Feb 29, 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?

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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    1. Hi Harley! Nice to see young people blogging, especially about food! Would love to see that cookie recipe in there. Foodies are always looking for recipes. great start to your blog, and I am sure you will find people following you very soon.

      Liked by 3 people

    2. Keep pushing the fact you are learning to cook, don’t forget to spell out what you are doing for your readers and, as I commented, get a better camera if you can, it makes a huge difference

      Liked by 2 people

    1. I like what you have posted 🙂 However, I noticed that sometimes you type in other colors – like the pink fonts in “Palm.” On my monitor, the second set of pink letters is a bit tough on the eyes. It might be a good idea to change the color to something easier to read 🙂

      Liked by 2 people

  6. Hi everybody! I’m writing about my travels in Paris, literature, and some other new travel writing/story telling/ culture loving posts. Hopefully will cover some other parts of the globe, and I’m so open to exploring some other ideas. It’s a little hazy at the moment, so some feedback would be great. Has anyone ever felt like starting a project, but the beginning is a little direction-less? Thank you.

    pleatsandkeats.com

    Liked by 5 people

    1. Hey! I checked out your blog and absolutely loved it! The posts and themes are so pretty that I couldn’t help but click ‘follow’. Nice work, daymmm.

      Liked by 3 people

    2. I love your blog!
      The layout is just stunning as well. Very chic haha. I took a look at your recent posts and I found it to be very intriguing and engaging. So goodjob on that. One suggestion though is perhaps creating an About page would help. I wanted to find out more of what your work is about and who the blogger is but I couldn’t find it. But either way, I gave you a follow 🙂 Keep up the great work!

      Liked by 3 people

      1. Thank for you the feedback! I’m working on the about me page…I just don’t really know the angle of it yet. Hmm…but its true I need one. Hopefully I’ll have it up by next week, and let you know! Can’t wait to check out your blog now, and thank you for the sweet encouragement, x.

        Liked by 3 people

    1. I just poked around your blog a bit. There’s a lot there. It’s a “deep” blog with a lot to offer. I would suggest that you find a way to make the reading of the “story” page more reader-friendly. The columns are quite narrow.
      Good luck.

      Liked by 3 people

      1. Hi Jenna, thanks for passing by. You may click on one title so as to have the whole page for that piece to make reading easier. But thanks for the feedback anyway. Will see to it. 👍

        Liked by 1 person

    1. Hello! Your post is great and fun, but I would double check some of the grammar because it doesn’t all make sense. You can download Grammarly for free and upload documents to it and it will edit for you, so easy! Keep the posts up though, they look great!

      Liked by 3 people

  12. Hi there, I’ve been blogging for just about two months now. I have hits but not many likes. My blog is Christian/Catholic/Spiritually based, I realize it will not interest everyone – but I feel like I am missing something. Looking for input please (idea’s on what source words for categories or tags is most welcome too). I have a few followers – they don’t seem to be reading or liking (though that is not the be all and end of of blogging for me 🙂 ) Thanks in advance for input.

    This is my last article: https://letthelightinreflections.wordpress.com/2016/02/26/wwjd-ww-i-do-person-in-need-homeless/

    https://letthelightinreflections.wordpress.com/2016/02/14/valentines-day-for-children-%E2%99%A5/

    Liked by 3 people

    1. I just took a long look, Laurie and I think you could benefit from asking others about their experiences. I have a blogger friend who ends every post with a suggestion that her readers share about themselves. If the topic is “My Favorite Book,” she’ll ask others to share theirs. Then, once the reader replies, she’ll engage that person in a dialogue. I think that’s what hooked me to be a regular reader. Good luck.

      Liked by 1 person

      1. Hi Jenna, Thank you for your reply. Definitely something for me to consider. I am at work, taking a short break – I will check out your blog this evening.

        Liked by 2 people

    2. Regarding your categories and tags. The tags on your post seemed appropriate to me. The categories confused me. It seemed that you placed the post in all the categories. Maybe a different set of categories would help. Where do you see yourself focusing your thoughts and actions (ex. Love Others, Trust God, WWJD…)? My blog is on biblically-based leadership: http://gracelead.co Notice that I have selected 4 aspects of leadership and made them my categories. I put each post in one of those categories. Even though some posts may have flavors of multiple categories, I force myself to pick one as the primary focus.

      Liked by 1 person

      1. Thank you very much for taking the time to look over my blog and comment. I appreciate it. I was looking at my blog at lunch time, thinking it looks a bit of a mess. I think I’ll spend some time working on what is currently there before moving forward. I will visit your blog tonight, it sounds interesting. Thanks again!

