Borrowed Wisdom: How to Use Quotes on Your Blog

Posted: 08 Oct 2013 06:15 AM PDT

Have you ever read something – perhaps in a book or blog – and thought wow, I wish I'd written that.

While you can't take the words and pretend they're your own, you can use them to support your blogging.

Quoting other people is a staple of many types of writing. Journalists use quotes in their stories, magazine writers interview experts to support their piece, and academics quote research papers. As a blogger, you too can borrow the wisdom of others to inspire and support your writing.

This is also an under-used technique, so it's one that can make you stand out:

For an entire week I read every post from five A-list bloggers to see how many of their posts included quotes. Out of 31 posts, only three did.

– Bamboo Forest, Elevate Your Writing By Using Well-Positioned Quotes, Write to Done

It does take a little extra time and effort to add a quote (or a few quotes) into your post … but if you follow these steps, you can't go wrong.

Step #1: Find an Appropriate Quote

Quotes can come from all sorts of sources, but three of the most likely ones you'll use are:

Other Blogs

It's easy to do a quick Google search for information when you're writing a post: if you find a great piece of advice, you can include it in your piece as a quote. Alternatively, you might save good quotes as you're reading, so you can use them in future posts.

Books

It's fine to quote briefly from a book so long as you acknowledge the source (see Step #3). If you have an ereader, highlight relevant passages when you're reading so you can easily find useful quotes afterwards.

Collections of Quotes

Sites like Brainy Quote list thousands upon thousands of quotes, and you can search by topic. If you do choose a quote that's been widely reproduced, check several sites as the wording (and sometimes the attribution) may be incorrect in places.

Step #2: Decide How to Use the Quote

There are plenty of different ways to incorporate a quote into your post, and you don't need to use the same method each time. These are some popular ones:

At the Start of Your Post

Alex Blackwell of The Bridgemaker has a quote at the start of every post he writes. This is a technique you'll sometimes see used in books, with a quote at the start of each chapter.

As the Basis for Your Post

Barry Demp of The Quotable Coach bases each of his posts on a specific quote. Here on Daily Blog Tips, we often quote from and explain a good resource when we link to it – see The Psychology Behind The "One Weird Trick" Ads for an example.

To Support a Point You're Making

Often, a quote from an expert can be a great way to support a particular part of your post. For instance, in Sonia Simone's post The 5 Things Every (Great) Marketing Story Needs, her bonus – You need the truth – uses a quote from a book.

Step #3: Format the Quote Correctly

It's often a good idea to distinguish quotes from the rest of your post, especially if you're quoting more than a line or so.

There's a handy HTML tag for this: <blockquote>

(Most visual blog editors will have a button that looks like quotation marks: this applies the <blockquote> formatting.)

Different blog themes will have different styles of blockquotes, but almost all will indent the text from the left. They may use a different font colour or size, and might add other features like a quotation mark graphic or a line down the left hand side.

For very short quotes, you may not want to use the blockquote formatting. You can simply incorporate them into your sentence, using quotation marks. Here's an example:

This week, I've decided to use more quotes on my blog. I was inspired by Ali Luke who explains, "You too can borrow the wisdom of others to inspire and support your writing."

If you want more on punctuating posts correctly, check out 8 Tips for Using Quotes and Dialogue in Your Blog Posts (ProBlogger).

Step #4: Attribute the Quote Correctly

Make sure that all the quotes you use are attributed carefully: don't just throw them in without a name or source.

At a bare minimum, you should include the name of the person (or where that's not available, the website / publication) that the quote is from.

Normally, if you're quoting from a blog post or website, it's good to link to the source. This helps out the person you're quoting (links are good for their search engine ranking) and it also offers extra value to your readers, who may want to read the whole of the source piece.

If you're going to use quotes on a reasonably regular basis, work out a good standard way to attribute them. There are plenty of ways to do this. I like to have both the quote and the attribution in blockquote format, like this:

[quote]

– [name], [title of post, which links to it], [name of blog]

So, for instance, if you quoted from this post, you might do it like this:

Normally, if you're quoting from a blog post or website, it's good to link to the source. This helps out the person you're quoting (links are good for their search engine ranking) and it also offers extra value to your readers, who may want to read the whole of the source piece.

– Ali Luke, Borrowed Wisdom: How to Use Quotes on Your Blog, Daily Blog Tips

Bonus Step: Changing the Quote

Sometimes, you'll need to make changes to a quote. This is OK, but it needs to be clear to readers what's changed. For instance:

You might cut out a section of a long quote.
You might alter a word to help the quote make sense.

There are standard conventions for doing this.

Cutting Part of a Quote

Use an ellipsis (three dots) to indicate where the cut part is.

Normally, if you're quoting from a blog post or website, it's good to link to the source. This … offers extra value to your readers, who may want to read the whole of the source piece.

Some writers like to put the ellipsis in square brackets too, like this: [...]

Warning: Be careful not to use an ellipsis to change the meaning of a quotation.

Changing a Word in a Quote

Sometimes, a quote doesn't quite work out of context: for instance, there might be a word like "he" or "it" or "this" that refers to something in a previous sentence.

The easiest way to fix this is to simply replace the word by putting the new word or phrase in square brackets. For instance, in our example quote, you might choose to use the second sentence only, and change the word "this" at the start:

[Linking to the source] offers extra value to your readers, who may want to read the whole of the source piece.

