Wait a moment... where's my blog post?!?
[This is part of the Developing Great Blog Content Series.]
A recent post concerning copy-and-pasting content into WordPress brought up a consistent question about the importance of drafting outside your blogging system in the first place.
At first it seemed so obvious a strategy that I had to pause a moment to reflect on the reasons why I really apply this practice every single day – and it didn’t take me but a second to remember the many tragic situations where I’ve lost thousands of words and more blog posts than I like to admit due to user error, software, or a random fluke!
Ouch!
As a result I’ve developed the very useful practice of drafting outside the native WordPress environment and haven’t lost a post since.
The point is this: The reason you draft outside of WordPress is because there’s less of a chance of losing your hard work!
You Goal: Stay in Complete Control
The biggest thing you need to remember is that your blog content and your writing process and efforts need to be entirely under your control, from the point that you write your first word until you’re ready to hit the “Publish” button.
And there are a lot of things that are already outside of your control so you best do everything you can to maximize what you can!
Did you ever notice this little alert below your blog post in WordPress?
Here are a few things that you are not in complete control of and that might cause you some serious heartache:
- Internet Connection – How many times have I been dropped from a local WiFi only to find out after I hit the “Save Draft” button or “Publish”? Too many times and I’ve lost all my work!
- Browser – Unfortunately you’re also not in control of your browser, even if it is Google Chrome (which I use and find to be the most stable). I’m not sure how many times I’ve been drafting and then my browser blows up without any reason – bye bye blog post!
- Other Software, Hardware - There is other software on your computer that is competing for resources and it’s happened more than once where one of them blew up which resulted in forcing me to reboot. Doh! This also includes any hardware challenges that you might have, especially if you have an older machine. I’ve also had my keyboard freeze up for no reason too… sheesh!
- Power - This seems obvious but if you’re like me then you might get in the “zone” so deeply that you really forget everything around you including how much power your local machine has.
- Fluke – In an attempt to capture everything else that can go completely wrong I categorize this last section as simply “fluke;” there are things that just randomly have happend that have caused me to loss my blog post like dropping my laptop, spilling coffee on my keyboard, to falling asleep while writing – the list goes on and on. You probably have some good (and sad) stories to share as well.
Sure, some of you might mention that WordPress itself auto-saves your Revisions but that is still dependent on your browser working all the time and your internet connection. And, if you’ve turned off Revisions (because they can take up a lot of space in your database) or limited them then you have to look outside of WordPress.
So how do you minimize the chances of you losing your blog post? The best situation is to use a piece of software that minimizes the dependencies on the things above (although not completely).
I looked for a system that does the following:
- Doesn’t require a constant internet connection to function and/or work.
- Auto-saves my work on the fly, if possible.
- Software that is as light as possible (not resource intensive, etc).
- Is readily available for me to use always.
I’ve shared historically that I use Evernote to draft blog posts and that works well for a lot of the time. But I also admit to using my basic Text Edit App that comes standard in Mac OSX.
EPIC.
Why? Because not only is the app super-fast, is native to the operating system, always available and has a very small resource footprint, it also has an auto-save feature!
I can’t tell you how many times I’ve been booted from my computer or something else to find the auto-saved document waiting for me when I return!
All you have to do is goto Preferences, Open and Save and you’ll see it below:
This has saved my bacon!
Pretty sweet, right? Even so I have developed a very robust habit of hitting “Command + S” to save my work constantly throughout the drafting process to be extra safe.
The point is ultimately this: Find a system that can get you in control of your drafts and blog content so that you don’t lose them!
There are tons of great apps out there, both free and paid, that work well and you’ll ultimately want to use what’s the most comfortable for you!
So, what app(s) do you use to draft outside of WordPress? Share them with the community!
[This is part of the Developing Great Blog Content Series.]
Yes! I have lost too many really good posts on WordPress over the last few weeks. I often get post ideas while I am out and about so I would start a draft on my phone but would get to my computer and it wasn’t there. Now I draft it in another program and email it to myself. Much better results. Thanks for posting!
i email myself all the time…
I would use Evernote. I use that to write my post in first and then copy and paste to WordPress. The great thing about Evernote is that you can access it any where and make notes on the fly. Kind of like you are doing with WordPress but much better results.
I need to utilize Evernote a ton more. I need to get my arse into gear for sure.
making it a habit is everything.
