Oct 10, 2016 / Community Pool

Community Pool

The place for advice, feedback, 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 and guidelines 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, as well as for not starting numerous threads in a single Pool.
  • 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. Also note that including multiple links in your comment might automatically put it in the moderation queue, which will delay its publication.
  • Please keep all comments civil and constructive. The idea is to have fun — it’s a pool, after all!
  • 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.
  • 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.

Show Comments

966 Comments

Comments are closed.

Close Comments

Comments

  1. Hi all, new post up today, would love some feedback! I also took down the about me sidebar image, since I already have an about me page. Is it better to have the info in both places? I was trying to clean up the main page but I worry that it looks too plain now!

    Liked by 4 people

    2. Plain can be very attractive. Your blog looks fine to my eye, except that the photos are much too large. I don’t like having to scroll down to the text.

      Liked by 3 people

    3. I would say one About Me page is perfect since having two might confuse readers into thinking one has different information than the other when they don’t. Also, the polarity of your colors make the colorful images stand out, and there’s nice separation between image and text that gives readers a break from reading words to reading images, if you will. They can focus on one thing a at time. If you want to resize, make sure the readers don’t have to “block out” one or the other to focus.
      I hope that helped!
      -Author S

      Liked by 3 people

      1. Also, if you’d like to try adding different colors, make sure it doesn’t make the text or photos blend too much since that can take away from the posts themselves!
        -Author S

        Like

    4. To me, your site looks fine. I agree that the about me information is best kept in one place. Your post was interesting. I’ve been toying with the idea of some blue-wave blocker glasses. For now, I’ve installed an app on my laptop that does that automatically at a set time each evening. https://gracelead.co

      Liked by 1 person

      1. Thanks for the feedback! I use flux for my laptop but cannot for the life of me find a good iPhone app. I used twilight on my old android. But I have to turn the apps off when I’m doing color sensitive work, so want a second solution!

        Liked by 1 person

    1. I think you should watch your grammar as it can take away from the post if it’s not proper. Also considering adding some images to add some colour and break up the text.
      Happy Blogging!

      Liked by 2 people

    2. I agree with V Donovan. While your posts can be relatable with informalities, too many make the text cumbersome to read. I would say tone those down unless they serve a purpose as they can be distracting to readers.

      Liked by 1 person

      2. The grammar mistakes and texting-talk can be relatable but distracting. I’d say tone those down unless they serve a purpose, otherwise, they make the post cumbersome to read.
        -Author S

        Like

  4. Hey guys I’m looking for insights on the design of my blog. Specifically, are any of the font colors a little hard to read? How’s the header image (is it blurry?) All other feedback is welcome as well of course. 🙂 Looking forward to checking out your blogs too!

    Liked by 3 people

      1. The header image is wonderful, no blurriness from what I can tell! The colors are earthy which can give readers a warmer feel, but the text doesn’t stand out as much, being black on brown. Maybe try different earthy color schemes to have coherence but uniqueness as well. Wouldn’t want one part to get lost in another, right?
        Feel free to ask me to clarify anything, and I hope I helped!
        -Author S

        Like

      2. The only problem is I can’t really get the font color to change, what background color do you think I should use?

        Like

      3. You could try other shades of green, blue perhaps. I’d experiment with color schemes until you figure out which one makes images and text pop.
        -Author S

        Like

      4. Yeah I found a shade of brown that I like, I don’t really want to do with green. Thanks for all of the advice!

        Like

      5. Of course! Glad I could be of help, and feel free to stop by my blog and let me know what you think!
        -Author S

        Like

    2. The header has a large horizontal block of black at the top. It clashes with the black box around your title. Try a header that’s lighter.

      Liked by 1 person

    1. It’s good that you include weight work in your running regimen. Many runners don’t.

      Can I suggest you change your header image to something related to your sports, instead of food?

      Liked by 1 person

    1. You have a wonderful looking site with beautiful photos. The color scheme makes them stand out, and the text isn’t lost in blending, so you have all the parts working together for a great site. If you were going to try anything, I’d say experiment with sizing.
      -Author S

      Liked by 1 person

      2. Of course! Glad I could be of help. Feel free to stop by and leave feedback on any piece or the blog itself!
        -Happy blogging!
        -Author S

        Liked by 1 person

    2. Your photographs are beautiful! Especially that fruit dipped in nutella. I felt a little overwhelmed with all the options available to me on that first page, but that could be up to my attention span. But seriously, I love what you are doing here!

