Mar 19, 2018 / Community Pool

Community Pool

Where WordPress bloggers support each other with feedback and advice.

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 more information about custom domains, advanced design options, and other enhancements for your blog? Find the WordPress.com plan that’s right for you.

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.

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.

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.

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    1. I read this yesterday when it appeared in my reader. I liked it then and I still like it – fun is the word that springs to mind.
      Thanks for writing, thanks for sharing, shout about your stories from the rooftops, they are really that much fun.

      Liked by 1 person

    2. love this–let’s listen, indeed! sometimes older people have hardened too much into cynicism (you mention their losing a zeal to fight…)and their narrow-minded beliefs. listening to younger people–and, as youth, being listened to!–has its merits. a lot, actually.

      Liked by 3 people

  14. Hi all,

    A quick question. I sometimes see some blog articles appearing under the Reader page. How do I get my page to appear under Reader section? If there are some tags, then please advise.

    Liked by 6 people

    4. The Reader has various streams. One is populated by posts that bloggers you follow make. So it’s basically like a Facebook or Twitter feed; anytime someone you follow updates their blog, you’ll see it there.
      The other stream is Discover. These are blog posts chosen by the WordPress staff. It’s just a matter of chance to get featured there.
      There’s also a stream for tags; you can choose to “follow” various tags and the stream will populate with blog posts using that tag.

      I hope I made sense.

      Liked by 1 person

  15. Hello everyone, I am new to blogging. Will you please look over my website at quita-healthyworld.com? Please read my recent post “Things that Make you different Makes you”. Thanks. If you would like to continue on this journey of inspiration with me please follow!

    Liked by 5 people

    2. Great start. I think it could use a header image to really grab people’s attention. I’m not sure why there are so many links in your menu, but I would remove them. The menu is generally reserved for Pages, not Blog Posts. It looks like you already have a “most recent posts” widget, so no need to link to posts in your menu. I might also add a text widget where you can explain your blog in 1-2 sentences. Oh, and IMO I think the category widget is great but would look better a drop-down box. There’s an option for that when you’re editing the widget.

      Liked by 1 person

    3. Very impressive writing for a teenager. I wasn’t that good when I was younger. I read your post on football. As like most Americans, I don’t follow nor have any interest in the sport. However, I love reading people write about how they discovered their passion and how it moves them. Like standing in front of a Vermeer puts me in another world, I’d like to read about how football does that to you. A nice passionate essay that will make me feel your affinity for it and make me appreciate it in a way I never thought possible.

      Like

      2. Anytime. Just, what ever you do, don’t stop writing. You have talent. Now it’s time to perfect the craft and pretty soon, you’ll see it pay off. Just don’t. Fucking. Stop. No matter what anyone says. And, if you get a rude criticism or fail on a project, learn from it and grow. I became a writer the day I stopped fearing failure but embraced it to learn. You’re already a step ahead by publishing a blog and accepting feedback. You’ll do just fine.

        Liked by 1 person

    1. This is a sweet story. Thank you for sharing it and your take on it. It’s sad the mother doesn’t have a nice of her own, but her importance isn’t forgotten by readers and storytellers alike.
      -Author S

      Liked by 1 person

  25. Hello Everyone – Community Pool is why I look forward to Mondays!

    As some of you know by now, I am pretty new to the blogging world. I have been posting on here every Monday after graduating the “First Friday” post. With that said, congrats and welcome to any new graduates 🙂 You are definitely at the right place. I have met and followed really interesting and super nice bloggers.

    I wanted to ask those of you that are dedicated and consistent writers for any tips to increase the volume of your blog. Any suggestions are greatly appreciated.

    Here is my most recent blog “Rebirth” at Express the Gabbiness check it out

    Rebirth

    Liked by 8 people

    1. I’m new to blogging as well so my advice may not be the best but I would tag your posts a little more. In addition to creative writing, why not add writing or prose or essay to the list? Things like that. Wonderful blog, by the way. Very well-written. I hope you get more followers because you deserve it.

      Liked by 2 people

      1. This is actually great advice. I held back on tagging because I am not sure how it works. Do you know the difference between the tags and the categories?

        Thank you so much for stopping! I truly appreciate your feedback.

        Like

      2. I believe categories are a way of separating content on your page and narrow the search for other users and keywords allow users to type in say poetry and find blog post that contain that tag.

