Posted in Blogs, Chocolate, Food, Uncategorized

Through The Blog Storm

Posted on by D. Parker

1afood59Through the blog storm,
we reach the shore
We give it all
but they want more
And we wait for views
With or without you
Can’t blog with
or without views
And you blog yourself all day
And you blog, and you blog
And you blog yourself away.
If this had audio you’d know I sang it just like Bono of U2, it’s like we’re twins, ok, maybe closer to the Swedish Chef from The Muppets, but it’s all good.

Blogging is a lot like cooking. Some people do it instinctively. A pinch of this. A dash of that. Somehow they know just the right blend. Others follow a precise recipe.

1. First thing you need to decide, what kind of cooking, I mean, blogging do you enjoy? Home-cooked, formal, informal, sugar-free, spicy, sweet, sour, no artificial flavours or colours, grilling, gourmet, fusion? Do you want to indulge your readers with moist, sweet chocolate brownies (my secret, melt the butter, let it cool then slowly add it to the mixture) or spicy chipolte chicken taco with guacamole (drooling)…

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2. With blogging, like cooking you need an appreciative audience. Those who don’t just eat to live, but live to eat. Those who don’t just like blogs, but love them.

3. Posts can fill up our email like a meal can fill up our stomachs, but too much of a good thing can be overwhelming, sometimes a snack is the way to go.

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4. Processed food, junk food, fast food, sure, they call themselves food, but really, food by any other name is not always food…same goes for blogging.

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5. The blogging community is family style dining, so just dig in, reach over, around, share, like, join in, engage! Don’t just invite others to your table, sit at theirs too! Eat up! Even indulge in blog parties…
Jason – https://aopinionatedman.com/
Elena – http://blogsharelearn.com/blogsharelearn-linky-party-may-1316/
Niki – https://therichnessofasimplelife.wordpress.com/
Shawna and Shareen #LinkYourLife – http://honeyquill.com/
Danny – http://dreambigdreamoften.co/
Carolina –  https://yesterdayafter.com/
Vicky – http://www.singlemotherahoy.com/
Pop Down Under – https://amommasview.wordpress.com/
Janice and all the lovely ladies that give us
Friday Blogger’s Pit Stop and Inspire Me Monday –
http://mostlyblogging.com/

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6. Don’t think if people will: Like it, share it, reblog it, tweet it, agree, disagree, hate you, be a troll under your blogging bridge, or if you’ll end up looking like Mr. Bean with a turkey on your head. Just do what you want to do…that turkey looks good on you.

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7. When you don’t have time to prepare a meal, aka a post, or you need some comfort food or a comfort blogging advice post…
https://yadadarcyyada.com/2015/04/10/im-hooked-on-a-feeling/
https://yadadarcyyada.com/2015/08/27/message-in-a-bottle/
https://yadadarcyyada.com/2015/03/26/why-i-will-never-be-freshly-pressed/

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8. Sometimes you slave over a hot stove aka computer, plate your hopefully tasty content, and serve it up….you wait for readers to gobble it up, but sometimes they never come to the table, even when called repeatedly. Maybe they’re busy, after all, when they open their email, it’s like a giant buffet has been served up, how much can they possibly eat? Maybe they’ve already eaten or are dining elsewhere. It happens. Try again.

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9. Get out there, be a shameless social media self-promoting bloghussy (like me), most of all, enjoy!
Where I’m a complete twit: https://twitter.com/yadadarcyyada
Endlessly baffled by humanity: https://www.facebook.com/yadadarcyyada
The desert where I wander: http://www.pinterest.com/dpark2/
Where I google, not nearly as fun as it sounds: https://plus.google.com/112672588892199127381/posts

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10. You can tell someone how to cook or blog, but that doesn’t mean they can do it, or do it like you. Or should. Cook what you want, blog what you want, eat what you want. Taste life.

My best advice about blogging and cooking? Don’t miss the donut by looking through the hole. Dear readers, any favourite blogging tips or recipes you can’t live with or without? Bon Appetit!

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Author:

Very me

200 thoughts on “Through The Blog Storm”

  1. First of all, the Gordon Ramsay meme is really awesome. Especially for a vegetarian such as myself. Second, thanks for pointing out that blogging is putting a piece of ourselves out there! The cooking analogy is good; you dish up food at your dinner party and wait, wait, wait…for everyone to tell you how delicious it is and of course the holy grail, ask for seconds. Subscribe. Comment. All like that. But then I remind myself all the time that I cook the food I like, not what someone else likes. And sometimes it’s an elaborate meal and sometimes it’s a sandwich. And it has to be good enough, because, it’s me on a plate/in a post. So it just has to be good enough.

