Building a Wordpress Blog People Want to Read

by Scott McNulty

Having your own blog isn't just for the nerdy anymore. Today, it seems everyone—from multinational corporations to a neighbor up the street—has a blog. They all have one, in part, because the folks at WordPress make it easy to get one. but to actually build a good blog—to create a blog people want to read—takes thought, planning, and some effort. From picking a theme and using tags to choosing widgets and building a community, creating your blog really starts after you set it up. In this book by blogger extraordinaire Scott McNulty, you learn how

Genres: Writing, Nonfiction, Business, Reference, Technology, Computer Science

263 pages, Paperback

First published November 21, 2008

About the author

Scott McNulty is a simple geek who enjoys explaining things. He is the author of several technology books that cover everything from the Kindle Fire to WordPress.

When he isn't writing you'll find Scott reading words that other people have written. It pleases him.

Reviews

[Kelly Lynn Thomas · Rating 3 out of 5]

Don't let the title of this book fool you the way it fooled me: it's all about creating an attractive looking blog and how to use WordPress, and not at all about writing a blog or attracting readers. So, I feel like the title is very misleading. However, the how-to on WordPress is clearly written and easy to understand. It's based on an older version of WP, but most of the stuff it talks about hasn't really changed. If you need something to help you create with WP, this could be a good choice.

[Beth Ann · Rating 4 out of 5]

Scott McNulty writes about blogging with WordPress like someone who loves it. His tone reads happy and engaged, which keeps the material from being just another dry manual, and he's knowledgeable about his subject. He runs multiple blogs using the software. I have been using the free hosted version of the program for a while, and I picked up tips from this book, and sometimes I skipped or skimmed over parts of this book. While he covers both the hosted and the installed versions, he writes a lot about the latter, which wasn't relevant to my needs. Occasionally I found something outdated, but the moment any technology book is committed to paper it becomes outdated. He focuses on using the programs more so than crafting good content, so if you're looking for a blogging style manual, you should look elsewhere. He does offer a few tips on getting your blog noticed and picking up a readership.

[Coen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Got me started on making my blog. OK, so I didn't really read/pay attention to the end parts... which are the important parts. I got busy with the move to the new apartment and the book was overdue at the library... but I should check it out again and finish what I started. But thanks to this book, I finally do have a website/blog. I at least took the first step. That's gotta say something!

[CD · Rating 3 out of 5]

I am writing for a web site that uses WordPress. A quick glance at the bookstore selections, and this one beckoned. Not just that I like Scott McNulty, that helped, but it was more than another dry 'how-to' book.

[John · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not a great tile but an excellent introduction to Wordpress for complete beginners like me. Scott writes in a very clear way making what is, after all, a somewhat geeky subject, relatively easy to understand.

[Dwayne · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book accurately depicts the ins and outs of one of the most popular blog platforms, WordPress! The organization of the content and the clarity is phenomenal; hence, I highly recommend this book to anyone thinking about implementing a blog using today's most popular (free) blog platform!

[Adrienna · Rating 2 out of 5]

The book was okay, but prefer to do hands-on and thought the book would give slightly more about the processes and insights of WordPress Blog since I have not yet used but see many authors and other sites are exposed to this social media source.

[Elena · Rating 1 out of 5]

This is one book that I would have liked to read in paper format so I could get out the post-it notes and flag pages to return to in front of the computer. The e-book version just did not work for me.

[Sharlene · Rating 3 out of 5]

If your a beginner to the blogging world, Wordpress is the site for you. This book has the ins & outs of setting up a Wordpress blog, how to use the dashboard, creating posts, user settings, adding pages etc.

[Lesley Looper · Rating 2 out of 5]

I skimmed this book, as it's a bit dated for a 2015 read. I'm already a pretty active WordPress user, so this book might be more helpful for people who are new to WordPress. Still, I caught a handful of good reminders.

[Colby · Rating 5 out of 5]

This clear and easy-to-read book has helped me turn my Wordpress Blog from something horrible to something workable... but it's not ready for primetime yet, so no links. :)

[Dayne · Rating 3 out of 5]

I thought this would give me hints about the writing part of WordPress blogs. It's really about getting one started and running smoothly. I wish I would have had this book when I started my blog.

[Rob · Rating 2 out of 5]

A dated introduction to how to setup WordPress without covering how to create compelling content.