30 Days to Being a Better Blogger | BLC
Day 27 Thanksgiving Special: With a little help from my friends
Since today happens to be Thanksgiving, I thought that it might be nice to include one of the things I’m thankful for in this post. In particular, I’m thankful to be a part of a community that places such a huge emphasis on sharing, collaborating and assisting each other whenever possible. That’s one of the great things about the EduVerse. If you need some help, access to an expert or are hunting for a specific resource, there’s thousands of people who are willing to help, provided that you ask. As I mentioned on Day 7, I’ve never been very good at asking people to be guest bloggers. However, I’ve never been shy at asking for other people’s opinions, and often base blog posts on them.
The most obvious example of asking friends or colleagues to blog in conjunction or in response to you, is the various memes you’ll find circulating around. Lee Kolbert was curious to see what other people’s RSS feeds would look like as Wordle’s. She wasn’t shy about it, she not only tagged people in her blog post, but she also sent me a direct message on Twitter. The people who ask are the people who get responses, and people have rallied to the cause. As of this reading, ten people have responded by posting up Wordle’s of their RSS feed.
A few days ago, I did something similar. I wanted to get some of the bloggers who inspire me to share their tips for being a better blogger. I sent them an email and nearly every single one of them responded. Of course, being prolific writers with years of experience, many of them couldn’t stop at just one tip! I’d like to share their responses with you today.
Before I do, let me just outline today’s challenge: Collaborate with somebody or several people on a blog post or meme. Invite other people to share their thoughts on a topic of your choosing, create a meme for other people to participate in, or send a request for people to address a specific question on their blog. Details are up to you, the important part is that it’s collaborative in nature! And of course, be sure to share what you do in comments here.
Without further ado, here are how some of my own favorite bloggers responded to the question: What tip would you give to people striving to be a better blogger?
Order based on when they responded
- Always include a picture that frames your idea (visual literacy)
- Always link…..a blog post should never be without links (link names, blogs, ideas, companies)
- Find your voice….it takes time, sometimes 50+ posts, but keep at it and you’ll find your voice. You were never taught about having a voice on a blog, because blogs weren’t around when you were taught to right. Every blogger has a voice, find your, find your style, and be original with it!
Find your voice. As I have my pre-service teachers delve into this medium, it’s easy to see whose blogs get the most action. It’s the ones who let go the reigns everyone in a while and write from their gut. I can read about almost any topic when passion is evident. For new bloggers this is usually a big risk but well worth it. Write about what fires you up.
Link. Link. Link. Hypertext is the glue of the internet. It is the web. Most new bloggers don’t see this. I advice my students to think about a global audience and don’t assume they know what institution you attend or what town you’re from. I can’t think of any blogger who I consider overlinks. Linking is a generous gift you can give your readers.
Think Nike – just do it. They don’t all have to be gems. If you don’t like it, leave it as a draft. Reread your drafts every once in a while and you’ll have new ideas and the inspiration to polish them off.
First tip – Listen to yourself as you experience other’s writing, media, as well as your interactions. Juxtapose your thoughts and reactions with those ideas…explore the differences, challenge why you agree, or don’t, with them. Then, write from that perspective…what you feel and think matters, don’t belittle…treasure it.
Another tip – share what you are learning as you learn it. We learn every minute of our day, but can only share a small fraction of that, and half-remember ourselves from one day to the next what we learn…share what lies at the edge of consciousness, what you have to remember and wish to externalize for easy reference.Then, you can google yourself…and you will find yourself online.
last one – play with your ideas and your writing, like a cat with a ball of yarn that forgets to hold back. When you can do that with what you’ve learned from others as well as yourself of endless abandonment–play–well, then you’re in the Zone.
Invite people to respond. Write a couple of (hopefully) interesting paragraphs and then ask a question at the end that invites readers to chime in, contribute a resource, etc.!
Thanks for thinking of me. What do YOU think is a great blogging tip to share with others?
Write what you know and talk about what you care about. People who write with passion are forgiven small errors and are engaging to read.
Set up your flickr account to publish directly to your blog. You can use your own (or other’s ) photos by using “Blog this” button, which automatically embeds the photo and whatever text you write. I either do this to blog about, say an event in my own photos, or just using the photo as a metaphor for a thought.
