I really feel all of the books we were required to read for class had a similar pitch. So with that said, instead of just making individual blog entires about each, I'm just going to combine my thoughts. Shorten that text, right!?
I never realized I had to change my writing style to write for an internet audience. Yet again, I'll mention the fact that I'm so used to writing in my online diary, I never thought there was a seperate way of writing for the internet. These books helped me avoid the mindless rambling I tend to do more than often. Here are a few things I picked up from the books.
-Shorten the text! If you can say something in two words instead of twenty, do so. This helps maintain your readers attention
-Link it up! Include informative links in your blog entry, this provides readers
with more information on the topics you're blogging about ( I know I personally need to include more links. Something to work on for next semester!)
-All for one. Write for a general audience. Make your writing appealing and interesting to everybody
-Structure! Organization is VERY important, try to include good titles or headings in your blog entires so the readers know exactly what to expect inside the blog
-Holla at me! Comment, people! Nobody likes a stagnant blogger. Sheer lazyness may be the reason some people don't comment, but it's very important. You need feedback in order to improve your blogs content and broaden your horizons.
-The good chunks. Separating your text makes things easier to read. Your readers will be able to scan through for information they think is most important
-Play nice, children. Nobody likes a cynic or bitter blogger. If you disagree, please do so in a polite manner. Try not to start ridiculous and immature fights online. It's a waste of everybody's time and sometimes the writing takes a backseat to the fighting!
Well, those were the facts that stuck with me most. I fought Writing for the Web and Hot Text were the most informative for me. The Weblog handbook was also a good piece of literature for an amature blogger, but I've been blogging for 5 years.
What do you all think is most important to remember when blogging?
Exactly, Chris. I understand we're all very busy, and commenting may not be top on all our priority lists, but commenting every so often will help avoid the scampering the night before. I know we were all stressed last night. I wasn't too worried about the commenting, because I knew I had kept up with it on a fairly regular basis.
I cannot agree more with the "Holla-ing." It seems to me that few people scan the weblogs regularly to commment on new content, or to check back on things they've commented on before.
Of course, when everyone is forced to finish a portfolio that requires comments, we have no problems. ;P
Posting comments on others' weblogs helps us to interact and pull our pools of knowledge together to make new discoveries.
Finding lots of comments on your blog is a great way to get motivated to keep working on it and adding new stuff, so it's important for both the author of the entry and the one who commented.