The contributors of this blog work in various capacities at academic, school, and public libraries. Although the topics of each entry vary greatly, the postings are substantially lengthy with the tone tending towards being scholarly, and often including a list of references.
This blog by a Reference and Instruction Librarian at a community college is about her thoughts, observations, and experiences on the job. The tone is quite personable, and the posts are moderate in length.
This blog by a Public Services Librarian in Canada focuses on digital technologies, tools, and tutorials. The tone of the postings is quite casual, and each post is quite short in length.
Although somewhat similar to The Distant Librarian in discussing digital technologies and tools, the postings by this Digital Services Librarian are lengthier and tend to focus more on the library’s role in advocacy of digital literacy.
This blog by Digital Branch and Services Manager, David Lee King, mainly covers topics related to digital technologies and library websites, and the postings are moderately short in length.
Post Appeal
I suppose the types of posts I find most appealing to read varies depending on my mood, but speaking generally:
Personable
Blog postings that give a sense of the person writing them are appealing. I suppose this is because I can easily find factual information on something (a book, product, library, events, etc.) in other forums, but I have the opportunity to experience someone’s opinions, thoughts, and feelings unique to that individual/group in a blog.
Sense of Humor
Blog postings that tend to have a sense of humor about things are appealing simply because it helps in keeping a positive outlook.
Short but Sweet
Postings that are informative, but shorter in length are appealing. My eyes tend to tire when reading things online, and especially when there are no breaks in the text. I suppose I’m more interested in gaining quick tidbits of information and perspectives in a blog rather than what I might find in reading a textbook or novel.
In terms of library related content within posts, I suppose technology and youth related subjects appeal to me at the moment, as that is where my interests currently reside.
Three Library Blogs I Subscribed To
I chose to subscribe to the following three library blogs:
The Dover Public Library blog mainly showcases materials, services, and events at the library. Some of the postings are also simply library and literary related. The actual content of the postings don’t seem particularly focused on a particular user demographic as they range from children to adult, as well as from fiction to non-fiction materials. The blog entries appear to be made by a handful of staff, though only two of them seem to regularly contribute posts.
MADreads is a blog by the Madison Public Library, and their page header pretty much sums up what their blog is about, stating “Book news and reviews from Madison Public Library”. The majority of the entries are reviews of library books and range in interest from youth to adult related, and anywhere from mystery to cooking. Roughly 48 staff members from various branches appear to have the ability to make postings.
Shelf Talk is a blog by The Seattle Public Library that features materials and services provided by the library. The library has a separate blog for their teens, so this blog focuses on adult related material and at times, young children’s material. A variety of staff appear to contribute to the page entries.
Characteristics of Successful Blogs
Some characteristics shared by the library blogs I chose to subscribe to that I think make them successful:
Authenticity
I think the most important characteristic for a successful blog is one that is true to itself. Regardless of what is being written, so long as there is a sense of sincerity throughout the blog, I can at least respect the authenticity.
Succinct
As much as I enjoy reading, I am drawn to blogs with entries that are fairly brief and to the point. A blog with too much text within each posting feels overwhelming.
Aesthetically pleasing
A successful blog for me also has a clean, organized layout, and is easy on the eyes. Incorporating images also helps to break up the text and make the page more interesting.
Speaking of which:
Image by Gisele Jaquenod.
Timely
The blog is regularly updated with entries.
Informative
There is a sense of intellectual gain after reading the various entries. Having variations in the type or topic of postings made is helpful in providing insight into interesting avenues of thought I may not have considered to pursue on my own.
As I was compiling my list of blog characteristics, I realized how the same values and appeal found in the physical world extends to the online world as well. Although success can be measured in many ways, I often find it is about building relationships, and fostering a sense of community.
I definitely agree with you regarding post length. While I appreciated Librarian by Day's wealth of information in theory, in practice I found it more than a little daunting to wade through all that information in a single blog entry.
ReplyDeleteYour mention of a sense of humor being appealing in a blog post struck a chord with me. It’s one of the top characteristics I appreciate in almost any kind of writing. Speaking of which, I enjoyed the cute bird/cupcake graphic you inserted in your post; a picture is worth a thousand words (or in this case maybe just a few since we are talking about blogs). I could have used that for my post last week (social media in the world of cupcakes).
ReplyDeleteHi Leah
ReplyDeleteWe like our blogs short and sweet! A minimalist will even say "less is more". :)
Hey slisstudent
ReplyDeleteI know, right?! Humor is such a champion. Thanks for the birdie compliment. Gisele Jaquenod has such wonderful designs. Feel free to click on her name under the image, as it is a link to her site. Oh, speaking of cupcakes, I love the blog cakespy.com (lots of fun stuff and oh so adorable illustrations). At any rate, thanks!