28 November 2009
by 
My writing career has crossed over – I’m now making close to a full-time living as a blogger. That doesn’t mean I’ve given up other writing (not at all!) But I’m making as much blogging as I did as an editorial assistant back in the day — enough for some people to live on, but not me.
With 12 blogs to write each week, I have almost-daily deadlines, creating the frenetic pace of a newspaper for me some mornings.
How do I keep track of it all?
I took a tip from my magazine editing days and created an editorial calendar. Some publishing houses call it a map, others an outline. Whatever you call it, an editorial calendar is a list of topics to be covered.
An editorial calendar for a monthly publication tells editors what to assign; it tells the sales department how they can best sell ads for each issue; and it helps all departments keep everything straight. For instance, my editorial calendar for RECON: The Magazine of Woods Paintball may have included an article on using handheld radios on the paintball field. Our sales department would want to call Motorola and give them a heads-up about it.
How do you keep an editorial calendar for blogging?
My calendar, right now, goes three months out. On my calendar for each day, I write the name of the blog and the topic to be covered. A typical entry for Monday, then, when I write for Freelance Writing Jobs and Babies Online, may look like this:
Monday: FWJ: The Cat Ate My Laptop: How to Kill Your Freelance Career
Babies Online: Whiskey: The Best Way to Get Baby to Sleep through the Night
(Note: These are not really blog titles!)
On Wednesday, I do my writing for AllReviews.com, which includes four blogs about baby gear and one about paintball products, so I won’t bore you with titles.
On Thursday, it’s FWJ and BOL again. Then, on Friday, I write for Long Island Exchange. Again, I always jot down a particular title or idea. For instance, with the holidays coming, I have scheduled a few techie gift guides for Long Island Exchange and suggestions for shopping on Cyber Monday.
On my hard-copy calendar page or in the Google Calendar, I include any links to resources I may have found. One day I will upload a productivity app on my iPod Touch and be totally mobile.
If a lead or cool sentence pops into my head, I jot it down as a prompt on either calendar. Eventually (again), I’ll have a whiteboard hung in my office where I can keep all my ideas in front of me all month long.
With ideas scheduled through February, I no longer have to worry about what I’m going to write. Because I have a loose outline, I’ll frequently come across resources that will help me, and I can write them down as I find them.
Keep it flexible
A blogging editorial calendar offers flexibility you may not get with print magazines. With print publications, your editorial calendar will often be printed and distributed to advertisers. To go back to my original example, if I decided to drop that handheld radio story at the last minute, I’d have a very angry sales department on my hands.
In most cases, blogs make money in other ways and sales people don’t pound the pavement to sell ad pages based on upcoming content. If news of a big research study involving babies and travel breaks on Monday morning, I can postpone my original Babies Online idea and cover the late-breaking news. If I come across a grammatical error that really gets me peeved, I can write about what inspires me and save the idea on the calendar for another day. Maybe I’ll even write both posts and schedule one to publish later in the week. Ah, the freedom of blogging for a living!
No related posts.
Oh Wow. No wonder you are making a RL living doing such work. You actually put a lot of WORK into the planning stages.
I’m still in the “thinking about blogging” stage. It is lovely to see that some people are actually making a living doing it.
Cheers Stephanie
Fantabulous post, Dawn! With so many articles/posts to write, it definitely pays to stay organized for sure!
Michele shares: Raw, Vegan Thanksgiving Turkey + Pumpkin
[...] This post was mentioned on Twitter by HeiddiZ, Stacey Graham. Stacey Graham said: Currently reading http://www.writersroundabout.com/2009/11/blog-a-lot-build-an-editorial-calendar.html @laffarsmith | excellent article! [...]
Great idea! With the amount of pitches I am getting each day now, this might help keep things organized!
Thanks!
YES! I know my own schedule is haphazard at best and I always feel so much more effictient and focused when I am better organized. WRA has a posting schedule of sorts but I’ve not reached the point of putting together a true editorial calendar. Knowing the topics and titles planned for future posts/articles/stories can take away a lot of the pressure involved in getting started.
@Katie: WELCOME to WRA!
It’s so wonderful to see a new name amongst the comments. Thank you for taking a moment to leave your thoughts. I’m looking forward to getting to know you better and congratulations on having so many pitches coming through.
@Michele: You must have your own organizational techniques and tools too, Michele. You’re always getting so much done. Perhaps you’ll share some of your tips and tricks?
@Stephanie: The trick is to spend less time “thinking” about blogging than you spend doing it.
Your blog is ready, sometimes you have to take chances and start now instead of waiting. The fantastic thing about blogging is that you’ll have an opportunity to fine tune as you learn and grow. There is no better time to get that first post up then right now! Don’t be afraid! We’re here for you to help you along every step of the way. 
Rebecca Laffar-Smith shares: A Time To Be Thankful
Actually, Rebecca, what works for me may not work for others – it’s pretty crazy! LOL
I suppose I’ll share it in a future post, though. Since ya asked so nicely.
Michele shares: Raw, Vegan Thanksgiving Turkey + Pumpkin
Yay! I’ll look forward to that Michele, because while what works for some mightn’t work for others I love being able to see what others are doing to make their dreams a reality.
My own ’system’ is more a collection of what works for me constructed out of bits and pieces of what has worked for others.
Social comments and analytics for this post…
This post was mentioned on Friendfeed by Dawn Allcot: Blog a lot? Build an editorial calendar! http://ping.fm/AkPB0...
@Stephanie – Yes, make no mistake blogging IS work. But for me it’s work I love, so I’m fortunate that I’ve got it at the point where it’s making money. I’ll write more in the future about coming up with all those ideas to fill the edit. calendar.
Katie – I use an excel spreadsheet to track my queries/pitches/ads. This permits easy follow-up, and lets me reference information when I get an assignment. I admit, I’m not as good at keeping up with that.
Michele- You’ve really piqued my curiosity now. I look forward to reading your tips and techniques.
Rebecca- One thing I’ve found the edit. calendar has done for me, especially with a toddler, is that if I have 10 minutes to sit down and start a post, I don’t waste those 10 minutes saying, “What do I write?” I just look at my list for the week. If none of the topics appeal at that moment, I can look ahead at future weeks and just pick an idea and start writing, then edit the calendar accordingly.
Also, an editorial calendar helps us take advantage of holidays and expected “trending topics,” like Black Friday, Halloween, Thanksgiving, etc.
Everyone- Thanks for your comments! I’m thrilled this post was so helpful to so many people across the social networks.
Dawn shares: Writing, Editing & Coaching Services