Nov 10, 2013 / Community Pool

Community Pool

Community Pool

The Community Pool is for those of you looking for input, whether on post ideas, writing, blog design and layout, or anything else. If you have a post, page, or idea you want to bounce off someone, leave a comment. Your fellow bloggers can then click through and offer input either on your site, or in the comments here (feel free to indicate which you’d prefer).

Read on for the ground rules and to leave a comment . .

  • You’ll get the best feedback if you can be as specific as possible about what you’d like people to respond to or where you’re struggling.
  • Please keep all comments civil and constructive. We’re here to help and support one another, not to beat anyone down.
  • If you haven’t looked at our Commenting Guidelines in a while, now might be a good time.
  • To keep from losing your place in the comment thread while you visit others’ blogs, right-click on a link to open it in a new tab or window.
  • No running on the deck.

Photo by t_a_i_s.

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    1. Your theme is good, have a look at the spell check. Carry on. I think its better to start with a first post rather that giving an intro to the series in a separate post.

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    1. Couple things I noticed. You have several different fonts, pick one and use the other for emphasis. The other thing is you should probably categorize and tag your posts NaBloPoMo, so that others can find you.

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    2. Definitely recommend tagging your posts NaBloPoMo as DailyShorts recommended. Have you tried to reach out on Twitter/WordPress to other people doing NaBloPoMo? I’ve found that there is a community of incredibly supportive people who “feel your pain” in writing every day for a month. I’ve had people stop by my blog and tell me they’re doing it, and I do try to visit their blog to support them.

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      1. I do through Facebook, but I have under 100 friends. I try to keep a low profile on social media because I am a public school educator.

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    3. Nice blog. I think you are doing a good job. Keep having fun with your own posts. Tag your pictures and enjoy yourself with your own creative compositions, others will join the excitement if you can sustain it. Cheers!

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    1. I found this blog post engaging. It just seems sincere, and I haven’t read anything recently that covers just the nice streamlined topic of snobbery. I am very curious about how you have gotten so many comments. Do you have a particular strategy that you would be willing to share?

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  7. Hi all,
    I’d like some opinions or feedback on my blog. I’ve been writing for about six months now, so I really want to start improving the quality to the best it can be. Also, if anyone has any tips on getting readers to post comments, get a community growing, that would be greatly appreciated.
    Many thanks!

    http://www.ramshacklethoughts.com

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    1. Write- I’ve found that it’s not the type of posts you write, but how well you write them that makes a difference. Write what you know, or what you’re passionate about. You’ll develop a “writing voice” which is something that will keep people coming back for more.

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  10. Hi! My blog is notenoughpoetry.WordPress.com. I would like some feedback on my poems, and I recently changed my theme from bueno to the current theme and I’d like some feedback on that also. Thank you, and I’ll be happy to do the same!

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    1. Hi Lupita, I’ve just been looking through your poetry and loving what I’m seeing so far 🙂 I’ll be glad to give you some feedback if you like, and you’re more than welcome to do the same with mine 🙂

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      3. Well, feedback on the poems themselves is really helpful. I just changed my theme and I am not fully in love with it – so I am looking for some constructive criticism in that department. My goal with the theme is to showcase the poems, make it easy for people to comment and like, and not have to hunt around too much to read other poems.

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  11. Hi everyone,

    I’ve been writing for a little bit now and I was wondering if someone could read through a post or two and just give me some feedback on my writing. I’d really like to grow in my writing, but I don’t know what aspects of my writing I should focus on improving. Any help would be appreciated!

    You can comment back here if you would like.

    Thanks!

    http://ramblingsofaconfused20something.wordpress.com/

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    1. I think you have a very good conversational voice. My only piece of advice is to always remember that the title of your blog is ramblings of a confused twenty-somthing. As such, it may be beneficial to begin each post with something you are confused about, or some conflict that you’ve had to overcome. I’ve read the three most recent, and they are very relatable, but they might garner a little more interest if you add that element of confusion. It could be your “calling-card”
      Anyway, thanks for sharing!

