Jan 25, 2016 / Community Pool

Community Pool

The place for feedback, advice, 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?

Did you just start blogging and you’re not sure how to get going? Has your blog been dormant for a while but you’d like to give it a jolt of life? Join our free Blogging 101 course (or any of our other offerings at Blogging U.).

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.
  • We discourage leaving links without a more substantive message or question. These are often overlooked by other bloggers, and we frequently remove them to make the comment reading experience smoother.
  • 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.
  • No running on the deck.
Show Comments

980 Comments

Comments are closed.

Close Comments

Comments

  1. Hello there awesome people !
    I hope you all are doing great 🙂
    I’m a free blogger, i write about everything, mostly human rights and i give my pinion truly, honestly, about recent situations,
    My main goal is to inspire people, make them smile, and influence them to make a changer in their lives.
    I hope you guys take the time to check my blog.
    itsmesaraa.wordpress.com

    Thank you 🙂 !!

    Liked by 3 people

    1. Hello again. Your writing is fine (shows who you are rather well), but you could use with some color around the place. Find some graphics, change the menu colors…a little splash goes a long way!

      Liked by 4 people

    1. I would add a page break or two, or possibly a read more tag. It is a bit long and I found myself wondering how many days you were going to speak about. Your actual writing is very nice, so don’t change that at all. 😀

      Liked by 2 people

    3. You’ve got a nice looking blog.
      I’ve also noticed that you put up some varied posts and they’re increasing by the numbers. I feel there is a need for some categorization here.

      Liked by 1 person

  7. It’s been a while since I dropped by. I can see many new faces and names. I look forward to seeing what the pool is blogging about these days! Oh yeah, my credentials: Herman’s Neutics (http://www.hermansneutics.com/) Light humor and Christian thought schmushed together in one site.

    Liked by 3 people

  9. I’m thrilled to have the opportunity to receive some constructive criticism by others who may be further along in their writing career than I am. I have recently started blogging outside my own site and am posting a “blog blurb” on my site each time a new post goes live. I would love feedback on how this looks. I want to make sure it isn’t confusing. My site is http://www.iamsteveaustin.com THANK YOU!

    Liked by 4 people

    1. Hell, Steve, your writing style is quite good, and your blog is very gripping (the first thing that I saw when I arrived – all those catching headings with their respective photographs – perfect!)

      The only thing that annoyed me is that I’ve found some topics that I really, well, find as cliches, but that’s me I guess. Great overall job.

      Liked by 3 people

      1. Hi there. Thanks so much for checking out my blog! I am glad you enjoyed my writing style and the layout of the site. I would be very interested to know which topics you find as cliche’. Seriously. Would you mind pointing a few out to me?

        Thanks again!

        Liked by 1 person

  10. Hello Nerds!

    My name is mckelodeon, and I run the nerd lifestyle blog, Nerd•ily. Now, you’re probably thinking, “That girl loves her some X-Files,” right? Well, if you were, that would be oddly specific. But, in fact, I never watched an episode until last night’s premiere.

    I know, weird, huh?

    If you want to know what I thought, and discuss sci-fi, then head over to my latest blog post here: http://nerdilyblog.com/2016/01/25/the-x-files-through-virgin-eyes-my-reaction-to-the-new-season/

    Thanks, and have a Happy Monday!

    Liked by 4 people

  11. Hey all! I not-so-recently started a blog, however, this year I want to take blogging a bit more seriously. The problem is, I feel like I’m finding it difficult to stick to a certain topic, and therefore I’m not sure how to structure my blog. Part of me feels like I should just write what I feel like writing, and then think about restructuring once my blog begins to grow. Another part of me says that I should think about categories first, so my posts can fit neatly into those categories to draw in more readers. I’m confused whether to have more focus on me as a “brand/ style” at this point or not.

    What are your thoughts?

    I’m discovering that I seem to lean towards posts about a balanced lifestyle- but what I write seems quite far removed from other “lifestyle” bloggers. I want so badly to have a unique voice, but I feel as though I come across as confused or convoluted instead.

    Any help is greatly appreciated! https://bitesizedkitchen.wordpress.com/

    Liked by 3 people

    1. Just DO IT!

      Go ahead, write about what you whatever you like! Let your ideas flow from your inner depths, through your fingers, to your notebook/keyboard! Because that one thing is what makes our blogs unique; variety! Readers will decide whether they like your style or not; you soon will find yourself with your own little custom public.

      About the organisation issue: use tags and categories to put everything in its place. Maybe have a couple pages on top where you link your different posts on different topics (one page for lifestyle, one page for quotes, etc.)

