15 | From Blog to Blook

Jiaxin Yao, Department of Communications

This chapter discusses the relationship between bloggers and industries. Using a case study about K-beauty makeup blogger, named Pony, this chapter examines how one author found success with her blog, parlaying that success into a publishing deal and line of beauty-products. Through an analysis of Pony’s blog and , this chapter identifies key elements that have led to her success.

Keywords: blogger, publishing, makeup tutorial, blook

Introduction As a little girl growing up in South Korea, Hye-Min Park was fascinated by makeup. In her early twenties, while working as a graphic designer, she posted makeup tips online and decided in 2008 to start her own makeup blog on Cyworld (K. 2016). Her blogs found an immediate audience, and she quickly parlayed that success book publications, a line of makeup, and a career as a cosmetics expert. Known internationally as Pony, Hye-Min Park's story offers a fascinating backdrop for considering how this blogger turned her talent and technical into a prolific career in the beauty industry. By discussing Pony’s publishing experience as case study, this article provides few elements that should be considered when transferring from blog to “blook” writing.

From Blogs to Books

The concept of a “blook” is emerging in discourse about bloggers and book authors. A “blook”, which refers to a book written by a blogger. The “blook” is constantly evolving and has an ever- growing presence in the publishing business (Davidovich, n.d.). “As might be expected, the

Copyright © 2018 Yao. From Blog to Blook 137 styles of writing diverge in blooks and books. Blook texts tend to have an informality and conversational intimacy, whereas books appear to be more thoroughly digested and structured. They come from different literary heritages” (Wallis, 2008). How does one parlay the success of a blog into the publication of a blook? What are the options for authors? How does one transition to from the freeform structure of a blog to the very structured format of a book?

Starting and managing a blog is relatively easy. In a paper report written by Head, Van Hoeck & Hostetler (2017), blogs were defined as frequent, medium-length posts (longer tan a Facebook post but shorter than a magazine article), written in an informal style and reflecting an assumption of a community of regular readers who leave comments publicly on them. They summarize key studies and Investigate the writing as well as of the blog format into three sections: (1) writing for a community of readers; (2) writing as an exercise in social learning; and (3) reading as part of a shared community (Head, Van Hoeck & Hostetler, 2017). Bloggers today have a variety of (often free) platforms to choose from, and they can write (or speak) about any topic they wish. Indeed, many bloggers choose to share their personal experiences—even if they are not experts in the selected area. One study found that “Blogs shared a common purpose: to express the author’s subjective, often intimate perspective on matters of interest to him or her (in the case of most blogs, the matters of interest concern the authors and their daily lives)” (Trammel & Keshelashvili, 2005, p. 972).

Like blogs, publishing is another popular endeavor for those interested in writing. Transitioning from blogs to a book deal might seem like a natural move for writers, but it does not guarantee success. Bloggers that have found success publishing book do so after developing an authoritative voice and strong following. Once a blogger emerges as a leading voice in a given area, they stand apart from others in their field and attract a wider reading audience. As Engel states, “Being seen as the expert in your niche can enable you to set higher prices for those product and services, and be more in demand” (Engel, 2017). It is perhaps only once a blogger can position him/herself as an expert that transitioning into books is a possibility, often achieved first through self-publishing. In so doing, a blogger is able to solidify his/her position as an expert in a niche topic (Engel, 2017). What makes bloggers attractive authors for a publisher is their ready-made audience (Kurlantzick, 2004). Mount (2006), a writer from the Wall Street Journal also speaks to this phenomenon, stating, “writers who turn their blogs into books have

Moving through the Grey: Publishing in Action The Publishing Business: Transformations and Opportunities (ISI6314 – Winter 2018) From Blog to Blook 138 two advantages available to budding authors: an existing dedicated readership and a free platform to publicize their work.” Awareness to the identity of a fanbase is crucial here. Before launching the books, bloggers need to have a general cognization about their audiences, which will be their fanbase after publishing books. A good and honest communication and time spent nurturing online relationships are best way to grow a loyal fanbase. The reason why having a fanbase is so important is because they are the best team of sales people because they will then share with their network of friends (Halliwell, 2016).

It is imprortant to consider how those working outside of the traditional publishing stream can write books – or blooks. Self-publishing has emerged as a viable and often success alternative to working with traditional publishers. While authoring books used to require an agent and publisher, today anyone can become an author thanks to a variety of self-publishing services. As Fenton has observed, “Web-to-print technology has clearly revolutionized the production aspects of self-publishing, while the Impact of Self-Publishing on Digital Book growing acceptance of search technology offers alternatives to costly marketing. Today, anyone with a computer and a desire to publish a book can use a template-based publishing strategy from companies such as Lulu.com” (2007). Lulu.com, for example, allows authors to choose different layout, binding style and cover art from its site. They offer services for layout and copyediting as well, and set the price of paper version or online version (Fenton, 2007). Furthermore, services like Kindle Direct Publishing, ResearchGate are also potential choices for bloggers to self-publish their works. Kindle Direct Publishing is an e-book self-publishing service offers services including , designing, and pricing. ResearchGate’s community extends to 2.7 million academics mostly in the area of medicine and the biological sciences. Tens of millions of papers have been uploaded to the site, which serves as a blend of publishing company and social network, nurturing collaboration between researchers worldwide (OEDB, 2018). In order to consider more fully the elements at play in such a transition, examining a successful case study, like that of makeup-blogger Pony, offers a fruitful example. The following case study will briefly talks about Pony’s successful story and analyze the key elements enlighten from her story that may need to be considered from blog to publishing.

