Mar 2, 2015 / 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? 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.
  • 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!
  • If you haven’t looked at our Commenting Guidelines in a while, now might be a good time.
  • No running on the deck.

Photo by Brian Cantoni.

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    2. Hi, your pictures are gorgeous! I like that you let them speak for themselves, rather than having text everywhere interrupting the flow from one image to the next. I also like that you change up the layout of your pictures, and that you have used a plain background to allow them to stand out

      Liked by 2 people

    3. Being from the UK myself I instantly connected with the header image of rooftops in the UK 🙂 You have some great photos on there but maybe a couple of lines of text with them would add a little more to the content.

      It’s a nice blog and I prefer the smooth flow of images rather than having them in a grid type format.

      Liked by 1 person

      1. Okay, thanks for the feedback. I’m hoping to add more text to my images to make them into story like posts. However I have some exams I need to get out the way before I can spend more time on my blog. So stay tuned! Hopefully my blog will continue to improve as i get more free time.
        Thanks 🙂

        Liked by 1 person

    5. Really love the photos! Maybe some links to other posts in the sidebar would be good? Just it’s a lot of scrolling to find get to other posts otherwise 🙂

      Liked by 1 person

    10. Hi Joe, your pictures are amazing! I love the scenery, colors. you sure have eyes for nice photos. keep it up. hope you won’t mind if they are used on my blog, of course with credits to you 😀

      Liked by 2 people

    13. Wow! Your pictures are A-Maze-Zing! I think, I don’t know for some reason, I would add a few more captions, even if it’s a couple of words, not a pro but it’s what I was thinking as I was scrolling down

      Liked by 1 person

    15. Dude, you take really wonderful photos! The UK is so beautiful through your eyes. PS: would you like to give some feedback to mine as well? *no obligations! (:

      mistersipster.wordpress.com

      thanks and keep going!

      Liked by 1 person

  2. Hey Blogosphere,

    I’ve been struggling with other commitments this week so have only managed to get a couple of posts out, but it would really mean a lot if anyone interested in it could take a look at them and give me any feedback – positive or negative (I can handle it I promise!) on anything you see on the site. The latest post is about religious justification of violence and whether denying it exists is actually helpful or not.

    Blog found here: http://www.bencnicholson.wordpress.com

    Thanks as ever, and always happy to return the favour.

    Ben

    Liked by 3 people

    1. Hi,

      Your post is well thought out: your state your points clearly with good flow from one to the next.
      Overall I think it’s very good, although I don’t agree with your main point, but that’s not what CP is about 😉

      Liked by 1 person

    2. The content is great, I really like what you have written. It’s a thought provoking article. With regards to the content width I think you could afford to make that slightly wider.

      I don’t recall see a sidebar design such as the one you have and in all honesty I’m not too keen on it. I think it may be the colour.

      Your written content is brilliant though and it’s something that I’d return to read more of.

      Liked by 1 person

      1. Thanks, noted, and have made the content wider 🙂 Not much I can do about the colour I don’t think, the only other ones are a rather fiery red and an ugly blue, but thanks for the feedback anyway.

        Ben

        Like

    1. Wow. What an experience, and such an interesting way to capture it. I LOVE gems like “condemned condom,” “I was abandoned, done, banned to darknes,” and “Less than a mouse since mom was a monster but I’m a songster.” Really interesting play with language.

      I think the last half of the poem is the strongest. The first half seems like it took you a bit to warm up, and that a few times you sacrificed making sense to making rhymes. Maybe it’s just me, but, for instance, ” I am not an old wrapper that was used in the latter/a snapper turtle, a madder badger with a better bladder.” I get the not an old wrapper, and that is clever because of the play rapper and wrapper, and the sense of being something thrown away. But the rest of it doesn’t make as much sense. Same with an escape pod with cod. I get the escape pod part, but not the cod part. And since the poem finishes so strong and has the potential to be super emotionally powerful, I would caution to only use a rhyme that adds to the meaning as well as the rhyme scheme.

      Liked by 3 people

      1. The wordplay is great and you have a lot of interesting things to say! It would be better to me if the storyline was more cohesive. There were many strong segments of writing but I couldn’t catch any links between the different scenes you illustrated. Perhaps focus on one experience at a time? I’m sure you’d have the ability to dive deeper into any of the topics mentioned in the poem.

        Liked by 2 people

    2. Your work is fantastic, made me giggle like a school girl. If humour and is what you’re going for, it’s working. Hang in there buddy!