        Liked by 1 person

    2. Firstly, it’s good to share the URL of the post you’d like us to read. It is so much easier to give you feedback. And then share the love and read and comment on a few other blogs. 🙂 Engagement here is really key to develop regular readers.

      Secondly, you can add your social media links to your blog depending on your social followers you can gain a lot of traction with that. Depending on your theme you may find a group on Facebook that you share in. My second most popular post was shared in a one name family history group on Facebook and then shared again . . . My Twitter feed is rubbish to be honest, but then it’s mostly anonymous. I’ve started exploring other social media such as Reddit and my own HistorianRuby Facebook page.

      Thirdly, use tags and categories up to a max of 15 combined and these help search engines find your posts. Think about titles, I’ve four or five that are regularly picked up by search engines through the week and I’m convinced that I’ve inadvertently chosen the search terms that people use for my title.

      Hope this helps. 🙂

      Liked by 2 people

      4. Wow! Thank you for taking the time to provide this awesome feedback. I do agree that engagement is the key. I need to start by setting out time specifically for that. I did start linking my other social media accounts to my blog, but it did not cross my mind that there are blogging communities on Facebook per say. That was a great suggestion! The more places to interact the more exposure and the best way to find and connect with fellow bloggers.

        Xanaxityirony suggested more tags as well so I will get on that for sure. I have seen a few times my stats showed search engine, but was not sure what that meant. Thank you, thank you, thank you! This helps very much 🙂

        Liked by 1 person

    3. I really like that post. The beginning really got me; I thought you were talking about actual birth at first, but then I realized what you were getting out and I thought it was a nice “surprise.”

      When you say the “volume” of your blog, do you mean the number of posts, the traffic, both? I try to push myself to post once a week at minimum and I try to cover a range of topics relevant to my niche. Playing with different types of media might make your blog more engining too. For example, recently I started posting my comics because that medium really clicks with some audiences.

      When it comes to traffic I don’t really know. The best way seems to be to engage other bloggers and develop lasting friendships–something I’m quite terrible at.

      Liked by 1 person

      1. Thanks for reading!

        Yes, I was asking more about producing material, but traffic volume tips helped a lot as well. Great advise! I post on Fridays but want to challenge my self to blog more. I will start incorporating my paintings and see how that goes. I really appreciate you taking the time to give your feedback 🙂

        Like

    1. You have a very interesting background that a lot of people can relate to and help out. Being an immigrant in the States is bound to get noticed. And I wrote some of my best poetry in high school. The poem you posted has a very subtle, yet pleasant structure to it. Very nicely done. As far as becoming a better writer, try two to do two things everyday. Read and write. Everyday. Even if it’s a line or something you don’t really care too much about. It’ll help improve your prose. I have plenty more advice about writing. Feel free to contact me if you want to exchange ideas and critiques.

      Liked by 1 person

      2. Anytime! I’m always willing to help to the best of my ability and accept criticism on my work as well. Don’t worry about offending me. I have a thick skin. Be honest and I’ll take it under consideration.

        Like

  27. Hey everyone! I’ve been a writer for as long as I can remember but I’m very new to blogging. I’ve noticed my page gets approximately 100 views a day but I have little followers and even less comments. How do you more experienced bloggers begin dialogue and get readers to follow? I write primarily about poetry, prose, and philosophy. I’d love any feedback and will gladly offer feedback if requested and follow your pages as well! Cheers!
    Perc30sofbeingawallflower.com

    Liked by 5 people

      3. I haven’t slept in 3 days. I’ve just been writing and promoting. The amount of people who are viewing my blog is humbling considering I had no idea what blogging was until a month ago. But, man, could I use a nap. I love the whole concept behind your page, my friend. Very rad.

        Liked by 1 person

    2. It can take a while to gain followers, so don’t despair! Check out as many wonderful posts on this and the First Friday forum, leave comments and this should start to get people interested in your posts. Also search on the Reader for topics that interest you and you’ll soon start engaging with others from outside your blogging genre. Good luck!

      Like

    2. You have a lovely pic to the side of your post so you may not deem it necessary, however, readers on devices like something other than words to look at (!) and it’s good to have one or two photos between the paragraphs if your subject matter allows.

      Like