Moving through the Grey: Publishing in Action The Publishing Business: Transformations and Opportunities (ISI6314 – Winter 2018) From Blog to Blook 139 Case Study: Pony

Pony started her makeup blog in 2008 on Cyworld, a South Korean social networking service. At the time, she was a graphic designer in environmental design, posting makeup tips as a side hobby. The initial focus of her blog was to share makeup experiences, offering tutorials, tips, and trying on new makeup. Her blog posts received an almost instant following and overwhelmingly positive feedback, and has thousands of readers who enjoyed and learned from her makeup tutorials (Ho, 2017).

After establishing a strong fan following, Pony was discovered by a publishing company asking if she wants to publish her own makeup tutorial books. She quickly accepted their proposition. In an interview with a beauty website CLEO, Pony was asked about how she was approached to write her first book. She answered:

Managing a personal homepage is very hard. From my daily photos to taking charge of my own makeup, hair and outfits, and taking the photographs and art direction. I started taking photos as a hobby and for my portfolio, but they started to become popular, and so a publisher approached me and I published my first book (Idris, 2016).

Her first book, The Secret of Seasons Makeup, published in 2011, focused on different makeup techniques to find the right look for each season. Since this book, she has written three more makeup tutorial books with Login publishing company (K., 2016; Pony’s Special Makeup, Pony Hotdataset Beauty Makeup Sweet Talk & Pony's 4d Make up). The books also come with CDs for more makeup tutorials. Perhaps most remarkably, “Her books have been published in Taiwan, Thailand, China, Indonesia and Japan. One of the series, Pony’s Special Makeup (2011), was translated into Japanese, a rare case of a Korean makeup book being released in Japan, where makeup skills are considered to be much more advanced than in any other Asian country” (K., 2016). That her books have been so successful and been translated into Japanese suggests that she has really cornered the market and developed a strong fan/reader following.

Moving through the Grey: Publishing in Action The Publishing Business: Transformations and Opportunities (ISI6314 – Winter 2018) From Blog to Blook 140

Developing a Voice

Success occurred relatively quickly for Pony: her blog began in 2008, just two years before her first book publication. That said, this early success does not mean that it was an easy process. Pony worked hard and invested a lot of time in setting up her blog, cultivating an audience, honing her skills, and developing her artistic practice. Through interview and examination of her blogs, four elements emerge as being helpful in guiding her transition from blogs to books, including the development of the following criteria:

1. A clear voice or blogging identity; 2. A focused organizational structure that helps readers navigate the blog; 3. Technical skills that can be used to design an aesthetically pleasing and user-friendly blog space; and 4. A large and loyal community of readers.

In order to build such a readership, blogs need to have a clear, concise identity and voice. This is achieved not just through the aesthetic of the blog, but through a clear definition of blog’s intended goal and readership. While much of this is done through a focused topic for a blog, the organization and structure of a blog is often integral to assuring this voice emerges clearly in a blog space. Her blogs provide makeup tutorials for star-inspired makeup looks, the cartoon- protagonist inspired looks and more and offer formal and informal looks for her readers to use during their daily activities. For formal occasions, including black-tie events, cocktail parties, and graduation, for example, she focuses on sophisticated looks that bring out the elegance and style of the person. For more informal occasions including school, casual hangouts with friends, different types of parties, bars, and clubs, she emphasizes fun, unique looks that show off one’s personality. The tutorials have step-by-step instructions with pictures that are easy to follow, featuring photos of herself as the model. Using her design sensibility and editing skills, Pony tried to make her posts as appealing as magazine covers (Idris, 2016). When writing a blog, it is often helpful for the blogger to develop categories to better organize posts. An examination of Pony’s blog output suggests that the following structing ideas are key to developing an aesthetically pleasing, interactive and user-friendly blog:

Moving through the Grey: Publishing in Action The Publishing Business: Transformations and Opportunities (ISI6314 – Winter 2018) From Blog to Blook 141

• Organize blogs in practical way; • Categorize blogs accurately so that they can be easily retrieved; and • Ensure that blogs are easily-retrievable through a database search engine.

