1. Blogging for Champions
Here are some hints, tips, and best practices for successful blogging. You’ll also
find that blogging will reinforce your learning more effectively if you’re following
these simple guidelines.
1. Link from your posts to other blog posts, both at Virginia Tech and elsewhere.
Remember to link to the permalink for individual blog posts, not to the blog as a
whole, so your link will show up as a trackback on a particular post. You can find
the permalink of a post by clicking on the post title and copying the URL from your
browser’s address bar.
2. Comment frequently and substantively on other blogs. Linking and comment-
ing help to spark ideas for everyone. Also, bloggers always want to see what cool
person has found them and commented or linked to them, so this will drive traffic to
your blog as well. Remember to contribute ideas and insights, not just polemic.
3. Make a blogroll in your sidebar that shows your readers the blogs you’re inter-
ested in and reading regularly. Blogrolls help to bring interesting networks of read-
ers and writers together.
4. Be creative! Choose interesting titles, make an “about” page, embed media,
and reward your readers with fresh approaches and thoughtful writing. While your
style will usually be fairly informal, remember that clear and inviting prose gives
your reader a much better experience.
5. Feed your blog! Readers want fresh content. One paragraph a day is better
than six paragraphs once a week, though your frequency of posting may vary at
times.
6. Look at great examples of blogs you love, get inspired, then “go and do other-
wise.”
7. Geek out/trick out your blog: play with the sidebars, headers, widgets, plugins,
etc. Look for “widgets” under “Appearance” on your Dashboard. Plug-ins have their
own menu link on the Dashboard.
8. Finally: Network Thyself! Put links to your blog and to new posts on Facebook,
on your email .sig file, on Twitter, wherever you interact online.
THE GOLDEN BLOGRULE:
“Passion encouraged; civility required.”
More Info: bit.ly/honorsblogs