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  12. Hey all!
    I’ve been writing short stories for quite some time now, but I always seem to fall back to this one:

    http://wordsofhers.wordpress.com/2011/06/27/little-one/

    It’s one of my personal favourites; however, I find that this opinion is not shared among my readers! Some people say the piece is too abstract, and that I need more concrete details. Some are just confused about the whole thing!

    Please, take a read and let me know your thoughts. Here are some questions to keep in mind while reading:

    Is the narrator’s point of view coherent, from beginning to end?
    What’s the main theme of the piece?
    What kinds of improvements could be made?

    THANK YOU KIND PEOPLE!

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    2. I really like the url “wordsofhers” because its memorable and easy to spell at the same time. I read the first few paragraphs out loud, and I liked the flow. I felt like I had just walked into a kitchen or something where I could hear a woman (maybe a man) cooking and thinking. That is, I felt like I could hear her thinking. Then, I got lost because there was reference to living creatures, and the capital Him and I started to wonder is this about God, about me, is it sci fi? With three possibilities I got a little weary. I would have committed to the end, but I wasn’t sure who the main character was, and did not trust that if I invested the time I would know by the end. I do not have a concrete suggestion though, because I like the idea of abstract writing. My hope is that you will have this thought from one audience (me), and be able to use it. I think your ability to write in the tone that people think in, is a huge asset of yours.

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  21. Hey guys, I’m a trainee journalist and I blog over at alieinponderland.wordpress.com Any ideas you may have for posts or any input into the layout or what have you would be much appreciated =) Thanks! xx

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    1. Considering you’re a journalist, how do you feel about the relatively unknown topic of involuntary celibacy? It’s what my blog is about, also a topic that’s rather embarrassing.

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    1. If you lie then you will not get visitors, learning to swim eh!? More like trying to draw peopke on to a website that I find goes against my faith.

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      1. The name of the site we are on is “Community Pool”. I was making a reference to ‘learning to swim’ as a new blogger in this community. I apologize if my humor went over your head…it is the story of my life. Take care.

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    2. That blog does not appear to have anything to do with swimming… Being honest about your purpose can help attract a target audience, but giving a fake topic does not make me want to come back.

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    3. I’m thinking “learning to swim” is a play on the post, “Community Pool”. Clever enough, but you may want to be a little more clear on your subject matter. Other than that, this is the place to broadcast, and meet other bloggers.

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  23. Hey people, I would just like some general feedback on how my blog looks.

    I recently decided to do a complete reset of my blog, because I needed to refocus it and change up the look of it a bit.

    There’s only one specific request I can think of at the moment: should I keep my ‘about’ page as my homepage, or do something else for my homepage?

    Thanks!

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    1. Just a quick answer: In my opinion, you should not keep your about page as your home page. Instead, it should show your recent posts, perhaps with a sticky post or two if you happen to have particular posts you’d like to feature.

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      1. Actually I’ll probably go ahead and change that. When I initially started to put my blog back together, I wasn’t sure what to put as a home page; so I figured I’d just use my “About” page as one. I might have to do a little experimenting on this.

        Thanks!

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  24. Hi all, I feel like I haven’t been getting as much traffic anymore. =( I’ve been blogging for only 3 months and would like to keep on expanding my audience as well as keep up great content. If anyone would like to look at my page and check out my blog to let me know anything I could change or reconsider. Anything would be great! Thank you!
    ❤
    Christina
    http://lifebeinggirly.com/

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  25. Hello Community, My Blog is “Please Help The Philippines” I created it to linking all the news feeds, and resources for aid. If anyone would like to offer their support even in the form of uplifting comments it would mean so much to families in the filipino community who are still searching for their loved ones. Thank you so much community !

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  27. Hey all. I think I’m starting to find my niche/voice/whatever you want to call it. Any feedback you guys have in general?

    jillianmartin.wordpress.com

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    1. Hi Helen, no, not too basic. Like the photos. Lots on content, great photos. Im reading this on my PC (Mac), the only feedback I would suggest, is for the longer blogs, like recipes, perhaps bolding the first line to bring some interest.

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  29. I have grouped a number of posts from another blog on a page; I need to organise them so as to enable them to be read separately and think I can do this with sub pages.
    I would like to be able to show them on my side bar…and have also read that I can change their URL – but i’m not sure what happens if I do.
    If anyone could offer advice I should be grateful.

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