Writer's Blogs: How They Work

Important information for all blog posts and responses.... For each of the five writer's blog prompts this quarter, you will do two things: (1) write a blog post on your blog responding to that prompt, and (2) write two (or more, if you'd like) responses to other people's posts. Both of these things are due by the deadline, so don't procrastinate or your classmates won't have time to respond to your blog! Also, don't put anything online that you're not comfortable sharing -- it's all up to you, so stay with what's comfortable for you.
 

Blog POSTS are graded on three things: 

1. Tone.  It's really super important that you keep your audience in mind on these things! I know, I know -- you're doing these posts for a class...but blogs are informal! Don't get all stuffy and showy...this isn't the time for breaking out the big words, it's a time to really let your personality show through in your writing. At the same time, remember your audience. Think of examples that might be relevant to them, and of using a tone and style that you think would appeal to them.  
2. Relevance.  As always, make sure you actually follow the prompt! It's still key to address the things the prompt asks you for, and since blog prompts are always posted one week in advance, you have plenty of time to ask me any questions you might have about them. :)  
3. Length. All blog posts should be 250+ words long. If you have any doubts about length, copy your post and past it into a word processing program so you can check the word count. Short posts are lame things to lose points for!!

Blog RESPONSES are graded on these things: 

1. Respectfulness.  Duh! These blogs are for school, so you know the drill. Be nice! It's okay to disagree or to challenge what someone's saying -- it's the way you do it that counts. If you start your post off by saying, "Your post totally sucks, and I'm going to tell you why," that's pretty freakin' inappropriate (and you all know that!). So play nice, and stay respectful. :)  
2. Relevance.  Whatever you're saying, make sure it's actually related to what the author or other responders wrote. This can mean a variety of things. Your responses might take the form of a question, anecdote, I-can-relate story, disagreement (it's okay to disagree...respectfully of course!), continuing or furthering their ideas, or even other things. The main thing is to make sure it's relevant.    
3. Length.  These should be shorter than your posts, by far. If you're looking for numbers, 4-5 sentences is good...and "Dude." doesn't really count as a sentence. Basically, take the time to respond in a manner that shows you took a minute to think about their post instead of just writing down some generic comments and calling it quits.

With the responses, do your best to post to blogs that have only one other response (or even none) -- it's important that you're reading your classmates' blogs, and it's no fun when people don't read your writing. This means you may need to do your post and then come back closer to the deadline and see what others have posted...but try not to put it off to the last minute, or nobody will get the chance to read yours!!

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