Blogging Instructions
Use this page to guide your blog post construction, and come back to get tips for revision.
BLOG ROUGH & FINAL REQUIREMENTS (also on Schoology)
BLOG DUE DATES (PDF)
Step 1: Choose a topic
Resources
- “How to Decide What to Blog About” by Amy Lynn Andrews (author and professional blogger)
- “How to Choose a Topic for Your Next Post” from ProBlogger
- “How to Pick a Blog Topic You’ll Want to Write About” from Mridu Khullar Relph (published in New York Times, TIME, CNN, and others)
- Want something controversial? Go to Debate.org and choose an Opinion topic from their many categories.
Step 2: Use strategies for links & scannable structuring
- Learn how to use links: “How to Use Links in Your Post” (PDF)
- Learn how to make your post scannable: “7 Tips to Writing a Blog Post That’s Scannable” from Susan Gunelius,marketing/communications expert
Step 3: Find Images and Crop a Featured Image
For your blog post, you will need to use media (image, video, etc.) in addition to a featured image that is 890 x 400 pixels in size and is licensed for our use. All media used must be legal and must include a link back to its source; it cannot be copyrighted material (see the article “How Using Google Images Can Cost You $8,000” by PR Daily for reasons why!). Below you will find links to websites that offer free high-quality images for web use–they will probably only require you to give attribution in the post (tell where it came from), so bookmark the site so you remember where you found it. For help with resizing the image and a video tutorial on finding royalty free images, go to the Tutorials page.
Creative Commons Search (from here, search Flickr for CC-licensed images–not all Flickr images are Creative Commons licensed)
Pixabay (mostly professional quality photos)
Unrestricted Stock (many professional quality photos)
Pexels (free professional quality stock photos)
StockPhotosForFree.com
Free Images
For more sources, see the article “Where to Find Free Stock Photos Online: 29 Sites”
Step 4: Improving Your Post
“Four Pillars of Exceptional Posts” from ProBlogger
“11 Ways to Open a Post and Get Reader Engagement” from ProBlogger
“How to Craft Post Titles That Draw Readers Into Your Blog” from ProBlogger
“Write Catchy Titles” a Prezi by Matt Kantor
“91 Awesome Headline Formulas” by PowToons
“Anatomy of a Good Post” from Amy Lynn Andrews
If you ever want to start your own blog, Amy Lynn Andrews’ How to Blog is an excellent place to start.
Example Blog Posts by Type
Thoughts/commentary
“On Beauty” by Erin Gates of the blog Elements of Style (one of the highest earning blogs in the fashion industry)
“I Chronically Cry on Airplanes” by Jessie Rosen of the blog 20-Nothings (A TIME Top 25 and Forbes Top 100 blogger)
“Students Aren’t Getting Enough Sleep — School Starts Too Early” by Jessica Lahey of The Atlantic
“It’s 2014: Why Are Men Still Paying for First Dates?” by Joe Pinsker of The Atlantic
“Why Girls Get Better Grades Than Boys Do” by Enrico Gnaulati of The Atlantic
“Kids Actually Read the Books That Movies Are Based On” by Rose Eveleth of The Atlantic (a good example of effective use of images)
Sports
“Thoughts from an Eagles Fanatic About Desean Jackson” from Daddy’s Hangout (a top sports blog)
“My Love for Baseball Is Gone” from Daddy’s Hangout
Book Review
“My Heart Belongs to Augustus: Book Review of The Fault In Our Stars“ by Beth Robertson on Nerdy Book Club (2012 Independent Book Blogger Award winner)
Video Game Review
“The Knight Shift: Batman Arkham Origins Is as Bland as a Bowl of Rice Krispies and That’s a Good Thing” by Anthony John Agnello of the blog Gameological (A TIME Top 25 blogger)
“The Heroes We Don’t Deserve: Is There a Video Game Hero You Can’t Stand?” by The Gameological Society (a TIME Top 25 blog)
“The Guy Who Hunts the Rarest Pokemon of Them All” from Kotaku
