Mar 30, 2015 / Community Pool

Community Pool

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

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).

To help us make the Community Pool a productive space for discussion, here are some tips you might find useful:

TIP: 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.

  • While you’re not required to, we encourage everyone who requests feedback to also reply to at least one or two other bloggers who need some help. Spread the love!
  • The Community Pool comments section can get quite big — and starting duplicate threads doesn’t help. Thanks for not posting the same question more than once!
  • If you’re looking for quality feedback, be as specific as you can. Questions about a particular post tend to draw more comments than ones about entire blogs. Questions about specific design elements are more likely to be answered than ones asking for general layout advice.
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  • Please keep all comments civil and constructive. The idea is to have fun — it’s a pool, after all!
  • If you haven’t looked at our Commenting Guidelines in a while, now might be a good time.
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Photo by Brian Cantoni.

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  2. Hi everyone.

    I’m gradually posting my novel through WP.
    1. Can someone read these and tell me what you think?
    https://ellesadventureinchina.wordpress.com/chapter-3-sick/
    Visitors read this and they drop from my blog like people walking and texting.

    https://ellesadventureinchina.wordpress.com/chapter-10-cage-66/
    I’ve recently been using this for employment samples.

    2. Anything you would like to share about my theme? I changed it from 2010 to 2015 nearly 2 months ago. I know, quite an upgrade.

    Thanks! Will reciprocate!

    Like

    1. Hi Leanne. First of all congrats on having the willpower to write a novel. I read your samples and-please don’t take this the wrong way-found the writing was a bit amateurish for a novel. Many sentences were longer than necessary and grammatically awkward. The dialogue too wasn’t natural or grammatically correct. Please don’t think I’m bashing you-as someone who once made the same mistakes I’m only trying to help. Hang on to your dream and train yourself in the art of fiction writing. There are many books and web sites that explain it better than I could

      Like

    2. Had a look. Congrats on writing a novel. If you’re ok with some constructive criticism I found many sentences were far too long and disjointed. Much of the dialogue was grammatically awkward as well. I don’t say this to hurt but rather to help-I’ve been in your shoes before. Hang on to your dreams while researching the basics of fiction writing & you’ll see a marked improvement. Hope this helps

      Like

      1. Thanks for taking the time to read my samples and giving me constructive criticism. I came from years of academic writing – you might be familiar with it since we’re supposed to be formal while supporting our arguments – so it’s really hard to break from that. In my research of fiction writing, one of the good ones is “show don’t tell.”

        I will keep in mind those too-long sentences and grammatically awkward sentences the next time I proofread.

        Liked by 1 person

  3. Hi everyone – first time poster in the community pool – finally worked up the courage to dip my toes in ! I started my blog in September 2014. I write about child and youth mental health and how it impacts families and communities. I recently changed the format so it looks more like a website and I can highlight some of the things I am doing to promote mental health awareness. Would love any and all feedback on layout, content, etc. Thanks in advance!

    championsforcommunitywellness.com

    Liked by 1 person

  4. Greetings! I’m an archivist and I wrote this piece as a follow-up to an earlier one I wrote on the same subject, the sale of the Johnson Publishing Company photo archive. I’m an archivist by training and trade, so things like the sale of cultural collections really bother me. It’s a private sale, but it’s an interesting story. I’d love to know what you think, not only about my posts but the sale in general

    The follow-up: https://findingaid.wordpress.com/2015/03/28/on-sale-or-the-johnson-publishing-company-photo-archive-revisited/

    The earlier piece: https://findingaid.wordpress.com/2015/02/04/on-sale-or-johnson-publishing-company-sells-its-archive/

    Like

    1. Check you’re not over categorising and tagging, it’s a maximum of 15, that’s tags and categories included. Secondly, see if you’re tagging well, sometimes poor tags can be used and people don’t find the post.

      Like

  6. I’m just starting out here on WordPress. I’ve just got a couple of posts and an About page. In these I’ve described a vague direction I want to take my site, but I’m not really sure how to proceed . Any help, advice, or commentary would be much appreciated.

    Liked by 1 person

    1. I thought it’d be pretty cool if you had like a certain schedule every week, a certain day is dedicated towards your photography, another day is writing, another day is for your thoughts.

      It could help you be motivated to keep blogging and give you a sense of direction.
      You could make it fun can name them like Monday Musings, Friday Fiction. etc 😀

      Liked by 1 person

    1. First of all, I like your blog name. People underestimate the importance of having a good one. I’m pretty new to blogging myself so I’m by no means an expert.
      The post was good, easy to read but I felt like it was something I had heard before. It would be good if you could put some of your personal experience in there. Good luck x

      Liked by 1 person

  10. Hello blogging world! I am very new to the scene and would love some feedback and readers! Check out my posts. I love traveling and backpacking and that is what my posts are mainly about! I would also love to turn my blog into a lifestyle blog.
    Thanks!