      Liked by 2 people

      1. Thanks so much, JustADreamCraver! I am going to have a little bit of a re-organize with my tags and categories, but I will take your advice and I won’t let that stop me with posting anything that’s on my mind. Thanks again for the encouragement!

        Liked by 1 person

    2. It’s mostly about feeling the urge t write(i guess) and then it goes. like really. write about what you feel is right, and what reflects your true self.
      That’s when you are a successful writer 🙂
      I really liked your posts 🙂

      Liked by 3 people

      1. Thanks! Part of having this blog is about trying to find my true self and open myself up to the world (I have always been so fearful of criticism, and I still am to an extent.) I’m hoping that blogging will help me gain more confidence with how to really express myself. I really appreciate your comment; it means a lot to me.

        Liked by 2 people

      2. You know what they say.. you gotta fall before you learn to Fly..
        basically what im trying to say is that you’ll always hear criticism, and what you have to do is take these criticisms and turn them into a way in which you can lean from. People will always have a thing to say. whether you’re doing good or bad, so don’t be afraid just do what you wanna do.
        Im really glad 🙂

        Liked by 2 people

      4. I am new to blogging as well, just been a couple of days. Don’t worry much about what you is on your mind for the day or what u would like to discuss or share with others, and go for it! All the best

        Liked by 2 people

      5. Thanks! I think it’s because I’m a bit of a perfectionist so I feel bad uploading anything that’s not “perfect” which puts a damper on myself. I need to be a bit more easygoing and explore more!

        Liked by 2 people

    3. Confused can be good. Convoluted… bad. The question to ask yourself is “why are you blogging?” Are you trying to get known, make money, leave a mark on the world, improve your writing…? I think by trying to nail down your topics ahead of the game you will limit yourself. I tend to write on any topic that comes up. Some get blogged, some don’t some get submitted to the paper or magazines. My goal is to improve my writing and get some cred so I can appear in some well known running magazines. To that end, I’ve been *trying* to write about running. I’m finding that if I don’t have anything I need to say, nothing good comes out.

      I think you should just write and reformat your blog in the future to meet the goals of the blog as they change.

      Liked by 2 people

      1. Thanks, Jeff. I often forget that I can always reformat.. it just seems to daunting especially when I’m new to wordpress (I only recently found out I could convert categories to tags and etc..) But you’re right. I am going to write a bit about what to expect in my blog for the time being, and at least that can be a starting point for me to evolve from. Thanks for the positive words and I wish you the best of luck with your blogging endeavours, too. 🙂

        Liked by 1 person

      2. A lot of people give the advice to find you niche quickly and stick to it but I don’t agree! At first, I worried my blog wasn’t focused enough and didn’t have a specific genre so people wouldn’t enjoy it or get it. I would also stop posting about certain topics because I didn’t have a double chins photo to go with it (that sounds weird but my blog is called http://www.chinsontour.com haha). I agree with you, don’t limit yourself and make sure you write about topics you care about! Having a reformat or trying something new won’t hurt so there is no harm in trying!

        Have a good day!

        Liked by 1 person

    4. Hi! I just peeked over at your blog, and will follow because I like it – but I thought I had better say hi first, ha! You have a good mix of things on your blog and all are very interesting. Being someone who is also struggling with getting organised on her blog (heh!), I would suggest making categories like “Recipes” “Reviews” etc, then tagging them with more detailed words. Also I like the fact you are not like other writers. Try not to compare yourself with other people because you really don’t want to be like everybody else. Who says they are doing it right anyway? Its your blog, write what you connect with. And finally (sorry for the long-ness) there is a Blogging University Event coming up called Blogging 201. Not sure of the date yet, but its about branding and how to give it some “oomph”. I’m going to sign up when the date is shown, so if you are interested, I will let you know. Now I’m going to slide quietly out of here and follow you. 🙂

      Liked by 1 person

      1. Wow that Blogging 201 thing does sound really interesting! I’d love to know more, thanks!! I really appreciate your feedback and I’m really happy to know that you like what I have to say! Thanks for the encouragement. I think the next plans I will take are taking on Jeff’s advice to make an “about this blog/ what you’ll find here” post, and re-organize some of my menus/ categories now that I’ve gotten a better handle on WordPress. 🙂

        Liked by 1 person

      2. Here’s a link to the actual place. It gives a little run down of the stuff they cover. https://wordpress.com/dailypost/blogging-university/blogging-201-branding-growth/ I just did the blogging 101 course, and everyone is super helpful and encouraging. Yeah I think Jeffs advice is good – WordPress in general looks difficult because there are so many ways to do stuff, but its fairly straightforward to get a blog looking the way you want. There are no mistakes, ha!

