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Scribbles & Words

Design better. Write better.

What 4 Months of Blogging Has Taught MeMay 8

Another month already! I feel like an ass — the one up top, with the load of someone else’s crap on his back. If that isn’t foreshadowing, I don’t know what is. Before I break it down, check out March’s wrap-up.

Like previous wrap-ups, this is a stream of consciousness on the few topics that have occupied my mind while engaged in the world of blogging this last month, and the lessons I’ve learned.

Blog First for You, then Blog for Them…

It’s all about mentality.

The second I shift from blogging to voice my thoughts, opinions and expertise to blogging because the people demand it, I feel as if a concrete sack has been pinned to my back and I’m being made to scale the mountain. I’m missing the view, the sweat pouring down my face is burning my eyes, so I walk blind.

When I speak for me, my words resonate in other people and a harmonic understanding is created. When I speak for others, everyone loses footing and nothing is heard.

Consistency is the Key, but…I Misplaced the Lock

Consistency is the answer. Quality is good, but not a necessity. Quantity can help, but again, it isn’t necessary.

Being co

Becoming BloghardyApril 29

bloghardy [blog-hahr-dee] - adjective. a weblog capable of enduring fatigue, hardship, exposure, etc.; sturdy; daring; courageous.

A blog is nothing but the writers, designers and contributors it houses, so it is in your best interest to make sure you, as a member of the household, become as bloghardy as you can be.

Enduring…

Fatigue. Creating content is easy. It is already all around you, ready for the picking. The hard part is dressing it up, cleaning it, polishing it and making sure it safely navigates its way in the world. All of this is time consuming, especially since the majority of bloggers do it in their off time.

“Blogging is often more of a lifestyle choice than a hobby or a business model, and that choice often has its cost.” - Mark Seall (via Problogger)

We all need recognition and an occasional kick in the ass. Here are a few things that work: writing series posts, aw

Simple Guide to Highlighting Content Within Your Posts for Those with Limited Technical SkillsApril 22

Part nine of: “Stylizing Your Content”.

Sometimes we need to highlight a specific chunk of text. This should get you started:

Open up your Stylesheet — style.css — and add the following:

/* note: Grey */
p.note {
padding: 0.57143em 0.78571em;
background: #f5f5f5;
border: 1px solid #ddd;
}

/* alert: Yellow */
p.alert {
padding: 0.57143em 0.78571em;
background: #ffffa0;
border: 1px solid #e5e597;
}

/* info: Red */
p.info {
padding: 0.57143em 0.78571em;
background: #ff4f52;
border: 1px solid #ef1d21;
}

/* download: Green */
p.download {
padding: 0.57143em 0.78571em;
background: #a3df61;
border: 1px solid #7abf2f;
}

Now, whenever you have a specific block of text (a paragraph) that you want highlighted in a specific way (e.g. a yellow alert), all you have to do is wrap that text in a paragraph tag with the appropriate class attribute, like so:

<p class=”alert”>This paragraph will be contained within a yellow box, signifying an “alert.”</p>

<p c

Scribbles & Words RedesignApril 10

For those of you that have been around since the birth of Scribbles & Words, I realize the constant shedding of clothes seems like watching a child find it’s way in the world. For some of you, this is exciting — change gets you all riled up. For others, it’s like dating teenagers when you’re in your late twenties — tired and played-out — you just want a solid, well-established personality to vibe with.

Well, the good news is, Scribbles & Words will always be in a drift of change. The better news is, it has also hit its stride in terms of personality — the unstable, red hair and lip-ring stage has passed — now it’s all about collared shirts and frequent-flyer miles. You won’t have to worry about another lifestyle change until the day Scribbles & Words dawns an Italian suit and drives a Maserati GT into the sunset — it’ll be a while.

New Theme

The underlying theme is Chris Pearson’s new masterpiece: Thesis from DIY Themes. It is by far the best theme I have ever had the pleasure of customizing.

Tighter Focus

The first website I ever cr

What 3 Months of Blogging Has Taught MeApril 7

Now is the time all those New Years resolution blogs begin to dwindle.

As each month passes, I like to look back and mold lessons out of my experiences. No special format or expectations, just simple observation. You can read February’s wrap-up first, if you’d like.

So, here it goes…

Write It Down

It’s been said thousands of times before and will be repeated until the pinnacle of evolution (when our brains are so huge, the internet will become null and void) — if you have an idea, write it down so you don’t forget it. Sure, it’s fun to delude ourselves into thinking we can remember everything — believing that we can store undeveloped thoughts and ideas in a little vault inside our minds. Most of the time we can’t, especially when we begin stacking one on top of the other.

I use three pads of paper (one by my bed, one next to the toilet and one on my work desk) and an iPhone (I use the notes function to quickly record ideas). It’s amazing how easy blogging becomes when you have four different places to pull from.

Whoa! Contest Mania

If you haven’t heard, people like to throw contests. I’m