Feb 15, 2016 / Community Pool

Community Pool

The place for feedback, advice, and blogging camaraderie.

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

729 Comments

Comments are closed.

Close Comments

Comments

  2. Hello everyone,

    I have been blogging for last over a year, although my focus area is political science and public policy, but I do write about social and personal issues as well as just about anything inspires me on the same blog. But I am not getting as much feedback/following as I would like to, so I found this Community Pool a great idea.

    Please review one of my posts: http://cognitivebackyard.com/2015/09/17/social-class-discrimination-at-work/ and tell me what do I need to do more to get out there. Any ideas on topic selection, structure, and diction, anything you can advise me on will be a great help.

    Liked by 2 people

    1. Hello again!

      I had a look and I really like it! I looked at the piece Clash of Civilisations: Is It Inevitable? as I clicked on the link that you gave me below rather than the one above which I just saw. I really like how you write; it is so informative, yet it has an intellectual feel about it too, which I personally find hard to achieve!

      One thing I found that stood out for me was the very beginning of the piece, where you mention your friend with Bipolar, which I think is great, because it shows that this isn’t a piece that you are disconnected from; you are very much connected and passionate about your writing, which I can definitely see.

      I think the only thing that I would say, is just ensure that the first paragraph that we see displayed on the homepage really grabs our attention. For example, with the piece that I mentioned earlier, as soon as I read “One of my friends has bipolar disorder.” you had my attention. It was as easy as that. I think that a short, solid fact like that is very attention-grabbing. If you had written this in a more long winded way, however, then I might not have been as intrigued to read it. I guess what I am trying to say is just keep writing as you are, because I really like it and it is very effective, but also avoid putting in too many words: if you have someone read your article that perhaps isn’t as literate as you are, then you would want it to appeal to them too, right?

      Anyway, I hope that this gives you an idea of what kind of effect your writing has. I’m not great at critiquing, I must admit. Good luck! 🙂

      Liked by 2 people

      1. OMG! Wow, this is great. Thanks a million. No, you are great. I got the point you made about attention grabbing. I will definitely keep that in mind whenever I write again. And thank you much for the kind words you have said about the writing itself. Its a great encouragement.

        Liked by 1 person

      2. No problem at all. If you ever need a proof reader or anything like that feel free to ask 🙂 I find that reading other people’s work helps me to realise the flaws in my own writing too, so it’s a lesson well learnt for us both!

        Liked by 2 people

  4. Hey guys! Would really appreciate it if some of you could take a look at some of my work at https://writeatnight1.wordpress.com/
    Like some of you have said, I don’t get any feedback at all unless I ask friends for opinions, and I only know three people who write, and they are different genres, so any comments on my work would be SO much appreciated!
    I am going to have a look at some of these now^ 🙂

    Liked by 2 people

    1. Hello,

      I see that you are writing very regularly, however, if you are having problems with attracting visitors, consider doing this:

      1. The blog posts are too cluttered. I recommend you pay more attention to the presentation, formatting, and paragraphing. Long paragraphs are equally scary as are long sentences.

      2. Think about re-doing the whole layout and colour preferences, some might be finding it as distracting and un-attractive. Consider a simple and minimalist theme with lighter colour which are generally helpful in on-screen reading.

      3. Read our link minded blogs and interact with their posts (not just to market yours, but to give them genuine feedback) and in time, they will come back and return the favour.

      4. Be patient, and keep writing regularly improving the aesthetics of your blog presentation.

      Would you like to review my blog? Visit here: http://www.cognitivebackyard.com

      Cheers!

      Liked by 2 people

      1. Hi, Okay, I will have a look at the things that you mentioned, I didn’t think of the blog posts themselves being too cluttered! I will also have a look at a new theme: I did just change it all completely a few weeks ago, but now that I look at it from a different point of view I guess it could look a bit confusing. I will take a look now, and thank you for the feedback, it was very enlightening!

