Bloggiesta Mini-Challenge: It’s Not Cheating
January 7th, 2010 by the1stdaughter
I’m so excited to have the opportunity to host a Mini-Challenge for the 2nd Edition Bloggiesta put together by Natasha of Maw Books.
My blog was relatively new when I initially hosted this mini-challenge. But even then I knew how important it was to keep a back-up “cheat sheet” for all the little bits of random information that can pile up before your very eyes. When I started out, my intention was to write reviews and do a few features, but oh how they can pile up when you get bogged down with the “little things”. And I’m not talking about doing the dishes or watching the kids, although those I can’t really control. But here’s something you can control: A CHEAT SHEET!
Your assignment: Create a cheat sheet for your blog.
Your cheat sheet could contain url’s, links, and html code or it could just be a template that you use every time you want to write a review. It’s also a good idea to have one available as a text file on your computer and another as a Google Doc so you can access it online if needed. The great thing about having it set up this way is that it’s searchable. If you want to refer someone to a book review or a post that you wrote a year ago, you don’t have to search your blog every single time you’re looking for the URL. Rather, you can just do a CTRL-F in your cheat sheet and have the URL in seconds. I’ve created a “mock cheat sheet” of some simple headings you can use to get started, but I suggest starting your own page just for your site. Use tabs you already have set up in your blog as an easy guide and list any documentation under each heading.
Here are a few questions to think about when creating a cheat sheet:
- Are there URL’s that you are constantly looking for? (Authors, publishers, archives, etc.)
- Links that you are continually referencing? (Affiliate relationships, photo sharing sites, meme links, etc.)
- Do you use the same format every time you post a review? Would it help to have a form/template ready to go?
- What happens if you lose content, a side bar or my about page? Can you throw together a new page or would it be easier to have the code saved somewhere?
- Do you have a template for author interviews or features you’d like to be more easily accessible?
I’m sure there are a lot of other questions you could think of when putting your own cheat sheet together. If you think of any or have any other tips let us know! I’d personally love more help on the subject, as someone whose fairly new and wants to get ahead of the game.
Natasha has some wonderful prizes for those of you who participate in these challenges so once you’ve put together your cheat sheet come back and let me know how it went in the comments. You have until the end of Bloggiesta to complete this mini-challenge and report.
When you’re done here make sure to check out the other mini-challenges new this go-around as well as the challenges of the past Bloggiesta events!
Enjoy the Bloggiesta festivities and ‘Ole’!
Posted in Book Events, Reading Challenges | 72 Comments »
Bloggiesta Mini-Challenge: It’s Not Cheating http://www.theresabook.com/2010/01/blogg...
@the1stdaughter Great Mini Challenge!
Great idea and thanks for the mock cheat sheet. It helps get me started!
[...] Danielle from There’s a Book – Blogging takes time & I’m sure we’d all love to blog faster. Using a cheat sheet is just one idea of how to save time. [...]
[...] Danielle from There’s a Book – Blogging takes time & I’m sure we’d all love to blog faster. Using a cheat sheet is just one idea of how to save time. [...]
A cheat sheet is such a great idea. I have one for my reviews but it’s on paper in my journal. I am converting it to a Google Doc right now. Thanks for the template!
Grace
.-= Grace´s last blog ..Bloggiesta Mini-Challenge: My Bloggy Goal for 2010 =-.
Thanks for the link to your page! I agree, a “Cheat Sheet” is a great idea. I already had a small one going (for the HTML code under my name below), but after I completely messed up my blog today, I suspect the cheat sheet is going to get bigger this weekend!
Laura Hartness
The Calico Critic
.-= Laura Hartness´s last blog ..Book Review, Q&A and Giveaway: The Maze Runner by James Dashner =-.
hehehe, and here all this time I thought my cheat sheet *was* just being a cheater or lazy! I always had to have your mom tell me this or that, so when she explains how to do something I put it in blogger as a post that only I have access to! LOL Thanks for the updated reminder, I’ll go through your list and see what I can use! : )
.-= s’mee´s last blog ..Redlands (LDS) Temple during the day! =-.
I have just started this weekend full of challenges and I am already overwhelmed. You and Rebecca have given me enough to think about for the entire year, how am I going to do anything else this weekend? Yikes!
.-= Kathy Bloomfield´s last blog ..Jumping in Head First =-.
[...] There’s a Book – where I got involved in a Bloggiesta mini-challenge and learned about creating a cheat sheet for my blog and thanked him for the template. [...]
Great idea! Thanks for sharing.
Twitter: bookjourney
says:
Great idea! I am just starting to use Google Docks to keep track of comments and that is working pretty slick…. I am going to make a second form now for this Cheat Sheet layout. Great idea…. and yes I am constantly trying to link to Amazon, or back to my blog and I have to look it up every time!
.-= Sheila (Bookjourney)´s last blog ..The One Day Way by Chantel Hobbs w/ Giveaway =-.
