blogging Q&A answered!

I asked you guys about any blogging questions you may want to learn about HERE! So, here you go!! And I added in a few for fun! Feel free to ask some more if you're interested about anything!

Q: I am pretty new to the blogging world, just started my blog on October 1st! What would you say is the one best piece of advice you wish someone would have told you when you first started?

A: Be real. I started blogging to document everything that my kids did, and for family to be able to keep in touch with us. But from the beginning, I have always been me. Do I put every single detail of our lives on our blog? NO! But for the most part, I have always blogged about the good AND THE BAD. I, personally, feel that you can connect to your readers more when you put yourself out there. Because of this, I have met some UNBELIEVABLE people!! Most of which I still have not met in person, but we have a connection that will last forever. To go further, in May of 2008, we went through a very difficult storm with our youngest daughter....I spent many nights in a hospital room with her, while Husband stayed behind with our other two, and some of the biggest support I got was from other bloggers!! Some were going through storms as well, and some were not.....but I knew they were there praying for us. Because I put it all out there, they in turn, commented on this blog continuously to encourage us and to pray. I will never forget that.

Q: Do you plan posts in advance - if so - how do you remember what you were going to say and how do you decided when to post it. I seem to always think of something I want to talk about- but when it comes down to finding time to sit in front of the computer I have already forgot what it was - LOL. Also, what do you use to edit your pictures with?

A: I learned really quick to make notes. I totally agree with you, I had this 'great' idea/thought and by the time I could sit down to type it all out...all of those thoughts were gone! So, I started making a blogging list. If I had a thought about a post, I would write it down right then! So, at least when I had time to type, I would see it right next to my computer. And there were many times I had a list of 10-12 blog posts I wanted to write about....they didn't always happen! But making notes helps a ton!

I use photoshop to edit all of my photos, but there are a lot of programs out there that will get the job done...you don't have to have photoshop!

Q: I recently realized that there are some laws/rules about giveaways that could get us in trouble (if we aren't careful). How do you prevent being unlawful when doing giveaways (using facebook, etc) and what have you learned about them that you would like to share with a newbie? (I'm actually a little nervous to do anymore)

A: This is all new to me. I have read about this more and more, but to be completely honest I had to do some research on this one. I found this post that seemed to break things down for us more clearly....but, I honestly need to do some more research!

Here are some other popular questions I have received in the past!

Q: How do you make the ♥ symbol?

A: All you do is type the '&' symbol, then type the word 'hearts', followed by a semicolon. The key is to type all of those things TOGETHER...no spaces. ♥ That simple!

Q: How do I strike through a word?

A: If you wanted to write something and then mark through it, all you would do is this - in the example I just provided, I would type < del > in FRONT of the FIRST word I want marked through (WITHOUT the spaces), and then put < / del > AFTER the last word I want marked through (again, WITHOUT spaces). Make sense?

Q: Is there a website out there that has blogging tips?

A: Most everything I learned through trial and error and I'm pretty sure there is stuff I do that there is probably an easier way to do it...still learning everyday. But, I learned a lot of the more detailed stuff through this website. It has some basic tips, all the way up to more detailed things, like how to add a navigation bar to your blog! Very helpful!

I hope this helps some!!
xoxo