hi painlessbbq,
welcome to the wordpress support forum,
Am sure you know what you are doing… let’s start with what you have already done. So far you have a domain, you have a webhosting account, you have already installed wordpress and made your first post.
So many people struggle to get started, atleast you have got a start.
Now it is time to improve your blog and get it moving.
Here are a few things you can do to improve your blog.
1) Choose a good theme. Your theme is pretty basic, get a good one.
2) Try getting a logo or a header for your blog. Work on your brand from the start so that your readers remember you.
3) Get busy on the social media. Get a facebook fan page and a twitter account. Connect social media to your blog, get some voting buttons on your post pages.
4) Get some more content. Target to post atleast one blog post ever two to three days. Make your blog active.
Keep up the good work,
cheers!