This week, Kim tells us to do all the little simple things on your blog.
I got around to doing some of the things I've been procrastinating on.
I made a header. It is not very good. I don't have any fancy-schmancy photo editing skills, but I wanted something with Gilmore Girls on it, since the blog's name is a line from the show! If I can get around to figuring out photoshop at school someday, I should make a pretty one. I just like how headers make the blog look less generic.
I added a hit counter and a list of followers (look at the bottom for that) as well as a link to easily subscribe to my blog. Now you don't have an excuse not to!
I also updated my About Me and added that to the blog's main page as well.
I wanted to have pictures of the challenges I am in on my sidebar, but the way blogger does it is stupid. There is such a big gap between the pictures. If any of you know how to make it look good, please share your wisdom with me!
Blogger also does not have a function where you can make a seperate page. I wanted one to display all of the books I have read so far this year instead of having them listed on the front page (like what Dewey had). I also wanted a page for the challenges I am in.
I'm toying with the idea of switching over to another blog hosting site. I am not far into this whole blogging thing, so it wouldn't be a huge adjustment. But, since I am starting out I do not have many loyal followers, so I wouldn't want to lose anyone because I changed!
I admit I did not do any research at all when I started this blog. I definitely would not have chosen blogger!
I just realized that my six month blogiversary is March 17, so I will have to think of something creative to do for that!
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6 comments:
Yay for the Gilmore Girls!
I switched platforms ten months into blogging, and I didn't lose anyone. In fact, after I switched to Wordpress, my visitor stats jumped (I don't know if that had anything to do with WP). So don't worry about that! :)
As far as the spacing of pictures goes, it depends. I think the view you have as the author is different than the view your readers have. So sometimes things appear to have more space between them than they really do. Of course, you may think any space is too much. You might consider using a mosaic maker to make a collage of your challenge banners. I don't know how you made your current header, but I use this mosaic maker to make my headers. (I don't know what other people use, and what software others have to make theirs.) There are many things in design that are beyond me. But this is a simple tool that is easy to use.
You can give your blog the appearance of having multiple pages. I know the Weekly Geeks page does this. Many blogger blogs do. Mine included (Becky's Book Reviews). This gives it an organized look, and it gives you easy access to posts when you want to update them. The pages are really individual posts. So you could have one for books read, and current challenges, etc.
It's a personal decision on whether or not you want to switch to another blog hosting site. I think your readers would follow you to a new blog home if that's what you decide...as long as you post about where that new home is and point the way! So don't worry about aspect of it and let yourself feel trapped. That being said, I like using blogger best and I've use both that and wordpress. But every blogger has to do whatever works for them and not worry about what other people say!!!
I use blogger also, and I have some suggestions for things you wanted to do.
To have a separate page for my book list and About Me stuff that isn't in my profile, I wrote posts and dated them from a month ago or so. There is a link to those pages on my sidebar.
When I put pictures into my sidebars, there are 2 ways to do it that work for me and both involve adding a text box. If the button creator has provided the HTML code, copy it and paste it into the text box. Be sure you are in the HTML setting. If there is no HTML provided, I upload the image to my photobucket account and get it from there. Feel free to email me if this is confusing. We're all learning here!
Picnik.com is a super easy photo editing site. I used it to make my creative writing wednesday button and some others. It would be very easy to make a great looking header! Plus, you don't even have to sign in.
Check it out :)
your headers' cute:) gilmore girls is one of my fave shows...
-amy
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