      Liked by 1 person

    4. This is a great piece! Thank you for sharing this and also for making it so personal. You are very talented! The last line is my favorite; “This is going to sound profound for I was bound to drown but I came around and it felt like I was crowned.” Brilliant, keep on writing!

      Like

  4. Hello friends!! 🙂

    I’ve posted a piece about one of my major fears with blogging and it is also one of the reasons why I hold back sometimes with my writing! I created this post in hopes of getting some advice from my beautiful fellow bloggers about this topic!

    https://biancasbloggingadventure.wordpress.com/

    And as always I am more than happy to give anyone feedback on their blog, don’t be afraid to ask!

    Thanks!

    Bianca 🙂

    Liked by 3 people

    1. Hi

      I’ve had exactly the same thoughts about this kind of with my blog, specifically because mine is about photography and lifting someone’s image is a very easy thing to do nowadays.
      I put a small disclaimer on my blog, and when I say disclaimer more like an appeal to people’s honesty and integrity. I know that in all likelihood someone unscrupulous may decide to nab my ideas and work, but I don’t want it stop me from sharing what I love to do with the vast majority of honest, wonderful people out there. I think you just have to weigh up whether or not you are happy with the risk for the pleasure you receive from sharing. 🙂

      Liked by 3 people

    5. I think some people have very little concept of copyright laws. My friend started a blog and was shocked when I told her she could not just grab any photo off the internet and use it any way she wanted to.

      Last week I was about to use a cute photo that was supposed to be under creative commons license and free to share. On a whim, I hit “image match” on the results page, and after further searching discovered it originated from a copyrighted photography site.

      I understand your concerns and wish you the best with your blog. Several people have left wonderful comments on your original post that are more eloquent than anything I might add, so I’ll quit here. 🙂

      Liked by 1 person

    6. I’ve read some of your posts and I like the way you write! 🙂

      As for plagiarism, I haven’t really thought about it. Maybe because I don’t feel like someone would do that to me. It might really be scary since the internet is such a big anonymous world but as long as you’re loving what you’re doing, I think you should go on and do your thing!

      Liked by 1 person

    7. Hi Bianca,
      I’ve thought about this alot. When we put our work out there, we feel entitled to its originality and purpose, it’s creation and source. However, the very real possibility that someone could take our work and post it as their own has happened to me before and probably will happen to many others in their blogging journey. But I do believe that the sole purpose of blogging is to spread our ideas and perspectives. I don’t think we should stop our passions out of fear that less ethically sound people will rob it from us. Even if they do, the rest of their content will betray them. They don’t have your voice or gift. So blog your heart out darling. Check my site out if you get a chance 🙂
      https://itsdollydarling.wordpress.com/

      Liked by 1 person

      1. Hi Bianca. I read your post it is a really interesting comment, but I also fear the opposite of what you have spoken about. What if what I am writing has been fuelled by something I have read myself? If I am just re-writing ideas from other sources because they have sparked my interest in the topic? Sometimes I think all artistry is just reusing ideas and material in your own way, but I do get the same worry that when I do have something quite original that someone else will just repackage it as their own and ownership is lost. Had a look at your other posts too, I like the honesty in your writing! x

        Like

    8. Hi Bianca, I read your post and it is interesting to read about another blogger’s fear. The fear that has been crippling me thus far is just the fact that my opinions and ideas are put out there on the internet. I am so afraid of whether or not my content will be up to par because I see so many other bloggers out there that are delivering beautiful content.

      I completely relate however to what you are saying about people stealing. Although I am not a writer, I will be posting original content and photos and they can be used and uncredited on someone’s site.

      Thank you for your post it has helped me to sort through what is holding me back. I have not posted any of my content yet but I am trying to get my site up and looking the way I want before I post anything.

      Like

      1. I understand your concern and I think more of us worry about this issue than not. However, if writing is your passion don’t allow what ifs to destroy your happiness. Your blog looks great and I’m following. Don’t stop doing what you love
        I’m at https://noplainjanie.wordpress.com. Any feedback would be appreciated. Nice to meet you

        Like

      2. Hello No Plain Janie,
        I am glad to see that I am not alone in the battle! I have recently viewed your site and I overall have very good first impressions. The site is clean, navigable, easy to read, etc. I do like the variety of content and the fact that you have a feature post that you do on Tuesdays. The only area of improvement that I feel needs a bit more attention is bringing all of the content together. I am a big supporter of blogs who choose serval different topics rather than sticking to one however it is very easy to lose sight of a bigger picture. Having something that pulls the whole concept together is not only good for your readers but it is also great for you and establishing your brand. Keep up the great work there.