        Liked by 2 people

    3. I like it. Your layout is very clean and crisp. I had no trouble navigating around. I also enjoyed reading your writing. It’s very introspective and personal. Keep it up! As a fellow writer, I gave you a follow 🙂 I’m looking forward to seeing more of your stuff!
      If you could take a look at my blog and give me some feedback as well, that’d be great! Thanks in advance 🙂

      Liked by 1 person

      1. Hey there! Thankyou, however I must give credit to two other bloggers who encouraged me to change the look up a bit as it was a bit in your face before! Why thank you, I shall now have a look at yours 🙂

        Liked by 2 people

  6. is there an easy way to block spammers, other than by blocking them individually? It’s nice to know my blog is spamworthy, but it a total pain in the patootie to keep blocking individuals that just keep changing their ip addresses. sigh

    Liked by 3 people

    1. extremely thought provoking arguments there. the poetry is nice (I just don’t like poetry) and your pages look clean and neat. Love the tree picture on the front page.

      Liked by 3 people

      1. Thank you for your comments. I understand your point about poetry. It is why I have tried to include three different styles that rotate to appeal to different people. Again, thanks. Cheers!

        Liked by 2 people

    1. I really liked going through your blog! I enjoyed how easy it was for me to look around. Clean layouts are always appreciated it. As for your content, it was very good. I appreciate how sincere and personal you are in your writing. Keep it up! I wish you the best of luck 🙂

      Liked by 2 people

  11. Hello
    I’m way outta my depth!
    I just got webhosting, did the WordPress thing, chose a theme, and now I’m having a wobbly!
    I can’t get this website sorted, the home page is supposed to be just one full picture, yet there is a bunch of other stuff at the bottom, the fonts are disastrous ….. Aaaaarrrghhh!
    I have found some websites ( like graphic burger) where I can buy some script like fonts which I love , now I have them, I can’t get them on my website.
    Oh what was I thinking starting a blog as a middle aged woman with no computer skills!
    Is it always so complicated?
    Could anyone point me in the direction of where to get some help…. Puleeeeeeze?

    A million thanks

    Liked by 3 people

    1. Hi there. First…. Take a deep breath and know you are not alone. Second…believe you will get the hang of it. Third…use your life wisdom and never let them see you sweat! LOL. Good, now have you found Blogging U yet? I’m in the same position as you here. I used to have a blog here years ago but since my exit back then things have changed so much I too am lost now. What has helped me was to google WordPress and the theme I chose. I am using Twenty Ten only because it is what I had ways back when so I kind of remembered it. I found a few articles about it with some beginner guidelines that at least help me feel like some of it made sense. You might try that and do a search here for Blogging U. I hope this is of some help. Just don’t give up, it’s worth the effort. Best of luck let me know when you get going.

      Liked by 1 person

    2. I second the commenter above who recommended Blogging U.:
      https://wordpress.com/dailypost/blogging-university/

      That said, some of the aspects of blogging covered there would be different from what you’re currently dealing with, since you opted to go with a self-hosted site. Here at WordPress.com, we take care of all the logistics of your site — performance, security, backups, anti-spam, SEO — so you can focus yon your publishing. If you want to learn more about the difference between WordPress.com and WordPress.org, check out this page:
      https://wordpress.com/support/com-vs-org/

      Like

  12. When I began several months ago, I first read the help documentation that WordPress had available on the internet. Have you tried that? Part of the complexity is that what you can do on your site varies by the theme you choose. If you are using a different company for webhosting while also using WordPress, that may make what you are trying to do more complex. For a simple website/blog, WordPress alone will work.
    I have two sites right now, both using only WordPress. One is a photo journal site: http://naturecalls7.wordpress.com and the other is a leadership blog: http://gracelead.co Because they have different purposes, I chose different themes. My suggestion is to keep it simple when you begin. Be patient with yourself.

    Liked by 3 people

  13. Hey guys, I am also a struggling blogger. I currently have three blog sites,

    writtrace.wordpress.com, impressiveread.wordpress.com and tracedin.wordpress.com

    I was wondering, should I combine them into one or just carry on with the three separate ideas?

    Thank You!

    Liked by 2 people

    1. Hi WritTrace -Having worked for an Inbound Marketing company for a year, I can tell you that it’s better to combine into one site. Otherwise you split your ranking and authority, which makes your ability to get found online much harder. By having one central site, you can channel people to one portal instead of splitting the traffic.

      Liked by 1 person

      1. Thanks, I understand that much. I am struggling with traffic! I was so keen on keeping the ideas seperate and distinct, but it is better as one. I will find a way to make the change in a month. Just have to decide on how interact them.

        Thank you so much!

