Authors constantly ask me what they can blog about. They have a book-fiction or non-fiction-and they want to know how to use their blog to promote it. However, they have to keep blogging on a daily or weekly basis. They need content regularly, and they don't know what to write about.

Blogs provide a great way to promote both fiction and nonfiction books. If they are hosted on your blog--not a free blog--they drive traffic to your website. This means more people may purchase your book.

Also, frequent blog posts increase your "findability" by search engines like Google. This means your search engine ranking increases, which makes it easier for people searching for the topic of yoru book on the Internet to find you. The more you post on your topic, the higher up your website or blog will go on the search pages; instead of being burried on page 20, you eventually will come up in the top 10, which means anyone looking for information on your topic can find your blog, your website and your book.

Yet, the challenge to come up with content related to your book remais. Here's a list of 20 blog post idea for both fiction and nonfiction writers. It should give you plenty of ideas:

If you write fiction, you can blog about:

How you decided on your characters.
How you decided on your setting.
If you book contains any personal elements.
Your writing practice-how you write.
Recipes related to the place where your book takes place (ex. Italian foods).
Information on the location where you book takes place (ex. France in the 18th century).
Issues related to those in your book or with which your characters are concerned (ex. divorce, suicide, sex, suicide).
The benefits your book offers readers (ex. If your book illustrates that parents don't have to be perfect, discuss what it means to be a perfect parent or offer tips and tools).
Certain passages in the book.
The publishing process.

If you write nonfiction, you can blog about:

Tips related to your topic.
News related to your topic.
Trends related to your topic.
New research related to your topic.
Your writing practice-how you write.
The publishing process.
The benefits your book offers readers.
Your personal experience with this topic.
Elaborations on sections, quotes or parts of your book.
New personal teachings, insights or exercises related to your topic.

By using these 20 ideas for blog posts, you'll have lots to write about. Hopefully they'll inspire other ideas fo rmore posts as well.