Artful Blogging

My MIL gave me Artful Blogging Magazine about bloggers who display their art on their blogs. It makes my little photoblog seem pretty simple. It was fun to look at though and gave me some good ideas. At the back of the magazine, it talked about "Blogging Etiquette". I thought some of it was interesting, so I thought I'd share it here.

"Whether you have a blog yourself, or you just enjoy reading them, there are a few rules-a code of conduct if you will-that can help make the experience more pleasant for everyone. You'll probably discover that every blog has its own set of expectations about proper behavior, but here are some basic Do's and Don'ts that will ensure you're welcome everywhere you visit.

Do: Comment on a post if you found it enjoyable or moving. Bloggers love to hear when their efforts are appreciated.

Don't: Make comments that are irrelevant to the post or hte site in general. A lot of readers find comments that have nothing to do with the topic disruptive to the conversation in process.

Do: Respond to people who leave comments on your blog, either in email or by visiting their blog, if they've left a link. Visiting and commenting is essential to buildign that valued sense of community.

Don't: Comment anonymously. This is considered the height of bad manners in the blog world: if you can't own up to your words, maybe you should keep them to yourself.

Do: Link to another blog when you mention it, especially if you are reposting any content. It's only fair to give credit where it's due.

Don't: Link to someone else's images. If you must show something in your own blog, upload the picture to your own server before displaying it on the Web. For extra points, check with the origianl poster to make sure it's OK if you use it.

Do: Let your readers know if you're to be away from your blog for a while and tell them when you'll be back. That way, they won't have to keep checking back to look for a post that doesn't appear.

Don't: Ask someone to link to your Web site or blog. Instead, invite them to visit and comment on something you've posted.

Be thoughtful. Be courteous. Be kind."

I think we're pretty relaxed here at S&S, so some of this doesn't apply. I like that it encourages comments, because it's made me be more bold to comment on sites that I like to read so they know who I am (I got up the guts to comment on a girl's blog in NC this morning-no clue who she really is but she does great crafty stuff!).