        Liked by 1 person

  18. Afternoon All. I have decided to give blogging another go. I had a blog here years ago but life got in the way and I found that the little bit of time I had to blog was taking an angry turn and I felt that was no longer productive to me or anyone else, so I closed it, took a long break to find my center again…and here I am, back again but boy am I dumbfounded at all the changes I see. Thankfully they still had the “twenty ten” format since it was the only one I remembered. What I am very interested in is this new Blogging U. i found it here by chance and got very excited. I want to take the Blogging 101 getting started class but I am afraid I missed it. Can anyone tell me if or when it will be offered again? Also I have no idea how to put a link to my blog in a post or how to find my dashboard?

    I sure would appreciate anyone who would be willing to offer some one on one help here. I plan on blogging from both my IPad (as I am doing now) as a well as from my laptop, so I will be using both Apple and Windows and don’t know if that makes a difference.

    Please respond here or if need be to charliespz@aol.com. Thanks in advance and I look forward to the next chapter and new friends.

    Liked by 3 people

    1. Hi Tairallen – Where do I start? There is so much to learn about blogging, that you really pick it up as you go along. I’ve been blogging for two years and hadn’t a clue what I was doing in the beginning. Things like correctly tagging your posts to reach your target audience, inserting images, widgets and all the superficial stuff can be tackled later, but first….you need to start writing.

      I worked for an Inbound Marketing company and learnt some tips which I apply to my own site. To share a few – each post doesn’t need to be a ‘journalistic’ standard – 250-750 words optimised around certain key words is plenty. 2-3 times each week is a good starting point to release posts.Consistency is key. Search engines boost blogs which are frequently updated. Include images. Proactively reach out to similar bloggers, drop comments and build a network. They will respond in kind and encourage you in your own efforts.

      Anyway, that’s enough for now 🙂
      Best of luck,
      Aidan

      Liked by 3 people

    1. Hi Joshua,

      I had a quick look. It’s a lot to take in at first glance. I would suggest presenting your posts as the initial 2/3 paragraphs with an option for the reader to click ‘Read More’. It will certainly help when reading from a mobile/tablet device instead of scrolling endlessly to find the next post.

      Best of luck
      Aidan

      Liked by 3 people

    2. Hi josh, I certainly agree with Aidan. It’s quiet a lot to take in. You’ve got a large amount on one page and it takes me a while to scroll down.
      Maybe theres a way to get to the post I want to read quicker?

      Liked by 3 people

    3. Hi Joshua – lovely banner photo on your blog!

      I have to agree with Aidan and talesofv that the text is very dense. Have you checked how it looks on a mobile? I’d agree with Aidan that a ‘read more’ line break would give your readers time to choose to settle down into your blog. Breaking your paragraphs up into individual ‘points’ might help to clarify them. And I’d comb through your words to see if you feel that any of them are redundant, especially in the first few paragraphs. I like the Mark Twain quote about lighting the way clearly for your readers.

      Personally I’d provide links for Paul, Timothy etc. A link to something that you find interesting/inspiring, not just their Wikipedia page. You can’t assume that all your readers will know as much as you do about them.

      Good luck with your blog
      Elaine

      Liked by 2 people

  21. Hello, everyone! I started my blog about a year ago, and I’d love to get some feedback on my content. My blog covers some of what’s like to be a writer trying to start a career and includes thoughts about crafts, fan culture, poetry, photography, and more. Thanks!

    Liked by 3 people

    1. exactly why I tend to ignore them, but I can see where it would drive a person a bit crazy. anyone have any clue what’s going on? hey Ben Huberman, do you know?

      Liked by 2 people

    2. One reason could be the delay between the actual visit and when the visitor is added to your stats — it sometimes can take a couple of hours to be added to the total. Some readers might also like your posts when they seem them in the WordPress.com Reader without clicking on the post to open the full-post view. This means a like will be recorded, but no corresponding view.

      Like

      1. Kristina, right click on the blogger’s “name” and her blog will appear. for the blogger? I would add an “about me” page, and a comments section so that people can make statements to you directly on the blog. which by the way, I really liked your first post. You do know, that even if you are contracted to work for a year there are ways to get out of it and find something better……good luck

        Liked by 1 person

  30. Hi there! I’m a new blogger, I’ve put in so much time and passion into this and I love it. I would love opinions on the general aesthetics of my site, and the writing quality of any of my posts. I love reading new material, so I would love to do the same for you as well.

    Liked by 3 people