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TECH: How Google Drive Keeps Me Blogging

Published on July 10, 2013 By Emily. Updated on August 13, 2014

Google Drive and I have a long history.  I’ve know it since it was called Google Docs and I’ve been using it since my college years to keep my life in order.  It seems that order has become even more important as my blogging gets more serious.

 

If you have a Gmail account, you have Google Drive.  It’s great for creating and storing documents you’d like to be able to access and edit from anywhere.  I use my Drive account for a lot of things, but I find it especially useful for blogging.  I don’t always do my work on the same computer all the time and it’s nice to be able to access information on my phone.

google drive

A glance at my Drive account
 

Documents

The type of file I create most often in Drive is a document.  A Drive document is just like any other word processing document- you can edit it, format it and add photos.  You can download the documents and print them or share them with other people through Drive.

  • Post Drafts – I have 2 draft files in my Drive account.  One is general post drafts, which are sometimes as short as a topic idea and sometimes entire posts.  I always have several posts in various stages of development in that document at any time.  I also have a separate Highlights draft where I save potential topics and links for upcoming Highlights posts.
  • Collaboration – One of the best things about Drive is the option to share files.  Sharing files allows me to collaborate with other bloggers by sending or receiving guest posts.  I’ve also used the power of document sharing to coordinate travel plans and other activities with other bloggers, especially around the Healthy Living Summit.  If your blog has 2 authors, you can both work on a single document at once.
  • To Do Lists – I’m sure it’s clear by now that I am a serious list maker.  One of the many places I keep lists is in Google Drive.  Again, these lists can be shared with anyone and accessed anywhere.
  • If This Then That – If you haven’t looked into IFTTT yet, you really need to.  I want to write an entire Tech post about it sometime, but please don’t wait for me to do so.  Update: My IFTTT post is up!  Drive is one of the many channels available on IFTTT.  You can use Drive and IFTTT to send Instagram photos to your Drive account, automatically save your Gmail attachments as files in Drive, create a document of tweets with a specific hashtag and more.  For a while, I had IFTTT sending Reader items with a specific tag to a document to help streamline the process of writing my Highlights posts.  I was very sad when Reader and that function disappeared, but IFTTT has recently added a Feedly channel, so I’ll be setting up another recipe to save links automatically soon.

Drive template gallery

The Google Drive Template Gallery
 

Calendar Templates

Google Drive also has a collection of templates that you can use and edit for your own purposes.  They can be accessed by creating a new document, spreadsheet, presentation or form, clicking the “File” menu, then “New”, and then selecting “From template…” This will open the template search page.  Chances are, if you need something it’s already there. One of my favorites is the 2013 Yearly Calendar from Vertex42.

I have one of these calendars that I use as an editorial calendar.  It’s easy to add post ideas to specific dates, move them around as needed or delete them when I change my mind.  I realize that there are plugins that do similar things, but as I do all of my writing outside of WordPress and the function of the calendar is to help me plan ahead, the plugins don’t really work for me.

I also use the same template for my menu planning.  Just like the editorial calendar, I can move things around easily.  I can also add events that will affect my menu (evening meetings, vacations, etc.) and schedule meals using recipes I saw and want to be sure to try out.

Spreadsheets

Who doesn’t love a good spreadsheet?  Or is that just me?  Despite my love of them, I currently only have one blog-related spreadsheet in use.  My Blogging Contacts spreadsheet helps me keep track of the businesses I have relationships with, including the names of my contacts and other reminders.  Within that spreadsheet I have another page that contains contact information for my closest blogger friends-those I’ve sent Christmas cards or swap items to.

I’m sure there are a million other ways to use Drive to help my blog, but these are the ones that have helped me the most.  Without Drive, I don’t know how I’d stay organized or accomplish as much as I do. Feel free to post your ideas or questions in the comments below!

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Filed Under: technology Tagged With: blog, google, websites

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Comments

  1. Sabrina says

    August 8, 2013 at 6:37 am

    I’ve used Drive since it was Google Docs too, but not like this. I guess I never considered the possibility of combining the tools from Drive with my blog and writing. Thanks for the post and thanks for the ideas! I’m excited to get organized!!!

    • Emily says

      August 16, 2013 at 7:12 am

      Glad I could give you some new ideas for blog tools. Good luck getting organized!

  2. Heidi says

    August 20, 2013 at 9:16 pm

    i think you might have just taken my love of google EVERYTHING to a new level.

    • Emily says

      August 20, 2013 at 9:18 pm

      Glad I could help with that! I don’t know what I’d do without all their products.

Trackbacks

  1. Blog Tip Thursday: How Google Drive Keeps Me Blogging | Healthy Living Blogs says:
    September 27, 2014 at 11:03 am

    […] To check out the rest of Emily’s post on Google Drive, click here! […]

  2. Tips and Tools for Meal Planning–2015 Edition | Relishments says:
    December 31, 2015 at 9:36 am

    […] I’ve written before, I use Google Drive to organize a lot of things in my life.  I use the calendar template to sketch out what I plan to cook.  The nice thing about […]

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Last week Brian and I finally got around to hiring Last week Brian and I finally got around to hiring a sitter for a rare night out. We went to dinner at @publicna and took advantage of the opportunity with drinks, appetizers and dessert.

