May 16, 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? Are you redesigning your blog and could use some layout or design advice from your more seasoned peers?

The Community Pool is for peer feedback and advice. Looking for more specific information? Check out some of these resources:

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).

Looking for free, self-guided courses to help you get started with your blog (or revive a dormant one)? Check out our current offerings at Blogging U.

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

  • 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!
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  • If you haven’t looked at our Commenting Guidelines in a while, now might be a good time.
  • No running on the deck.

Are you a new blogger looking to share your very first post? We have a special forum for bloggers just like you in our weekly First Friday posts.

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  2. Hey everyone! My name is Andrew and I run a pop culture website called Pop Cultural studies ( https://popculturalstudies.wordpress.com/ ) and I recently wrote a post about a recent episode of Game of Thrones ( https://popculturalstudies.wordpress.com/2016/05/10/the-gospel-of-jon-snow-christian-allegory-in-game-of-thrones/ ) [spoiler warning if you’re not caught up] that I’m looking for some feedback on, so if you’re interested, please take a look.

    Happy blogging!

    Liked by 5 people

    1. I read the Game of Thrones post. I liked the insight you have on Jon Snow and Jesus. Jon is the Prince that was Promised and the saviour of Westeros. I can see a few similarites between them both.

      Liked by 3 people

  4. Hello, I’m Saili a budding writer. Havent had much formal training so I’m using the blog as a chance to practice, share and learn what works and what doesnt. I recently posted a short piece written to a prompt (picture) would really appreciate some feedback. http://www.3skay.wordpress.com

    Liked by 5 people

    1. Love the imagery in your writing. I’d just be careful of a few little grammar things like run-on sentences Still, you write very beautifully!

      Liked by 3 people

  7. Hi All! I’m Demi. I would love some feedback on my posts as I am new and have not done this before. I write from my heart but not sure if there is more that my audience would like to hear? More pictures? More details? More jokes?! I would love to know your thoughts. Please check out my blog. Desperate for some feedback! Thank you!
    https://love-demi.com

    Liked by 8 people

      1. Thank you so much! I love taking pictures and I did notice that the post with the most pictures got the most likes. Thank you so much for your feedback. Much appreciated!

        Liked by 3 people

      1. Hey! Thanks for stopping by and taking the time to read my posts. The world is ours to be had. You CAN travel the world. Who says otherwise?! I’m happy to share any knowledge I have to help you travel. Once it bites you won’t look back 🙂

        Liked by 4 people

    3. Awesome blog! Unique layout. Love the pictures and especially the napping post! I too am envious of your travels. Can’t wait for more!

      Liked by 3 people

      1. Thank you so much Face First!! I’m so happy to hear that! I won’t keep you waiting too long! Already on my next post. Look out for it! x

        Liked by 2 people

  11. I replied to @Mukthi Raja regarding what to write. I answered with make the mundane into something interesting. I think I did with my latest blog post “I HAVE the Mirror of Erised”. https://larinnachandler.wordpress.com/2016/05/16/i-have-the-mirror-of-erised/

    I enjoy the challenge of turning everyday items into life…and this post doesn’t just do that…I wrote the truth. My little “mirror” IS magic in all ways.

    This is my first time in the community pool. It’s so exciting to be in the company of so many great writers, points of views and well written posts. I could stay here all day reading through everyones blogs, but sadly I have to get groceries or my kids will think they are being starved to death again. I’m a writer…I forget to buy groceries sometimes, and even though the pantry is full, the kids still can’t find food. So I’m off to leave my hermit cave and go adulting. Thanks for the excellent reads this morning!

    Liked by 6 people

    1. I really enjoyed your most recent post about WDW. You had just the right amount of pictures and included a lot of information and recommendations for people that had never been before. I also like the title of your blog 🙂

      I write about travels and adventures along with everyday life if you would like to look
      https:cee91blog.wordpress.com

      Liked by 1 person

    2. hey gama… I like your blog posts.. but why you don’t try to change your theme ? It will look great with goran or adelle .. Rest is great!!! best of luck

      Liked by 3 people

    1. Hey I like what you’re writing, and you seem to do a lot of insightful research while writing. I particularly liked your recent post about Haile Selassie. My only suggestion is that the titles of your post can be a bit misleading. Your post titled “Harriet Tubman” briefly discussed Tubman being on the $20 bill, but focused more on the Jesuits. I figured it would instead be a biographical summary, as your posts on Selassie or Malcolm X were.

      Anyhow, I wish you the best of luck! Happy blogging! 🙂

      Liked by 3 people

    3. I do like the enormous amount of research you do with each post. I am concerned however that the titles do not necessarily have much to do with the content, and that the content is at times “fact heavy” without a continuum of thought. QAn about page would be valuable to let people know a little about you as a blogger and a person, and also the basic focus of the blog. I would also suggest using the spell-checker within your editor.

      Liked by 3 people

    1. Hi there! I like the title and the set-up of your blog. Visually, it’s very appealing. Everything else on your blog seems pretty good. I don’t have much else to say because it seems like you’re still getting started. Good luck! 🙂

      Liked by 5 people

    2. I agree with Andrew – your blog is certainly visually appealing. I like your writing style. I also love the tagline, “Let’s get carried away with words”!

      Liked by 4 people

    1. REALLY nice theme for your running blog! good pictures that show a bit about the subject of each post..good writing style. keep on doing what you are doing!

      Liked by 4 people

      1. Thank you so much! Your blog is amazing as well. I post about all forms of entertainment, so I have reviews on tv shows, music, books and movies. I do a lot of reading, so I’ll probably be reviewing and talking about more books in the future.