        Best,
        Sierra

        Like

  5. Hi all! Hope you’ve had a nice start to the week!

    I’ve noticed recently that lots of bloggers regularly apologise in their posts for their choice of subject and content, so I created this in response: here’s what we should stop saying ‘sorry’ for…

    Sorry, I’m Not Sorry

    As always, I’d love to hear what you think about it!

    Liked by 2 people

    1. Hi Suzie,

      As another Englishwoman, your post really spoke to me! I hate reading anything that opens with an apology, yet sometimes I find I have to hold back from doing that with my own work. I think it’s a slightly female thing as well as an English thing, do you agree?
      I really liked the sentiment of this post and it was extremely well written: persuasive, entertaining, passionate and grammatically sound! Nice layout too. Good work!

      Like

    2. I love it. And I definitely am with you, both in the over-apologizing and the trying to get over it. This is also something that resonates with another post I read recently and a book I am reading. The other post was on Medium: https://medium.com/@lindsaykohler/from-fairy-to-bad-ass-or-how-i-found-empowerment-with-5-changes-bcddab4c11c7

      The book I have just started reading so far is awesome and exactly on point, as I notice you are female, I am female, and the other post is from a female. In fact, I wonder if the apologies you see are mostly or all from women? Ok, it is called The Curse of the Good Girl, by Rachel Simmons. It sort of puts this whole thing is a sociological/psychological perspective, including the part you said about being proud of yourself. it would be interesting to see if you find it resonates with you in…England? (I am guessing by your s in apologising, (Americans use a z) but it could be Austrailia as well…)

      Liked by 1 person

      1. Thanks very much! Thank you for the recommendation too – I’ll check it out! I am English yes, but I’m often mistaken for being an American. The majority of my followers are from the States…

        Like

    4. I think this is incredibly important as a topic. We live in an age when so many people could potentially read our work that it is impossible to please everyone, so there is no point even trying. The main thing is to be happy in your own skin and post what you feel is important. If people are interested and want to read then great, if not, then who cares? Writing is an exercise for the individual primarily and the only thing that matters is that you enjoy writing and have courage in your own convictions. Great post, keep it up 🙂

      Like

    6. A thoughtful and entertaining post as you can see from the massive response to it. I’m British too and I find myself saying ‘Sorry’ too much. I’ve discovered the best way is to write it down, move on, then delete it off again before posting!

      Liked by 1 person

      1. I think that’s a really great idea – I go through my blog every so often and delete posts that I’ve written for therapy purposes when I feel that Ive moved on. The response has been wonderful – thanks for your feedback!

        Liked by 1 person

    7. hey Suzie,

      love the heading – great eye-catcher and enticer… and loved the post – some really great things not to apologise for – work/life balance and feeling the way i feel being two of them that stand out… oh wow eyesbrows raised when you said hating, until i kept reading and couldn’t agree more…

      Yeah, really enjoyed that – much to think about, thank you
      love brett fish

      Liked by 1 person

    1. As always, I love reading your blog! I loved the lines “People keep telling you to learn from your mistakes. But, wouldn’t it be more productive to learn from other people’s mistakes?” You are incredibly well-spoken (well-written?) and your writing is so lovely to read. Keep up the great posts 🙂

      Liked by 2 people

      1. Thank you so much, Sherina! I always deeply appreciate your feedback. And it is definitely “well-written” if I can allow myself that. With speaking I’m always all over the place!

        Like

    2. Thanks for sharing – as one who battles with procrastination, between embracing it, i totally get that part…

      One suggestion i have is where you list the four points at the top to actually present them in list form as it helps break up your paragraphs a little and visually makes the post more appealing.

      i really liked this line: They should be someone who should remind you of what you aspire to be on your own terms, using your own resources.

      Also the way you ended: And that is their role. That is the model they create.

      Good luck with the main article
      love brett fish

      Liked by 2 people

  12. Hello everyone!

    I’d really appreciate any general comments/new members to my blogging family, as I love to hear from fellow bloggers and to learn new things from them!

    I’d also really be interested to hear any ideas of questions I could ask a ‘model’ in an interview next week that I’ll be posting on my culture blog!

    https://dinosaursandwoodlice.wordpress.com/

    Many thanks! 🙂

    Liked by 2 people

    1. I personally believe the list makes the post. It is a great and honest post. I live a few states down, but I know how it is to have unbelievable amounts of snow; however, this isn’t the worst winter that I have experienced. Great Post!