    Liked by 2 people

    1. You have some great photography in your Grand Canyon post and some interesting writing. I would suggest making the images in your posts bigger and then your posts will look better visually, at the moment they are too small compared to the text. 🙂

      Like

    1. I’m pretty new to blogging myself but perhaps you could use the -read more- tag? This way your front page can showcase a few of your posts without having to scroll down so much.

      Your latest post was an interesting read.

      Like

      1. Thanks for your feedback! I’ll go apply that tab right now. When you say “interesting read”, what do you mean? I’m very self conscious about my writing and like to get honest feedback on it haha

        Like

      2. I thought it was well articulated and a perspective on something I’ve never thought about.

        Like

  14. Have just started blogging weekly and am looking for feedback not so much on content of last few posts, although that is very welcome, but writing style, (not a lit. major), site look ideas, etc. Would appreciate any feedback

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Your writing looks pretty good – easy to read, no glaring typos or anything. My comment would be that your posts seem intimidatingly long.

      You’ve got a lot of text there – 900+ words in your most recent post – and the the narrow width of the main column makes it seem much longer, since so much scrolling is needed to reach the end of the post.

      Maybe experiment with a wider column (if possible) or add an extra line between paragraphs to break things up a bit more?

      Liked by 1 person

    1. I liked your post and it gave me something I didn’t know. I wish you would have included more widgets to help the reader be able to see other works that you have done. Other than that I think your blog is great!

      Like

    2. I would say like a list of your most popular posts. Or a list of your latest posts. Or if you have a series of posts with the same topic you could make a page out of it. Things like that.

      Like

  16. I recently started this blog and am trying to decide which direction to take it. I currently have two posts which are my personal responses and opinions to other entries I’ve read. I would love some feedback and perhaps some advice on which direction I should go. Thanks so much!

    http://everyotherfreckle.com/

    Liked by 3 people

    1. Is there a particular topic you’re passionate about? Travelling, a particular hobby, food, sports, things you want to recommend to people, your opinion on life, anything

      1 tip to blogging is to keep consistent and put out content periodically. Where bloggers fail is they start to slowly lose momentum after a few weeks.

      Like

    2. I think both of your posts were very well written. I thought your first post had more emotion written into it. I think Pillowbunny is right. You write about what you’re passionate about. I think the direction you’re going, making observations on life and what you personally think, is fine. It pretty much what I do with mine. We also have articles that are similarly titled (I used the rabbit hole metaphor too). But that’s my opinion. The look of it was clean.

      Liked by 1 person

    3. Hi Jordan…I liked your posts, what I would say is that make sure that you are consistent once you know what you want to write about, add personality to your page, keep the connection with your readers throughout your unique writing, personal experiences and opinions make your blog different from others, which is a good thing:)
      Good luck!

      Like

    1. One easy and effective thing you can do is use Tags and Categories. When you “tag” your posts, they’ll show up in the WordPress reader for people browsing those keywords. For instance, in your most recent entry, you could tag it “Vampire Diaries”, “netflix”, “weekend”, whatever you think is relevant.

      You could expand on your post a bit more, by saying what episode of your Vampire Diaries binge you liked best or how easy/hard it is to find things on Netflix or if you prefer watching on a TV or your laptop, etc.

      Flesh your posts out a bit and use tags and people who are interested in what you’re writing will have an easier time finding you!

      Liked by 2 people

    1. I like your writing style…unique:)
      You are on the right track, you know what you want to write about, your blog has personality, which is really important!

      Liked by 1 person

    1. Well I just clicked on your site to help you with feedback and got lost in your article because of how helpful it was to me! So thanks. I always wondered about search engine hits! Great work.

      Like

    1. I am no specialist in craft beer…but what I could advise you is to work some more on the look of your page! It’s really good that you know what you want to write about, now make it look amazing…add pictures, people respond to visual things, have categories, tags- which make it easier to your readers to go through your posts! Good luck:)

      Like

  22. Hello everyone. I am heading into month 2 of my blog, and already I am struggling to steer it in a specific direction. I initially wanted it to be a creative arts and crafts blog, but its my photography that seems to be appreciated most. I’m happy to be doing that here regardless, but feel like I’m skipping around too much – even though photography IS a creative thing in itself, and what I am currently doing more of anyway. *sigh*. If anyone has time, could they take a look for me and suggest any way forward? Thanks so much https://retreeve45.wordpress.com/

    Like

    1. For a new blog I would say it makes sense that your photography is appreciated moreso in the beginning because it’s easier to digest and is suitable for a wider demographic. Crafts are for a more niche audience so that may be why you’re not getting as much reception at the beginning.

      I like the way it’s going so far so keep doing on what you’re doing!
      The important thing is to write/share what you like because it’ll come across to people if you’re passionate about what you’re writing about.

      Liked by 1 person

      1. Thank you – thats what I thought too. I enjoy all types of creativity, but worry sometimes that its all becoming a bit haphazard! I did promise to be organised in my About page, and I’m still working on that. I agree it takes time though – a month is nothing in Blogland, ha!

