Jun 15, 2015 / Community Pool

Community Pool

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

Photo by <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/63057306@N04/5734415538">Beachfront Solutions</a> <a href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0/">(CC BY-SA 2.0)</a>

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! We tend to delete duplicate comments asking for feedback on the same post.
  • 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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  3. Hi,

    Blogging has been my hobby for about four years. I began after having cancer but later I started to write about many other things: books, art history, traveling, memories, family life etc.

    I truly enjoy it. But I write in my mother tongue, which is Finnish, and for that reason most of my readers are Finns, here up North or abroad. I would love to have discussions with other people too, but language is very important to me and it’s a big choice to change it.

    https://katveita.wordpress.com/

    Liked by 1 person

  6. Hey Emma Kidd here…
    I made a blog back in April and i got some feed back and views here and there but recently ive been getting nothing.. If you guys could give me some feed back, Ill be posting a new journal entry here in a few and i hope you guys give me some advice and views if you can!
    Thanks again, Emma Kidd ❤

    Liked by 1 person

  8. can someone send me feedback on my blog post, ive never done one before and want to know what people think, its called ‘I’m Sanah…’

    Like

  9. Been posting some short snippets of writing from this past semester, if anyone would like to check them out! Happy to have a look at anyone else’s blogs tomorrow morning (it’s super late here…late enough for it to be classified early)

    Liked by 1 person

  11. Hey everybody! I would love some feedback on my “About Me” page! I’ve been trying to improve it for a while and could really use some outside opinions. Thanks for the help!

    About

    Like

  12. Hey,
    I’ve recently got back into blogging and I know there needs to be some aesthetic changes I was wondering whether I could possibly have some feedback on my content. It would be great to work on my blog to get it more popular and I would really appreciate it.
    http://www.midiwombatz.wordpress.com

    Like

  16. Hiya everyone,

    This is probably quite a straightforward question, but I can’t seem to figure it out. Ive just written a post, wanted a few pics up, but didn’t want the post too long with the actual recipe. how can I write an additional page and attach the link to the original post? I tried adding a page, but wasn’t quite sure how to get a link to it without publishing it?

    Liked by 2 people

    1. Hi! If you’re referring to your Tres Leches Cake post I have a few suggestions:

      First, I don’t think the post is too long at all, just a little awkward to read. I think what you’re wanting to do can be best achieved by adding a Read More tag to the post.

      Keep the introductory text (might I suggest breaking up the brick of text into smaller, easier to read paragraphs?), enter your Read More tag, then anyone interested in the pictures and recipe can click to see more.

      I would also recommend inserting your recipe before your pictures with the format you have. It LOOKS great; I’d try it in a heartbeat.

      Liked by 1 person

      1. Thanks Leisel for all those tips, they will definitely help going forward. However, I’m still not sure how I would add a “Read More” page… I know I would need to link it, but where do I write the extra (pics/recipe) before I link it to “read more”. Do I use a new page to put that additional info in? I appreciate your time.

        Liked by 1 person

    1. I would say that your blog looks nice now, although the sidebar/content drop down menu looks kind of cluttered. Maybe customize it so everything isn’t there twice and reduce the amount of information displayed there. Otherwise, your content and blog look great, keep it up!

      Like

    2. I will say that it looks rather plain. Inserting relevant photos here and there will help break up the text and draw the eye. I would also recommend breaking some of your longer paragraphs up into shorter, easier to read paragraphs. A little splash of color in the background would work wonders, too. Play with it and make it yours.

      Liked by 2 people

  18. Hi all, I guess I’m rather new to blogging, and I’ve finally managed to set up a site that I’m fairly happy with. I think I just need an outsiders opinion of it, really.
    I know I haven’t really got off to a flying start and have written about particular topics, so I know I need to improve there, but I guess it’s the usual questions like, does the colour scheme work? Is it better to have the first few sentences of each post be seen one after the other, or should every post be seen in full? And also, is it even interesting? I mean, I’m hoping to make people smile, or god forbid, even laugh, so I’m wondering whether or not that’s actually possible…

    https://myabsurdversionof.wordpress.com

    Oh, and is the name any good? (And if the link does’t work probably, I’m really sorry, but me and technology don’t get on very well)

    And I already know that I ramble. A lot. So I suppose another question could be does it actually make sense? Or is it just a waste of time to read?