Pictured:
- Citrus Braised Beef Tacos
- "Chicken and Waffles"
- House Fries with Garlic Aioli
- Fried Chickpeas
- Blood Orange Cheesecake
It was no surprise that Public was close to full on a Wednesday night - everything was so good. 

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#igers413_food #igers413 #BerkshireFoodies #InTheBerkshires #EatLocal #WesternMA #WesternMass #Berkshires  #VisitTheBerkshires #NorthAdams #NAmazing #PublicEatAndDrink
New year, new theme word! This year's word is "enr New year, new theme word!
This year's word is "enrich" and I'm really excited about it.

I've written more about this year's theme on the blog. Click in the link in my profile or follow the link below to read the post.
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https://www.relishments.com/blog/my-2023-theme-word-enrich/
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#YearlyTheme #MyOneWord #2023 #enrich2023 #NewYearsResolution
It's not New Year's Eve without a Top 9 post. It's It's not New Year's Eve without a Top 9 post.
It's almost all #Berkshires content this year, which is great.
1. A pasta salad reel that took longer to create than the recipe took to make.
2. A reel from North Carolina where I could have watched birds all day.
3. The @thelazygenius book giveaway.
4.@plantconnector 
5. @berkshiremuseum 
6.@sculpture.now at @themountlenox 
7. @massmoca 
8. @mountainviewfarm413 
9. The #AshuwillticookRailTrail
New on the blog: My 2022 reflections on last year' New on the blog: My 2022 reflections on last year's theme word - resume. 

I was able to get back to many activities that were meaningful to me this year and I'm calling this theme a success. Follow the link below or click the link in my profile to read more.
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https://www.relishments.com/blog/reflections-on-resuming-in-2022/
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#resume2022 #newyearsresolution #myoneword #yearlytheme
New on the blog: My Favorite Recipes of 2022. For New on the blog: My Favorite Recipes of 2022.

For the fourth year, I've recapped the best new (to me) recipes I made this year in the hope that they'll give you some new dishes to try. This year's list is short, but delicious. It includes @budgetbytes My Favorite Recipes of 2022
Published on December 30, 2022 By Emily. Updated on December 30, 2022

It’s hard to believe that 2022 is basically behind us. Though overall this year found me getting back to the person I want to be (post-babies and “post”-pandemic), I did not try nearly as many new recipes this year as I used to. In fact, I was pleasantly surprised to see that I’d made note of any new-to-me recipes I wanted to share in this post. This year’s list is short, but delicious. It includes recipes from @budgetbytes, @smittenkitchen and @howsweeteats.
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Read the post by visiting the link in my profile or 
https://www.relishments.com/blog/my-favorite-recipes-of-2022/
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#RecipeRoundUp #BestRecipes2022 #FavoriteRecipes
@coastalmainebotanicalgardens continues to be one @coastalmainebotanicalgardens continues to be one of the highlights of all my return trips to Boothbay and their annual Gardens Aglow event continues to impress. It was great to be back to walking the gardens instead of the pandemic drive through and there seemed to be more lights than ever.  I'm already looking forward to next year.
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#Boothbay #BoothbayMaine #CoastalMaineBotanicalGardens #GardensAglow #BotanicalGarden #MidcoastMaine
It has been a while, but there is finally a new CS It has been a while, but there is finally a new CSA menu plan on the blog! Visit the link below or in my profile to see how I plan to make use of some of the @mightyfoodfarm produce seen here.
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https://www.relishments.com/blog/welcome-to-winter-farm-share-csa-menu-plan-148/
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#MightyFoodFarm #EatLocal #EatSeasonal #VermontGrown #CSApickup #CSAshare #KnowYourFarmerKnowYourFood #MenuPlanning #MealPlanning #igers413 #igers413_food #BerkshireFoodies
Fall in the Berkshires is always incredible, but t Fall in the Berkshires is always incredible, but this year we've had weather that has also been outstanding. The past 2 weekends have included time at Jaeschke Orchards, the Greylock Glen, and the Ashuwillticook Rail Trail as well as stopping to photograph any random foliage I see. 
Check out the last slide for video of some feathered friends we saw on a walk.
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#igers413 #InTheBerkshires #EatLocal #WesternMA #WesternMass #Berkshires  #VisitTheBerkshires #FallFoliage #FallColors #autumn #AshuwillticookRailTrail #JaeschkeOrchards #GreylockGlen
@freshgrassfestival continues to be one of my favo @freshgrassfestival continues to be one of my favorite events each year, and it doesn't hurt that it's just minutes away from home. Enjoying the festival with my kids is definitely a different experience than without, but it's still a good time. The weather was especially cooperative today which was great for all the laps I did around the @massmoca campus pushing a stroller. I'm already looking forward to next year.
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#igers413 #InTheBerkshires #WesternMA #WesternMass #Berkshires  #VisitTheBerkshires #NorthAdams #NAmazing #FreshGrass #FreshGrassFestival #MassMoCA #MusicFestival
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