The Blogging Church Archive

Manuscript? Check!

The manuscript for The Blogging Church is done! We submitted it to our publisher, Jossey-Bass, on Monday morning. It was "on time and on spec" according to the editor, which was good to hear for a couple of first-time authors.

The final total was 63,000 words, which will become a 250-page paperback this January if all goes well. We're now entering the editing process, so we're eager to see what the final version looks like after this month. A few of our favorite blogging pastors have reviewed a short excerpt, and so far the feedback has been great. We want the book to truly be helpful - whether you've been blogging for a year or are tired of hearing about blogs and not knowing what they are.

Terry and I are both incredibly thankful for this opportunity - it's truly been a God thing from start to finish. Thanks to all of you who have been so supportive throughout the past year. Also, thanks to the many people who have contributed to the book and been part of our podcasts. All of you have made the book much better!

If you want a sneak preview, check out The Blogging Church on Amazon! We'll let you know as soon as it's available for pre-order.

I'll post the final Table of Contents later this week.

The One Thing, No. 4

The fourth contributor to the final chapter, The One Thing, is Kem Meyer. Kem is the Communications Director at Granger Community Church. She shares her insightful thoughts on church marketing on her blog, Less Clutter & Noise. She also speaks often at conferences and workshops for church leaders.

Kem brings a terrific perspective on how blogs can be used in the church. Her contribution has been a great addition to The Blogging Church.

Here's Kem's post on her contribution.

Other contributors:

Merlin Mann

Ben Arment

Jeremy Wright

The One Thing, No. 3

The third contributor to the final chapter, The One Thing, is Merlin Mann, the brilliant blogger behind 43 Folders.

43 Folders is a site about personal productivity, life hacks, and simple ways to make your life a little better. The blog is a member of the Technorati 100 and is the original source of the now famous Hipster PDA. A talented writer, Merlin's work has appeared in WIRED, Macworld, and many other fine publications.

Merlin was great to work with, generous with his time, and he wrote a first-class piece. Thanks, Merlin!

Visit 43 Folders

In case you're wondering, the contributors aren't in any particular order. Each of them brings a terrific perspective and I'm proud to have all of them involved. I'm just picking the next cool person to write about.

Other contributors:

Ben Arment

Jeremy Wright

The One Thing, No. 2

Two weeks ago, I told you about the book's final chapter, The One Thing. The chapter is a diverse collection of advice from 18 bloggers. The contributions have been truly incredible - the chapter is at the end because I'm afraid you might stop reading if it was at the beginning.

I'm so thankful that these talented women and men have generously agreed to be part of The Blogging Church. I'll be introducing you to each of them over the next few weeks. Jeremy Wright was first; the second blogger is Ben Arment.

Ben is a church planter who started History Church in Reston, Virginia five years ago. Ben is one of my favorite blogging pastors. His blog is a great read and History seems like a thriving, joyful community of people with a heart for their community.

Visit BenArment.com

The Wall Street Journal on Web Outreach

The Wall Street Journal published an article this week on how churches are using blogs, podcasts, MySpace, and other web tools to reach people. It's a very interesting overview of what different churches are doing. I was fortunate to be interviewed for the piece, along with other Blogging Church alumni, including Mark Batterson of National Community Church, Bobby Gruenewald of Life Church, and Brad Abare of Church Marketing Sucks. It's like we all got together for our 1-year reunion or something. Check out the article while it's still free!

Holy Sites: Churches Embrace the Web in Bid to Attract Members

Really Simple Success

Phil Gomes wrote a great article about using RSS Today.

Why is RSS Important?
RSS is Incorruptibly Opt-In
It Saves Users Time (Yours Too)
RSS is Measurable

Check out the article here!

Sorry, if you do a marketing site and you don't have an RSS feed today you should be fired. I'll say it again. You should be fired if you do a marketing site without an RSS feed. Saying that RSS is only for geeks today is like saying in 1998 that the web was only for geeks. - Robert Scoble

Thanks Steve

Local Church- pointless?

According to the latimes.com, a recient national poll found just 17% of adults view the local church as essential for developing faith.

Maybe this is the time I could talk about how much I don't trust polls, or how misleading they can be... Anyway, that was a shocking number!

Check out the article...(link). Mark Beeson -Granger Community Church, Mark Batterson -Theater Church, Craig Groeschel -LifeChurch.tv, and others are quoted.

Countdown

The deadline for the complete draft of The Blogging Church is just four weeks away! When we launched this site on August 30, we had little idea what the next nine months would bring. We greatly appreciate all of the support and feedback you've given us throughout. We can't wait to wrap this up and share it with you!

I'd love to tell you that the only thing left is some proofreading and photoshop work on the jacket photos, but like most first-time authors, it's definitely going to be an intense 30 days. The final chapters are being written right now and there are a lot of pieces to be finalized.

Some very cool people have gotten involved recently, though, that should make the book a lot more fun and helpful. The last chapter of the book is called The One Thing. In it, you'll find an incredible collection of advice from nearly 20 different bloggers. Each person answered the question, "What is the one piece of advice, the one thing, you would tell another blogger?" The answers are as diverse as the bloggers who are involved - from school teachers and writers to pastors and proud members of the Technorati 100. This chapter should be both entertaining and inspiring - and a great way to end the book.

Who's involved so far? I'll be sharing some of the names over the next few weeks, but since it would be cruel to keep you waiting, the first contributor is Jeremy Wright. Jeremy is a top blogger who not only runs a blog marketing company, but has written a blogging book himself, Blog Marketing.

There are still a few spots left, so feel free to nominate anyone who you think would offer a great perspective. The Blogging Church is scheduled to be published in January. More soon!

Point of View

It has become very apparent that The Blogging Church Staff Blogger List and the other lists are very male heavy. So much so I got a great email this week... let me share a snippet with you.

Subject: blogging women :o)

"There is a serious lack of estrogen in the bloggingchurch.com church staffers.  I'd like to throw my blog in for linkage fodder..."

Thanks Anne for bringing this to our attention. I have added you to the list, as well as Kem Meyer from Granger. I hope to get some more emails from women bloggers that could help us balance out the list!

What are people saying about your church?

One of my favorite chapters in the book covers how to follow the online conversations about your church. Through sites like Technorati, you easily find every mention of your church in a blog within minutes of it being published. You can even subscribe to the search itself in your newsreader, so the latest search results are delivered directly to you. Do you know what people are saying about your church?

Of course, you can do a lot more than just listen - you can join the conversation! Imagine if every time a couple sat around the kitchen table and discussed your church, you could pull up a chair next to them and offer your perspective. That's what blogging allows you to do. When you find an interesting post about your church or a recent service, whether full of praise or criticism, post a comment and let them know you're listening. Answer any questions they have. Then, invite them to visit the next weekend. You would be amazed at the impact of a simple comment.

I recently experienced a similar situation outside of the church world. I wrote a post critical of some of the recent moves by Six Apart, the company responsible for TypePad (which drives this site), Movable Type, and LiveJournal. A few days later, one of the company's vice presidents responded to my post with a lengthy comment. The fact that Six Apart listens to what people say about the company and takes the time to respond, has a significant impact on how people view it. Do I still have my questions and criticisms? Yes, but I also know I've been heard and my opinion has been treated with respect, which makes me want to continue the conversation!

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