    Thanks in advance for anyone who is prepared to plough through my writing.

    Liked by 1 person

    1. I LOVE THE NAME. Period. It’s so witty!

      Also, I love the theme. It’s simple and clean and really nice. The colour scheme is also great!

      And it’s your choice if you want to include ‘read more’ in posts or not. It looks good as it is, with only a few lines showing but if you want, you could try not using ‘read more’ and see if you like it or not. But it’s fine this way too.

      About your posts; they’re fun! Keep writing! 🙂

      Overall, your blog is really nice!!

      Like

      1. Ah, thank you! Thank you thank you thank you! I’m very happy someone other than me can appreciate it.
        I think I prefer the short excerpt shown rather than all my long posts listed out so that I don’t have to scroll through them all and spend five minutes just getting to the bottom of the screen.
        Again, thanks, I do appreciate you spending time to read it.
        I checked out your site too, and am going back to explore further 🙂

        Liked by 1 person

      3. Yes, I like your stuff. The short stories and nice and sweet, they aren’t too long or too complicated, they’re each a little bubble or glimpse into a different world.
        I’m not the biggest fan of poetry, I’m afraid to admit, but you do create some lovely imagery, and I noticed NaPoWriMo – is that National Poem Writing Month? (I ask because I do NaNoWriMo myself when I can)

        Like

      4. Thank you!
        And yes that’s it and I failed at it miserably! I couldn’t even go on after 10 days of it. Lol.
        Oh that’s cool! Have you ever finished with NaNoWriMo? I haven’t tried ever but I might try it this year. It seems awfully tough though. Sigh.

        Like

      5. But that must have been hard, though, because you’d need to have lots of poems as a reference, and then to modify them rather than to create your own is a strange way of writing poems (at least it is for me). What you did do was good, though.
        I’ve managed to just about complete Nanowrimo twice now, although I found it very tricky and what I wrote was absolute rubbish, I had no time to edit it so it was all just one long ramble. If you’ve got the time and the patience (to sit at a computer and solidly write 1,600 or so words every day), go for it. Why not? You could even do a collection of short stories, if that’s more to your liking, you don’t have to do 50,000 all on the same thing. That might be even harder though!

        Like

      6. Yeah. It was hard which was why I couldn’t finish it. :/
        That’s great!! At least you finished it! I don’t have the patience but I will try it this year. Let’s hope something good comes up of it haha.
        Thanks for the advice!

        Like

    1. I think your blog looks rad. But if still you aren’t happy with it, you could always google for new and more creative blog themes. Maybe, to add more colour to your blog, you could create a banner/header for your blog. For that, you can google tutorials on how to make a header. They’re pretty easy to make and you can even use a software as easily available as ms word to create them.

      Also, you could add a ‘featured picture’ to every post, to add more colour to it. The picture will probably show up at top of each post unlike a picture embedded in post which shows up within the text. That could make it even more colourful and visually appealing, I think.

      Otherwise, your blog looks pretty good. 🙂

      Liked by 1 person

    2. Your blog looks fine as it is but I would suggest having a play around with the themes to see if there is something that you are happier with. There are so many choices out there and you can see a preview of how your new theme will look before committing to a change. 🙂

      Liked by 1 person

    3. Your blog is very clean and easy to read- I like that! An easy way to make it a little bit more visually appealing is adding a side bar. Press “customize”, go down to “widgets” and add a few that you like!

      Liked by 1 person

    1. I liked the post about Kay Burley. Glad you called her out! Seriously, you use language differently than I do but that makes the world go round.

      Liked by 1 person

      2. Don’t misunderstand. I think you’re more straightforward than I am. Sometimes I use humor just to soften up some of my comments…peace.

        Liked by 1 person

    2. I really enjoyed your post, I think you did a great job explaining the situation and your language very effectively conveys your feelings of the situation. I also like how you included links to further explain and cite your sources. Great job Steve!