This does not just make it easier for readers to follow a particular theme of interest, but it also helps save time (in the future) with the organization of their content. This is especially helpful for a blogger with thousands of posts, who want to develop this content into a book. A blogger with a clear vision, who can develop their categories in the early stages of blogging, will have longer-term success with defining the overall goal and identity of their space (R., 2018). Over time, what began as a hobby develops into an expertise. New categories can be added, but it is important to be careful when defining new blog topics so as not to alienate the original audience. They can set a category of “others” if they are not sure about what it is all about until they find a suitable one instead.

Aesthetics are important to consider in the development of a blog space to ensure the clarity and focus of a blogger’s voice and identity. They should not just be informative, but engaging, pleasing to look at, and user-friendly. It is often helpful to have theoretical knowledge about photographic skills or even drawing and designing skills. A former graphic designer, Pony is fortunate to have exceptional editing and design skills. She uses these skills in her beauty- product business – from blogs to books to her makeup line. Her books contain quality images that are helpful to keep an audience interested. For those without such skills, bloggers now have many easy-to-use photo-editing software to guide their work. However, if they really want their photos have good quality that can be used in publishing, they can learn some basic photo editing skills like Photoshop, Adobe Illustrator, DxO Optics Pro and etc.

All of this is useless without a large and loyal community of followers. This reader/viewership will move toward a particular blog because it speaks to their interest and is aesthetically pleasing for the user to engage with. The value of a solid fanbase cannot be understated, as their loyalty to a product is what helps that product succeed when it shifts into new markets (i.e., the book world). Jenkins (2006) argues that media effects are involuntary and unconscious. When bloggers decide to publish their own book, their existing fans are the natural target audience. Fans will not only buy these books, but they will also recommend the books to

Moving through the Grey: Publishing in Action The Publishing Business: Transformations and Opportunities (ISI6314 – Winter 2018) From Blog to Blook 142 others – thus expanding the readership and audience base. These fans do not necessarily focus on the quality of book, but rather, the feeling that the book brings to them – a feeling of inclusion and community. As the reader becomes increasingly present in blogs, the knowledge of an audience has an impact on the blogger’s posts because real-time readership consistently offers feedback, which further shapes the direction of the posts. Audience awareness results in bloggers censoring their posts. While this move can result in a potential increase of the audience's authority over the direction of the blog and the loss of power and authorship (Stutsman, 2012), it can be an attractive idea for publishers seeking an instant success. As a well-known makeup blogger and author, Pony is aware of her international fans. She tries to create makeup tutorials that can be used by them and relevant to their lives. She used to make a hijab makeup tutorial in her books to her Soompi fans. She said: “Among my international fans, many of them reside in countries where wearing a hijab is common. So, I wanted to create a makeup tutorial for them and be able to identify with” (Idris, 2016).

These elements have been key to the success of Pony’s blogspace, and offer just one example of how a blogger can create a cohesive environment for developing a supportive and loyal web-based community. When parlaying that success into a book deal, it’s imperative that bloggers figure out their objective for publishing. Fletcher (2014), a famous author of The Rock Star’s Daughter, noted that having a clear scope of what to gain by publishing before releasing a book is important for blogger. The significant goals that bloggers have for books and careers should play strategic role in the selection of the publishing platform, the book's price, and the book's marketing campaign.

Reflections

In a very short time, Pony has translated her success in blogging into blook writing and finally into a thriving business in makeup. After Pony published her blooks, several famous makeup brands invited her to be in commercials and she has launched a new line of makeup with her. In 2013, she launched her YouTube makeup channel “PONY Syndrome”. In addition to her own makeup line, she has 3,572,344 subscribers to her YouTube channel and plans to write more

Moving through the Grey: Publishing in Action The Publishing Business: Transformations and Opportunities (ISI6314 – Winter 2018) From Blog to Blook 143 books in the future. Thanks to her blog, and dedicated readership, Pony is one example of a blogger that has been able to transition into a successful published author.

It would be natural that other bloggers would want to emulate Pony’s method to find their own success. However, there is no shortcut to success in publishing. Pony’s model and method is not one that can be guaranteed; in addition to natural artistry with makeup and technical skill in blogging, a lot of her success is thanks to luck and timing. She was discovered by a publisher at a critical moment in her career and has parlayed that success into a book deal.

What is increasingly evident, however, is that bloggers right now are in an exciting position to share their work with larger audiences than ever before and have at their disposal a variety of new opportunities for publishing. While success cannot be guaranteed, it has become relatively easy for authors and bloggers to self-publish thanks to new technologies and platforms. Although new services such as Lulu.com have made it easier than ever to help authors publish, the landscape has become saturated, making it difficult for authors to stand out and make a profit ("Self-Publishing in 2017," 2018). While this might seem to be a challenge for authors wanting to break into the publishing market, it can be seen as an opportunity for bloggers who are seeking for broader space for development and being noticed by public. With a ready-made community of loyal readers, bloggers are now, more than ever, in a position to transition with greater ease into blook-writing.

References

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