This Writing Studio Bulletin, WSB 2-01 (2008), is the first for fall semester, 2008-09. Please read it carefully and completely, then take timely actions necessary on your part to follow the advice I'm offering to everyone. Doing so can enhance your participation in on- and off-line activities in Writing IV, §§ 1a and 1c.
Class blog lists
Please read and follow instructions in the notices at the head of these wiki pages:
(http://winkhome.org/dokuwiki/doku.php?id=lists:2008writing34a1)
(http://winkhome.org/dokuwiki/doku.php?id=lists:2008writing34c1)
- Note: If you re-activate your blog, or change your blog handle, please let me know right away. If you fail to notify me, in person or in writing, you may miss out on credit for posts or comments.
Catchy blog post titles
As I pointed out in a separate venue earlier today, "Please remember to use accurate, attractive, and informative titles on every post" (pab, 2008.09.24, 10:26). Post titles become parts of the URLs for each post, and will continue to reflect typing mistakes even if you correct them later. Attractive and informative post titles appearing in archives, feeds, and other lists may catch visitors' attention, and interest them enough to read and even comment on your posts.
Spelling and grammar checking (before posting)
Blogger provides a spell-check button in Create Post windows (ABC√). You should use it when drafting, editing, and revising quick posts.
In comment creation windows, Blogger underlines mis-spelled words with red dots. You should correct those before posting, because it is impossible to edit comments in Blogger after you publish them.
For more thorough checking of both grammar and spelling of major posts, such as book reviews or essays, I urge you to draft and edit your posts in a word processor, and use all grammar and spell-check tools available before posting on your blogs.
Comments
Short comments such as "hello" (one I rediscovered today on a reactivated blog) are hardly helpful or informative, so neither the author nor the recipient should include comments like that in tallies for their proto-portfolios.
Please count only substantial (helpful, informative, inquisitive, sympathetic, supportive, ...) comments as in-coming and out-going comments for your proto-portfolios and portfolios. For previous advice on comments, please click on the label "comments" in the sidebar.
Labels (a.k.a. tags): Extending our list
For your upcoming website review essays, please use three or more labels: 1) essays, 2) reviews, and 3) websites, plus any other words or phrases (comma separated) that you are likely to use again to label other posts--past or future! You can add tags to previous posts if you reopen them for editing, and it is easy to reuse previous labels if you toggle the "Show all" link at the foot of post editing windows.
Another label that I now suggest you use on posts that you make in preparation for essays is "essay prep." (without the quotation marks). Posting essay preparation lists or notes, as well as draft essays, can help demonstrate deliberateness and originality in your work. Linking from essays back to drafts or other preparatory posts also may frame or highlight development of your writing skills. The Blogger labeling system allows you to use phrases (two or more words) as labels, as long as you separate them from other labels with commas. To review previous advice on labels, please click on the label "labels" in the sidebar.
Feedback welcome
If you have concerns or questions about any of this advice, or how to implement it, please write them up and share them in comments on this post.
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