How To Create An HTML Post For Blogger and WordPress


Takes so little to make some of us happy. One discovery that's not half as popular as I think it should be is the ready-made HTML post. Say you want your friends to help you promote your new release; one of the easiest ways to spread the word is to create one HTML doc (or docx) and send it, sans additional attachments and Jpgs.

This keeps your trusty friends from having to deal with formatting and coming up with an intro to fit your many attachments. Also ensures that each post will be uniform, with your Jpgs and docs in the same place, and all information included.

Since some bloggers have Blogger, and others Wordpress (or if they're like me, they have one of each), I suggest creating an HTML post for each one separately (formatting is different for each, that's why posts should be created separately). I'll tell you about each here. A little more work for you at the front end, but believe me, it saves a bunch of time when you get ready to send your posts to tour hosts and friends.


  1. Write text for your post in Word, first, including intro, purchase links, and contact links. You'll want your title in bold, of course, just above your intro.
  2. Take care of these details in Word to save time when you move to Blogger or WordPress. Write your intro. In the actual post, the intro will most likely be beneath your promo book cover, but that's up to you. Make sure you include headings in bold to separate your sections of text (ex. Blurb, Excerpt, About the Author, Purchase links, Contact Links), copy/paste your blurb, excerpt, and about the author sections from your files and include them in your Word doc.
  3. I like to embed purchase and contact links, so grab the links you want in your post and include them in your doc. This way, you won't have to keep jumping in and out of Blogger or Wordpress to grab links. They're all in one place. Just the way we like them ;-)
  4. Okay, now that we have most of our stuff in one place (all except pictures, and that's because I've found they're easier to format once you get into Blogger or Wordpress), copy your intro section and let's start with Blogger.
  5. Create this post just as you would any "new post," adding pictures and sections from the Word doc you created, including your embedded links. 
  6. Make sure everything's where you want it, then click "HTML" in the top LH corner. You'll see that your code has been created for you! Now select ALL (control~a) and Copy (control~c).
  7. From the Word doc you've created, click File>New and open a blank word doc to Paste (control~v) your code. Save as a Word doc. Now, when you send out your promo emails to blogger friends, just attach your new Word doc filled with the HTML code for your perfect promo post.
  8. For Wordpress users, create the post just as you would any "new post" in Wordpress, adding pictures and sections from the Word doc you created, including your embedded links.
  9. Make sure everything's where you want it, then click "Text" in the top RH corner. Once again, you'll see the code has been created for you! Select ALL and Copy. Open a new Word doc, Paste the code, and Save as a Word doc. Voila!! 
  10. You can either ask your host whether they're using Blogger or Wordpress, or send both, clearly denoting that one's for Blogger and the other is for Wordpress. (*Remember, you can not use the same HTML doc for both formats) When your hosts receive the HTML doc, all they have to do is select all and copy your attachment, then click "new post." For Blogger, click "HTML" then paste, and for Wordpress, click "Text" then paste. There's your post with minimized effort on your part, and minimal effort on the part of your hosts.



Comments

Anonymous said…
Thank you for expaining how this is done. I recently did a cover reveal for an author and she sent me both. As this was a first time for me I copied and pasted the lot . Then had to go back and delete all the HTML, because I have wordpress. I will know now what to look out for so I don´t make the same mistake again. I am trying to learn how to do all the things I want ,but i´m 59yrs old and never learnt how to use a computer. Self taught so far.

P.s. Do you know what I am doing wrong ? When I put someones blog button in my side bar every post I share after puts that button instead of the photo from the post when I share on fb. http://petulareadsromance.wordpress.com
Dariel Raye said…
This comment has been removed by the author.
Dariel Raye said…
Hi, Petula. Doesn't sound like you're doing anything wrong. For some reason, FB limits you to using certain pics when you share directly from another FB post. The best way to get around that (as far as I know)is to manually add the photo you want to your share post by using HootSuite. That way, you can just attach the Jpg you want from your computer.