        Liked by 2 people

  12. I’d like to come in contact with people into Gaming and other things around the area, I’d love to build a community and partnership I’m just trying to make a little more interesting come into my topics. Thanks

    Liked by 2 people

    1. you know what forced me to click and read your post even more? your blog name.
      Let me tell you one thing at first, you’re beautiful. and let no one tell you other than that.
      and im glad you posted something about bullying… this “not so human like” thing should be stopped.
      Followed ! 🙂

      Liked by 1 person

    3. May be you should reduce the number of tags per post? For example, ‘bully’, ‘bullying’ aren’t two separate words and search engines these days are much smarter than we can imagine. I would say it’s best to keep the tags to 3-4 at max, for generally a topic doesn’t really focus on more points than that.

      Liked by 3 people

    1. Hi I’ve just checked out heythere society. Well done on making a start on your blog. Can I suggest you now add something to your ‘about’page. It will give readers an idea about who you are and what you are planning to blog about. If you are not sure what I mean, please feel free to check out my ‘about’. Good luck with your new blog from Debra @https://cultivatingtime.wordpress.com

      Liked by 2 people

    1. Ha! Your blog made me grin, in the positive sense. And that’s a difficult thing these days, congratulations!

      – Layout: Very interesting. Headings with questions that everyone has made to himself at some point in their life, graphic material.. great.

      – Content: Such attractive topics. I couldn’t separate my eyes from your topics. Varied writing style.

      – Overall: 9/10, but just because I never give a 10/10 to anyone. Great job.

      Liked by 2 people

      2. Wow! Such level of observation for a feedback! You surely deserve 10/10 for that. Hehe. 😛
        How I wish I could see the faces reading my posts sometimes. It’ll be so much more fun. The smiles, the grins and may be even the mehs! 😉

        Liked by 1 person

    2. I’m male and at college – that’s not the kind of audience you were looking for sure, but gosh, you kept me reading with your words! Keep up the good work!

      P.S: Am I the only one that doesn’t like reading posts vertically? I would like to be able to choose from a list of posts by their title and a few words, but everybody seems to want to force you to read all of their posts.. haha!

      Liked by 2 people

    1. Well, I don’t know what to say, so I’ll write as it comes to my mind.

      I open the blog: Before I realize, I find myself reading a bit stereotypical but tremendously alluring story.

      More! More! More! My mind asks and my fingers obey; I click on the stories droplist and select ‘What was I thinking?’

      Oh, dearie, what a mess. It’s so hard to browse through that page; too many characters!. Not very encouraging. The rest could be said for the whole thing. It’s a shame; such beautiful content should be easier to find.

      Keep working, I like it!

      Liked by 1 person

  21. Well, I guess it’s my turn. I’m just another Spanish student who writes inspired by love that cannot be. I tried to make it as enticing as possible.

    cravingdreams.wordpress.com

    Thanks in advance!

    Liked by 3 people

      1. Hi I’ve just checked out your blog. I’ve left a comment for you. Well done on making a start on your blog. Can I suggest you now add something to your ‘about’page. I assume you don’t have one because I couldn’t find one on your blog. It will give readers an idea about who you are and what you are planning to blog about. If you are not sure what I mean, please feel free to check out my ‘about’. Good luck with your new blog from Debra @https://cultivatingtime.wordpress.com

        Liked by 1 person

    2. Hi – I enjoyed reading your post and I’m full of admiration for you being able to speak from the heart in a foreign language. You’re not from Gibraltar, are you?

      Your words about picking up pen and paper reminded me of Natalie Goldberg’s book – ‘Writing Down the Bones” – you’d find it interesting, I think.

      Keep writing
      Best wishes
      Elaine

      Liked by 2 people

      1. Why thank you, @Singbetterenglish! Your words honor me! Do stay tuned, I am writing chapter three right now!

        Haha, I’m not from Gibraltar – I grew up in Valencia and Madrid.

        Liked by 1 person

      2. P.S: I’ll check that book out whenever I have time to, right now I have very little spare time, and I almost fully dedicate it to blogging. But thank you!

        Liked by 1 person

  23. Hello, all,
    I’ve altered my blog to streamline it’s focus. Previously it had ranged from horticulture to art to writing. After starting my plant business I decided to put all things plant focused on that site and to keep Thistlehammer Transmutational (http://tinyurl.com/mwqtb2k) focused on writing. Writing had always been my most popular category.

