Oct 6, 2014 / Community Pool

Community Pool

The place for advice, feedback, and friendly blogging chatter.

Have you just published a new post and are dying for some feedback? Did you recently start your blog and could use some layout or design advice from your more seasoned peers?

Tap into the wisdom of The Daily Post blogging community and leave your question here in the comments. Others can then click through and offer input either on your site, or in the comments here (feel free to indicate which you’d prefer).

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Photo by Brian Cantoni.

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    1. I liked the post it. It was a well written piece. It’s definitely a good start.

      The page itself needs some development. It just needs some personal touches. I also don’t like that you have an “about” page that displays the default generic message. It’s an easy thing to fix.

      Like

      1. Just as a side note, I realize that many people want to have a look at “About” pages, so part of my focus is setting up the about pages on my blogs.

        However, I personally think About pages are exceptionally overrated. For those of us who write about specific topics partially for promotional reasons, it already takes a long time to make posts considerate, while trying to meet our other responsibilities towards business and our families.

        Perhaps someone can explain to me why it is not always so much about the content? I am genuinely curious.

        Like

    2. I can’t quite discern what it was but I found myself smiling after reading your first line and para 🙂 Perhaps it’s Saturday and the telly’s flooded with soaps or that everything’s just been gloomy of late, but it’s a refreshing change to read something happy, optimistic from the get go, so thank you. My feedback pertains to the images. I would enlarge the size so they can be appreciated better?

      Like

  2. A few days new to blogging! Like many of you, it would be great to follow, be followed, and share new feedback! I only have one blog so far, and I’d be happy to see what people think so I can move in a solid direction!
    Medusamix.wordpress.com

    Like

    1. I left two comments on your blog, which are currently awaiting moderation.

      I find your themes exceptionally interesting, but I find some of your posts very difficult to read. You do seem to have a bit of a heavy style. Except for the feminism post, which was very enjoyable to read. Perhaps introducing a personal touch into your writing is exactly what is needed.

      Feel free to visit my side of the blogosphere when you have a moment. We do have some opposing views about some matters, but share similar interests.

      Like

      1. Thank you so much for your comments. They were enjoyable to read and I think that your criticism is incredibly helpful. I was scared that my first comments would be from people who my writing may have offended in some way, but adding personal experiences should make it more inviting instead of reprimanding, as you’ve suggested!
        I am really excited to check out your blog, and leave feedback as well! Be on the look out.
        Thanks again!

        Like

  3. Hey guys, admittedly I am a newbie to this whole blogging thing, surprise surprise 🙂 . Nonetheless, I have created yet another cocktail blog. You see, I am a bartender who works on cruise ships. I am one of the few who honestly can say that I love my work. What I enjoy the most is to be able to share information with people, how small or big it may be. The blog is in its earliest stages, but overtime I hope it to become a resource guide to other enthusiasts and booze geeks like me. I would like some feedback on the bare bones, the layout, navigation etc. It is still bare, but try to visualize it growing with more information. Constructive feedback is appreciated, I have a box of Kleenex by my side! 🙂 Thanks Jerry http://www.mazatini.wordpress.com

    Like

    1. Hi Jerry – somehow, your blog has the feel of a good cocktail – easy on the eye and full of interesting flavours? The shiny colours? Not sure quite how you’ve managed it, but moving around it feels like sitting at an upmarket bar with a friendly host mixing an interesting new cocktail in front of you! If it reflects your personality then I can see why you’re so popular.

      Very easy to get around and very tempting posts. If I were going to make one small negative comment – this isn’t a full on Kleenex job – but I was all excited to see your recipe for home made cocktail cherries and disappointed when, after the recipe, you said that you hadn’t made them yourself. It felt a bit of a let down. I think if you’d credited Katie Loeb before the recipe, then it would have felt different. It would have been more of a “I trust her recipes because they’ve given me good results before, I’m putting this here so that you can have a go before I get time to get down to it myself” – that sounds helpful and friendly and would invite comments. I’d have put a working link to her or somewhere where people could buy her book too – if you click on the cover photo, on my screen , it just goes to a bigger photo of the cover.

      All good luck with your blog. It’s a thing of beauty. 🙂 Now put that Kleenex away.