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    1. Blogging is the same, we can hope others like what we cook, er, blog, but in the end, if you’re doing it the way someone else likes it, you’re not being you. By the by, you on a plate is divine. 😉
      Hope this weekend is good to you. 🙂

      Liked by 3 people

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    1. Those bloggers are just astonishing, they really are blogging goldmines, check them out, there are treasures untold awaiting you (now I just sound like a creepy pirate). 😉
      Hope this weekend treats you well. 🙂

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  3. Dear Donna — you have tastefully paired cooking and blogging. Just enough sugar, perfectly spiced. You seriously did a great job with this one. Marvelous. Have a fantastic Friday, my groovy friend. Mega hugs.

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    1. Thank you kindly, Teagan, I’m glad you enjoyed what I cooked up here. 😉
      I thought we could all use something fun on this freaky Friday the 13th.
      Mega cheesy hugs, dear friend xox

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    1. Mmmm, croissants, with butter and raspberry jam, oh, sorry, what were you saying? 😉
      Love blog parties and I always return the lampshades. 😉
      Hope this weekend treats you well. 🙂

      Liked by 2 people

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    1. Thank you kindly, visions of all kinds of food were dancing through my head trying to write this; hope I have irreparably damaged my keyboard with all the drool. 😉
      Hope this weekend is good to you, Mary. 🙂

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  9. AWESOME, Donna! Such an amazing analogy! This is so true. I think blogging is a bit of it all. Bringing in your own recipe creations and inspire, but also, share others’ meals with your community. And then there are the ones you don’t see but who are there. The ones who read/eat in silence. You don’t know how many people you reach, but you will always reach some whether they leave a like or a comment. Share your meal with them too and just trust the what you give is food for someone else!

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    1. You’re so right, Erika, you really never know who you’re going to reach, we should share our meals with whoever is even the tiniest little bit hungry. 🙂
      Hope this weekend treats you well. 🙂

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  12. I love the cooking analogy! In truth, I usually can’t tell what people are going to like, aside from the obvious (writers love posts on writing!). I’ve had posts that got crazy popular for reasons I can’t identify, while others have no love at all. Just got to keep on cooking, I guess.

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  22. This is an awesome post Donna and very true! This is also a reason why I made my Meet and Greet Fridays a weekly event to share and help others to be discovered! Have a wonderful weekend! And thank you for stoping by! 😉

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      4. Sorry I didn’t ask, but I didn’t think you’d mind me promoting your party and blog in the post, I’m going to pop back over again later, lampshade on to see who else has shown up – love parties, you just never know who you’re going to meet! 😉

        Liked by 1 person

      5. Ohhh thank you so much Donna for including me into your list! That’s awesome of course I don’t mind it at all I am very happy that you included me, no need to ask! Thank you I truly appreciate it as you know the more we are the merrier! 😉 ❤

        Liked by 1 person

  25. Leave it to YOU, Donna, to make the analogy between cooking (a sublime buffet) and blogging.Fan-fun-tastic and s-o-o-o-o on the money. Can’t help giggling, this post is sublime. ❤ ❤ ❤

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    1. Oh, thank you so much, Tess, you made my day, nothing I like better than hearing that I made someone laugh. 🙂
      Hope this week treats you kindly. 🙂

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  27. I enjoyed the post. Those links you gave looked very useful too. I’ll have to go through the ones I don’t know and pop over to say hello to whoever’s at the other end!

    I think my blogging method may be more turkey on the head than anything else. I just do what I do and hope for the best. Of course, it could explain why I seem to stumble about helplessly and have no idea what I’m doing when I’m on Facebook. 🙂

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    1. They’re awesome and a great way to meet other bloggers! Wonderful networking opportunities! 🙂
      I’m often turkey on the head, but hey, eventually we’ll find our watches! lol 😉
      As you notice in this post, I count Facebook as the place where I’m baffled by humanity. 😉
      Hope this weekend treats you well and hope you get some fixins to go with that turkey. 🙂

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      1. It gives me some confidence to hear that you’re often turkey on the head too! Anyway, same to you regarding the great weekend. I hope yours is all gravy. 🙂

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  29. This was quite and enjoyable reading adventure!
    My blog is a lot like my sandwiches. In case you’re wondering, the last sandwich I ate yesterday was 24 grain bread with turkey ham salad (mayo, celery, onion, bell pepper, pickle, garlic) with cheddar cheese, lentil sprouts, spinach, tomato, parsley and avocado on it. 🙂

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    1. Thank you kindly. 🙂
      Hope some people popped Down Under from this post to visit you at your Meet and Greet. 🙂
      So glad we found each other! 🙂
      Hope this eek treats you well. 🙂

      Liked by 1 person

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  33. Love this, Donna… I often feel I’m flapping around with a turkey on my head… and not just in blog-land 😉

    My favorite line… “Don’t just invite others to your table, sit at theirs too!”…Yes!, otherwise, sooner or later you’re gonna be eating alone.