      Liked by 1 person

    2. I agree with the commenter above, the list makes the post. As a native NYer and former MA resident, I’m really enjoying your reactions to New England winters and am looking forward to your “Bloody hell!! MORE?!?! GAAAH!!!!! Frig this, I’m moving to Florida!!!!” post after this latest round of frozen hell we’re in.

      Like

  18. Hi, WordPress! I’ve got a lot of free time today and tomorrow and would like to check out some new blogs! I’d love to review a specific post, or give feedback on the blog in general, so if you want someone to creep on your blog, I’m around 🙂

    Liked by 6 people

    2. What a nice offer! I’m new to blogging and asked advice for the first time on here today. I’d appreciate ANY thoughts about my blog. Here are some specifics I wonder about: Does the blog have an appealing look in general? I’m trying to write encouraging posts, but do they just sound silly? Is the photo gallery on the “About” page a good addition? Thanks!

      Liked by 2 people

      1. 1. Yes, your blog does look nice! The layout is easy to navigate, and Sorbet is a great theme to use.

        2. Oh my god this shouldn’t even be a question. I just read your latest blog post (about your daughter and the lemon bars) and my heart actually maybe really literally warmed. I’ll be honest and say I was expecting a really lame anecdote, but it’s not silly at all! Please, please keep writing, I’ve just fallen in love with your blog and oh my gosh it’s wonderful.

        3. The photo gallery on your “About” page gives users something to look at to learn more about you, and generally it’s definitely a great idea to put pictures in your about page. So that’s definitely a smart move!

        Thank you so much for sharing your blog with me today!

        Liked by 3 people

      2. Wow, theodorazheng, I’m stunned by your kind compliments! You brought a tear to my eye with #2. Thanks for checking out my blog. I left a comment on your blog earlier. Have a great day!

        Like

      1. “FIFTY SHADES OF SHUT THE FUCK UP.” Definitely an interesting blog, and I’m already enjoying the sassitude in your posts. Out of your poetry and flash fiction, I’m definitely a bigger fan of the flash fiction. Please keep working on it; I’ve followed you now so I can watch your progress 🙂

        Liked by 1 person

  23. I am a complete newbie and not a digital native so it took many hours and a lot of perseverance for me to even get my entry published today. But I did it! Now I’d like to work on adding at least one illustration because visuals can be so important. Help!
    How do I import a visual (let’s say from the internet) to add to my blog?

    Liked by 2 people

      1. This article is old, but gives good beginning info on image copyrights: http://www.theedublogger.com/2008/06/22/copyright-and-using-images-in-blog-posts/

        This article talks about bloggers using images: http://blog.kenkaminesky.com/photography-copyright-and-the-law/

        This article might be the most helpful of all. I bookmarked this one for myself to look over more thoroughly later! http://www.huffingtonpost.com/courtney-seiter/53-free-image-sources_b_5331703.html

        Best wishes for you on your new blogging adventure!

        Like

  25. Hey everyone!

    I’m new to the blogging community and am hoping to get some feedback on my blogs. I don’t blog as much as I’d like to but I hope that if there is interest, maybe that will motivate me to blog more.

    mymindmess2014.wordpress.com

    Liked by 2 people

    1. I am sort of an organized, neat freak, so just some friendly advice from based off of other blogs I have seen. I would organized the side bar better, and also add and about page. Overall, though, you have a good start going 🙂

      Like

      2. That Hemingway Rewritten seems pretty sweet and could work for your blog. You will have to enlarge your current header though, or is that a logo..

        Like

    1. I think your site is legit. Clean neat organized, good content. Have you thought about adding categories in the side bar for people to click on. I think it may assist readers to your site. just my 2 cents…overall, like I said legit.

      Like

      1. Thanks, I appreciate it! I tried to add the category cloud, but I was having issues with having it appear on the page. I do think it would make my site a bit more user friendly. Thanks again fac-n-fic!

        Liked by 1 person

      2. I’ve never been to Chicago but always wanted to. Your blog looks great, very professional and clean. You wrote your reviews very well. Nice to meet you

        Like

    2. I love Chicago and have considered moving there, so I’m obviously now following your blog! I like the gallery and the category for your travels outside Chicago, but what about adding a page or category that’s Chicago-specific? Like group together your favorite haunts, walks, that sort of stuff.

      Liked by 1 person

  30. Hello everyone,

    This is my first post in the community pool!

    I am trying out a photo gallery on my “About” page made from photos I had put in some of my blog posts. Do you think the gallery is attractive/enjoyable or just annoying?

    Thanks for any input you may give!

    Like

      1. Thanks for the reply. I think I got the idea for the gallery by randomly pushing buttons on my site. Lol. Good luck with yours!

        Liked by 1 person