10 things to do if you're a new blogger

Everyone starting in this world of blogging needs a place to start right?! Well, follow this guide and you will be alright!

1. Create a recognizable identity
   Before you can actually start blogging, people need to identify with you. They will need a consistent identity to refer to you with. This Identity may or may not be related to your name. But at the end choose this wisely, since it's going to be hard to change it afterwards.
   Examples from the blogosphere, Hareega, 7aki Fadi, Mala2e6, Bakkouz, Roba, Khalidah... etc
   You can't just call your self John the first day, and Micheal the second day and then "The Dark Avenger" and expect people to follow you up
   Just like cookies, Identities follow you around from one blog to another.
2. Associate a face to the identity
   Gravatar will help associate a face with your identity. This is the face the people will remember when they forget your name. It doesn't really have to be a FACE.
3. Lurk!
   Read blogs, enjoy them, lurk around good sites, read more of the writers you like. Don't just dive straight into your blog without reading others.
   Hang around aggregators like Qwaider Planet, Jordan Blogs, Dwwen and other good sites. These will bring you blogs to your foot steps.
4. Participate!
   Read something you like? Comment about it. Let your identity be recognized and associated with your ideas. This is a very important step in establishing your online existence. It's very important to engage in thought exchange. Interact, read and comment. Don't feel shy or intimidated that you keep to your self. If you're going to always be Anonymous or some random name, no one is going to follow up on your progress
5. Choose the right blogging software.
   The possibilities are almost endless. You can go with solutions that are very simple like Jeeran, Blogspot, Maktoob which provide their users with everything they need. And the catch is that your blog will not look that professional, it's very limited in the way you can do things and it's just not geared towards heavy traffic or heavy bloggers.
   You might go to the heavy hitters like Wordpress which in my humble opinion is the best blogging software in the world with frequent updates, millions of users and thousands of plug-ins. It's definitely a winner for the more professional blogger. Most people who started on Jeeran, Blogspot, and even Microsoft Live spaces, have all ended up living on wordpress and they never looked back!
   If you're handy with the code, you might want to adventure a little bit more and write your own blogging software (like I did) But trust me, this is NOT an easy job. It's easy to start, but SO DIFFICULT to grow and maintain.
6. Create a simple blog
   This is the mistake of many new comers. They discover that they're good at something and they over do it. If you don't know what you're doing. Keep it simple. Simple is better, simple is easy on the eyes. Simple is attractive.
7. Apply to blog sites as soon as your blog is ready
   Apply to sites like Technorati as soon as you establish your blog 
8. Play on your blog for a month before applying for membership to aggregators
   There's no rule usually on how old your blog needs to be to join a decent aggregator. But having a few posts over the course of few months will help present you. When you couple that with a recognizable identity your admission will almost be guaranteed
9. DO NOT bombard your users
   Be considerate when adding pictures, gadgets, and plug ins. Definitely nuke the calendar that comes standard with most blogs.
   However DO support your community by adding links to your favorite aggregators, Add an RSS Feed (ask me if you don't know how)
10. LISTEN to your readers.
    Anything that annoys them is something that you should make sure you fix.

And I'm going to add one bonus commandment at no extra charge:

11. Don't EVER install ANYTHING on your blog that you don't completely understand. If you're confused, ask me, leave me a whisper, or email me. And I'll let you know if it's OK.

Bonus #2

12. If you are going to post an Image, make sure you resize on your computer first. Not on the site.

Bonus #3

13. Don't use text message abbreviations on your blog. You're not on a little 10 button phone. You're a full keyboard, so no need to write: TYTL, 2U, 4Me, OMH, and the rest of that stuff. This is VEEEERRRY annoying

Now, happy blogging. If you need help doing something, please don't hesitate to let me know