As she usually does, Sierra Godfrey got me thinking with a post she did a while back on the About Me section of a website. She argued that bloggers and writers should really give this section some thought because it could make or break someone's interest in you or your site.
I honestly had never considered that. I figured no one really reads that anyway. And I absolutely hate writing about myself. Plus, if you write a big long paragraph about yourself, it pushes all the rest of the information further down on the page on your Blogger profile page and can move your blog link (the most important component) "below the fold"--meaning the person would have to scroll down to see it.
However, Sierra made some good points that made me question my stance. She said that if she goes to a site and can get no sense of who the person is, she's less inclined to stick around. Also, agents and editors you're querying could stop by (it's been known to happen). If they are truly interested in you, then they most likely will want to click on that About Me or profile section. And if that happened to me, what would they find out about me? That I'm a "mom, book junkie, and writer of romantic fiction." Wow, that's real enlightening. It can apply to just about any blogging writer out there.
So, I have given in and followed Sierra's advice. Using one of her examples from a published author's website, I used a fun history style format. And instead of filling up my blogger profile page, I made a separate page (and reserved the site for my name at the same time) then included the link in my About Me section called the TMI (too much information) file. So here's the link: The TMI File. Click over and let me know what you think. It's long, but well, it is supposed to be TMI. And then when you're done with that, go visit Sierra's post where she gives more detailed info about the About Me section.
So have you given your About Me section a lot of thought? Do you think agents/editors/readers will pay attention to that part? When you go to a new blogger's site, do you read that section? Does it sway your decision whether or not to follow them?
**Today's Theme Song**
"About A Girl" - Nirvana
"About A Girl" - Nirvana
(player in sidebar if you'd like a listen)
