Kelley of Another Novel Read posed an interesting question over at her blog.
Do you prep blog posts in advance? Why do you or why don’t you?
You know this post you’re reading? I typed it up a few hours and finished it a dew minutes before I published it.
I rarely prep blog posts in advance. It’s not because I don’t want to. I do, but most of the time, I get distracted and procrastinate after being persuaded by that little procrastination monster to do something else because it seemed necessary at the time. When I finally do sit down and try to type my thoughts down, I don’t know what I want to say exactly until the last minute.
Inspiration always hit me the night before I plan to publish something. It must be that I do my best work under pressure, right?
Maybe.
If I try to write a post a few days beforehand, I find myself revising sentences over and over again because I’m never satisfied. Writing up posts last minute forces me to just write and revise quickly – get to the main point without fussing over it. However, it’s generally a bad idea, especially if you have to write an essay for class (which I was guilty of doing last minute when I was in college). It’s a really bad habit. You should always be prepared. For me, I always prepare myself when I go out of my house, but rarely blog posts. I should do better.
This is what happens when you prep and don’t prep in advance:
Do you prep blog posts in advance or are you like me? What happens to you when you prep or don’t prep in advance? Does any of the ones on my list happen to you?
(Join in on other discussion posts over on Let’s Discuss!)
Nara says
I used to prep posts quite early, but I’ve gotten so dang lazy these days! Procrastination levels are freaking through the roof! I do have a schedule, so yeah, I usually end up writing up a post and publishing it on the day that it’s been scheduled. Which isn’t the best way to do it because it means there are usually a lot of typos and stuff in the post hehe. At the same time though, I don’t actually find it particularly stressful (maybe this is just me) because if I don’t get a post up I’m like eh, that’s okay. I don’t really mind shuffling around my schedule!
Stormy @ Book.Blog.Bake. says
I am a HUGE prepper/planner. I like to have at least 10 post scheduled at any time. I think both have their advantages & disadvantages–for example, by the time a post goes live, sometimes it’s not as relevant or I don’t feel the same passion for it any more–but it’s just too stressful for me not to. I like to do most of my blogging work on the weekends, which I think might be why. I do spend a lot more time revising post when I prep them in advance(like, probably too much time that could be better spent doing other things), but it’s how I blogged from the beginning. My type A personality side coming out, I suppose.
Katie says
So far, I haven’t prepped in advance. I keep telling myself I will one of these days, but it hasn’t happened yet. And right now, I have to do OTHER things I’ve put off, so my poor blog isn’t getting any posting love!
Helen @ My Novel Opinion says
I try to write and schedule posts ahead of time. About a month ago I had 2 weeks worth of posts prepped and scheduled to post! But now I’m pretty much only prepping a day or two ahead of time.
I do keep a note of what I’m planning to post when though so I always know what I need to write about even when I leave it to the day it’s supposed to be published!
I’m trying to get back on track though I just feel much more comfortable that way
Jess @ Literary, etc says
The only posts I prep in advance are Film Fridays which I usually have a bookish movie adaptation ready to go. The days I don’t post one is because I couldn’t summon the energy to actually post it. I just started a new feature for Saturdays: One Liners. Where I take the first line of a book and ask if it were a pick up line what would your reaction be, so I have 10 of those ready to go. Other than that, I rarely prep blog posts in advance. Then again, I was the person still working on my master’s thesis 6 hours before it was due.
Bekka @ Pretty Deadly Reviews says
I prep 100% of my posts, even if it’s just the day before. I have this strange compulsion to have ALL my posts go live at the same time of day, so there’s that. Also, it gives me a little time to reflect and proofread.
Right now I’m about a week ahead (though, I’m steadily falling behind because – oh look! Shiny, distracting thing over there!)
Bec @ Ransom Reads says
I sort of have an idea of what I’d like to write about (I have a list of possible posts) but when I got to write it I don’t have a specific order/points to say. I just word vomit everywhere. I do schedule my posts for a few weeks after I write them though because other wise there’d be weeks where nothing was published. That’s mainly for reviews though. Discussions and other posts I write a few days beforehand. It’s less stress than leaving it last minute (and with uni, I don’t need any more stress)
Megan @ Adrift on Vulcan says
PROCRASTINATION! It’s the core of everything that goes wrong for me, honestly, which is why I can totally understand why you never prep blogs. I used to do that, too, back when I was still blogging on Ink Skies. I’d just look at my up-next shelf on Goodreads and pick a book to read, review it and publish the review whenever I wanted, and then that’s that. That’s why some days the blog could go for DAYS without being updated, because even though I had a post in mind, I just couldn’t get it done! I’d get distracted by Twitter, or go visit other blogs, and… yeah.
