Give it up for new beginnings, y'all!

Oh, my dear, sweet little neglected blog. I've missed you.

There has been a lot of change around these parts over the last nine months or so, and that's contributed to my lack of posting. Fortunately, I'm getting back on track, and really looking forward to getting nice and comfy back over here.

The biggest crafting-related news around here is that, after four years, I left CRAFT at the end of June of this year. I loved blogging there, and am thankful for all the wonderful people I met and inspiration I found, but after blogging and being editor there, I decided it was time to move on to some new creative endeavors. 

One of my project tutorials for Whimseybox

I am thrilled to be working with Alicia and Bri at Whimseybox, which is based right here in Houston. It's exciting to be even a small part of a new and growing venture, especially when I admire the women behind it so much. I've had fun blogging for them and creating project tutorials (something I hadn't done in ages!) and am even more excited for what the future holds for Whimseybox.

I'm also excited to announce that I'll be teaching at the first ever QuiltCon in Austin next February. I'll be teaching basic hand embroidery in the context of studying redwork in modern quilting. I can't believe I'm part of this incredible event. I mean, hi ... Anna Maria Horner, one of my all-time biggest design inspirations and first fabric designer crush, is teaching in the same room I am right after my class ends. Who wants to place bets on me passing out? If you are interested in the class or QuiltCon, be sure to check it out and sign up soon. As of a few days ago, there were less than three spots left in my workshop. The QuiltCon folks have been amazing and so professional. This is going to be a top-notch event. I can't wait!

Speaking of quilting, I'm starting my first quilting class next week. Yep. I've never made a quilt (well, not an official quilt - I've "quilted" a few small things for fun/practice, but I've never done a whole quilt start-to-finish before). Even though my workshop at QuiltCon isn't so much about quilting (it's a basic hand embroidery class) I didn't feel I could stand up as a teacher there, having never made a quilt. I've read Susan Beal's Modern Log Cabin Quilting book cover-to-cover, and am ready to get some real-life action going in the quilt department. Look for updates over the coming weeks as my class progresses!

I've got some great books and craft goodies to share with you, as well as some fun project tutorials, soon. Thanks for sticking with me - even with my sporadic posting. This fall marks the 5th anniversary of Average Jane Crafter, and I'm so glad to still be crafting and sharing things with you!

Sister Diane brings you the *real* way to "market" your blog

Since starting Average Jane Crafter two years ago (what!? look at that! I missed an anniversary ... again! heh!) I've been lucky enough to connect with fantastic crafters all over the world, I've had the privilege to receive review copies of dozens of awesome craft books and products, and I've somehow landed the dream job to end all dream jobs (for a craft blogger) of blogging for Craftzine.com.

I've had a lot of people email me and ask things like, "How did you do it? What are your tips? How can I get a larger audience on my blog? How can I get more followers on Twitter? How can I get/do/accomplish more!?"

I'm always kind of stumped by those questions. My gut reaction is to just say, "Uh .... have fun? Do what you love? Be nice to people?" And, at the very basic level, that's how I've done it.

I realize, though, that folks are looking for a more structured, thorough answer than just "have fun," and now I can now point them to the second book in Diane Gilleland's blogging e-book series: Creating a Blog Audience: An unconventional marketing guide.

I reviewed Diane's first e-book on blogging (Making a Great Blog) over on Craftzine, and any time someone asks me about starting a blog, the first thing I tell them to do is purchase that e-book. I think it should be required reading for any blogger.

Creating a Blog Audience carries the same prestige. I can't tell you how many bloggers I've come across who could benefit from the golden information Diane shares about how to build a blog audience. What I love about her premise is that at the root of it all, building a blog audience boils down to being a strong member of the crafting community.

Diane and me at Maker Faire. Crafting community connections and great friendships! It's why I love what I do. photo by Kristin Roach

One thing that I love about Diane is her ability to hone in on the specific roadblocks that face bloggers. She's exceptional at being able to get bloggers to focus, to think clearly and to move ahead with purpose.

She starts the e-book off by getting bloggers to sit down and truly think about why they want a bigger blog audience (she even has a set of worksheets that help guide readers through the process of figuring all this out). Diane's approach is all about engagement marketing, a new way of marketing that builds relationships and connections and growth through genuine partnerships. As she says, "A little genuine friendliness goes a very long way in the blog world."

Some of the highlights of the e-book for me are the following:

• exploring "not being nice just to get something"
• her 3 rules of blogging success
• the single most important thing you can do to promote your blog
• commenting on other blogs, and how not to comment

Her take on sharing ideas and projects is refreshing and dead on and reminds me of the adage about getting back ten fold what you send out into the world.

In this age of rampant sharing, ideas and techniques are like air - they're everywhere and free for everyone. You will not prosper by trying to clamp down on your creativity. You will prosper by being open and striving to build relationships.

She also has great sections on participating in online forums, building your blog archives, connecting with other bloggers and submitting links to large crafting web sites.

Remember, the craft blogosphere is a community. If you treat people like potential friends, you'll have a much better experience and make many more connections. If you treat people as merely potential customers, you'll mostly turn them off.

Even if your goal is not necessarily to build a huge audience, make money or land a dream job, the lessons laid out in Creating a Blog Audience are valuable for any blogger. Heck, many of the lessons are valuable just on the being-a-good-human-being level!

I've said it a million times before, Diane is my craft guru. Her writing is clear, simple, easy to read and follow and filled will a million gold nuggets. Grab your copy of Creating a Blog Audience (and Making a Great Blog if you don't already have it) today.