Weekly Digest: Back on the Farm, Improving Your Blog Series, WordPress Podcast Reporter, and More

While the world is rushing around doing holiday activities, I’m in panic mode to finish up some major projects and working very long hours – in between feeding animals and doing farm work.

Had a lovely adventure with one of the mini-donkeys, Rocko, who got lose and I found him wandering around in front of my window. Took some doing to get the normally cuddly and loving puppy-dog creature back into the fields, especially since he turned donkey stubborn in the process, but it’s amazing what food bribes can do. [This is Rocko and Leslie, his owner, getting his butt scratched, his favorite pastime.] Miniature donkey Rocko with owner Leslie in Oregon, photograph copyright Lorelle VanFossen Then it was slogging around looking for the escape route, which we haven’t found yet. The mud from the rains and floods make for boot sucking walking. Getting back to work was more like a vacation after slogging around in the yuk.

This week, I continue my Blog Herald series on “Improving Your Blog”, a poorly titled (in retrospect) series explaining all the redundant things I tell my web consultancy clients who should know better, but don’t. A few in the WordPress Community take on the issue of the WordPress Theme Viewer being closed to Theme authors, and get a response. And I ask for your help to compile a calendar of blogging events for next year. There’s been a lot going on!

This is the Weekly Digest from Lorelle on WordPress. To subscribe to the Weekly Digest category of Lorelle on WordPress, you can subscribe by the Weekly Digest feed or by email with the Weekly Digest Email Subscription to stay up to date on what is happening in Lorelle’s world of WordPress and blogging.

The last issue of my weekly digest was Weekly Digest: Floods, Harp Guitars, WordPress 2.4 News, and Improving Your Blog Tips.

What’s Happening with Lorelle on WordPress

Here’s the latest blog posts on Lorelle on WordPress.

What’s Your Favorite Blog Conference or Event? – A request to help me create a calendar of blogging events and groups for next year. Please let me know what your favorite blogging events, groups, associations, and conferences are and why.
Copyright and Translation: Help Your Community Yourself – This article reminds everyone that if you want to translate an article and publish it on your blog – ASK FIRST. You might get a yes, but more importantly, to do so without permission is a violation of copyright and can land you in more hot water than you might need. If you really want to help your community, then rewrite the tip in your language in your words so it serves your community and isn’t a direct translation.
Access Requested to the WordPress Theme Viewer – Nathan Rice reminded me that the WordPress Theme Viewer is still closed to backend access, making it impossible for Theme authors to update their Themes. His cry brought a response and it looks like it will soon be open and active.
Protecting Cultural Heritage With Blogs – Looks at how some blogs and organizations are working with blogging to protect and preserve cultural heritage and bring the past alive.
Weekly Digest: Floods, Harp Guitars, WordPress 2.4 News, and Improving Your Blog Tips is the last weekly digest with news on the next version of WordPress and more.
Blog Challenge: Write a Political Post challenges readers to get a little political with their blogs and experiment with the art of political writing and commentary.
Staying on Track with WordPress 2.4 News is a quick introduction to Westi’s weekly reports on what’s happening with WordPress 2.4, and where to find more tips and news on the next version.
New Article Series – Blog Struggles: In this new ongoing series, I share with you some of the intimate thoughts, internal debates, conflicts, and challenges I have faced over the past 14+ years of blogging. So far, the series includes:
- Blog Struggles: The Search for Blog Content: We put so much energy into “finding” blog content that we often forget the best source for good blog content: from within us. I offer tips and techniques for pulling content from your head.
- Blog Struggles: Ideas and Drafts: We come up with such great ideas and then what? We jot them down, make lists, start post drafts, and they sit there staring at us, as we procrastinate over what to do with all these ideas and how to keep them in check. I offer tips on how to best keep track of your ideas and drafts.
- Blog Struggles: The Blog Focus: As part one in a sub-series of posts on Blog Struggles, I look at the issue of the blog focus, your blog’s ability to turn you from a blogger into an expert.
- Blog Struggles: Why Should Your Blog Have a Focus: Your blog doesn’t have to have a focus, but if it does, these are the reasons, and benefits, of why it should.
- Blog Struggles: Finding Your Blog Focus: Continues the Blog Focus theme and offers tips for finding your blog’s focus and direction.
- Blog Struggles: Changing Your Blog’s Focus: Once you find your blog focus, how do you change your blog? Or should you start a new blog? I cover the tips you need to know to redirect your blog.
- Blog Struggles: When Spelling, Grammar, and Punctuation Interferes With Your Blogging looks at the issues around the impact of poor writing habits and skills and whether or not they impact the success and reading of your blog.
- In Blog Struggles: When Are Too Many Comments Too Many Comments?, I share a struggle I faced not long ago about an over-enthusiastic commenter who left a ton of comments on my blog within a few hours, making me very suspicious. We are often faced with suspicious comments, so what do we do? How should we handle them?
- Blog Struggles: Taking The Moral High Blogging Ground addresses the issue of deciding which ethical and moral road to take on your blog.
- Blog Struggles: Blogger’s Depression looks at the rarely discussed by normal aspect of blogging: depression. When the enthusiasm for the effort is lost and apathy sets in, and how to overcome it.

