Blogging Tips

I wasn't sure where to post this thread so I looked for a definition of a blog and found this one here:

"a hybrid medium somewhere between broadcast and print"

I will therefore assume that a blog is a medium and that a Tarot-related blog falls under Tarot Books & Media.

I would like to know what people do and don't like about Tarot-related blogs. I hope to share tips so that we can all become better bloggers.

For starters, I have some comments about comments:

If a blogger doesn't acknowledge or respond to comments, I would rather they didn't allow comments. Further, if I comment on a blog I want to be able to easily subscribe to further comments by email to benefit from any feedback on my comments or to easily follow a discussion that interests me.

What makes you click the "back" or "close" button when you open a Tarot-related blog?

A few things that makes me come back to a blog:

*It is updated often, at least a few times a week.
*Photos are nice or any kind of images
*No walls of texts in a single large block, break it up a little
*Share something that is YOU, make it personal. I don't mean you need to talk about deeply private things but try and add something so the reader gets a feel for who you are in the blog.

¨¨¨¨¨¨
ps. i got a blog with one post in i made back in 2009 so i should really just shut up lol.

jema said:

A few things that makes me come back to a blog

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Thanks jema, I feel a little less of an idiot for starting this thread now.

I also like images and some colour.

I don't write very long posts but if I do in future I will try to remember to use subheadings to break it up a bit.

IheartTarot, I'll be watching this thread with interest as I'm a newbie at blogging. By the way, I thought your website was lovely! I'm using Livejournal, which is free, but the constant ads (especially the one that pops up at the beginning!) is tedious!
Excellent suggestions jema!

bodhran said:

IheartTarot, I'll be watching this thread with interest as I'm a newbie at blogging. By the way, I thought your website was lovely! I'm using Livejournal, which is free, but the constant ads (especially the one that pops up at the beginning!) is tedious!

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Thanks bodhran! I am enjoying your blog too.

Is there a specific reason you chose to use livejournal?

I have not figured out a way to subscribe by email to comments on that platform which discourages me from commenting (as I will not easily know if there has been any response by the blog author or further comments on the post). Please let me know if there is a way to do it.

Blogger (and Wordpress) are free and ads are optional.

I did have some affiliate links on my blog at one stage (for Book Depository and one other) but I removed them as no-one ever clicked on them and I felt they were probably doing me more harm than good.

It's funny - and no offence to anyone whatsoever - but the only Tarot Blog that has me coming back again and again and again is Tarot Dame's. It has absolutely everything I could want in a tarot blog, but most importantly - and this is not something that can be taught I supose - a very distinct personality shines through.

I think the important thing to feel is that you have a relationship/affinity with the blogger. And that is something which grows with time.

There are other tarot blogs I read because they are done by friends and so for that reason I find them interesting but Tarot Dame's is the only one by someone who I don't really know so well but which has me going back regularly. I quite simply find all her posts interesting, even when it is a deck I'm not too fussed about.

I have often thought of starting a tarot blog, but to be honest, I know I wouldn't do it as well as Tarot Dame does so I'm quite happy simply to keep reading hers.

A turn off for me on a tarot blog is when it is just that person's readings, about themselves, on their subjects. then I click the "x". I like it when it has objective reviews and bits of day to day stuff.

Thanks for the tips LeFanu!

Le Fanu said:

the only Tarot Blog that has me coming back again and again and again is Tarot Dame's. It has absolutely everything I could want in a tarot blog, but most importantly - and this is not something that can be taught I supose - a very distinct personality shines through.

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I am also a big fan of Kiki's, I like her style and I think I have learnt a lot from her.

Le Fanu said:

A turn off for me on a tarot blog is when it is just that person's readings, about themselves, on their subjects. then I click the "x". I like it when it has objective reviews and bits of day to day stuff.

Click to expand...

I don't mind reading some personal stuff as long as there is some tarot/cards/runes thrown in as well. I don't want to read someone else's personal diary otherwise. I guess I want to be educated and/or entertained.

IheartTarot said:

Thanks bodhran! I am enjoying your blog too.

Is there a specific reason you chose to use livejournal?

I have not figured out a way to subscribe by email to comments on that platform which discourages me from commenting (as I will not easily know if there has been any response by the blog author or further comments on the post). Please let me know if there is a way to do it.

Blogger (and Wordpress) are free and ads are optional.

I did have some affiliate links on my blog at one stage (for Book Depository and one other) but I removed them as no-one ever clicked on them and I felt they were probably doing me more harm than good.

Click to expand...

The reasons I use LiveJournal is that it was extremely simple for a person like me to set up (not techno minded), and it was free. I didn't know that Blogger was free! I wonder if I could figure out how to transfer all my posts to it....

bodhran said:

The reasons I use LiveJournal is that it was extremely simple for a person like me to set up (not techno minded), and it was free. I didn't know that Blogger was free! I wonder if I could figure out how to transfer all my posts to it....

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I have found Blogger fairly easy to use. I have not used LJ or Wordpress so I can't compare.

It is relatively easy to export/import between two Blogger blogs but from one platform to another is trickier.

Aside from cutting and pasting all your blog posts from one blog to another, I found these instructions for importing blog content from LJ to Blogger which you could try.

You would first need to set up your Blogger account here and create a new blog there which is easy enough.

Thanks IheartTarot! I think I've figured out how to get rid of most of the ads on LJ (after 4 months), so I'll probably stick with it for awhile. Plus I'm a chicken about trying to transfer the blogs over. LJ is not fancy, but it works for me. Have you found that you have a new understanding of tarot from blogging about the cards? It's really pushed me a bit to see them in new ways. I think all you have to do if you ever want to leave a comment on LJ is just use the Anonymous setting (then you have to type the squiggly Captcha words).
Thanks for all your help and for starting this thread!!!