It just took one incident of losing blog posts for me to start drafting outside of wordpress. I’ve used Evernote and Pages on my Mac. Definitely agree with everything you said! It’s worth the extra step.
for sure! and it’s not that big of an extra step, right?
No, definitely not. Especially considering the extra security.:)
for sure! do you have a gravatar? http://tentblogger.com/gravatar/
I probably draft in WP more than I should but when I go outside, I use Ommwriter (http://www.ommwriter.com/). It’s pretty awesome. It’s a full screen editor with a background and ambient music which helps me focus.
I probably should use it more often but I do love the instant gratification of hitting the “Preview” button to see how my draft is coming out on the site.
for sure… the preview button is a nice touch… but not at the cost of losing that post!
My posts are often pretty photo-heavy, and one of the things that annoys me the most when drafting posts in WordPress is trying to work out the photo layout. Is there any way to draft the entire post, photos and all, outside of WordPress? I’m using a 6 year old PC laptop.
there are a few desktop applications that can help… like http://www.red-sweater.com/marsedit/ for the mac…
you use a pc… so… http://explore.live.com/windows-live-writer?os=mac&ppud=4&wa=wsignin1.0 is one such option.
Thanks so much!
sure thing! do you have a gravatar? http://tentblogger.com/gravatar/
I’m an Evernote obsessor. Do you save your text edit files in a blog post folder? Also, what do you think of Mars Edit?
i have tried mars edit but didn’t like it enough to stick with it.
I learned this lesson like most people–the really hard way. So many times I lost chunks of text. Great, great advice.
a very painful experience indeed.
I use Evernote for drafting, idea catching, and post archiving. I have folders for each. I also clip web content as post research.
awesome! looks like you got a great workflow!
I love TextEdit on the Mac! It’s my workhorse for drafting notes, brainstorming, and yes, writing blog posts. (Just yesterday I pasted a blog post from TextEdit into WordPress.)
No random excess code like you see with WYSIWYG editors. No data loss headaches. Just robust, plain text. Beautiful. And it auto-saves too? I didn’t know that!
I was thinking about how valuable this little app has been for me, and how unsung it is. I’m glad you’re giving it props here. Totally deserves it!
(I’ve also been known to write notes and drafts in Google Docs, especially if I know I’ll want to access them from other locations, or let my collaborators access them. But you still need Internet for that.)
melanie,
i’m with you! i’ve got it as a dedicated spot on my quick bar…! i use it every single day for this and that…. love it!
I’ve always drafted in WP and have never (really) had an issue. Maybe once or twice.
However, I think I’m going to start using TextEdit now instead. I totally see your point. It’ll be weird changing my drafting workflow, but I’m sure I’ll get used to it.
Thanks John!
it only takes one time… …!
In addition to the features you describe I also like the “word count” functionality. So many times I’m writing for online or a print brochure and find I have to “edit down” for the space. The TextEdit app is OK but the prefs should be set for “text: format and not any other format (such as RTF or WORD etc.) That can leave you with all the superfluous characters and formatting you’d prefer not to have. Good luck!
did you read this one? http://tentblogger.com/copy-paste/
this makes sure you get nothing regardless of settings.
That was the first thing that came to mind for me when reading your post the other day. As a former print editor and now blogger, you must always have a backup.
i didn’t know you were a print editor… when was this?
Thanks so much for the tip about Evernote. I just checked this out and its FABULOUS! What a great tool!
enjoy!
also, do you have a gravatar? http://tentblogger.com/gravatar/
I use Ommwriter for Mac. When you open it, it takes control of your screen and turns off all OSX notifications and it focuses just on writing. When done, I’ll save it to my iDisk and when ready to post, I grab from there.
I also use Simplenote to draft up quick thoughts or ideas while on the go (iPhone and iPad version).
moe,
i love this. i have ommwriter too but is has not found a place in my heart (and workflow) yet…
that’s because you are probably lacking the mug of coffee in your face (see my avatar). Then and only then can Ommwriter romance your blogging heart.
haha. i’ve got a post today about this… i think.
I too learned this lesson the hard way. It was after I bought my first iPad. A lot of people were asking me how I liked it, so I decided to draft a post. I spent hours detailing the pros and cons of the new device. I still have no idea what happened, but I do know that the saving I thought I’d done wasn’t there either. I got so angry that I never rewrote the post.
