It would be great if there could be one book to rule them all. One ‘best blogging book for beginners’ that could tell you everything you need to know to get started in blogging.
I’m sure there are books that do a part of that job, but they are fighting a losing battle.
Blogging changes all the time.
Unless it was possible to update it monthly, a blogging book would quickly become obsolete and there are many hundreds of examples of these books out there.
The way I look at a list of the best blogging books for beginners is to take things back to basics. What are the key skills and insights you need to get started with blogging?
For me, the main, evergreen things that will be key to any blog that makes money are:
- Creating Content
- Standing Out
- Being Consistent
- Concentrating on the Things That Move You Forwards
This book list is targeted at helping you master these areas.
The rest of the game is all about tactics. But they’re the easy bit.
Atomic Habits
by James Clear
If there is one book that you should read out of all of these, it is this. Even if you don’t end up blogging, Atomic Habits by James Clear is a must-read.
When you want to achieve big things, you need to start small and build up step-by-step.
Atomic Habits gives you a proven way to introduce the habits that will lead you to whatever you want to achieve. In terms of your blog, this is so incredibly applicable that it might as well have been written with blogging in mind.
Being consistent with your brand, your content and your promotion will lead to your success. There are tactics that will help you do it, but if you can master consistency then you will 100% succeed.
This book sets you off on the right foot.
Stories That Stick
by Kindra Hall
Your content is what will turn your audience into customers and even fans.
If you can become a great storyteller then you can make it in the world of blogging. Actually, you don’t even have to be great, as long as you can help solve people’s problems in an engaging way then you will build a fan group.
Stories That Stick by Kindra Hall is the best book out there to help you get good at storytelling.
You can tell you’re learning from the right person because she is so good at storytelling herself! You will find yourself eager to turn the page to find out more on the subject.
Creative Confidence
by David and Tom Kelly
I firmly believe that everybody can be creative. We might lose a bit of this aspect of ourselves as we move through life, but it just needs to be drawn out again.
Creative Confidence by David and Tom Kelly is the book that will help you bring out your creativity.
It covers the subject of learning to fail successfully which is very important in blogging. You will always need to experiment and learn from your mistakes, no matter how much guidance you have.
This book aims to give you a boost in confidence when you think that you couldn’t possibly compete with everything that is out there already.
You most certainly can!
Bird By Bird
by Anne Lamott
If you want to learn how to write, in any circumstance, then this book is a must read.
You already have a recommendation on storytelling, but Bird By Bird by Anne Lamott differs in that it gives more general writing tips that you can incorporate into your content writing.
Let’s face it, if you want to get into blogging, and get good at it, then you need to do a lot of writing.
Start off on the right foot by covering all bases and reading the best books on the subject.
Advanced warning: there is one more book on writing to come!
All Marketers Are Liars
by Seth Godin
Besides writing, the next biggest task with blogging is to market your blog, your offers and yourself.
The tactics of marketing a blog are not covered in this book. All Marketers Are Liars by Seth Godin is all about the principles behind marketing.
Once you understand marketing, it becomes so much easier to implement the individual strategies that are appropriate for your blog.
This book is a great link between the storytelling you learn about in Stories That Stick and your audience.
Deep Work
by Cal Newport
I hate to break it to you, but blogging involves a lot of work. It isn’t as easy as everyone will try and make you believe.
But that doesn’t mean it isn’t enjoyable.
If you can introduce deep work; work that you can absorb yourself in and that will make the biggest difference to your success, then you won’t even notice that you’re working hard!
Deep Work by Cal Newport is the bible on how to work effectively. With this book you will learn how to become more productive, better focused and ready to take on the world.
This is the book that made the biggest difference to my own blogging success. As long as you implement what you learn!
Purple Cow
by Seth Godin
The principle of this book is that a purple cow, in a field of ordinarily-coloured cows, is going to be the first thing you notice when you look at that field of cows.
If you can differentiate yourself from your competition, in a good way, then you will attract more people to your blog.
Purple Cow by Seth Godin stands as a bright, shiny principle in the world of marketing.
Whether you need to read the whole book to learn more than what you have learnt in these few paragraphs is another matter!
But I love the idea of the purple cow and keep it in mind as I go about my work.
Everybody Writes
by Anne Handley
I did promise another book on writing and here it is.
Everybody Writes by Anne Handley is worth reading in addition to the others because it offers another brilliant, yet different angle on the subject of writing that will only make you better.
Since writing is such a big part of blogging, it is important to make it as good as possible and I don’t want you to miss out on some of the great tips in this book.
It also concentrates more on the subject of copywriting than the others which will be important when trying to convert visitors to your site into customers.
The 80/20 Principle
by Richard Koch
Blog Blast is your concise resource for making a success of blogging in a short period of time. I give you the tactics that will make you successful.
It’s all down to the 80/20 principle. Usually the largest share of results is achieved by just a small part of the work.
If you implement the 20% of tactics that give you 80% of the results and leave the rest then you can progress further, faster. You won’t be wasting your time on things you don’t need to do
The 80/20 Principle by Richard Koch explains this, with a few examples of introducing it into your work and life. It is, however another book that you might not need to read entirely if you’re happy to leave it at the description I’ve given you!
Can books help you learn to be a better blogger?
If you choose the right books, then they most certainly can. Any book that tells you ‘how to blog’, unless it can magically update itself, is never going to be worth it.
But if you can learn the basic skills that you need to become a great blogger then you will make much greater progress. These best blogging books for beginners does just that.
For all the details and tactics… well, you’re in the right place on Blog Blast!