Blog Blazers
Stephane Grenier

Reviewed by Sabrina Williams

According to Stephane Grenier in Blog Blazers, around 120,000 new blogs are posted every day. No one can argue the popularity of the weblog. Everyone has an opinion and we’re all looking for our fifteen minutes of fame. The reality is that most new blogs fizzle out within a few weeks. Very few bloggers are able to maintain the quality and consistency a readership demands.  So what’s the key to blogging success? More specifically, should success be defined in terms of monetary value or reader loyalty?

Blog Blazers: 40 Top Bloggers Share Their Secrets to Creating a High-Profile, High-Traffic, and High-Profit Blog! is a compilation of interviews Grenier conducted with a number of prominent bloggers. Other than a brief introduction, the entire book is composed of interviews. Grenier has managed to snag a few celebrity bloggers—namely Seth Godin (though Darren Rowse is absent, despite his mention in nearly every interview).

The interview format is fairly static throughout the book. Grenier asks bloggers questions like “who is your favorite blogger?” and “what was your most successful blog post?” The questions offer the type of information that would be useful to the emerging blogger, with guidance on content that attracts readers and advertising strategy. Each blogger’s approach becomes evident through the interviews, and the interviewees are honest about the profitability of their blogs. Some bloggers are content with a large readership and the ability to get their message across, while others are making a fast living from advertising dollars and other ventures. It gives the reader a balanced view of the industry and a realistic view of the potential.

I’ll have to admit, the degree of what I’ll call “Rowse worship” becomes a bit tedious after the first few interviews. Perhaps if Grenier writes any future interviews, he could ask the interviewees to exclude Darren Rowse from their list of response possibilities. Darren’s www.problogger.com is no doubt a successful and admirable blog, but it would have been nice to see a little more variety among the answers.

Overall, the Blog Blazers interviews are easy to skim, informative, and offer plenty of resources for new bloggers or bloggers looking to expand their readership. Pictures of the participants are included with each interview, so readers will be able to view the faces behind favorite blogs. It’s not a how-to manual per se, but it’s good advice from the people who have the most experience with the field.