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    1. Me too, but I think it works for us…er, maybe.
      Yes, it’s definitely family style eating here in the blogging community. 🙂
      Hope this week treats you kindly. 🙂

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  34. My blogging advice is to always be genuine. Be grateful for your followers/readers/commenters. Be real with what you say, share, and comment. And be true to yourself, afterall isn’t that why you’re blogging, for you?! Love the cooking analogy! 🙂 I especially loved the Gordon Ramsay’s meme, I laughed right out loud!!

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    1. That is excellent advice, Deb, it’s impossible to have a deep connection with shallow people. 🙂
      Thanks for dropping by, hope your week treats you well, genuinely well. 🙂

      Liked by 1 person

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    1. Wow, I’m going to substitute ‘book’ instead of ‘post’ and use this as a blurt on my book someday. The ultimate compliment!!! Thank you kindly. 🙂
      Hope this week treats you kindly. 🙂

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  43. That was a fun extended analogy. It works well to see how both use a mix of skill and style and solicit various responses by others. Ok, now I’m hungry!

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  45. Yum! I love that you compared blogging to cooking. A lot of wisdom in that. (And good tip re: letting butter cool before adding to brownie mix – thanks!)

    Yes, some bloggers seem to be able to “wing” it, while others need to be more precise. But the best blogs belong to those who clearly love the process.

    Sometimes I hit “Publish”, not knowing what the reaction might be, and I’m often surprised by positive feedback when I’m expecting the opposite.

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    1. They’re very similar and yes, some just do it naturally, others need to follow a recipe, but no matter how we do it, we have to put some love into it, or it shows, in blogging and cooking. 🙂
      You never know what’s going to happen, I think that’s a lovely part of the fun, the surprise. 🙂
      Hope this week treats you kindly. 🙂

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  46. Some things I think are terrible strike a chord and some things I think are brilliant just fall flat. It’s great advice to not worry about how it will be received or try to figure out why it succeeded or failed. But I still try to do exactly that!

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    1. Some of it depends on the blog content, some is timing, and even on the glitches/issues with the platform at the moment. So worrying about it makes no sense, just do it, and let the chips fall where they may. 😉

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  47. Hi Donna,
    Look at you! Thank you sooo much!!! Do you know why?! I found my link here! Thanks for promoting both my linky parties!
    I agree with your tips. Write what interests you– build them, and they will come! A different movie! I loved seeing Lucy and Ethel.
    Thanks for the memory.
    Thank you for bringing your post to Blogger’s Pit Stop.
    Janice, Pit Stop Crew

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  50. Pingback: Featured Bloggers 5/19/16: How to Network Your Blog | Dream Big, Dream Often

    1. Thank you, thank you, thank you so much Danny, not just for featuring me, but look at the lovely group I’m with, wow, this made my day and it was a pretty good day to begin with. 🙂 Thanks again, Danny and hope you’re having a weekend as wonderful as you. 🙂

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  53. We bloggers all win some, and lose some, just like even the best cook cooks an awful dish or two now and then. Or tries a recipe that just didn’t translate well from the tasting mind to the real world. The secret is to cook that next meal.

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    1. That is so true. Even when you use a tried and true recipe, things happen. You’re so right, the next meal is the thing, I guess that’s my cue to get cookin’, so to speak. 🙂

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  56. Hi dear Donna, such accurate analogies… You are quite right.
    I always enjoy a good meal and even better if it is among family or friends… which in your own terms, and mine too would be like joining a great blogger table… or should I call it dashboard… ☺️
    I love the song, too… Your voice totally sounds like Bono´s o_O
    Have a wonderful weekend… Love and best wishes. Aquileana ✨

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    1. What we cook fills us, you certainly know that with the delightful meals, er, posts you feed us, Aquileana and you got it, it better when we share. 🙂
      I know, I could get a gig as Bono’s vocal stand-in. lol 😉
      Thank you, dear friend and the same for you. 🙂
      Love and best wishes, Donna xox