      Like

      1. Thank you so much for the reply an constructive feedback! I know in regards of the Cocktail cherries, honestly I just wanted to post something and play around with it, yet being honest. As I work at sea I don’t have all the free time I really need to keep this blog running and updated on a regular basis, hence I spent the forthcoming 3 weeks “mass-producing” recipes, mainly photos so I can build up some material.
        I am sincerly happy about your comment that it reflects myself, something I always wanted to do and something that has gotten me where I am today, so really appreciate that feedback! Now, since the Kleenex is not needed anymore, where is that bottle of Pisco and my cocktail shaker?!? 🙂
        **all smiles so far**

        Like

    1. I often struggle with title for my posts. Nothing ever seems good enough. There is a lot riding on a title. It is like a resume for a post. One short line that can make people read the post, or skip past it. I don’t think I’ve mastered that just yet, but I tried to come up with something for you anyway.

      I would call the Oct. 9th post “Learning to Fly”. It’s not very good but it’s better than nothing, I guess.

      I was a bit inspired by your Oct. 10th post. You called it “10 10”. I would have called it “Birthday Suit”.

      Happy belated birthday.

      Like

    1. First of all, I’m utterly envious that you live in Paris. Secondly, I enjoyed reading your post. I especially appreciated how you used text boxes to add some visual interest. If I may suggest using larger images? And variations of text boxes to make the post more reader-friendly as it’s quite lengthy? Other than that, I’m still jealous 🙂

      Like

      1. Thank you for checking out my blog and letting me know how you believe I can improve it 🙂 And honestly, sometimes I still can’t believe I live here.

        Liked by 1 person

  8. Please give me some constructive criticism on my journal entries and preferably poetry (:
    Frenchkush.wordpress.com

    Thanks so much!!! Your feedback is so helpful and crucial to my growth as a writer, whether the comments are positive or negative.
    Merry ye meet and merry ye part- Anna

    Like

    1. I had a look at your blog and I can see that you have put some thought into it (including some customization of the template). Your articles appear informative and not just self-serving advertising, although there are obviously business updates.

      I would suggest separating your blog into separate pages for personal posts, business updates and general informative posts.

      If you like:
      http://mymanagement101.wordpress.com/2014/10/11/basics-of-internal-control/

      Liked by 1 person

    2. Purchasing is a car is a big decision and, for the most part, this decision will be affected by lifestyle. We select the car based on the size of our families, the activities we engage in, and so forth. If I might suggest including articles on child safety, mileage capacity, comfort/durability, and, of course, aesthetics. I feel you’re on the right route in offering educational content, just expand upon it 🙂 in terms of the look/feel, I would consider adding some light colour to the background to make your blog appear warm and inviting? All the best to you.

      Liked by 1 person

  12. In a world resembling the middle ages, mysterious things called the burning skies appeared and started wiping out human settlements one by one. Accompanied by the appearance of the burning skies, appeared various types of monsters both unseen and unheard of in the past.
    Under these circumstances, Elmar, an enthusiastic and determined boy, like many other youth, sets out on a quest to help the army wipe out these monsters and the burning skies. But if recruitment is all he wanted perhaps he would get a bit more than what he was asking for. Will his life take a turn for the better or worse? Will he be able to take the resposiblilities? Find out in The Burning Skies. That is my first fantasy novel I am working on and so far I have updated two chapters. So please guys, read and please leave a constructive review and tell me what is right and wrong I did.
    Actually, I am just waiting for someone to tell me that my Chapter II was a disaster! So guys, please read chapter II and tell me that I made a wonderful mess!
    Oh and while you are at it, you can also check my other short story What She Wanted.
    And with that, happy reading everyone!

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Er, one more thing. If you can’t find a like button in my articles, please do inform me! Saying ’cause I can’t find it either. Trying to find out where the glitch is( I could’ve sworn I enabled likes on all my articles!)

      Like

    1. Hi – I really like the look of your blog and enjoyed reading your words. You sound like good company.

      I can identify with missing the seasons turning the year in San Francisco. When I lived in SF time didn’t seem to move in the same way that it does here in the UK. It had lost its markers.
      By the way – does that marvellous foghorn still sound there?

      Good luck with your blog and with your music.

      Like

      1. There is still a fog horn I believe, though I’m not 100% certain. I moved from LA to SF in 2003, I was in LA almost 9 years, so it was even more of an adjustment from Buffalo to LA where there are essentially no seasons. At least in SF we have microclimates and can go an hour in any direction and get different temps, or even drive to where there’s snow if you crave it.
        Cheers and thanks for the feedback! Follow if you dig!

        Like

      3. Checking out yours now, looks suited to my interests, grew up on punk and old school Hip-Hop simultaneously and have been a big psych head since the the late 80’s when there were maybe 3 of us in Buffalo that liked that shit. Played with some LA legends too. Look forward to digging in!