“ When I finally do sit down and try to type my thoughts down, I don’t know what I want to say exactly until the last minute.” — Story of my life. And thanks, brain, for being such a unhelpful mop.
Your situation sounds… complicated! Now that I’m running a whole new blog by myself, I started drawing up monthly schedules and realized that it’s so much easier with a schedule than just trying to rely on your own brain. And I also know when I need to get this review done, and what kind of discussion posts should go up. Then again, with the problem you mentioned above, sometimes I still need to type up reviews last minute before they’re published, which is why a lot of them sound AWFUL.
I like how you did a comparison, though! It’s easy to see that prepping the blog in advance is the best way here, but with a procrastinator like me, sometimes it’s not always possible. :P I don’t cry when I’m not able to get a post up when I want it to, but I do feel really stressed out, and my shchoolwork almost always suffers because of it. Bleh.
Great post, Cee! Hopefully you find something that works for you, because I know how hard it is to crush the inner procrastinator in all of us. >.<
Lauren says
Nope. I don’t prep in advance. I like to write n the spur of the moment. However, at University, I definitely used to get started way before the deadline.
Arial says
I usually prep my posts one day in advance. Since school takes up so much of my time, I have to prep posts in advance to ensure that I get something up on the blog. But like you, inspiration only ever strikes at the last minute. When I say I “prep” my posts, I mean I sit down and just write out a post without really planning anything out in advance. I don’t want to feel like I have to do anything, or that blogging is a job, so I try and stay relaxed about my posting schedule. I would love to have a new post up everyday, but I have accepted that sometimes that just isn’t a possibility.
Jenna @ Rather Be Reading YA says
I prep most of posts in advance. It can take me several days to write a review, so I like to have time to work on them and still have an active blog. I’m scheduling reviews into early October now but I’d like to get a little farther ahead, maybe have a cushion of about a month. I usually do the week’s memes all on the same day, like Sunday, and any other posts I might have (discussions) are usually done on the spur of the moment.
Kelly L. says
Ha ha, I’m the opposite of you – I plan my posts in advance. By “advanced,” I mean I plan posts two days ahead of time. :P
I never read revise though. Once I click “Schedule,” I never revise it again because, like you said, then I’ll be revising it forever.
Anya says
I prep everything in advance >.> Like months, weeks or at least days. If I didn’t, I would forget during the week and there would be no post. I apparently don’t have enough of the pressure part of that equation, since I’m much more likely to just decide to have an empty day than hurriedly type the night before. This is partially because homework + work just sap all my discipline during the week!
Kazen @ Always Doing says
Another prep in advance person here! There’s no telling when work will ask me to stay late or come in on a Saturday so I like to have things set up a full week in advance. I also have backlist reviews set up and ready to go in case I fall into a reading slump or manhole or something like that. -_^
For whatever reason I have a hard time getting ahead on my Covers in Translation feature though – I always want to find the weirdest! funniest! most interesting! Japanese covers, and nothing kills good intentions like the pursuit of perfection. :P
Jasmine @ Flip That Page says
Oops. HAHA. I never really used to prep my posts, because I have this thing where I have to publish a post right after I finish them! I don’t stick to a schedule, so I don’t have to worry about deadlines and such, as long as I get to post at least once everyday :) But yeah, I try to avoid procrastinating even my blog content. I already do too much of that for my own good at school. HAHA!
And now i wonder why I haven’t come across this blog before, it’s AWSM D:
Sarah says
I always write my posts at least the night before. If I’m feeling really organized, I may do a few posts at once. Last year I was much more organized, with at least a week’s posts scheduled in advance.
Rinn says
I never used to prep in advance, but now I do because I work almost full time compared to a few months ago. So it’s a major help! If I’m in the right mood I’ll try and schedule as much as possible for the next week, otherwise I’ll leave it until the weekend.
katy says
I try to prep posts before, but I usually do part of it and get distracted, which means I have to finish it later. I would like to be the type of person that prepped and got it all done. Maybe, someday?