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  57. Pingback: My Picks Of The Week #22 | A Momma's View

    1. Thank you for featuring me, especially among all these wonderful bloggers, more wonderful bloggers to follow.
      Hope this weekend is treating you kindly, Sandra.:)

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  58. Pingback: Mention in Dispatches – | Smorgasbord – Variety is the spice of life

    1. I am thrilled, Sally, not only by the mention and the lovely recommendation, but to be among such amazing company – look at these awesome bloggers all in one spot, it’s mind-boggling, but in a really, really good way!!! 🙂
      Hope the post-move is going well, I know it can be overwhelming trying to get it all together, but I’m sure you’re handling it with your usual aplomb. 🙂 All the best.
      Thank you again, now off to share and doing some visiting.
      Hope this weekend is treating you kindly.

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  59. Pingback: Mention in Dispatches – Late night phone calls, Kindle Formatting and The Blue Bird of Happiness | Smorgasbord – Variety is the spice of life

    1. I am thrilled, Sally, not only by the mention and the lovely recommendation, but to be among such amazing company – look at these awesome bloggers all in one spot, it’s mind-boggling, but in a really, really good way!!! 🙂
      Hope the post-move is going well, I know it can be overwhelming trying to get it all together, but I’m sure you’re handling it with your usual aplomb. 🙂 All the best.
      Thank you again, now off to share and doing some visiting.
      Hope this weekend is treating you kindly.

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  63. I loved “Just do what you want to do…that turkey looks good on you.” I am at that stage. I have been blogging for over 10 years. Now I write about what interests me on any given day, not on a schedule and not in a genre. I am assuming I am allowed!

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    1. That’s the best way to be, Barbara, and wow, 10 years, that’s amazing, keep enjoying what you enjoy. 🙂
      Hope this week treats you kindly, turkey or not. 😉

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  65. I always think it comes down to a couple of basic issues. Is a person blogging for financial reasons or for enjoyment? And, what makes anyone in this entire world wide web think that readers want or need to hear from them multiple times a day? There’s a life out there to be lived and it isn’t just sitting at a keyboard. Have a great weekend. I loved: “Posts can fill up our email like a meal can fill up our stomachs, but too much of a good thing can be overwhelming, sometimes a snack is the way to go.” 🙂

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    1. You’re so right, Judy, that is the important question, while I wish it could be for both I see now that I’ll just have to go for the enjoyment factor. 🙂
      There is a life out there beyond the keyboard or screen on a phone, and now I’m off to live it. 🙂
      Hope this week treats you kindly, Judy. 🙂

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  67. Pingback: Through The Blog Storm By #yadadarcyyada | ' Ace Social & Media News '

    1. Thanks, Ian, I’m playing some major catch-up again, this time because company was here from out of town, so it’s been a busy few days, but this was another lovely treat to find in my comments. 🙂 I appreciate the #bloglove 🙂
      Hope the week ahead is a smooth journey filled with fun. 🙂

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  69. I think that each bloggers have their own trial and error on what makes their blog works. It all depends on what recipe is flavourful for own personal taste.

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    1. Thank you kindy, Val. 🙂
      Having another blog party right now, even if you dropped by, please drop by again and leave links to your blog posts so others can find you.
      Hope this week is treating you well.

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    1. I love that style, Hannah, in cooking and blogging, don;t you find you get the most delicious dishes and posts that way? 😉
      Love #weekendblogshare and you’re doing a lovely job, thank you for being so supportive of fellow bloggers. 🙂
      Hope this week is treating you kindly. 🙂

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    1. Thank you kindly, oh and I get the behindedness, my Dad would have said I’m so far behind I’m ahead. I keep thinking I’m going to catch up and then more comes and along and boom, I’m right back behind again. But hey, we get there and that’s the important thing. 😉 Hope this weekend treats you well. 🙂

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    1. There are a lot of links here, but I’m so glad you’re visiting, it’s a lot of fun finding new bloggers. Loved this post, so pleased you shared it. 🙂
      We are on the same page when it comes to chocolate and flagrant need for self promotion, nice to be able to combine them. 😉
      Hope this weekend treats you kindly. 🙂

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    1. I enjoy the eating more than the cooking! lol 😉
      So glad you found me and now I’ve wandered over and found you (like we’re continents that needed to be discovered – where are those cute explorers?).
      Nice to virtually meet you, Jess, hope we can visit often. Love Hannah’s #weekendblogshare you just never know who you’re going to meet, that reminds me, I’ve been meaning to pop back over. Thanks. 🙂
      All the best on this lovely weekend. 🙂

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