Using Google Reader

Reading blogs and using them to help promote a book is new to many authors. Sure, there may be a few blogs that your daily computer usage you come across, but a lot of authors still aren't comfortable with the idea of surfing the Internet looking for content to read and comment on to promote their book.

Finding blogs to read can be time consuming.

One way to cut the time is to find blogs with blog lists down the side that you can explore. It's easier than simply Googling a topic and hoping something will surface.

One of the difficulties, after you found several blogs to read, is organizing them in a manner that won't drive you crazy.

Some blogs aren't updated frequently and it can be exhausting entering in the URL or clicking on your bookmark, waiting for the page to load, only to find it is the same entry you read there last week.

Google Reader is a great way to help you organize your blog reading.
Attached to your Google account, you can enter in RSS feeds from websites and blogs, but you can also cut and paste in URL addresses for it to track even if the site isn't set up for subscription.

Here's how to set up your account.

1. Go to the site.
2. On the right-hand side of your screen, you'll see a login window. If you already have a Google account (gmail and blogger are both Google products that give you an automatic Google account), you can simply login. If you don't have a Google account, click the blue Create Account button.
3. The home page has a handy "take a tour" feature you can use to better understand the site. Or you can just jump in if you are comfortable.
4. After you login, you're taken to your display page. The page is split into three sections. On the left is your list of sites you are subscribed to. The center is an overview of the recent blog updates. The right side is just stuff. Google provides info here you may never look at (I hadn't until starting this post).
5. To begin viewing blog entries here, you have to subscribe to a few. Let's add our blog first as practice! First will do it the long way: entering in a URL string.
   
6. On the upper left side is a blue square with a plus sign in it and next to it says "Add a subscription."
7. Click that.
8. A fillable window will open and you can type in an address for a site to follow. Our blog URL is: http://www.wheatmark.com/blog/
9. The easy way is to use the subscription button from a blog itself. Go to the Wheatmark blog page at http://www.wheatmark.com/blog/
   
10. You'll notice on the upper right hand side, under our Wheatmark logo, there is a button with a plus sign that says "subscribe" next to it, and several other icons.
11. Click it!
12. An "Add This" window will pop up and you'll see several icons.
13. To add it to your Google reader, you'll choose "Add to Google" (right column, second one down). This automatically puts this in your reader. That's it! Most sites have options like this so that you never have to remember the URL, you can simply surf around the Internet adding bits here and there at your leisure.
    

Pros to the Google Reader screen:

• Easy to view
• Keeps everything in the same place
• You never have to guess if something has updated
• Easy to add sites to it
• If you use gmail for your email, you'll even be able to check your email AND your Google Reader at the same time!

Cons:

• No pictures
• In order to read the full post or the comments you often have to navigate away from the Reader page (however it will do it for you when you click on the Reader entry

Google Reader is a great way to organize and stay on top of your blog reading. By reading blogs, commenting on the posts, and becoming a knowledgeable presence you'll drive traffic to your own blog and hopefully to sales of your book!