Tips for Writing a Blog
6th January 2025
The Get Out Glasgow Steering Group suggested that community members might want to write blogs for the LEAP Sports website about their experiences of LGBTIQ+ sport. If you’re interested, let us know and we can help you along the way!
1. Keep it short(ish!). We recommend 500-1000 words for the perfect bite-sized blog.
2. Think about structure before you begin. Make a note of the key moments or points that you want to include and decide what order they should come in before you start.
3. Don’t worry too much about spelling and grammar. First get your story down without thinking too much about these things - that’s the important bit! You can edit afterwards and someone from the LEAP team can help with spelling and grammar once your blog is written too.
4. Use your own voice. A blog is personal, so it’s great to use words and phrases you would say in everyday speech. The writing doesn’t need to be formal, it’s much more engaging if we get a flavour of your personality! If you’d like, you can use a fake name.
5. Tell us how you feel. Emotions help the reader to connect with your story. Your blog might have an emotional journey that starts in one place and ends up somewhere else.
6. Choose some specific details and examples to include. Try to choose a few details or examples that sum up your message. Too much detail can make your blog hard to follow, but including some well-chosen specifics can really engage the reader.
7. Start strong. Your first paragraph should tell your reader what to expect, but leave a little mystery so they want to read on. You might find it helpful to wait until you have finished the rest of your blog before writing this introduction.
8. And finish strong. Your conclusion doesn’t need to be long, but it’s nice to have a couple of sentences that round off your blog and clearly deliver the main message.
9. Think of a catchy title. That sums up what your blog is about and draws people in.
10. Proofread. Make sure you check over everything when you’re finished. You could even ask a trusted friend to read your blog and let you know what they think. And someone from the LEAP team will help with final edits before your blog is published.
If you’d like some inspiration, these two blogs take different approaches that are both really successful.
Sport Changes Lives: Ewan’s Story
This short blog is a great example of someone sharing their personal story of LGBTIQ+ sport. You might want to follow a similar structure for your own blog:
- Open with a more general reflection on what your relationship to sport has been like throughout your life.
- If you’re comfortable doing so, share any barriers or difficulties you may have faced when accessing sport as a member of the LGBTIQ+ community.
- Tell the reader what your situation was before you joined the club/activity/event and what motivated you to get involved.
- Share some stand-out memories or moments that give the reader an idea of what the club/activity/event is all about.
- Finish by discussing the impact that the club/activity/event has had on you.
My Story: The Trans FootballerThis anonymous blog shares a trans woman’s experience of football and uses her personal story to highlight wider issues facing trans athletes. You can see several of the above tips at work:
- The writer’s own voice and her emotions come across strongly. The blog feels authentic and there is a balance between seriousness and humour.
- Specific examples are used to illustrate the arguments.
- The blog has a structure that is easy to follow - clear points are made in separate paragraphs that flow nicely on from one another.
- The opening paragraph sums up the blog and draws a reader in, and the closing sentences highlight the main takeaway of the blog.