        Liked by 1 person

      2. I say do what feels good. Wrote what excites you and it will excite other people. But having said that the blog is a little different than what is described in your about me page. But I do really like the photography. Have you ever thought about two blogs? One about crafts and one about photography? Could be too much keeping two of them up…

        Like

      1. Thanks for looking and commenting. 🙂 Changes are going to be made to freshen it up a bit and make it a bit more streamlined!

        Liked by 1 person

    3. I really enjoyed looking at your blog. I wouldn’t be hurt by people concentrating more on your photography because – like Pillow Bunny said – “it is easier to digest”. I must admit, I did enjoy your photos as well. They were beautiful 🙂 If you decide to continue with posts consisting mainly of photos, I would suggest changing your theme to a photography theme. Only because it will highlight your photos and make them really stand out. Some themes are in between photography and written posts so you could to continue with a couple different niches (Which I think is fine). I really enjoyed looking at your blog, and I liked the theme, but I don’t think it works well with photos. BUT if you like it, then don’t change it!! It’s all about what you like!! Stay Chipper 🙂

      Liked by 1 person

      1. Hello, and thanks for taking the time to write and have a look. 🙂 I agree with you that the theme doesn’t fit quite right if I’m heading down a mostly photography route, so I shall have a look today and see what others look better. I have joined the Blogging 101 that starts in April, so a combination of written and photos will be prominent anyway. You made good points, thanks again! 😀

        Liked by 1 person

  23. Hey all! We have just started blogging and could use and and all pointers you could give us about the look/feel of the site and the content within. Criticism is appreciated. We would like to get more traffic and are using most of the platforms available. Check us out, please!

    http://howtofangirl.com/

    Liked by 2 people

    1. Hi how2fangirl.

      You’ve got a great sense of humour combined with an experienced and insightful position on fandom. I look forward to what you’re going to write next.

      I liked your post about not taking fandoms too seriously while still taking them seriously, but it just ends! You have some great insights going, but I would have liked a little more on how you’re trying to turn connotations about fangirls around.

      As a side note, I find that many gifs a little distracting. But that might just be me. You have good ideas so you don’t need them.

      Like

    3. First let me just say, your GIFS are hilarious BUT as hilarious as they are, they are a little distracting. If you use one or two then I think it would be a good balance. They really do add a lot of character though! Second, your header is great. It adds a pop of color and really matches your fan girl theme. Your facebook logo is awesome as well! And third, I really think you should add the “follow me by email” widget to your side bar! I have 60 followers, 10 of them follow just though email because they don’t have a wordpress account. It makes it easy for ANYONE to follow you. All in all I love your blog and can’t wait to see your future posts!

      Like

    4. Loved it! The gifs were great, the layout is lovely, easy to read, easy to digest and well written. Loved the dream team post, a few faces in there I didn’t recognise but some I did, it seems like a really good blog and I think you’re going to be really popular as time goes by! Great work. Looking forward to reading more 🙂

      Liked by 1 person

  24. Hi guys, I updated my header and added an image. I’d love some feedback on that specifically as well as the overall look. Thanks!

    Like

  25. I love it! I just followed you. I remember those first few months of being a mum so well! Anyway, if you’re up for finding out what it’s like to have a toddler then my blog is http://www.kaboodlemum.wordpress.com... You’re welcome anytime!
    I really liked your writing style and honesty, your letter to your clothes was fab! Keep up the good work 🙂

    Like

  26. Thank you for the swift response to my post to: American Writers Exposed, amaya911,Life of an EP Woman and Amanda Ricks! I really appreciate it!

    Gracias por la pronta respuesta a mi comentario a: American Writers Exposed, amaya911,Life of an EP Woman and Amanda Ricks! Se los agradezco!

    Like

  28. Hello everyone, I really love the idea of community pool and can’t wait to spend some time reading new blogs. I posted last week and got some great feedback on my blog and am always looking for more.

    I am wondering what success others have had in increasing foot traffic to their blog both off of search engines, other blogs, or WordPress itself. Any advice you could give me would be helpful. It is very inspiring when I get comments and followers.

    Thank you kindly!
    Jenny

    Like

    1. Find similar blogs and engage with the writers if you like them, they will often check your blog out too.

      Use as many tags as possible when you post (but make sure they are relevant). I think 15 is the optimal number of tags. Give your posts and captions titles that people might search on search engines to increase your chances of discovery. 🙂

      Liked by 1 person

  30. Heya, this is a great idea! I have recently updated my blog such as for my images I have them in a collage format, I would love if someone could check out my blog and tell me if it looks good and is clear and easy to use/understand. I’d also appreciate any improvements offered too!

    https://blondewaves.wordpress.com

    thank you so much xx

    Liked by 2 people

    1. Hello! I took a look at your blog, and I think this collage theme is easy to navigate and works well for your fashion/beauty blog (since you post a lot of pictures). I saw that you added the links to your other social media accounts, which is nice. Perhaps consider adding an “about me” page for your wordpress readers/visitors to know more about you and your focus.

      Liked by 2 people