John Hawkins has a great new list out that details the top ten reasons why political bloggers fail. If you’re a struggling blogger or if you’re considering starting that blog you’ve always dreamed of, you’ll want to read these tips from someone who is successful enough to do it for a living.

Even though I’ve only been blogging seriously for about seven months, I can attest that John’s list is exactly right. Personally, the most difficult thing about blogging for me has been the struggle to churn out consistent content that not only informs but adds a fresh perspective to the issue of the day.

After you sort through the long morning rss feeds, it can leave you feeling empty in your own analysis, even if you have something new to say because you’ve already seen the top bloggers offer their takes on the situation. Someone has probably already mentioned in passing the point you wanted to delve into or the background information you wanted to expand upon. There have been times when I’ve sat down to write about an event and thought there’s nothing left to say, even though there obviously was, simply because of the volume of analysis already out there.

It is humbling to try your hand at blogging with so many big fish already in the virtual sea. While I would suggest it for anyone who has ever gotten into an heated one way argument with a politician on the TV, any prospective blogger should be warned that it is a time-consuming learning experience that never truly slows down. You will be forever struggling to catch up because news is always happening somewhere in the world, and you won’t always be on the cutting edge of every issue, even if the only break you take is to catch a few minutes of shuteye.

That being said, the most reassuring truth also comes from John’s piece: the blogosphere is not a “good ol’ boys club” that alienates newcomers. Every major blogger I’ve had the pleasure of conversing with, even if it was just a short note or link in passing, has been overly generous with their time and more than willing to help out the new guy.

So get blogging!

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