There is something else that I didn’t see in your list. Drafting your blog posts outside of WordPress allows you to edit and revise them in another medium. I find that just the look of the different screens can help you catch typos or errors that you may otherwise have missed. My process is:
- Write blog post in Word.
- Edit blog post in Word.
- Copy and paste post to WordPress.
- Edit post in WordPress.
- Add a headline, photos, links, etc.
- Preview and edit the post again in WordPress
This works pretty well for me.
prof,
i love this! thanks for sharing! i assume you paste it into wordpress via “paste from word”? or do you use my technique featured in the previous post?
This is the exact workflow I use. I prefer Word because I get the curly quotes and em dashes that the plain text editors don’t render. The only caveat is that you must paste it into WP in HTML mode, otherwise you’ll get unwanted styles from Word in your code.
or just plain text as I do.
Time to change tactics.
Same here Eric.
what were you doing previously?
I use TextEdit too, and I save everything to a “writing” folder in my Dropbox. I never plan it this way, but I seem to always need access to a document when I’m on a different machine, having .txt files in a Dropbox folder take out a lot of the variables that can mess me up and waste my time.
ah! that’s sweet! putting it in dropbox adds even more security… love that.
I use Windows Live Writer. Not only does it save all drafts, but it allows me to preview, use the templates for all of my blogs, and it saves everything.
how long have you used it!
that was supposed to be a “?”
I have lost several very well written blog posts before. While this info should be common sense, for a lot of us it is not and it is helpful to read posts like this so we can manage our blogging time better. Too often the focus is on the publishing of the post and not anything we can do to save time and publish the same post.
Thank you and I look forward to your other tips to make me an improved blogger.
sure thing anthony! do you have a gravatar? http://tentblogger.com/gravatar/
I recently discovered the power of drafting in Evernote. Having access from any internet enabled computer, and my phone makes idea ‘trapping’ easier, but also means I can edit/write during 5 minutes of downtime easily.
I have written more posts in the 2 months since I started using Evernote than before, and I think it comes down to the ideas notepad that Evernote lets me use.
now that’s what i’m talking about! whatever you use make sure it gets you to write more!
I use Evernote and text edit. Love how you text edit allows you to make it plain text. Great for pasting into an HTML editor.
for sure! i draft in html tab all the time.
I have never hd an issue with this. But apart of being wise is learning from others mistakes (hardships more or less in these cases). I will start it tonight. Thanks.
that is awesome… but it only takes one time to make you wish you had done it… i know!
Can’t say enough good things about Evernote–it’s so great!
Another great point to make: one of the quickest ways to slow down productivity is distractions. If you’re drafting in Word Press, you’re dealing with a huge distraction: the Internet. I’m always tempted to read other blogs, check emails, and mess around on Twitter, instead of setting myself to writing efficiently. If you’re using another means to draft your post, you can cut out that distraction a little more easily!
Great article!
i’ve got a post about this soon…!
I feel like I’m jumping on an Evernote train here but it’s the best out there. While my MacBook is almost always with me, I still have to use other computers sometimes. No matter where I am, Evernote is always available and ready to capture my next idea.
use what is best for you. I like evernote but I’m not dogmatic about it. in fact, i’m spending more and more time away from it.
Evernote for me! Love me some Evernote.
what is your favorite feature?
My favorite feature would have to be the most obvious- sycing with all devices via “the cloud”.
Totally the best feature of Evernote, hands down.
for sure!
wah wah!
I have used Evernote in the past and lately I have used MarsEdit and iA Writer, between these tools I have been able to keep my content coming or at least keep the ideas in front of me. It’s still a work in progress.
ia writer… for ipad?
John,
I just had this happen to me tonight, and I know better.
I should have kept using my text editor and then did a copy and paste but NOOOOO I told myself, I’ll be ok. Fat chance.
Never again. From now on, its Notepadd ++ for me or Windows Live Writer.
I just checked and thankfully WP performed an auto save so all is not lost. Still, I’m not going to do that again.
nice save… for sure!
i like notepad++ as well… you’re a windows user!
Hi, just droppin in to say that I only found out about your blog and it looks good.
As for the question, I am way old fashioned. I just write and save in good old word. No issues..
thanks for dropping by! word is great but it’s a “heavy” app… too much for me.
