As part of a little research I’m doing for a post (or a short series of them) next week here at ProBlogger I’d like to ask readers to answer this question:
How Long Do You Take To Write a Blog Post?
I know each post varies depending upon what it is – but on average how long would you say you take to write a blog post? I’d be interested to not only hear the time it takes you but also you usually write posts in one sitting or come back to them over time. Also it’d probably help a little if you told us the type of posts you generally write.
My posts require some research and going through notes, as well as a fair amount of thought – I would say a pillar article takes about 2 hours (but can be up to 3) and shorter posts clock in around 45-60 minutes.
I always wish it would be less – but when I spend less time my quality drops. I’ve been writing on the topic for a long time, so don’t see that with more experience I will get faster. :)
It’s time to outsource some writing.
Eric
Each of my blog posts is hand-crafted from fine hand-tooled leather which I tan myself and inlay with onyx and lapis lazuli. So, depending on the topic, it generally takes from twelve to eighteen months. Except for the stuff I scrape from Wikipedia.
Sometimes I write my posts for 10- 15 minutes – recently especially when I review a movie the process can be as long as week. It really depend of how inspired I am to write something
I blog less frequently but my posts are longer than average and usually take days for me to perfect! I’ll do the first draft and have to leave it a few days so that when I revisit it, it feels “fresh” and I can be more objective.
I am finding however, that now I’m definitely putting more thought/work into them than when I started. That is why I don’t know how you do it Darren, how many posts do you average PER DAY? ;)
At the moment it seems to be taking me forever and a day.
You know what they say: work expands to fill the time available. With my own blogs there is no deadline, but with posts I do for other people, there is, so they get done. Meanwhile my own blogs languish.
Normal news based articles take anywhere from 10-15 mins, and we are generally in a hurry to post them …
It takes 30 – 45 mins approx for opinion based articles. These are generally written over a couple of days as ideas pool in. Or at times at a stretch.
So in case the story says “Nokia launches 5800 Tube” it will be a general news article. But if it says “Do the iPhone killer’s match the mighty one?” or “Will camera phones replace your digicams?” – Then it takes some more time.
Currently only on rare occasions we take a interview or word from some industry expert to quote. That can take some time …
It usually takes me from 30 minutes to 2 hours, depending on what kind of article I make.
Lists seem to be quicker for me to make while tutorials take much longer
And yeah
@ Matt – IE sucks
It all depends on how many photos I have to take, edit in photoshop, and then write the description that goes with each step. A post usually ends up averaging 20 to 30 minutes per finished picture in a tutorial.
a couple hours for really detailed posts. for quickies, no longer than a half-hour
Once I sit down to actually write, usually no more than a half hour or so. But I have written it and rewritten it in my head for most of a day by then.
My avg posts are btwn 300-2000 words so that can take me anywhere from 1-5 hours. Plus there is all the “thinking time”, the time in my head where I’m formulating what to say. Sometimes a post will take a couple days because if the topic is emotional or might have something heated I let the post sit for a day, then I reread the next day to make sure that what I wanted to say & the tone I wanted to communicate is there.
I’ve learned that sometimes it’s good to let a post sit a day+ before publishing live.
It depends on how much research I do/how many pics I include in the post. I’ve been doing this a couple of months and am still making changes in my procedures as I learn more. I really love blogging! My average length of time would be about an hour.
I’d say about 1 to 2 hours per 500 words. More technical articles usually take longer.
1-2 hours to proofread and edit here and there.
I don’t count research time.
Varies a lot depending upon the types of post:
Fast breaking news, usually from a press release or ‘tip’: 10 minutes, including sourcing a picture, doing the usual blog admin stuff.
General news, from press release, company site or other web site: 15-30 minutes depending on complexity.
Opinion piece / feature: Anywhere from 30 minutes to 2 hours or more, depending on complexity, spontaneity, inspiration, etc.
I find most pieces are written in one sitting, particularly news where it needs to be published, though I do sometimes sit on drafts, and opinion pieces and features can be brewing for quite a while, often in draft or note form.
By the way, most news pieces I write are between 150-300 words, whereas opinion pieces and longer features will usually hit 400-500 or more words.
Couple of hours for a pillar post and half hour for a regular post
I take about a half hour. But my niche is t shirts and I try to let the photos of the product do most of the talking. I am not trying to split the atom or redefine the wheel.
