Once you’ve decided blogging is for you (and it’s not for everyone), then you’ve got to make some decisions about how to publish your words to the Web. These are the 12 tools I use and recommend to get your words out to your readers.

1. WordPress. There are other platforms, but few are as customizable as WordPress. It’s cheap (free, actually) but not always easy. We keep a developer busy most weeks tweaking this site or one of our others. Of course, the developer isn’t free. We’ve used WordPress to host all of our sites for years, and it gets better and better.
2. Bluehost. You’ll need a server to host your WordPress site. Bluehost makes it easy and cheap to set up and administer. We used Bluehost for years until we outgrew it. Once your traffic exceeds a few thousand visitors a day, you’ll need to upgrade, but Bluehost is a solid place to get started.
3. Byword. This is my word processor of choice. It’s actually less than a word processor. It’s a very basic text editor, and there’s little on the screen other than the words I’m writing. Byword works for me not because it’s simple and has minimal distractions, but mostly because it doesn’t let me do much formatting. Formatting often gets messed up when transferring your text over to WordPress, and Byword keeps it simple. Byword employs markdown, simple formatting commands, which make it easy to format as I go. It also publishes my posts straight to WordPress, so there’s no intermediate step or any copying and pasting. I used MarsEdit for years but opted for the simplicity of Byword about a year ago. Some Windows users like OmmWriter.
4. Envato Studio. From time to time, I need new graphics for my blog. I might want to update the masthead or an icon to keep things looking nice and fresh. Finding an inexpensive graphic designer used to be difficult. Now I can find someone at Envato Studio in minutes and have the graphic finished and posted quickly (often within a day or less). The prices are amazing. This bargain may not last forever, but it’s the place to go for graphic designers right now.
5. Google Analytics. Is anyone out there? Sometimes it’s hard to tell if you look only at the comments section of the site. Google Analytics spies on visitors, and it lets me know who visited, how long they stayed, and what they did while they were here. It’s awesome, and it’s free. It’s a great source of feedback.
6. Aweber. The majority of my subscribers read me via e-mail. Aweber makes it easy for visitors to sign up for the e-mails, and then it handles sending the e-mails out each day. It also manages subscriber options if readers want to cancel. One reason I like it better than some competitors is that it sends the entire post rather than an excerpt.
7. OptinSkin. This WordPress plugin makes it simple to stick an e-mail signup form in the sidebar (and in other places). It easily connects to Aweber, giving you a simple system for managing subscriptions. You can do the same thing without the plugin, but you’ll need more skills to do it on your own. OptinSkin has all sorts of bells and whistles you can use to encourage readers to sign up for your e-mails.
8. Yoast WordPress SEO plugin. This is the Swiss army knife of search engine optimization tools for WordPress. It does everything required to be sure Google and the other search engines spot your posts and present them properly in their results. There’s a free version and a premium upgrade. It’s well worth the $89 if you wish to upgrade.
9. WP to Twitter. This plugin automatically alerts your Twitter followers to your latest post. I get a shocking amount of traffic from Twitter. Lots of readers use Twitter to stay up to date and want to know when something new is published. WP to Twitter makes it easy to keep them in the loop.
10. Tweet Old Post. This is another automatic Twitter posting plugin. Instead of posting your latest post, it digs into your archives and posts something old. It’s a shame to put so much work into an article and only give it one day in the sun. Tweet Old Post brings those oldies but goodies back to the attention of your followers.
11. Disqus comment system. Disqus takes over your commenting on your blog. It handles everything and does a great job of making it simple and easy to respond to comments. It’s integrated with all the sign-in services and completely eliminates spam. You only need to install a plugin to get it going.
12. LeadPages. This service makes it easy to set up a variety of pages without being much of a designer or programmer. We use it to set up special landing pages for things like the Networking 101 sales page along with webinar registration pages and Aweber thank you pages. It’s handy when you’re not a skilled designer or programmer.

These are some of the most important tools being used right here on Divorce Discourse. They’re running in the background, helping readers have a better experience. More importantly, they’re making it faster, easier, and simpler for us to keep the blog up and running.