Blog Review Essay, Part 2: Help From The Peanut Gallery
As I mentioned in the third installment of my genre analysis essay, one near-definitive aspect of the blog is the ability of others to leave their comments. It is logical to conclude from this that commenting plays a part in determining what makes a blog, a good blog.
First, it should be noted that the very number of comments left on a blog can be used as an aid in determining whether a blog is popular or not. Naturally, if a large amount of people comment on a blog post, this not only shows a high level of response to what is said (for good or ill), but also confirms that at least that many people have read the blog. It is important to note, however, that a large amount of comments is not necessarily indicative of a large amount of individuals commenting, although the cited example could also be taken as a good sign.
Secondly, the comments left on a blog can actually aid the appeal of the blog's content overall. Take PeterDavid.net, for example. Posts on political topics regularly net comments in amounts approaching triple digits, most often due to debates that arise among the commentators themselves. This builds on the topic at hand and makes for a higher-quality read than may be possible with only a single person's opinions.
Both This Is Not My Life and Book of the Gear have their share of humor in their fiction (the former moreso than the latter), and both are enhanced in that respect through the comments left on them. Reading through the comments of any given update can at times be just as enjoyable as reading the actual post itself. In addition, the comments for Book of the Gear are used by fans of the blog to openly speculate on certain aspects of the storyline.
It is important to note here that the author of Book of the Gear neither confirms nor denies speculation on important plot elements, and on at least one occasion has deleted an outright spoiler. This brings up a final important point about comments in a successful blog: knowing which comments it is best to just delete, and when one should delete them. When done right, this shows an active concern over the quality of the blog, while simultaneously recognizing the value the comments feature adds to the blog as a whole.
On to Part 3.
First, it should be noted that the very number of comments left on a blog can be used as an aid in determining whether a blog is popular or not. Naturally, if a large amount of people comment on a blog post, this not only shows a high level of response to what is said (for good or ill), but also confirms that at least that many people have read the blog. It is important to note, however, that a large amount of comments is not necessarily indicative of a large amount of individuals commenting, although the cited example could also be taken as a good sign.
Secondly, the comments left on a blog can actually aid the appeal of the blog's content overall. Take PeterDavid.net, for example. Posts on political topics regularly net comments in amounts approaching triple digits, most often due to debates that arise among the commentators themselves. This builds on the topic at hand and makes for a higher-quality read than may be possible with only a single person's opinions.
Both This Is Not My Life and Book of the Gear have their share of humor in their fiction (the former moreso than the latter), and both are enhanced in that respect through the comments left on them. Reading through the comments of any given update can at times be just as enjoyable as reading the actual post itself. In addition, the comments for Book of the Gear are used by fans of the blog to openly speculate on certain aspects of the storyline.
It is important to note here that the author of Book of the Gear neither confirms nor denies speculation on important plot elements, and on at least one occasion has deleted an outright spoiler. This brings up a final important point about comments in a successful blog: knowing which comments it is best to just delete, and when one should delete them. When done right, this shows an active concern over the quality of the blog, while simultaneously recognizing the value the comments feature adds to the blog as a whole.
On to Part 3.
posted by Mithrandalf at 2:17 AM
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