Dutch Schultz
http://www.wizeguyztees.com/blog
I write essay-type posts of around 1000 words on mental health topics. They are footnoted and depend heavily on research. I generally post daily.
It takes me 3-4 hours to write a post, including some research. I also do some research beforehand. I usually have four or so posts in the works at any given time.
I want to have posts written in advance so I could take a break, but haven’t succeeded in doing so yet!
Altogether between 30 minutes to 60 minutes for my personal blog. I usually start a post and finish it later in the day or the next day.
I am starting new website where I presenting more researched material and it takes about the same per post.
More time is spend in research, format and proofing it seems some days, but if it helps the content look and read better it is worth it.
Altogether between 30 minutes to 60 minutes for my personal blog. I usually start a post and finish it later in the day or the next day.
I am starting new website where I presenting more researched material and it takes about the same per post.
More time is spent in research, format and proofing it seems some days, but if it helps the content look and read better it is worth it.
15-30 minutes to develop a draft. Then it waits a day or two before cleaning up and final editing. I think total time is about 60-90 minutes, depending on complexity.
I guess it probably takes me about one to two hours to write a blog post. I usually keep a sticky note up on my dashboard (PC users probably have a different visual right now than my fellow Mac users) to take down ideas throughout the day for posts and keep a list there.
When it comes time to blog for the day, I just pick the most relevant and doable topic for the day from that sticky note and start writing. Sometimes, if I need more info, then I Google for it, and just hyperlink to the info and use quick explanations and get on with the writing.
The lengthiest part is probably picking appropriate photos and putting them in. If you check my blog, you’ll notice 85 percent of my posts usually have a banner image under the title. Normally, I find two or three relevant photos/images and Photoshop them into a neat graphic for the banner. I think I use about a 400 x 100 pixel image for my banners (that too is kept on a dashboard sticky note widget).
The last thing I do before I post for the day is add all of the alt text, image titles and tags to the post. This can take a little while because I want to find the most relevant search terms possible so as to generate more traffic to the post if possible.
It really just depends on the day and the post. On average, again, probably just under two hours. But on days where I edit video I’ve taken to put up, it can get toward four hours or so. On days where I just copy/paste some stuff from one of my newspaper stories and then link to the newspaper’s Web site for the rest of the story, it’s a 10-minute job.
Thanks for reading!
Josh
joshuadelung.blogspot.com
I would say 30 minutes a post. Longer if there is some research involved. One of my blogs requires extensive research which I spend hours on while the actual post takes about 30-40 minutes.
Rick
Articles for Search Engine Optimization take me about 30 minutes research, 15 minutes writing.
I would say an hour for a regular post,
I use PBWiki to put topics of interest, news clips, etc until I need something for a post. Writing takes about 20 mins.
Would’ve been easier if you used a poll. Anyway, it usually takes be an hour to write a complete post (proofread and everything)
It takes me anywhere from 1 hour to 4 or more. The longer posts are not written in one sitting. I tend to write about personal growth, but do take a break from that with various musings about people in general, or some poetry. I’m rather new to blogging, so haven’t quite found my voice yet.
It probably takes about 30 minutes to an hour to get it done…
About 1.5 hours if I am writing a tutorial (ActionScript/Flash)
I really should spend longer though as my writing really needs to be improved.
by the way folks I have just picked up this neat little plugin called commentluv check it out http://www.fiddyp.co.uk/
description
Pass a bit of luv onto your commenter’s by providing a titled link to their last blog post. This plugin attempts to parse the feed of the comment author by visiting their site and looking in the standard locations for a feed. If no default feed is found, it will attempt to parse the users page for a feed link and parse that instead.
It takes me about 2 hours to do a blog, I think it takes that long due to lack of experience and having to edit down my verbose tendencies. Most of the entries at http://bearonthepath.blogspot.com/ are experience oriented so I do not count research per se; I just review what I have done recently or what I feel would be useful information that I already have.
My average original post (ie. not just sharing links) takes approximately one hour to do. I find it best to break it up into two different sections. The first section is original research and writing. The second section is proof reading, posting etc.
I probably take about an for each post. It just depends on how the creative juices are flowing at a given time. I generally write in one sitting, although I will draft a heading and come back to it later once I’ve fleshed it out in my head a little.
I do most of my research through my RSS reader so it doesn’t take as long as it could, but I’m constantly checking it for updates.
Depends on how much time I have. Usually about one hour for a less detailed post (I brain storm dot points to create a ‘skeleton’ article, then write the article by expanding on my notes).