        Liked by 1 person

    1. Bravo. I’m certain yours is one of the first ripples 🙂 I too was thoroughly inspired by Ms Watson’s speech and I hope the sentiments she evoked will continue to raise awareness for the cause.

      Like

  16. Good day people – check out my recent blog post! I was thinking about the real inspiration of those who work hard in our communities and got the passion to say something. “Fear will imprison, enslave and destroy a Man. Courage will set him free, and Love will give Man the wings to fly.” http://www.basicresilience.com

    Like

  17. I’ve recently changed the layout on my blog. I’m currently applying to study journalism at uni and having a blog is a great advantage. Any feedback would really help ! Thank you  sophsonanadventure.wordpress.com

    Like

    1. Hello there, fellow journo 🙂 you’re off to a brilliant start with blogging, creative liberty at your fingertips. Might I suggest taking a step away from the screen prior to publishing the post, then returning to recheck? I find I often overlook grammatical issues in the first few sweeps and the final once-over always does the trick. It also allows me to spot redundant words and edit. Have you considered including images as well?

      Like

      1. I’m definitely going to come back to my work before publishing to check for errors! I’ve been so excited to start writing and publishing that I just published before checking my work but I’ve just started re reading my work
        already publish to change things!

        Images is something I’m going to start including! I’ve only just worked out how to add them!
        Thanks for the advice

        Like

  19. Can anyone please tell me how to add pingbacks? Remember those nifty things we used to link to different related posts on other blogs?

    I need someone to explain (as they will to a 2-year old) if I can still do that and HOW do I do that. Any and all help will be highly appreciated. I’ve read the help forum but I don’t understand technicalities 😦

    Oh and while you’re at it, here’s my blog:
    http://impcatharsis.wordpress.com/

    Read, enjoy and leave feedback!

    Like

  21. Hi guys! I recently started a blog to promote positive thinking and optimism. The world we live in is full of too much negativity these days. I aim to inspire and motivate others to do what makes them happy and succeed in life. Any feedback or comments would be greatly appreciated 🙂

    thepositivefox.wordpress.com

    Like

  22. Hallo everyone,

    I have been fortunate in that most of the people’s whose blogs I have visited, have returned the favour and made really positive contributions!

    I have started working on a separate blog for small and medium business owners. This is in order to extend my online presence to meet my career objectives.

    I would appreciate it if you would let me know what you think. Mostly I would like to know if the information is understandable and more importantly, whether it is useful.

    http://mymanagement101.wordpress.com/

    I realize that everyone does not necessarily always feel comfortable engaging in an in-depth content related discussion via commenting. Although these are most bloggers (including my!) favourite kind, I would be exceptionally appreciative if you would take the time to Like if you find this helpful.

    Thank you!

    Like

    1. Your page has a clean, professional look to it.

      The banner image is good and it tells your visitors what you do. But I would make the writing at the bottom, under each of your four areas of focus, more legible. Maybe a different colour. I am finding it a bit hard to read. I feel that information adds much value as it tells potential clients what you can do for them.

      In your post, you talk about internal controls. I have much experience in this area and I can relate to what you are saying. However, I feel like you are putting too much emphasis on dishonest employees. Most of the time, checks and balances filter out errors, not attempts at theft. I think that if you focused more on preventing human error, and less on dishonest employees, it would be more appealing to potential clients. First, because such suspicion might be a turn off to employers who want to have a positive employer-employee relationship. And secondly, because everyone is susceptible to human error, and only some are potential thieves. Errors are simply much more common.

      If I’m a potential client that has noticed that my employees are engaging in shifty behaviour, I would chose your services. If I’m a potential client, and I have noticed that I’m losing money because of careless errors, I would go elsewhere.

      Liked by 2 people

    1. I love the way you use your photos to help tell the story. They break up a sea of words and help the reader share your experience. For example, the photo of the abandoned building when you’re talking about driving in your car past abandoned buildings. It makes it feel like we’re there in the car with you, seeing what you’re seeing. Great way to pull readers into your story. It was an excellent choice.

      I know how difficult it is to self-edit. I can write a piece, re-read it a hundred times, and still miss the little errors. These kinds of things are much easier to pick out when reading someone else’s words. We don’t have the luxury of professional editors, but we have each other.

      Here is an example that jumped out at me:
      “My mind just wondering back and forth about the various friendships”
      I think you meant to say that you mind was wandering.