Very good tip John. Power outages don’t typically concern me as I’m on my laptop most of the time but every once in a while something weird will happen. This is definitely something I think everyone fears. Great stuff bro.
yeah, that’s true… but there’s still tons of people on desktops!
John what do you think of the Apple announcement yesterday? It’s cool that they’re autosaving everything now, and just delta autosaves! Do you think this will eliminate this problem? PS you should do a post on how all the new OS stuff from yesterday affects mac-using bloggers!
love it! i have to finish that keynote, tw.
This is the reason why I will probably never use the full-screen option in WP.
My favourite draft-machine is the Alphasmart Dana – hands up if you’ve heard of that = two hands up if you use it too
sweet! that’s a great app!
Thought of OSX Lion’s new auto-save feature when I read this. It looks pretty handy. Too bad my MacBook Pro is too old to get the new OS.
sad! you in the market to get something new?
Thanks John. These posts are so helpful. I’ve been writing in WP but drafting outside makes so much more sense. Duh. Also, haven’t used Text Editor like that, will try.
simple and easy…! that’s my philosophy!
You mentioned drafting outside of wordpress so that you don’t lose your data. An additional benefit of drafting to my local machine is that I don’t require internet access. I can take my laptop and work on the road without having to worry about finding a wifi connection.
for sure! lack of wifi makes me sad… but it won’t stop me from writing.
Evernote? I’ve got it and use it for filing good info but I’ve never written a post in it. I can see the benefit of going that route.
From the beginning, I’ve written my posts in Microsoft Word. Didn’t even know if it would work (no tech-savvy giant here–example, I posted my own pic for my blog’s home page but couldn’t for the life of me tell you how). WordPress is definitely user friendly (if it wasn’t, I would have quit trying months ago), so I figured out the whole copy and paste thing.
I appreciate the additional stuff you’ve shared and agree about all the ways you can screw things up without trying (and glad to know I’m not the only one who doused my keyboard with coffee).–Tom
sure thing tom! i don’t like word because it’s a heavy app.
Auto save in Text Edit… perfect, thanks for the tip!!
sure thing rich!
Great idea to blog outside of WP. I, too, have lost a few posts and now use Textedit to write them first. Thanks for spreading the word.
sure thing barry! do you have a gravatar? http://tentblogger.com/gravatar/
Text Edit’s great. I pretty much use that for all my note taking and the auto save comes in handy for all those unexpected things that come up. O_o
for sure!
margaret, do you do more print or more online design?
I had written a massive post in the starbucks when it kicked me off the wi-fi i was not a happy blogger. Thanks for the heads up! By the way have you ever though of/done a life q+a on the likes of justin tv? I know lots of people have questions to ask!
i used to do live videocasts every wed… i stopped that for time reasons… might bring it back at some point. i do have this though:
http://tentblogger.com/ask-me/
I just downloaded Windows Live Writer via your link! I’m so excited to get started with it
Thanks for the great tips, I adore your site. At the moment I’m going through your Developing Great Blog Content series, it’s great!
awesome! thanks for being a part of this community! make sure to share it with others!
Zim desktop wiki’s rather darned cute
Have a Google.
Install the thing on your machines – Mac/Tux/Doze – then carry the docs on a stick, plug-playing. Never mind the odd blog post, just wrote a whole ruddy book using the thing. Su-ruddy-perb.
[Just an idea
]
i like this. alot.
I use Live Writer to draft outside of WordPress.
I’m also a big user of Simplenote on my iPhone and iPad. It’s light and stays in sync between all my computers and mobile devices.
sweet! also vince, do you have a gravatar? http://tentblogger.com/gravatar/
Are there any recommended editors out there that work well with WordPress formatting so that I can add links and images before posting it to the WordPress post editor?
have you seen this post?
http://tentblogger.com/blogging-apps/
I always draft my bl
? eh?
I always draft my blog posts in evernote! It has helped me much in the past.
oh yeah!
I strongly endorse Evernote. I recently started using it after reading an Inc. Mag article. Great post.
i tried it: http://tentblogger.com/evernote/ ….but i no longer use it.
I remember reading this post and started to use evernote. There was one time when I used WordPress to write from scratch and my post got deleted
Lesson learned!
lesson learned! won’t happen again!
Sublime Text 2, is the best free text-editor.
I have been drafting in Evernote but I find that I have to reformat after I paste into WordPress. Any suggestions?