Lorelle’s News

WordPress Book Reviews: In WordPress Books (Plus Reviews), WPThemesPlugin did a summary/review of the various books available on WordPress. My book, Blogging Tips, started off the list, which is wonderful, but my book is not about WordPress. It’s about blogging with whatever blogging platform or program you use. Still, thanks, Moses, for the kind words and the endorsement.

WordPress Podcast: A new episode of the WordPress Podcast is out. Episode 32: Automattic Rumors, Lorelle Provides WordPress.com News includes an interview with Jonathan Bailey of Plagiarism Today and the Blog Herald discussing copyright issues and content theft, rumors of Automattic’s financial ventures, the WordPress.com Premium Theme Marketplace, and ME! I’m now the official reporter for news on WordPress.com for the WordPress Podcast.

Improving Your Blog Tips on the Blog Herald: The series I started this past week on the Blog Herald, Improving Your Blog Tips, is getting a lot of attention and getting people thinking about what they need to do to improve their blogs.

Lorelle on ProBlogger: I recently published Readers Versus Visitors: Whose Needs Are You Meeting, an article that looks at how to not let your interpretation of your blog stats, or assumptions about your blog readers and visitors, get in the way of serving and meeting the needs of your visitors and readers.

Blogger and Podcaster Magazine: It looks like I will be continuing my work with Blogger and Podcaster Magazine into next year. The last three issues included articles on tips you need to know on blogging mistakes, editorial calendars for bloggers, and improving your writing skills. I’m working on a series on turning your blog into a business for the next couple months.

Among the Must-Read Blogs: Damien Riley published a “Must-Read Blogs This Season” which included me, but also a lot of other interesting blogs worth checking into.

Blogging Tips: What Bloggers Won’t Tell You About Blogging

It appears my book, “Blogging Tips: What Bloggers Won’t Tell You About Blogging” is a hot item for giving to your favorite blogger during the holiday season. Sales have kicked up and I’m barely able to keep up. I’m still sending out autographed copies at the introductory price – while supplies last (sigh) – so get your order in soon before I run out before the holidays. You can order a copy from SplashPress or the new Blog Herald Bookstore. If you would like to order multiple copies, please email me first as that requires special handling.

For more information on the book, see the original announcement and a recent update with reviews and other information, as well as the Blogging Tips Book official page.

Most Popular Articles on Lorelle on WordPress

The most popular posts on Lorelle on WordPress the past week were:

Blasts From the Past

Here are some blasts from the past I’ve written that still are interesting today:

Blog Herald Columns

Recent articles on the Blog Herald included:

Blogger Sucks. Wanna Move to WordPress? I’ve been reading about many wanting out of Blogger and deciding to move to WordPress. It’s very easy to move and I offer a step-by-step guide to help you manage your move.
The series on Improving Your Blog continues on the Blog Herald and covers the basic tips I redundantly give my web consultant clients that should know better, but don’t. So far, the ongoing series includes:
- Improving Your Blog: Clarity covers the number one think lacking in many blogs and websites: a clear purpose, identity, and content which supports the design as well as the intent.
- Improving Your Blog: Clean It Up overs what it really means to clean up your blog’s design and content.
- Improving Your Blog: Consistency looks at how to build trust and integrity with consistency in your blog.
- Improving Your Blog: Creativity covers how to break the same old song blahs to make your blog really interesting and attention-getting.
- Improving Your Blog: The Google Game looks at the games we play with our blogs and if they really work, as well as what we should be doing instead. Remember, Google ain’t the only game in town.
- Improving Your Blog: Why Blog? Before you start blogging, or expanding your blog, really look at why you blog, if you have the time and the energy, as well as the commitment to keep blogging for the long term.

Some recent weekly WordPress Wednesday News reports included:

Lorelle’s Linkworthy Links

As I crawled through the web recently, I ran across some interesting posts and articles you should check out:

Management by Semantics – The Business Pundit does it again, getting you thinking about how the words work and which words really help you tell the story you want to tell.
Social Networks are NOT a Cure For Stupidity is a great perspective on how idiocy follows the masses.
Sometimes Not So Important Matters from ifacethoughts is a great look at what really matters in life and work.
Writing For a Cellphone Audience from Writer’s Write makes me think about this new audience. Shouldn’t you be thinking about how they read your blog, too?

This is the Weekly Digest of Lorelle on WordPress.
Subscribe to Lorelle on WordPress Weekly Digest Weekly Digest Email Subscription
Subscribe to Lorelle on WordPress Via Feedburner Email Subscription
Copyright Protected and Reserved – If you are reading this post outside of your feed reader or Lorelle on WordPress, the usage of this content is a violation of copyright and the DMCA. Please report it immediately so action can be taken against them. If you are using this content illegally, and you know who you are, consider this a cease and desist order.
Lorelle VanFossen is a member of WordPress, WordPress.com, the 9Rules Network, and author of Blogging Tips, What Bloggers Won’t Tell You About Blogging.

One Trackback/Pingback

By Weekly Digest: End of Year Rush, Lorraine is Bad, Awards, and Kicking Blogging But - As Usual « Lorelle on WordPress on January 5, 2008 at 6:12 pm

[…] The last issue of my weekly digest was Weekly Digest: Back on the Farm, Improving Your Blog Series, WordPress Podcast Reporter, and More. […]