1) Take a break when you need it, rather than forcing your posts. While this depends highly one what type of blogger you are (e.g., professional fulltime vs. part time), sometimes a short hiatus may be what you need to renew your perspective and get you writing again. If the break is
relatively short, there is not a great chance that you should not have to worry about losing subscribers. If you’ve followed the other tips here, there’s a good chance you will already have a stable base.2) Let change come naturally. If you started out as a certain type of blogger but after some time you’ve realized that you are passionate about something else, go with it. Change is often good. Change your
theme, your tagline, your focus if necessary; whatever it takes to be passionate about writing. Chances are these changes will not be incredibly dramatic so you will not have to sacrifice your readership.
The most important piece is that you are writing about something that is important to you. Your posts will likely be more coherent, powerful, and personal. Share your enthusiasm with you readers.3) Avoid the echo chamber. There is an inherent danger in an information environment without a critique. Write and comment carefully, and most importantly, critically. Bad ideas quickly become good ones when the mob mentality arrives.
Write about what interests you. That will keep you motivated and will infuse passion and direction into your writing.
Always post the feed URL of your blog someplace permanent on your blog page. This makes it easier for those using a less-popular news reader to aggregate your content.
Don’t be afraid to say something controversial, and, if you want to offer a post that may cause you to be criticized or ridiculed, just shut off commenting on that post. You may be criticized or ridiculed in other places, but at least not on your own blog!
Don’t let content get lost. With many of us microblogging with Twitter and Plurk, I sometimes feel that entire threads of content are being lost in 140 character hunks. If you do have a meaningful, continuing conversation using one of these tools, summarize it afterwards in a blog post so it is more “permanent”.
If you want to make contact with a prominent blogger, mention and link to them in your own blog in some inviting way, since they (we) all have Google Alerts on their (our) own names.
Blog because you are passionate about what you are sharing, not because you feel you have to get a post up for your readers. I would rather read an occasional post that is written with true voice than a slew that were obviously written just to get something up.
Make your blog as personal as possible. I read writing that has a “voice.” If I want dry scholarship, I’ll read a peer-reviewed journal, but I’ll read your blog if you share your personal experiences, ideas, opinions and passions. PLEASE have a good “About Me” page so I can put your writing in context – your job, your location, your years in the profession. Give me a way to contact you off line, please. I could be an e-stalker, but the odds are against it. For many of us, it’s not really educational unless the heart and soul are touched as well as the mind.
I find my best posts come from the heart – I work hard to experience what I am writing and to pretend that someone is sitting right there and that I am talking to them conversationally. Although sometimes, it leaves me exhausted, I think that this conversational/ experiential type of blogging gives me a voice and keeps me focused on my passion: advocating the effective use of technology to reach ALL learning styles in ways that promote academic excellence.
Often, in my blog entries, I find it necessary to include information that is related to the article, but not logically part of the article. A sidebar serves well for quoted explanations, lists of links, and other ancillary info.
There are lots of ways to achieve this, but just a little straight-forward HTML seems to work most consistently for me. Below is some HTML code that I just past into my blog article, at the beginning of the paragraph that should wrap around the sidebar.
<table border="0" width="300"
align="right" bgcolor="#ffdf89"><tbody><tr><td>
YOUR SIDEBAR TEXT GOES HERE
</td></tr></tbody></table>This code will produce a 300 pixel wide sidebar aligned to the right (with text wrapping around to the left) with a tan background color. Good luck!
End with the beginning. This is not necessarily a blogging tip, per se, but a writing technique, a way to bring ideas full circle. Example
I find that most people choose not to blog or to share because they feel like someone else has or will do whatever it is that they’re trying to do better. They’re not good enough, or whatever.
The harsh reality is that’s probably true. But what is also true is that no one else will ever do it the way that you do, and you will learn more in the doing than you will in reading someone else’s account of the same thing, even if it’s a very, very good account or blog post or whatever.
So be brave, and write anyway, knowing that there’s value in sharing your experiences in large part because they’re yours.
1. Use your blog to BUILD others up and not TEAR them down. As Thumper was told in Bambi (slight edit here…) If you can’t write somethin’ nice, don’t write anything at all.
2. Count your “I’s” before you hit submit. Count your “me’s”. Could your “should’s”. And count the times you draw attention to yourself. Your blog might be written BY you………..but it doesn’t need to be written ABOUT you.
3. Sometimes you don’t have to hit SUBMIT!!!
Huge thanks go out to everybody who responded. I truly feel honored to have such inspiring and responsive people in my network!
Happy Thanksgiving everyone!
- Day 16: Your Greatest Hits
- Day 7: Invite Somebody to Be a Guest Blogger
- Day 23: Plan out your week
- RSS Bigotry
- “What’s weblogging?” Let Shelby tell you!
Natalie
11/28/2008
I LOVE this post! What great ideas. Thanks, Steve, for collecting this knowledge into one place.
