Dear WordCount is a weekly advice column answering your questions about writing, blogging and running a freelance business. During the 2013 WordCount Blogathon, Dear WordCount will be answering questions about the Blogathon, and blogging mechanics and etiquette. Send questions to wordcountfreelance@gmail.com.
Can’t Post Every Day
Dear WordCount:
I think I might be the first person to drop out of the Blogathon. I can’t do it anymore. I’m spending hours writing essays for posts, and I’m running out of things to say. I don’t want to write if I don’t have anything to say. Also, my other work is heating up. I’m going to pull the Blogathon badge off my site. Sorry. — Anonymous
Dear Anonymous:
We’re 12 days into the month-long blogging challenge and if you’re blogging every day for the first time, I can get why you’d think it’s hard. It is! But you can do it. You just need a plan.
If you’re feeling overwhelmed, here are a few things to try:
- Write shorter posts — break up that 1,000 word post into three 330 word posts.
- Find an older post that still gets lots of page views. Read through it and update the text that needs it and newer links. Then re-set the publish date. Keep the URL for SEO purposes.
- Run a photo with a caption.
- Run a poll or survey — readers love polls.
- Create a greatest hits post — 5, 10 or 25 of your favorite or most popular posts.
- Questions also make great posts. Ask readers what they want to know. Then ask for comments.
- Set aside a certain time of day and amount of time for posts. I aim to spend 30 minutes, or 45 max, on a post because I don’t have more time to spend on it either.
- Write one paragraph pointing to something you found online and why you find it interesting (and make sure you link to it). Posts can be short and to the point but still valuable.
- Update a page on your blog or website that you’ve been meaning to get around to doing. Then write a brief post that says “Hey, in case you didn’t notice, I updated my XXX page.”
Read more: Cheating your way to blogging every day.
WordPress Font Sizes, and Pages
Dear WordCount:
I have two WordPress questions. The first is, how do you change the font size in WordPress? I found the pull down menu to change headings, but not font size. I don’t have vision problems, but I feel like I’m typing and posting in mice-type, I’d like to kick up a point or two. The second is, do you know if there is a way to turn a post into a “Page” in WordPress? — Tracy
Dear Tracy:
Changing font sizes in WordPress is fairly easy. First, when you’re in the Edit Post screen, make sure you’re in “Visual” mode, which hides the HTML coding. Next find the pull-down menu on the main tool bar — the same one you used to change headline sizes. When you left click on it, you’ll see a number of options to choose from. The one at the very top is “Paragraph,” which is WordPress’ default for the plain text you’d use in the paragraphs in a blog post. Other options — Heading 1, Heading 2, etc. — are font sizes you’d use for titles and subtitles.
If the font size of your published posts is too small, it could be due to the style of font style you’re using. The type size in some fonts runs smaller or larger than average. If it feels like the size of the type on your blog posts is too small, it could be because you’re using a custom font that runs smaller than usual. Here’s some more help from the WordPress Support desk: Font size and color.
Turning a Page into a Post
On to your question about turning a post into a page. There are a couple ways to do this. I’ll tackle the easy way and let a more tech-savvy blogger tackle the hard way.
The easy way to turn a post into a page is to copy the contents of the post into a new page, publish the page, and kill the post. Here’s how:
1. Have your blog’s dashboard open in 2 separate browser tabs. If you’re already in the Edit Post screen, an easy way to do this is to hit the “Previw” button, which will bring up a copy of whatever post you’re working on in a separate tab.
2. In the second browser tab, go to Dashboards > Pages > Add New. That will bring up a dashboard for adding a new page. Paste the copy from the post into the screen.
3. On the “Publish” dashboard on the far right column of the the Pages screen, you’ll have the opportunity to choose where your new page will show up. If you want the title to appear in the main navigation bar on the front page of your blog, use the Parent drop down menu and choose “No parent.” If the new page is going to be a sub-page under an existing page, use the Parent drop down menu to choose the appropriate main page that it should live under. Here’s more from WordPress: Post v. Page, and Pages >> Page Screen.
The second way to convert a post into a page is to use a plug-in to do it. Here’s a step-by-step guide to that from WordPress blogger Cory Gill: Convert a WordPress post into a page.
There’s one more possibility. If you want to turn a post into a page because you want it to stay on your front page, you might consider making it a “sticky” post. Here’s more on that from WordPress: Post visibility – scroll half-way down the page for the info on sticky posts.
[Flickr photo by f.stroganov]
Michelle, I hadn’t thought of reposting old favourites simply by changing the publication date. That’s a great idea, and I’ll be using it this weekend. It’s a lot better than creating duplicate posts. Thanks!
Van: I can’t take full credit for that — a little birdy named Ron Doyle suggested it. Don’t change the URL or meta data so you keep whatever search engine juice the original article’s aleady gotten. When I re-run older posts, I always re-read it to see if there’s any new information I should add. I also go through to make sure the links still work and are still relevant, update the language as needed, and check for typos.
Michelle
Seems like cheating. I have a compulsion about researching and writing new things. As I retrain my old-school journalism brain for online publications, I continue to struggle. I will have to try this…even though I will feel like I’m cheating. It’s like eating the white chocolate and raspberry cheesecake while on a diet. Okay…I’ve done that before, so it should be okay to trying this tip. If it doesn’t work, I’ll drown my sorrow with the cheesecake.