Blogging 101
Essentials for creating a great online diary.
by Tori Cassidy
TWEENS & TEENS News January
2008
What is a blog?
A blog is short for a weblog, which is a Web
site that is organized as an online diary
of thoughts, opinions, feelings, comments,
photographs, music preferences, videos and
interactions. A blog is frequently shown in
reverse chronological order, meaning the newest
blog post shows up at the top of the page
and the oldest blog post shows up at the bottom
of the page.
A blog can be nearly anything— fact
or fiction, simple or complex, with entries
as short as a single word or as long as a
novel. Blogs also give readers the ability
to leave comments about the blog’s posts.
Blogs are updated daily, weekly, monthly or
whenever the blog’s owner feels like
updating the site. The action of updating
a blog is called blogging, and someone who
owns a blog is called a blogger. The best
part about blogging is that it is a cinch
to start. To become a blogger, a person merely
needs to create an account on a blogging site—
and the blogger may then dish on anything
and everything meaningful to the person or
relevant to the blog’s theme.
How to write a blog.
No set format exists on how to write a blog.
Your blog may assume any structure, and its
content can cover anything under the sun.
Likewise, the fun thing about a blog is that
it represents a personal creative outlet.
Each blog has a subject line and a body. The
subject should be a short description of your
blog or merely the start of your blog, while
the body is where the main part of your blog
goes.
One of the most common types of blogs is a
personal journal, where people can write about
what happened during a day, week or month.
Bloggers can write about the emotions they
have been feeling, things they are excited
for, travel experiences or even things they
do not like. When writing a blog, remember
to write in clear language that readers can
understand. Finish your thoughts and use proper
grammar. Make sure that you spell things as
correctly as you can, and try to avoid using
abbreviations. It is a good idea to spell
check before you post each blog entry.
Typical blog themes include poetry, creative
writing, photo and video blogs. On blogs,
people can post their creative works for their
friends to view and give feedback on in the
form of comments. Let’s say you write
a story and you want your friends to read
it and tell you what they think. Simply post
your story in a blog, enabling your friends
to read the piece online and comment on it.
What to omit from a blog.
There are tons of blogging sites on the Internet
these days. For teens and tweens, however,
there are few sites that are safe to use without
taking precautions about what you are viewing
and writing. In your blogs, avoid using specific
information. In other words, do not post your
real name, your address, your phone number,
the name of your school, your sports teams
or the names of places where you hang out.
You never know who might be reading your blog.
Also, never ask for other people’s real
names, addresses or phone numbers on your
site. Most sites have an option where you
can make your blog available just to a friends
list that you create. If your blogging site
enables you to do this, only allow people
you know and trust to be in your friends list.
On your site, do not use inappropriate language
or swear words. In addition, do not write
mean or untrue things about other people.
Lastly, ensure you do not give out your password
to your account on a blogging site—
you do not want someone pretending to be you
and writing things you would never write or
post. Instead, share your thoughts and experiences
with others. Just remember not to give specific
personal information.
How not to write a blog.
Here’s an example of a blog gone wrong:
My favorite baseball team is the San Francisco
Giants. I like the Giants because the team’s
stadium is so close to my house and because
my baseball team is called the San Francisco
Giants. All the girls on my team except Sarah
and Madison went to the Giants game after
we beat the Berkeley Bears last night! Our
game was at Berkeley High School, and we won
even though we didn’t play on our home
field.
Last night was such a treat to go to the game
because normally after games we just go get
pizza at North Beach Pizza. But this time
we sat right behind home plate at the Giants’s
cool new stadium and ate hot dogs! Hopefully
we’ll be able to go to another pro game—
maybe even after we play the Marin Bulldogs
next week at Tamalpais High School in Mill
Valley or after we play the Walnut Creek Marauders
at their field at Walnut Creek Intermediate.
Here is a better way to write the blog above:
My favorite baseball team is the San Francisco
Giants. I like the Giants because the team
has some great players and the games are fun
to watch. I also like the Giants because I
play baseball, too! My team is also good and
we were able to beat a team last night, even
though we were the visiting team.
After our games, we get to have team dinners
or go to fun things like professional baseball
games. I’m so excited for my team’s
upcoming games— they should be fun ones
and perhaps we’ll get to go to another
pro baseball game.
Although the second blog tells readers that
the blogger likes a specific baseball team,
it does not reveal that the blogger lives
near the team, as the first blog does. The
fewer specific pieces of information you give
in a blog, the less likely a person who reads
your blog would be able to figure out who
you are or where you are from— and that’s
the way it should be. When you blog, have
fun and be creative. Just also remember to
be safe!
Tori Cassidy is the marketing coordinator
at www.imbee.com, a social networking site
created specifically for kids ages 8-14. She
holds a BA in history from Saint Mary’s
College of California and is passionate about
helping kids stay safe online.