        Liked by 4 people

  22. Hi All
    My blog is a few weeks old and the one thing I’m struggling most with is categories. I know I have a tendency to over-organize things. Is it better to have fewer categories (like, a dozen or so) with ultimately more posts? Then use tags to get into specifics? Or is it preferable to have many, more specific, categories with fewer posts per category? I’d like to have a plan in mind from the get-go so I don’t have to reorganize things later. Here is my latest post for reference: https://myfrugalfarmstead.wordpress.com/2016/05/15/raspberries-apple-blossoms-and-cedar-apple-gall-rust/ Thanks you in advance!

    Liked by 5 people

    1. Hi, I think the number of categories you have at the moment is great. I wouldn’t create any more though. If you feel like you need to separate topics even further then I’d suggest just using the tags for that. If people want to find a post about something they’ll just click on the tag they want anyway… I love your flower photos btw! 😀

      Liked by 4 people

      1. Thank you. Since there are handful of new I’ll need in future posts (vegetable garden, canning and preserving, to name a few), I should maybe consider combining a few that I have. All my recipes could probably go under one or two headings.

        Liked by 3 people

      1. I can definitely see that. And I already found myself starting to fall down that hole, which is why I posed the question. After reading the comments I thought about what I’ve posted and where I want my blog to go and I came up with about 9-10 categories that adequately represent the different things I have to talk about.

        Liked by 2 people

    3. Love it! It’s just so cute 🙂 I’d say the number of categories is fine, but if you are able to lessen it it would probably be easier to keep up with for you. You could lessen the number and then broaden the categories so you wouldn’t have to keep making more. For example for your gardening needs instead of doing “FLOWER garden” and then a seperate for anything else, you could just put “Gardening”. But this is just an idea. It is great either way! 🙂

      Liked by 2 people

      1. Garden is one that I’m having the most troubles with. My tendency is to want everything to have a neat little home so I get too specific wanting everything to have its own place. I think I’m going to do a category for flower gardens and a category for edible gardens which would encompass the rhubarb, fruit trees, and my forthcoming vegetable garden.

        Liked by 3 people

    2. Hi Mystery,

      Considering you’ve only been blogging since March, you’re much more advanced than most. Your site looks really good – nice choice of theme. Book blogs are always really popular and it’ll take time before you start to build a following.

      One of my most popular blog posts this year has been a review of Animal Farm, and I’m not even a book blogger. I have every confidence that as you grow your book list, tag your books correctly, people will find you.

      You could also tack onto your site at a later date, opportunities to interview authors. This is always popular because authors, like me (!) are always looking for a way to promote their book, and you can tap into their network too.

      Bottom line – it takes time. Don’t stress about the followers. Keep writing good content. You’ve got the template.

      Aidan

      Liked by 2 people

      1. Thank you so much! I guess I’ve been stressing about nothing… 🙂 I love the idea about interviewing authors! But that may be something for later on in the year. Right now I just need to focus on getting my degree (Eek!) then I’ll work on that 🙂 Thanks for the tips!

        Liked by 2 people

      1. Hahaha that’s a great idea. I’m certainly going to keep it even when Ranger School is through…it’s too funny not to!

        Liked by 2 people

  25. Hey guys ! If you’re interested in arts and designing
    and lifestyle please follow my blog snd give me some layout advice and critique !!

    Liked by 4 people

  27. Hi everyone,
    I’ve just published a post titled ‘superficial life problems’ which was inspired by Instagrams new logo. I would greatly appreciate some feedback as I haven’t blogged about such a random topic for a while, and feel a little out of practice. Let me know what you think about my writing style, layout, or anything blogging related.

    https://coffeeshopdreams.wordpress.com/2016/05/16/superficial-life-problems/

    Thank you and happy blogging 🙂

    Liked by 4 people

    1. Sometimes, I do catch myself wasting time on things that simply don’t matter. While that is annoying, I’m even more bothered when I realize I have wasting someone else’s time with one of my trivial issues. Sigh. Of course, they often return the favor by stealing some of my time with their trivialities. https://gracelead.co

      Liked by 2 people

      1. I think it’s human nature to talk about such things haha. Nevertheless, I agree that it’s worse to know you’ve wasted someone else’s time.

        Liked by 2 people

  28. Hi everyone! I’m about a week into my blog detailing my journey into wildlife photography. My main goal with the blog is to keep myself accountable and continually learning, but I also hope that the lessons that I learn may also help others. At the very least I hope to produce some interesting pictures.

    Check out my most recent post here , or my image gallery here .

    Cheers!

    Liked by 4 people

    2. Some nice images and a great idea for a blog, charting your progress as a photographer is a great way to learn, make mistakes, improve on and continue doing the right things. I sometimes look back at photograph’s I took years ago and wonder what I was thinking but also realise that for every bad photo I take I learnt something that help’s the next one be better.
      I’m not a wildlife photographer myself, I shoot street and landscape mostly, so wouldn’t be able to offer any specific advise on technique but one thing I will say is that charting your progress like this is a great way to improve.
      One thing I will mention, the photograph’s on your “About” & “featured image” page’s do not appear to display properly.
      Keep at it 🙂

      Liked by 3 people

    3. Love your work. I also love that that you share what you’ve learned because it allows me and other photographers to learn and grow with you.

      Liked by 2 people

  29. Hey guys.. now here is the trick.. Let me be honest.. I was waiting for the Community Pool post. It gives us an opportunity to reach out to so many fellow bloggers.. Now that I am here, let me congratulate all of you for the love of reading and writing… check out for more at https://mysestina.wordpress.com .. Remember If its worth reading, it was worth to write…

    Liked by 5 people

      1. Well I must say that I loved the name of your blog.. Mystery Date with a Book.. explains to me your love for books .. and your like mindedness with mySestina… Thank you for your kind words!!

        Liked by 3 people