Natalie´s most recent blog post.. Practice Glog
chris in nh
11/28/2008
this is an amazing list…like getting into the heads of so many people i read! a wonderful idea and thanks for sharing.
Sean Nash
11/28/2008
1. Steve- this post is the most exciting of the “challenges” thus far. While many were solid nutsandbolts type missions, this one is creative. You’ve got me thinking here.
2. I just started a small groups of student bloggers on a group blog on Wednesday (not related to a class). Most of your responses here were the perfect big-picture thoughts for people just beginning to blog.
Thanks to all.
Sean
Sean Nash´s most recent blog post.. Giving Thanks
Michael
11/28/2008
Hey Steve! I am a student and I stared bloging two months ago. I am most thankful for haveing a f amily that loves me.
Michael´s most recent blog post.. What is your favorite sport?
Sam
11/28/2008
Hey Steve!
I am a Student and I have been blogging for just a little more then 2 months. I like this post alot because it has voice.
Sam´s most recent blog post.. The Best Book Ever! Take 2
Brittany
11/28/2008
Hello
I’m a student and I gave myself a goal. Like Jeff Utecht said to get more readers to come to your blog it’s a good idea to add pictures to posts.
Brittany´s most recent blog post.. Remembrance of a dream
Michael T.
11/28/2008
Hey Steve! You don’t know me but my name is Michael T.! I absoulutly love blogging and I’m not allowed on the internet until I’m 12 and I’m 11. So I’m in school right now and the other class just came in so I’ll tell you the rest next time I’m in the computer lab!
Michael T.´s most recent blog post.. Remembrance
Lee Kolbert
11/28/2008
Hi Steve,
What a great idea to compile some quick tips from the world’s best edubloggers! Your network reaches far and wide and how luck for us that we can all benefit!
Thanks also for mentioning my Wordle meme. Since you didn’t link back to it, I won’t be shy about that either http://macmomma.blogspot.com/2008/11/can-i-have-wordle-with-you.html
It is true, that you can’t be shy about asking people to participate or to help or to let them know that you want to help.
Hockey Analogy Alert:
A lot can be learned from spectating, but at some point if you want to play, you have to get on the ice! Good players will talk to each other, generate plays on the fly and encourage each other to “go for it.”
I’m so glad to be an active player in this “sport.”
Lee Kolbert´s most recent blog post.. Can I Have a Wordle With You?
Scott McLeod
11/28/2008
Thanks, Steve, for pulling these together and publishing them. They were both fun and insightful. Like others, I enjoyed getting a glimpse into others’ blogging brains!
Scott McLeod´s most recent blog post.. I said, they said
Austin
11/28/2008
Hello Steve,
These blogging tips are very useful for any bloggers that have to improve skills. Blogging is very fun and is a great way to get to know people and make friends.
Austin´s most recent blog post.. My Dad’s Interesting Job
Michael T.
11/28/2008
Hey again Steve! I didn’t have any time at all so I’m going to finish my last comment… because it didn’t make sense. Ok so one of my tips for blogging is to comment on people’s blogs all the time and try out for things that will get your name out to all bloggers. Like get your name on Ms. Wyatt’s blog (like me!) And maybe win a blogging contest, and write really good posts so people actually comment on somthing decent… sooo ya! That’s some of the tips that I know and hope you use some of the tips!
Michael T.´s most recent blog post.. Remembrance
Kristopher
11/28/2008
Hi Mr. Dembo. My name is Kristopher, I am a student. I also blog and I think that these ideas will really help me with writing on my blog. I am just learning to link to other websites. My favourite part of your post is the part by Dean Shareski because my blog is all about what I like to do best. Play videogames.
Kristopher´s most recent blog post.. Maple Story
hayden
11/28/2008
HI, Mr Dembo, these tips look really are really helpful and getting ideas from other people is really a good idea.
hayden´s most recent blog post.. Rememberance Day
Daniel W.
11/28/2008
Hi Mr. Dembo. My name is Daniel W, and I am a student too. Our class has a class blog and we all gave individual blogs. me and Kristopher’s blogs are both about videgames.
My tip for blogging is to always use spell checker on your post before you post it because you never know if you spelled a word wrong unless you read over your post.
Bye!
