Begin to Blog: General Writing and Formatting Tips

The writing and formatting of your site can really make or break getting that return visitor.

Have you ever visited a site that is written in all caps or an unappealing font? Did you want to go back? Me either. Here are some general tips for formatting your posts/site:

Use images

It can immediately help the reader know what the topic is about without reading. It also just makes words appear more interesting. If you are using images through flickr, photobucket or other online sites (more on those in a bit), be sure to ALWAYS give credit to the source. Copyright laws are applicable with pictures just like anything else.

Caps

Don't write in all caps UNLESS of course you are trying to make a bold statement. I see many blogs written in all caps and that isn't proper type. It just hurts my eyes!

Spell Check

Now, I'm not the grammar police (truth be told, I spelled grammar incorrectly in this draft :-). Your writing is an expression of YOU! Unless you are trying to make a point by purposely misspelling something, grammatical errors aren't cool.

Paragraphs

Several sentences form a paragraph. That paragraph express one general thought. Start a new paragraph so you don't jumble thoughts all together. You will lose someone trying to skim to find the point. To make it even easier for some to find that point, create words or sentences that are bold.

Try to break up the paragraphs and make sure there is proper spacing between paragraphs. Sometimes HTML gets funny and while it looks like you have the spacing right in the draft, when you publish it, it messes up. When that has happened to me, going into the HTML Draft view, editing and adding those hard enters usually works. Sometimes you have to edit formatting several times to get it to look right.

Everyone has that one hot button they are annoyed by when they read or visit a site. For some, it's music. Others can't stand entering the verify text when trying to leave a comment. You never want one minor format issue to prevent someone from returning.

You want your work to represent who you are. The written word and formatting is forever!…well, until you edit it that is :)

Action Plan: As you write, be conscious that it is a representation of you. Edit carefully and throw in the improper grammar/punctuation (or smileys, I love me some smileys) as you see fit!