pinterest Pin = 1000 x 1500

Watch the Video Tutorial

Since this topic is best demonstrated with a walk thru video, we have decided to provide one for you here. If after watching the video, you still have questions, then feel free to click the button below the video and ask any legitimate questions.