The art of travel storyteller
“Traveling – it leaves you speechless, then turns you into a storyteller.” – Ibn Battuta
As you are getting close to setting off on your great sailing adventure, you might want to find a way to document it and share it with your friends, family, and people interested in sailing.
The easiest way these days is by writing a blog. But, how do you get started with a blog? It’s actually not as hard as you may think.
First, you need to find out what you want to write about. Just because you are on a boat doesn’t mean it has to be a sailing blog. Find a unique theme, something you know, something you like doing, or want to learn, something different than everyone else, and incorporate it in your sailing adventure. Don’t just make it your personal online journal, make sure that you’re giving something to your audience. Be relevant. Even if you write a travel blog, find a new way to teach people about different places, cultures, and give them something to daydream about while they’re stuck on land.
Chose a domain name. Make it short, because the fewer characters a domain name has, the easier it is to type, say, share, and the less it gets shortened on social media sharing platforms and search results. Shorter is better. It should be relevant to the subject you`re going to write about, and definitely catchy, maybe one that sounds like a brand (who knows how famous you might become).
Next, you have to choose a web host. You need a “web host” to host your website or blog. This might be a tricky step even if you`re computer-literate. Which are the best web hosting providers, what`s the difference between them, are they cheap or pricey?
There are tons of web hosting providers out there like WordPress, Blogger, GoDaddy, Bluehost, Hostgator, etc…
But the ones that we would like to show you are hosting providers specialized for hosting sailing related blogs and websites. Their web-interface, design, and templates are specially made to fit the necessities of travel and sailing bloggers.
SailBlogs
SailBlogs.com is a free blog (weblog or an online diary) hosting service, tracking system and social network that has been developed with the needs of remote travelers in mind, designed to be simple to use.
The free version is a weblog (sailblogs.com/yourwebisite) that enables you as a member to post your writing, current position and photos to your account page from anywhere in the world, without having to do any programming yourself.
If you go for the Premium basic account, it will cost you $2.92 per month or $35 per year. For that amount you`ll get dynamic tracking map & geotagged blog posts, remote posting (send posts & positions via email), your own photo gallery, custom templates & side blocks, RSS feed capability, you can store up to 100mb, and create private (locked) blogs.
And for $7.92 per month or $95 per year, you can sign up for the Ad Free Premium advanced account, and you`ll get automatic tracking via a supported transponder (transponder hardware and service not included, audio / MP3 support, and an API available to pass SailBlogs data to another site.
Boatzo
Boatzo is a blogging platform with an extensive feature list built specifically for life on the water. You can integrate your Instagram feed, add your blog posts to a map, and let visitors find all of this on your own custom domain, yourwebsite.com. They also have integrated PayPal donations directly into the Boatzo system.
The free-forever account gives you free sub-directory (boatzo.com/yourwebsite), easy to use control panel, premium theme access, unlimited blog posts, crew & vessel pages, free mobile & tablet version, and unlimited support.
If you want access to premium features, you can choose to pay quarterly – $19.99 per 3 months, or annually – $49.99 per year. As a premium user you`ll get a free custom domain (yourwebsite.com), Instagram feed integration, accept donations via PayPal, site password protection, ad-free website, integrated website statistics, unlimited priority support, and advanced search engine optimization.
Are you ready to write your first blog post? Pour your soul there, and hit “Publish”.
Welcome to the sailing bloggers crew! We wish you fair winds, calm seas, and adventures worth writing about!