This was actually on my To-Do list! I keep hitting myself because I keep looking for Author blog/webpages every time I write a review. So now…well…I’m gonna make a cheat sheet of sites!
.-= Lexie´s last blog ..Bloggiesta Mark II Start! =-.
This was a great challenge! It has helped me to organize a few things and to have a place where everything is readily available. Thanks for a great challenge!
.-= Julie J´s last blog ..What’s In a Name Challenge =-.
This was a great idea. I created a cheat sheet with all weekly meme websites — and the name of the host.
.-= Molly´s last blog ..Bloggiesta 2010 – frustrations =-.
All righty! I got my cheat sheet set up including formatting and styles. Phew! It took ages, and I kept getting distracted by other Bloggiesta stuff. Do you need to see it, or are you just taking our word for it? I saved mine to both Evernote and Google Docs (edited so my personal info isn’t in it), so I can share if someone else wants to see.
.-= Alethea´s last blog ..Bloggiesta Mini-Challenge – 2010 Blogger Goals =-.
Thanks for hosting the mini-challenge! I definitely need that cheat sheet – I just started one, and I’m sure I’ll be adding to it throughout the weekend as I remember the different sites I like to link to. I’ve also created templates for the memes I participate in sometimes. I’ve made them all in Google Docs, since I tend to blog from multiple computers – home desktop, home netbook, and at work (shh, don’t tell the boss!)
.-= Angela´s last blog ..Blogging events, this weekend and beyond =-.
This is a great idea! I’ve been using one for a while, but have just added a few more shortcuts to it.
.-= Jackie (Farm Lane Books)´s last blog ..The Best Posts on Farm Lane Books Blog =-.
What a great idea. I just finished. Thanks for the mock up too.
Thanks, I will use this to help me get started.
I’ve sort of been doing this with sticky notes but I think I’ll make a master cheat sheet. Thanks for the idea
.-= Jacqueline´s last blog ..Care to join the "Bloggiesta" this weekend? =-.
Great idea! It can get quite tiresome looking for the URL to the posts I link back to all the time. I’ve gotten started on mine and hope to finish soon.
What an awesome idea! I started one and now I keep thinking of links and other stuff to put in it! Thanks for the mini-challenge.
.-= melissa @ 1lbr´s last blog ..Bloggiesta – Still Beating My Blog Into Submission =-.
Great challenge. I have a cheat sheet for my Amazon codes and several other html codes, but your challenge reminded me of some other things that I needed on there. Thanks.
.-= MotherReader´s last blog ..Bloggiesta Mini-Challenge Sign-In =-.
This was a really useful challenge! I made my cheat sheet and saved it as a google doc so I can use it regardless of which computer I’m using at the moment. I included the pictures I use for my In My Mailbox posts, the logos for the challenges I’m participating in, pictures I use to designate certain other features or information (breaking news, scandalous books, etc.) I think this will be a big help when I’m writing future posts. Thanks for hosting this!
.-= Emily´s last blog ..Review: Mine to Possess =-.
Thanks for the tips – this is such a great idea. I’ve created my cheat sheet and I know I’ll be using it a lot!
Great idea to help in the long run.
http://2manygoodbooks.blogspot.com/2010/01/create-blog-cheat-sheet.html
Thanks!
Heather
.-= Heather Thomas´s last blog ..Create a Blog Cheat Sheet =-.
I already had a short cheat sheet, but now it has all the things I use often on it and will save me so much time.
Great mini challenge!
.-= Vicki´s last blog ..Es Bloggiesta Tiempo: Day 2 =-.
Oh this is fantastic! I have never used google docs before, but I am going to do so more often now. How exciting! I made up a Cheat Sheet of my own since I find myself always needing certain links and list formatting. Thanks for this great challenge!
http://scribble-me-this.blogspot.com/2010/01/bloggiesta.html
.-= N.R. Wick´s last blog ..Bloggiesta Day 2 – It’s Pinata Time =-.
What a great idea! I just finished creating a cheat sheet and I know as I continue working I’ll think of other things to add to it.
Thanks for this great mini-challenge!
I now have a template for reviews & a list of frequently cited webpages. As a newbie, this will be so helpful – awesome challenge!
.-= Meg ´s last blog ..Evidence 003: Bloggiesta =-.
That was SO useful and great to do! I copy-pasted my layout html into a Word document and did templates for my book reviews and the memes that I do each week! Wahooooo
.-= Helen Murdoch´s last blog ..Test–please ignore =-.
I just made a cheat sheet for my reviews and I’m thrilled. With all of the challenges I join, it’s nice to have a list with URLs attached. Thanks for the challenge!
.-= Trisha´s last blog ..Book Review: Tao Te Ching =-.
I’ve now got the most amazing cheat sheet for my review. Thanks for this!
.-= Katie´s last blog ..bloggiesta: day two! =-.
I made a cheat sheet with my review format, WWW format, contest lists format, and some other little odds and ends. So much easier then have all those drafts with the formats. =)
.-= Mandy´s last blog ..One Lovely Blog Award =-.