    But, every since doing that I’ve gotten a lot fewer views. It’s not that the views are going to my plant site (http://tinyurl.com/j99jxtw) since tumble weeds would mark an increase in population there, so I’m not sure what’s going on. Would you mind talking a look at my site and letting me know what you think is going on?

    Thank you much,
    Alexander

    Liked by 3 people

    1. Hi, I just peeked over at your blog. Now….the first thing is that (in my mind) Agriculture and houseplants don’t really go together. Houseplants is one thing, Agriculture is another. Having said that, I do like your blog (even though I’m pretty hopeless with plants! Sorry, yes, I know that will break your heart) I think perhaps you need to connect with other like minded people – for example, checking out the reader tag thingy. You put in a search for *something* and a list of blogs comes up relating to that subject. Also, you have a unique blog, in that many people like plants, and put up pictures occasionally, but you take it to a new interesting level. This is good. Can I also suggest that if you are showing or attending local events in your area – maybe checking (I hate to say it) a Facebook group page, or somesuch might create more of a community feel to your blog in time. Blogging takes time to gather interest, but you have a niche angle (as far as I know) and thats such a good thing! Keep going 😀

      Liked by 3 people

  25. Hello. I asked for feedback last week and was overwhelmed by the support. I posted this poem yesterday and thought it should have been better received, can I get some poetry people to take a look and leave me some feedback in the link’s comments section please. Also do you think the image fit with the poem? It was hard trying to find an image I felt fit. Thanks in advance, and if you like it give it a like. https://drewmartinwrites.wordpress.com/2016/01/24/nobles-at-the-decaying-gates/

    Liked by 2 people

    1. Drew, I read the poem and I really don’t know quite what you mean to convey.

      That said, I think it would read better if there were less space between the lines. Use SHIFT+RETURN at the end of lines (for a soft break) rather than just RETURN (which gives you a hard break).

      In the html editor, you can paste your poem in between 

       at the start and

      at the end. You have to add those “commands” yourself. That preserves whatever spacing you started with.

      Finding a suitable photo is hard. The one you chose is OK. Somehow I got the feeling that a pile of ashes would be appropriate, though I’m not sure why.

      Liked by 1 person

  26. Hi all. I have started my first blogs that have kind of turned into a story. It’s a personal journey for me. Getting lots of views which is great, no likes or comments. Be interested in any feedback! I’m a newbie and finding my feet in this area…

    Liked by 3 people

    2. For followers, I think these might help:

      1. Keep on posting great content, true to your blog.
      2. Keep a layout that’s easy to understand
      3. Interact with other bloggers. Appreciate others like you would want them to appreciate your works. The community pool is a great place to start, 🙂
      4. Join other blogging networks like Bloglovin, Blogadda, IndiBlogger, etc.

      Liked by 1 person

  27. Hi! I am a couple months into blogging now, and am looking for some support. Would any of you be willing to follow my blog? It’s about ballet and eating creatively with allergies! I’m allergic to wheat, rice, and oats. If you follow, maybe I can inspire you with posts I create and you view. Here is the link to my blog, specifically a post about a healthy, deconstructed taco salad!
    http://fondufondue.com/2016/01/03/inventive-taco-salad-2/
    Open to feedback, and maybe some new followers!!

    Liked by 2 people

  28. I really like your blog – although I have nothing but sympathy with what you are going through. I haven’t been in your shoes, and I think perhaps thats why people aren’t sure whether to do anything on your blog. Even me – I didn’t like to press “Like” because I didn’t want to seem as if I was being smug (I know, its ridiculous, but if someone is sad at missing something so important in their lives, and someone else appears to “like” it, it feels wrong, lol) Anyway….I think if you were able to connect more with others in your situation, you might get a little community going. Blogging takes time, and your story is personal to you, so keep on going for goodness sake – its obviously helping! And you write very well, too. 😀

    Liked by 1 person

    1. The blog looks beautiful and your writing looks engaging as well. Only improvement I can suggest for now is, you could break the posts to a bit smaller size than what you are doing right now. Browsing just the home page gives it a lengthy look. Say one pic on the home page and the rest on the blog post could be sufficient. Photos on your blog are great by the way!

      Liked by 1 person

    2. What a lovely blog. It looks really nice, clean and fresh. You have soem Great little ideas. Keep it up. From Debra @https://cultivatingtime.wordpress.com

      Liked by 1 person