If I have more time (ie. am not working a day job) I’ll take my laptop to a cafe and spend two hours or so, first doing the ‘skeleton’ article outline & brainstorming… then spend an hour or so carefully writing and rewriting.
Sometimes I write an article in an hour then leave it over night and come back to it to refine it with a few more ideas I’ve thought of … then post it.
The research can take some days. The actual writing takes between 15 and 60 minutes.
If you add the research, writing, and proofreading I would estimate it to be 2 1/2 hours per post.
Wow, it really varies. Some of them are just random thoughts I have at the moment. Those would take like only 10 minutes to write. There are also posts that include a bunch of pictures, and sometimes those can take an hour or two to edit all the pictures and to include them with text. Some special posts, such as the one where I was trying to sum up a puppet character’s appearances in the last 20 years, it takes a long time to look for and watch all the footages (so many many hours… especially when I started watching stuff that doesn’t have much to do with the post). So it can vary from 10 minutes to 10 hours (not often though).
For my cell phone site I have been doing a lot of op-eds recently and typically take about 30-45 minutes to do a good quality post.
I also usually schedule the post to be released a couple days down the road so I have enough time to change stuff if I think of something else.
Oh boy –
I have many types of posts so here goes…
Quick tips post – 10 mins
I have a ‘bank’ of posts. I write them as soon as they come to mind (I have about 15 waiting to go) – and I post them in between longer articles to break things up a bit.
Diagram posts – 10 mins
I already have a huge stash from other projects.
Video posts (shoot, edit, post) – 2 hours
I shoot 2-3 hours of footage (which covers at least 15 posts). I edit when I need it – usually I post video in a series – one a week at the moment. When summer holidays finish I will be video posting a lot more.
Article posts – about 250 words – 1-4 hours
I always write first drafts – I have around 30 first drafts at any one time – and then when I need to post (which is every day at the moment) I choose one that I feel like writing up for a post.
P.S. My blog has only been going for two months now but I wrote a lot of stuff the month before in preparation. I do plan to slow down once I have a decent amount of stuff up on my blog.
Between 1h and 3h always.
I normally spend an hour and a half collecting data, researching topics, and so on. Actually putting it all together to write the blog post takes a flat 30 minutes. However most of the tmy post goes through a couple of revisions before actually being posted. I’d hate to have to shorten my posts or spell-correct myself AFTER I’ve posted.
I’d say it takes me about an hour. Just depends on how well I know the subject. If I know it, then the writing just flows and I can have a post ready in half an hour. If I need more time for research and finding images etc then can take up to two hours but usually never more than that.
Most of my posts are just opinion so it doesn’t take me long at all. After I read up on all the facts and form my opinion on the matter it only takes about 20 minutes to write and edit.
When I write for my Ubuntu blog it takes a considerably longer time to write. It can easily take me and hour or two to get things together. This is because those posts are usually more technical or product review orientated.
I have been trying to write more articles at once but with my niche being mostly about politics I don’t have to luxury to do so. If I am writing a series of posts or just basic opinion then I usually write as much as I can at once.
It used to take a minimum 2 hours, but now I’m using Google Reader within Flock with the Greasemonkey extensions recommended by Lorelle at WordPress.
I’m finding material easily, and generating quick blog posts in about half an hour.
These shorter posts give me a break from the longer, more thoughtful posts that can take 1-2 days.
This is just one part of the Awesomeness I’m picking up in Ed Dale’s 30 Day Challenge to make money online!
On average it takes me thirty minutes to write a post, usually done in one sitting. My blog has articles for saving time and money in business, and features Excel tips.
Most posts take me anywhere from 30 minutes to three hours.
Rant posts usually take me about an hour to write from begin to publish.
For most posts, I usually have to go back onto them a few times before I’m happy with them, and it can take up to a few hours for each.
Typically an hour to post, with full concentration on that one post (in a variety of informational topics, how-tos, etc), but that includes research and pictures.
It really depends on the topic I am writing about or how many posts I have that day. It can be a little as 5 minutes or as long as 1 hour. Sometimes I have lots to say sometimes I want to share but limit the detail.
I share examples of writing by organizations that either missed the mark by not accomplishing what they set out to do, or surprised me by how well done they were. The actual writing takes about 30 minutes. The research time varies; sometimes I’ll run across a sample just by opening my mail or reading something online, but once in awhile I have to search for a topic.