My grandmother loved reading the National Enquirer. Even at a young age I knew that a pitbull had not eaten a mobile home. When I pointed this out to her she just laughed and said, "Probably not." But I have to admit, the headline made me read the story.
At any rate, in my blog questionnaire last night, I asked about headlines. Most everyone agreed that while captivating headlines might pull in a reader unfamiliar with my work, but most of you felt my titles were fine.
I guess it was the question that brought back the memory of the pitbull headline so I thought I'd try it out here :)
I had several comments that were insightful. One being the color of my font. I had assumed it was black, but Diana said it looked gray to her. When I looked at the advanced tab of my template, sure enough it was gray. So I changed that and I also bumped up the size a little.
She also said that when I comment on her blog, the notification email she gets was set to blogger.no-reply. Which meant, she couldn't simply respond to the email, which is a pain.
So, I Google'd how to fix it and made those changes as well.
I also changed the banner at the top. I think I'll play with these for a while until I find one that suits me.
Martha suggested I make the post area a little wider and the sidebar a little more narrow.
When I looked at it, I thought this would be a good tweak too so I did that.
I had several other suggestions to consider.
I'd talked about the dogwood tree in our front yard before. It was here when we moved in in 1980. Through the years it's grown steadily. It's a huge tree with weepy lower branches that drag the ground, and, it turns the west side of our yard into a blooming white cloud for a few weeks each spring.
Someone asked recently just how big the tree was, so before our walk this morning, I slipped the tape measure into the pocket of my sweatpants. When we walked the first lap, I had Jilda hold one end of the tape measure while I wrapped it around the base of the tree. It measured 60 inches (5 feet) in circumference. From outer branch of one side to the outer branch of the other, it measures 44 feet.
This tree is the reason we battle with the power company each year when they come through trimming trees. It's a battle worth fighting.
At any rate, in my blog questionnaire last night, I asked about headlines. Most everyone agreed that while captivating headlines might pull in a reader unfamiliar with my work, but most of you felt my titles were fine.
I guess it was the question that brought back the memory of the pitbull headline so I thought I'd try it out here :)
I had several comments that were insightful. One being the color of my font. I had assumed it was black, but Diana said it looked gray to her. When I looked at the advanced tab of my template, sure enough it was gray. So I changed that and I also bumped up the size a little.
She also said that when I comment on her blog, the notification email she gets was set to blogger.no-reply. Which meant, she couldn't simply respond to the email, which is a pain.
So, I Google'd how to fix it and made those changes as well.
I also changed the banner at the top. I think I'll play with these for a while until I find one that suits me.
Martha suggested I make the post area a little wider and the sidebar a little more narrow.
When I looked at it, I thought this would be a good tweak too so I did that.I had several other suggestions to consider.
I'd talked about the dogwood tree in our front yard before. It was here when we moved in in 1980. Through the years it's grown steadily. It's a huge tree with weepy lower branches that drag the ground, and, it turns the west side of our yard into a blooming white cloud for a few weeks each spring.
Someone asked recently just how big the tree was, so before our walk this morning, I slipped the tape measure into the pocket of my sweatpants. When we walked the first lap, I had Jilda hold one end of the tape measure while I wrapped it around the base of the tree. It measured 60 inches (5 feet) in circumference. From outer branch of one side to the outer branch of the other, it measures 44 feet.
This tree is the reason we battle with the power company each year when they come through trimming trees. It's a battle worth fighting.
I like the black print & narrower sidebar!!
ReplyDeleteWhatever you do, be true to yourself when writing...all the rest is just window dressing and while important in blogging world (I guess), the most important part is your words. That's what everyone comes back for...and that's the important thing!
ReplyDeleteI like your blog. Always have. I have your book too. Your blog looks fine. and Dodee is right. As for that tree... Wow! I would love to see it. I love trees anyway.
ReplyDeleteThanks a bunch.
DeleteR
Rick, I read a blog for the words that are written. And I really don't pay much attention to the way it looks unless the print is too small for my old eyes or the color combo doesn't work. So I didn't really have any suggestions for you. I also don't comment often but that doesn't mean I'm not reading.
ReplyDeleteI like the changes you've made. Anything that makes it easier to read... Good Stuff!
ReplyDeleteI truly hope you can keep the power company at bay! It's a beautiful tree.
ReplyDeleteThe new blog look is appealing, too.
Your blog is even easier on the eyes than it was before. X was quoted in the Enquirer once. The "reporter" who called said he was a freelancer.
ReplyDeleteLove,
Janie
Love the new look. Clearly the suggestions were well worth it. :) That is one HUGE tree. Beautiful... but the clean up must not be fun.
ReplyDeleteI love the new banner and the print is great... I will have to look at mine and make sure it is a good size too... I don't like when the print is too small and so light you can barely read it (other bloggers I know need to change this)
ReplyDeleteI totally agree that it is the content that I keep coming back for, you are a great writer that is easy to read and very entertaining :) Keep up the amazing work :)
As well, fight for the tree, it looks sweet :)
Happy Easter Rick :)