[...] Danielle from There’s a Book gave us permission to make a cheat sheet to make blogging easier. I now have a beautiful Google Doc with my review template in it. It’ll come in handy tonight where I get all my reviews ready to write! [...]
I’ve got the cheat sheet next to me and will continue to add to it as I learn this weekend. Thanks for suggesting this great tool from the beginning.
.-= Moonbeam´s last blog ..Thanks Pedro! I Didn’t Know What I Didn’t Know =-.
I’ve had the idea of creating a cheat sheet for regular posts, but I finally did it. I’ve got one for Waiting on Wednesday, one for book reviews, and one for movie reviews. Thank you!
.-= nomadreader´s last blog ..sunday salon: Deliberate television watching =-.
Thank you! Thank you! I thought about this before but could only imagine creating a cheat sheet in WordPress and couldn’t figure out how to make it successful.
Creating my cheat sheet in Word (and uploading it to Google docs) is perfect. I now have a cheat sheet for my Monthly Writing Status Updates (including the SEO information) and have decided to start off my reviews the same starting February 1st. (So I can clear out old reviews that have been in my drafts folder for a while.) I’ve made a template for those now as well.
.-= Amber´s last blog ..December 2009 =-.
Thanks for this helpful hint. I am also new to blogging and am always looking for ways to speed up the process
Thanks for introducing me to google docs – I blog from two different computers so having things online is a great idea!
.-= Colleen (books in the city)´s last blog ..Bloggiesta Mini-Challenge: Best of Best =-.
This was really helpful! There’s a few formatting techniques I use that were great to put in a cheat sheet. Thanks for pointing this out!
.-= Kristen´s last blog ..IMM Vlog (14) =-.
Thanks for the mock cheat sheet, as it gave me some good ideas! Saved mine in Google docs so it won’t matter which computer I’m on. Am sure I’ll be adding to it as I go along, but think I’m off to a great start!
[...] I began preparing cheat sheets and templates for my book reviews and blogs thanks to the great idea provided by Danielle at There’s a Book. [...]
What a great idea! Usually I just email myself important things like links, and code, but then I never have them sorted anywhere and it’s a big hunt through my email to find everything, but I put the things into a cheatsheet like you suggested and it should save SO MUCH TIME! Thanks!
.-= Melissa´s last blog ..TV addict: Things I am excited for =-.
Fantastic idea. I’ve been meaning to do this.
.-= Juju´s last blog ..Mr. Mailman: My Double Life =-.
Hello!
I just had to say that I stumbled on your website from “Maw Books” and I’m so glad I did! You have an absolutely fantastic, creative and VERY well written blog. Very impressive.
Unfortuntely my participation in this year’s Bloggiesta was not to be, but there is alwasy next year. I was very disappointed–darn life and darn PC/laptop issues…argghhh! LOL
Reading all these great blogs and antries too made up for my sadness of not being able to partipcate.
Right now since I’m up and running again, I’m going through as many challenges as I can…….just a little late of course…ha ha.
Great job and your blog is just super!!
Hugs, Gayla
.-= Gayla´s last blog ..Bloggiesta is here! Jan. 8-10 =-.
Thanks Gayla! Don’t be discouraged, I actually had a major computer issue come up Friday night and I thought oh no! But It worked out thankfully. The way I got really involved was to go back to older challenges before hand, just to get going. It’s a great idea to go ahead with these even without the event actually going on! Besides, there is always June, when it comes up again! So, I’ll see you around and remember to look for it again in June!
I love replying to comments and this challenge left me wanting in that area. It just was next to impossible to keep up with Bloggiesta and reply back to everyone. SO, this one is for all of you that commented! Thank you thank you! I’m so glad the challenge helped you out! If you have any questions don’t hesitate to ask or email me. I look forward to seeing you all around the blogosphere and can’t wait until next Bloggiesta!
.-= the1stdaughter´s last blog ..The Wonderfulness that was Bloggiesta =-.
[...] was spent wrapping things up. I created a cheat sheet for some common posts for the mini-challenge hosted by Danielle from There’s a Book. Included were html and SEO settings that don’t vary from one post to the next. [...]
[...] to keep up for the rest of January (and thanks to folks who’ve stopped by to comment here!) * Danielle from There’s a Book – Cheatsheets: Made cheatsheets for the two memes I’ve done in the past, and hope to participate in more in [...]
[...] Danielle from There’s a Book challenges us to create a blogging cheat sheet. This list could include: URLs you use repeatedly [...]
[...] some goals, and enjoy the great company! I’ll see you around! Make sure to check out my past Bloggiesta Mini-Challenge: It’s Not Cheating, for those of you in need of a “back-up” list, it’s [...]
I think at this point I have my template pretty well fixed in my mind…but now I’m wondering about that control F side of things–when I go through my old posts later, I’ll look out for patterns of links it might be nice to have a short cut too! Thanks!
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