        Liked by 1 person

    3. okay..I read through several of your blog posts. I have a few suggestions. You may or may not take them to heart, what do I know anyway? LOL first, the entries are long. Much longer than other blogs I have seen, and the most prolific writers out there seem to have 1/3 the words of your WWJD post. So possibly set them up as “continued” posts? you know, start the post, have a “read more” then continue it. Maybe break them up into smaller posts and do one per day for several days? that builds up interest and people will follow to see where the post ends up.
      Also, your categories are so very much alike that you could put all your posts into just one of them. You might want to find different descriptive categories for your postings. The site itself looks very nice. I would take care with spelling and grammar. You can download a free Grammarly ap that checks everything for you. Good luck, and it is a nice start. Suze http://www.suziland.net

      Liked by 1 person

      1. Hi Suzi , no worries, I appreciate all of the input! I was looking over my page at lunch time and some of these same things stood out to me. I didn’t fully participate in Blogging U 101. I think I will go back and read there too. I like the idea of breaking some of the posts up (only did that one time). I’m also interested is seeing if there is a way to set up a “table of contents” so to speak, rather than looking through months for blogs then scrolling down through. – Maybe an additional page… I will look into that grammarly ap too (appreciate it!). I will check out you blog this evening.

        Liked by 1 person

    1. I loved your first post! (I love binders and organization so it was fun for me to read). Your writing is clear and concise and the post looks fantastic. Keep it up!

      Liked by 1 person

  15. Hello everyone! I started my blog a little while ago and would love some feedback or advice. It’s life advice for 20-somethings. This includes posts about makeup, job/internship interviews, fashion, starting out career advice and inexpensive or easy recipes.
    A big thank you to anyone who can take the time to help me out 🙂

    elyssawiener.wordpress.com

    Liked by 3 people

    1. I think it looks great. You’re photos are crisp and well-placed. I like the mix of topics as well. Tip: If you choose to put up someone else’s quote (Happiness Post), you may want to share your thoughts about it. Your readers want to know you. Give them some of your reflections/insights.
      Good luck, Elyssa

      Liked by 1 person

    2. I really like how you cover a wide range of topics, something for everyone! It’s really clear and well laid out. Keep up the good posts 🙂 have a good day!

      Liked by 2 people

  16. Hello everyone, happy Leap Day! I am trying to strike a balance between regular features and one-off pieces, and I’m not sure if I’m hitting that. I also would like to know if my voice comes through in my writing! All feedback is welcomed, thank you in advance! anhistorianabouttown.wordpress.com

    Liked by 3 people

  18. My first comment! Want to see a blog all done by someone with autism? KDS has the answer! Check out my blog “kds407”! It’s got many things already posted and more to come in the future! If you really like my blog please don’t hesitate to provide feedback and even follow me! Wish me luck as I ASPIRE.

    Liked by 2 people

    1. First, thank you for your service and welcome home. My brother-in-law was a pilot in Vietnam…he was only there for three tours, but my father-in-law was there for six. Last name Hartline…good men, both of them. I sent the link to your blog to my brother John, hoping that finally he may actually open up. His body came home but somehow I think he is still there.
      I have no knowledge of the things you guys went through…I only know what was happening here at home and within my circle of family and friends. It is blogs like this one that need to be written so people do not forget the sacrifices you all made. Suze http://www.suziland.net

      Liked by 2 people

      1. Thank you. The fellows I served with enjoy our common story. I can sometimes pen things that are in their heads.

        I was a combat medic…so it is a bit different than some of the line vets. I also completed my enlistment at nineteen. Will try to check out your writings today. Blessings

        Liked by 1 person

      2. my BIL was a helicopter pilot then also flew a small plane (beaver maybe?) and was assigned to a combat hospital. I think he would greatly benefit from reading your blog.

        Liked by 2 people

  20. Hi bloggers. I write a blog called Misstery blog, and it would mean the world to me for you to read it. My blog consists of general rantings and thoughts about the world. It is a very flawed place, and I feel like not enough people use their freedom of speech. I also post about beauty and lifestyle. But I am sure there will be something there that you will enjoy. I am so very close to 140 followers now and today is my blog’s 2 month birthday, everyday my dream is coming true and it is all down to this lovely community. So if you want to take a look…. please do! https://missteryblog.wordpress.com/

    Liked by 2 people

  21. Howdy all 🙂 I’ve been blogging for a few months (infrequently) and would love any/all feedback on my meaningful living blog. The following is a link to one of my most recent posts on gender neutral products: https://natalieschriefer.wordpress.com/2016/02/12/questioning-gender-neutrality/

    I’m also curious how people feel about the pop-up. I HATE pop-ups, but I’m not sure how else to promote my email list in a way that people will see. 😦

    Liked by 2 people

    1. Your site is a little dark, so consider making the header bigger to counteract that a little? Also, I think your About page should tell readers a bit more about you, especially if there’s two of you.
      Happy Blogging!

      Liked by 1 person

  23. I have been away for a long while and will be away for a little while to as my high school examinations have begun..
    So my blog is about my thoughts and the way I see my life. Please do tell me your review on KNOW YOUR WORLD: salorocks.wordpress.com

    Liked by 3 people

    2. Hi Eli,
      I really enjoyed going through your blog. Your layout is very simple and clean which is something I can definitely appreciate. Your writing is superb. I get a very honest and purposeful emotion from it. I really liked “Being Awakened” because of how much I can relate to it. Especially the Christianity part. I also experience difficulty in my walk with God but there is a hope for I have Christ.

      Great job, Eli. I’m going to give you a follow 🙂 God bless!

      Liked by 2 people