Your turn! Use a quote in the next blog post you write. If you get stuck or you're not sure if you've done it right, just pop a comment below so we can help.

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ProBlogger: How to Take a Blog Break Without Losing Momentum

How to Take a Blog Break Without Losing Momentum

Posted: 07 Oct 2013 08:37 AM PDT

As anyone who has ever started a blog knows, it can be hard work. The internet never sleeps, and it seems at times neither do you! In the 24-hour machine that is the blogosphere and accompanying social media, there is the potential for our blog/life balance to be so far off kilter it’s all but disappeared from view. And the best way to deal with blogger burnout is to stop it before it begins.

Working for yourself means you also have the luxury of choosing when you can shift gears. And while you might not have a colleague to step up and take over in your stead, it doesn’t necessarily mean that your site will suddenly plunge to the depths of the internet where blogs go to die if you’re not there to constantly push it back up to the surface. The fear of being forgotten is very real, as the blogosphere is awash with ten more blogs to take your place should you quiet down. But the trick is finding the minimum amount of effort you need to spend to keep your hard-earned traffic, and ring in some help along the way.

Step One: Get organised

First thing you need to do is define how long you are going to spend away. I was having a baby, so I planned for three months and had a tentative plan for the fourth. Figure out how many posts would be the minimum to keep your readers interested, and set them into an editorial calendar. There are plenty of ways to do this – use the WordPress Editorial Calendar plugin, use software, a downloadable template, your laptop calendar, a real calendar, or you can go old-school like I did and draw a colourful diagram with connector pens.

The next step is to fill those spots with content ideas. There are plenty of things you can write ahead and schedule – I did a mix of non-time-sensitive posts, recipes, tutorials and guest posts. Once you have an idea, then set aside a chunk of time to tackle the posts and have them ready to go. You already have inspiration because you’ve created a list of ideas ahead of time, all you need to do now is flesh them out. Or if you can’t find the time to write a bunch of posts in one go, then commit to writing two posts each time you sit down to write one. Publish one, and schedule the other for a future date. You also might like to re-post earlier content – we all have that one brilliant piece we wrote when we were first starting out, which only two people read. Bring it back out and let it get the love it deserves!

Spend some time either creating your own images for the posts, or searching for stock images. You’ll be surprised how much easier it is to write a post once the title and image are sitting there, ready to go. Make a list of what you need and stockpile them, to save time searching for each one as you write your content.

Write a post explaining to your readers what to expect, and when you’ll be back. Most readers are happy to give you some breathing space and pop back when you return. You’re probably also doing them a favour – less posts in their readers mean they get a break from keeping up with the blogosphere’s breakneck pace!

Step Two: Get some help

If there’s too much to do and too little time, then call for reinforcements. Write a post asking for guest posters, outlining your contribution guidelines (it is much easier if they all come in the same format, because uploading 40 different blogging styles can be just as much work as writing the content yourself!), and setting your standards. You might like to include ideal post length, whether or not it needs an image (and be certain that the image they supply complies with copyright law!), and whether they need to write their own bio and supply a head shot. Guest posts are usually better received if you have written a small intro before they begin, and helps keep your voice on your site, which is why your readers read you in the first place. Submissions in HTML format are light-years more easy to deal with than document attachments and separate images, but not everyone is au fait with that.

Reach out to your networks and let them know you’re looking for contributions. Are you a member of blogging groups or organisations? Put the call out on your blog’s Facebook page and other social media accounts. You might like to open it up to up-and-coming bloggers looking for a big break, or you might like to only invite established writers with their own readership. Or you could simply hire professionals.

Judge what mix is best for you and your readers – keep your own content a constant, if you can. While your readers will appreciate you’re taking a break, and enjoy some fresh views, it’s your voice they want to read.

Step Three: Get away

Get right away. You’ve done all you can ahead of time. You’ve automated tweets and Facebook updates using the scheduled post’s permalink, and everything should run smoothly (you hope!) with little or no effort from you. Stepping back and clearing your head does wonders for motivation and creativity – soon you will miss your blog, and have ideas coming out your ears for future content. But until that happens, break up with your blog just a little bit. Get outside and get a life (as Darren says!), so you’ve got some depth to your writing. Don’t even open your laptop if you don’t have to. Absence makes the heart grow fonder, as they say, and nobody likes forced writing. When you’ve reignited the passion for blogging, your words will flow better and you’ll create more of a connection with the reader.

If you absolutely can’t bear the idea of totally stepping away, or you don’t need to, then pop up every now and then with a fresh post. You never know when inspiration will strike, and it’s always best to bow down when it does. Keep up your networking and being part of the community with your social media accounts – maybe Instagram your break and the new things you now have time for, to keep your followers in the loop. If you’re troubled by dips in traffic on the days you’re not posting, then invite readers into your archives by tweeting a new old link for them to read.

Nobody likes a burnt-out blogger, and you and your readers both know when stuff’s getting stale. Take a well-earned break and keep the home fires burning so it’s still warm when you get back.

Have you taken a break? I’d love to hear any tips you learned along the way.

Stacey Roberts is the blogger behind Veggie Mama, and when she’s not writing about good food and motherhood, she’s teaching media law at university. Or avoiding the laundry. She’s an Instagram ninja here, on Facebook here and tweets @veggie_mama.

Originally at: Blog Tips at ProBlogger

How to Take a Blog Break Without Losing Momentum