Daniel W.´s most recent blog post.. Club Penguin
Kristin Hokanson
11/28/2008
Hey Steve…
My advice (that I never got to you is…
Blogging takes TIME…you need to make the time sometimes to be reflective. Thanks for pulling this list together and reminding me it’s about time for me to start making time
Kristin Hokanson´s most recent blog post.. The END to Copyright Confusion~and a new beginning
Martha Thornburgh
11/28/2008
Am working on a collaborative piece with teacher in my district. Each week I have been giving them a small Web 2.0 Challenge to complete. This week, I asked them to share some way they or a colleague were using technology to enhance learning and engage learners. I set up a Google Doc Form and embedded it on my Google Site and on my Blog. I have already had a few great replies. Hoping to get several more and then I will highlight these teachers in future posts. Also contemplating a meme, but am going to wait since Lees is in action at the moment.
Martha Thornburgh´s most recent blog post.. Wordle Compared
[...] twenty-seven in the 30 Days to Being a Better Blogger series was yesterday and asked us to look at Day 27 Thanksgiving Special: With a little help from my friends. Essentially,Steve asked a bunch of his blogger friends what advice they would give to bloggers. [...]
joycevalenza
11/29/2008
So many friends have already shared what I have learned.
My big tips: chunk text for online readers, bullet your big ideas.
Find your voice, discover what you stand for and what matters. Wait, if the story isn’t ready. (I am a slow blogger. I cannot live blog.)
When I do it well (and I clearly don’t always do it well) my “spin” on the story is clear. I try to interpret beyond the announcement. What does this new tool, this new legislation, this new idea mean to me and my practice? What will it mean to my various colleagues? For learners?
joycevalenza´s most recent blog post.. VoiceThread your Thanksgiving greetings
Day 29: Be a Rock Star - Teach42
11/29/2008
[...] certainly more to blogging than widgets, feeds, links and comments. I was very thankful that the tips shared by other bloggers on Day 27 hit on so many other pieces that I thought ought to be covered. However, there’s just a few [...]
e news | Dell.com
11/29/2008
[...] Day 27 Thanksgiving Special: With a little help from my friends … Always pst the feed URL of your blog someplace permanent on your blog page. This makes it easier for those using a less-popular news reader to aggregate your content. Don’t be afraid to say something controversial, and, if you want to offer a post that may cause you to be criticized or ridiculed … [...]
news alerts | NBA.COM
11/30/2008
[...] Day 27 Thanksgiving Special: With a little help from my friends … Always pst the feed URL of your blog someplace permanent on your blog page. This makes it easier for those using a less-popular news reader to aggregate your content. Don’t be afraid to say something controversial, and, if you want to offer a post that may cause you to be criticized or ridiculed … [...]
[...] tagged me with the Wordle meme begun by Lee Kolbet. Which works well with Teach 42’s posts Day 27 and Day 28 of 30 days to being a better blogger where he referenced Lee’s meme. So here [...]
Martha Thornburgh
11/30/2008
Decided to jump in the conversation with a meme. What do you believe about ALL students? We will see how this goes.
http://digital-doors.blogspot.com/2008/11/all-students-meme.html
Martha Thornburgh´s most recent blog post.. All Students Meme
Evelyn Chavez
12/1/2008
I am starting to apply what I learn through this blogs. I am an ELL Elementary teacher and I am always welcoming new ideas to help my level students to suceed in the vocabualry development and other areas as well.
Thanks for your ideas.
Evelyn
Blogging Advice | Catie's Blog
12/1/2008
[...] have just been looking at a blog called Teach42 by a guy named Steve Dembo. He himself has inspired me to write some of my own blogging advice [...]
MizzB
12/1/2008
Blogging, for me, seems to be some weird Bermuda Triangle Zone between head, humor, and heart. Sometimes more towards one corner, sometimes more towards another, but that’s the basic area blogging maps. And, like the Bermuda Triangle, sometimes nothing ever comes out. But it’s fun!
MizzB´s most recent blog post.. 30 Million Words
Amy
12/1/2008
Thank you for this post. I am actually very new to blogging, and I started as part of a collaborative project with some classmates of mine. I am in school earning my teaching certificate and masters at the same time. I never read blogs previously, but now that I have started, I am hooked.
Michael Walker
12/2/2008
Steve,
Wow! This post is awesome! I will definitely be refering to it when I present next week on “The Blogging Cycle”. I’m adding to the presentation to include these tips!
Thanks,
Mike
Michael Walker´s most recent blog post.. 2008 Edublogs Nominee
[...] Day 27 Thanksgiving Special: With a little help from my friends – Teach42 [...]
Carol Ford
1/1/2009
These are excellent tips, especially for someone who is new to this arena.
Carol Ford´s most recent blog post.. Today is the Last Day of 2008.
Dena Dunlap
11/17/2009
Day 27 Thanksgiving Special: With a little help from my friends… http://tinyurl.com/ykcgjjl
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