      Liked by 1 person

      1. Good observation. When I first came over to wordpress, I had all these posts from another site, and couldn’t figure out how to include them. Since I hadn’t pre-developed content, putting them on the menu made sense. But that time has come and gone. I’ll find a better place.

        Thanks!

        Liked by 2 people

      1. Wow thats nice. I did not notice these mistakes. I have purchased grammarly to correct my grammar errors but did not realize that contextual errors are to be identified too

        Liked by 1 person

      3. It is good but not magical of course. It provides alternative suggestions for overused words eg alternate suggestion for word fabulous is ‘good’ . why would i like to use such a simple word ? Other suggestion is ‘avoid use of passive voice’ which is again not a beneficial one. It corrects common errors and punctuation. So, a common blunder is removed. I purchased it when there was discount on it. Otherwise, it is not worth the high price.

        Liked by 1 person

  13. Hello All,

    I just started posting on my blog last night, and would love some feedback! I’m planning to write about practical ways people can get involved in family history and genealogy work. I also would like to write short biographies about my ancestors, including their pictures! So stay tuned for that. I would appreciate any time you can give.

    Thanks!
    Makayla

    Liked by 4 people

    1. I like the pink! I have two suggestions: one, consider making your header wider or centering it to fill in the blank space, and two, change the gray text because it’s very hard to read!
      Happy Blogging!

      Like

    1. You have an interesting concept! Writing in the present tense is refreshing but could pose challenges. Make sure you show the readers what’s happening rather than tell them.
      Sentences can get repetitive in that sense, saying she read diligently or he slicked his hair with practised ease can be telling, hand-holding in a sense. Maybe try something along the lines of “Her eyes traced each line, fingers holding her place as she read.” That way, readers can already tell she’s reading with purpose, not glancing over the terms and conditions.
      Also, starting with character description is often slow and unnecessary. Try working it in throughout, maybe as part of action beats to not only work in physical appearance but manners of behavior.
      If you have any questions, please, feel free to ask. Also, you’re always welcome to leave feedback of your own on my work as well!
      Happy reading and writing!
      -Author S

      Liked by 1 person

    2. Just commented. Nice content, nice use of tags. Have you considered adding images to your posts? In a short one such as this, only one is necessary, perhaps a scene from a special/favorite film? Blogging is a very visual medium, and images draw the reader’s eye in. That said, I like your writing — a nice combination of poetry and prose.

      Would you check out one of my posts? Click on my name and choose whichever one appeals to you most 🙂

      Liked by 1 person

  23. Hellow guys once again i am happy that some useful comments come on my yesterday’s blog that means my first blog which help me alot and keeping that things in mind i write my second blog so keep commenting guys and like if you see some interesting things in that i am glad if you do the same you can read my second blog on https://sdg306.wordpress.com
    please provide your feedback next blog coming soon…

    Liked by 2 people

    1. Just commented. Nice content! Your self-worth post is great. My suggestion: perhaps add more tags. You can use up to 15 tags and categories total; more tags means more readers can find your posts. For example, maybe add “confidence” or “Drake Graham” or “self-worth” 🙂

      Would you check out one of my posts? Click on my name and choose whichever one appeals to you most🙂

      Liked by 1 person

  25. Hi – I would like some feedback on my writing and poetic skills. I’m sharing two examples – one is an article and the other is a poem. I personally think I drift a lot from the central idea. Please go through these links below and would love to hear your feedback. Poetry: https://boundlessbeautyblog.wordpress.com/2016/10/10/lily-a-little-exquisite-for-takers/ Article: https://boundlessbeautyblog.wordpress.com/2016/10/06/rebound/

    Liked by 2 people

    2. My feeling is the same as Jonny’s….. I can’t figure out just what you are meaning to convey.

      Sometimes it’s a good exercise to write out your basic intention in prose first, and then write the poem. How about writing a new poem on the same subject using the plainest language?

      Liked by 1 person

  27. Hello community! I recently posted an article about race and identity on Medium that I also have on my wordpress blog. I’d appreciate any comments about the content or writing style as I’m all for editing the article on Medium.

    Creating a New Race

    Thank you so much!

    Liked by 3 people