      Liked by 1 person

  21. Hello! I’ve just started my blog in the past week and I’d like some constructive criticism. My family reads it but I don’t know if they’re being forthright. Help, please.

    Liked by 1 person

    1. So I just read No Greater Love – I find it intriguing. I want to know more about what happened to your son and why you feel he is missing. I looked up MIA and of course should have known, but I would say the post has done its job if it got me interested enough to look up something, got me thinking about what you are feeling and why. I would read more…..so keep going.

      Like

      1. Thanks for the comment, Helen. After rereading the post a few times, I think I understand what you’re saying. It’s a very tough subject for me but sometimes I feel the need to write it down. Therapy, you know. Please have another look when you have a moment. I appreciate your kindness.

        Like

  22. In this post, I resisted the temptation to detail all the thoughts and interpretations of the analogies and messages I am drawing from some pretty powerful experiences and emotions. it leaves so much unsaid. Does this make it more interesting for the reader, or does it just become meaningless?

    Savouring the moment

    Liked by 1 person

    1. So I just jumped into this, without knowing anything about you or your blog. I would say that you have answers to your questions that are more interesting than the questions. If you could somehow find a way of presenting your thoughts so that they are more prominent than the highlighted questions, then the post would be more approachable to a stranger.

      But people who know you might be drawn in by the presentation you have here … Another thought….. how would it look if you took one question, give your short answer , then expound on it a bit so we find out a bit more about where you are coming from with your answers?

      It sounds like you have some interesting stuff to say 🙂

      Like

      2. So what you’re saying is, I should tell about what influenced my answers? Like tell about personal experiences and how they have influenced my answers to the questions?

        Liked by 1 person

  25. First problem…I thought I had posted but don’t see it here. So apologies if this is a repeat. In my latest post, I have tried not to say everything that I wanted to say…I am practicing shorter posts as I feel they have previously been too long.

    I have ended up with just a few passing thoughts which perhaps represent something of the dilemas, highs and lows and pressures in life. I am wondering if it just reads like a badly written poem, or whether it resonates and conveys anything meaningful?

    Savouring the moment

    Like

  26. Hello, one and all! Hope you like gaming and films, because I certainly do.

    Whether your motivation is at an all-time low, or you love Disney’s flicks as much as I love ketchup, you’re in for a treat this week.

    It’s kept on the down-low, but I’ll let you in on a secret: Disney’s newest film, Zootopia, has released it’s first ever trailer. So, lets turn to Trailer Talks – a new page where I’ll introduce you to the hottest trailers, as well as the facts, dates, and opinions behind them.
    Find Zootopia’s T.T. here: https://sarcastination.wordpress.com/2015/06/11/zootopia-trailer/

    Meanwhile, I’ve reviewed Habit RPG: a website dedicated to dedication. Turn your to-do list into your very own RPG quest; just make sure to do your chores on time.
    Does Habit RPG work? WIll it be any good for you? And more importantly, is there any real Gold involved? Find out more here:
    https://sarcastination.wordpress.com/2015/06/10/habit_rpg/

    Liked by 2 people

  27. cecistrattonphotography.wordpress.com

    Hey all! I am trying out a new hobby! If anyone has any suggestions they would be greatly appreciated!

    Liked by 2 people

    1. I like your layout and format, I think you’ve got those spot on.

      I like your content as well, my only real complaint being that your individual articles are so short. I know brevity is the hallmark of modern internetivity, but I think your posts could be a bit longer. I don’t think this is a bad problem to have, for a reader’s complaint to be that there’s not more to read, but I could foresee terseness driving off some viewers who would like more in-depth explorations than two-hundred odd words allow.

      Regardless, it was a pleasure to read, well done.

      Like

  30. Hi all. I have recently started blogging about invisible illnesses, disability, my own struggles, alongside some more lighthearted poetry and info on my craft works. I would be really grateful for feedback on content and design 🙂 I am a complete newbie at this!

    thebekindtimes.wordpress.com

    Liked by 1 person

    1. I’ve commented on one of your posts that I really liked. You have introduced a variety of styles already – keep it up, it is good to hear from someone looking at life from a different viewpoint and unique challenges.

      Liked by 1 person