      Your post is not full of errors. To the contrary, it was well written. Other than the example above, the only things I noticed were some slight punctuation missteps.

      Feel free to point out my typos and errors:

      Home

      Like

      1. Thank you so much for pointing that out. I read a post a month later and always find mistakes. But like you said no matter how much you read there is always something you miss.

        Glad you enjoyed the post. Thank you again for reading and for taking the time to comment.

        Like

    1. Hi michocot

      Your poem is quite good. I enjoyed reading it.

      There are a couple of errors, probably typos. For example, when you say “This is what all people advice us from the past”, I think you mean to say “advise”. And in this line, “This world could be an long edition or a endless cast” it looks like you reversed “an” and “a”. Not a big deal and most people probably won’t notice. But for those who do notice, it distracts from the experience of enjoying the flow of the poem. I would just suggest that you be a little more careful with your editing.

      I also browsed around your page in general and I have a couple of comments. I like the images you use to adorn your website. The pages are uncluttered and not too busy. The general look is clean and classy.

      But again, some re-reading is required. For example, the word criticised is spelled as critisized right there at the top in the line under your page title. The first sentence in your “about” page feels like it needs more periods instead of commas. And finally, in your “gallery” section, you refer to native Americans as native Indian Americans. Native Indians are people native to India. The only reason why native Americans were called Indians was because the first explorers originally believed they found India. They were very wrong. If I were you, I would want to disassociate myself from their mistake, and just call them native Americans.

      Sorry for criticising. But overall there is more good than bad. I thought it would be more constructive to point out areas where you could improve instead of focusing on the many great aspects of your site. Feel free to visit mine and criticise as much as you want.

      Home

      Liked by 1 person

  26. Hello Blogging World!

    After much consideration on whether I should or shouldn’t, I have just published a 4000 word short story to my blog. And I will probably cry if no one reads it and leave feedback!

    If there are avid readers out there, please take a look at

    Through The Window of Reality

    Any and all comments will be appreciated!

    Raiha -x

    Like

    1. Very good story. Easy to read. Good use of descriptive phrases which pull the reader into the scene. Good length; not so long that it gets boring, but long enough for the reader to develop a bond with your characters. Above all, your story has a good point and a solid message. Well done.

      As with just about every blog I read, it needs to be re-read and edited for accuracy. In this example:

      “Oh. Right.” Maya shrugged and unscrewed the bottle.

      Everything around this implies that it was Cyn who unscrewed the bottle. Either you accidentally put the wrong name, or you need more here to put the bottle in Maya’s hands.

      There was also a place where you forgot the closing quotation mark, but now I can’t find where it was.

      Other than those few minor details, it was a very enjoyable read.

      Feel free to point out my errors.

      Home

      Like

      1. Hullo Robyn,

        Thank you for reading and leaving such an in-depth comment. I totally agree with you on the editing part. The problem is that I have read this SO MANY TIMES that I’m now blind to its errors. I think I’ll get my sister to proofread this.

        However, I’ll definitely look at the type of errors you’re talking about, I never really thought about it before because, like in the example you gave, I know who’s opening the bottle but the readers. obviously, don’t. So thanks for pointing that out!

        I just sent the link of my blog to an amazing teacher of mine who had been asking for it for a while now *shudders*. So I’m going to correct these mistakes ASAP or he’ll think I’m sloppy!

        Oh and I’m already having fun looking at that creepy skeleton place you’ve posted about. I would LOVE to go there. And how cool would this place be in a rock song-video?

        Thanks again,

        Raiha -x

        Like

      2. Hello Raiha

        I know what you mean. I imagine most of us have that problem. No matter how many times I read my writing, there is always something I miss. I know what I’m trying to say, so when I edit my work, I sometimes read what I think I wrote, not what is actually there. The more times I re-read something, the worse the problem gets. The only thing that helps me is to walk away and give myself a chance to forget what I wrote a little. Then come back to it with fresh eyes and try again.

        Thanks for visiting my blog. I appreciate it. The Sedlec Ossuary is pretty cool. There are other buildings around the world that use human remains as parts of their structure and decor. But this one is by far my favourite.

        Liked by 1 person

  27. As a PR student I am learning and experiencing the world of PR and I find, “The Daily Post” to be beneficial in that you guys help me understand on creating a great blog, how to get feedback, etc. I appreciate the posts. If you could check out my blog and let me know what you think.

    jayala2.wordpress.com

    Thank you!

    Liked by 1 person