a lifestyle blog for book lovers

We’ve had some great conversations on the blog recently, and I’ve been thinking a lot about what I can do to facilitate the amazing discussions that are happening here.

A lot of it has to do with blog comments. I try hard to provide you with thoughtful posts, but that’s just the beginning of the conversation. It’s those comments left after each post that take the conversation to a whole new level.

Many of you subscribe via RSS and email–and I am so grateful to you for doing so!–but you can’t see the comments in your feed reader or your email. I would encourage you to click over to see the fabulous discussions happening here in the comments section.

Updates that make it easier for you to connect

I’ve upgraded a few things here to make it easier for you to interact in the comments section. You may have noticed that as of a few weeks ago, you receive an email notification whenever someone replies to a comment you’ve left here on Modern Mrs Darcy. That means that if you ask a question, you don’t have to come back to the blog to see if anyone replied to you–you’ll be automatically notified via email. And if you reply to someone else’s question (bless you!), know that they will receive your response.

But there’s more. If you want to keep tabs on a great discussion (like the ones we’ve had recently about having it all or the books we’re afraid to recommend) without constantly coming back to the blog, you can subscribe to the comments on any one post. You’ll be notified via email every time someone leaves a comment on that post. It’s easy to do: just check that little box you see below:

If you don’t want to comment yourself, but would like to see what other people are saying, you can subscribe to the comments without commenting. See up there where it says “subscribe without commenting?” If you click that link, it’ll take you to a page that looks like this:

That means that you can ask questions and provide input on Modern Mrs Darcy with confidence, knowing that your words aren’t going out into the void of the internet, but straight to the women who need to hear them. Together, we are such a rich resource of information and inspiration, and I encourage you to join in and join the conversation.

I love reading every single comment here. I respond to questions in the comments so that everyone can see the response. (Though occasionally if the issue is very personal or extremely specific, I’ll respond by email.)

And now for details: If you’d like to have one of those little pictures next to your comments, it’s really easy to do. That little picture is called a gravatar, and if you head over here you can get your own.

Truly, the best part about blogging is the community. Thanks so much for creating a smart, wise, and thoughtful community here at MMD.

21 comments

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  1. I enjoy commenting-obviously.=) When I write, I like getting a conversation going. I love it when people answer questions that I put out there. And when I read a blog, I like join the conversation. Because that it what it feels like to me-a conversation. Anyway…have a wonderful day, Anne.=)

  2. I’ve made some wonderful blog-friends right here in your comments section. Thank you for being such an accommodating hostess! Perhaps this post will encourage those readers who usually don’t speak up to do so!

    • Anne says:

      Oh, I’m so glad! I don’t mind at all if people choose not to chime in–but I do want to make it easy for those who want to converse to do so.

  3. Maggie S. says:

    I tend to do this for individual posts that are really interesting. I love the conversation and agree with Adriana. The comments section is a great place to meet new blog friends.

  4. deborah says:

    Comments and community are a lot of fun!

    So many blogs..so little time!

    And I think you have done a great job on creating your community here on MMD!

    • Anne says:

      Jaimie, only 1% or so of blog readers leave comments, so as your blog grows you’ll naturally have more comments. Lots of bloggers recommend a clear call to action.

      I really recommend making sure you have something to say before you write a post. I rarely comment on posts where the blogger doesn’t offer a unique perspective, or an honest glimpse into their lives or thoughts.

  5. Jane Allard says:

    “Truly, the best part about blogging is the community.”
    I learn this, in the best sense of the experience of learning, often while communicating in blogs. I wonder if blogging is the new publishing. We have brilliance…is it reaching many or a few? Like most media communications, we only know if the topics we put out through the air- or cyberspace- waves have reached others when we hear or read about them in other circles. I believe it is a new form of publishing.

    • Anne says:

      Jane, I think you’re right. There’s even a term for it that I’ve only recently become acquainted with: micropublishing. (I like it.)

      • Tim says:

        If regular bloggers are in micropublishing, then I’d call what I do (only writing guest posts on other people’s sites) nanopublishing. Hey, at least it’s not as small as femtopublishing!

        Tim

        P.S. For nerds like me, here’s a chart that lays out meters and it’s multiples and subunits: http://mrsec.wisc.edu/Edetc/nanoscale/index.html

        P.S. Did you know that your fingernails grow one nanometer every second. Neither did I until I hit that web page linked above. Wowza, that’s 1/24.5 millionth of an inch!

  6. Elisabeth says:

    Fantastic–I just received comments in my inbox today. Honestly I think you’re doing a fabulous job of encouraging comments by the thoughtful replies you post. I’m not sure I could sustain that level of interaction with each and every commenter, but it would be my ideal! Well done!

  7. Jenny says:

    I just wanted to try out my new gravatar! I am not good at leaving comments, so maybe this will encourage me! 🙂 I do love reading every day though.

  8. Breanna says:

    There is one more upgrade that makes me way more likely to comment. I use Google Reader and if there is a link at the bottom of a post that says Comments (10) or whatever at the bottom I estimate it triples the likelihood of me chiming in. I do often scroll back up to the clickable link to the title of a post and then down to the comment section on the blog’s actual page, but the link at the bottom is a good way to reduce the friction. There is one blog in my feed that actually excerpts the first few words of each of the first few comments at the bottom of the RSS post after the article and that really makes me more likely to click through and contribute.

    • Elisabeth says:

      THAT is a fabulous idea, Breanna! I would love to see that on all the blogs I follow (I use Google Reader too). Didn’t realize they could do that!

  9. Ginger says:

    I just now found this link via the Card Catalouge. I most often read through my Feedly reader (though I do click through to the blog sometimes to pin something occasionally), so how had I not noticed this feature?

    Such a cute way to organize posts! Does your beautifully bookish creativity know no bounds?

  10. Tessa~ says:

    Sorry, but I don’t want to have to “join” Word Press, to have an Icon/Gravitar. I don’t like this, about Word Press. -sigh-

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We appreciate a good conversation in the comments section. Whether we’re talking about books or life, differing opinions can enrich a discussion when they’re offered for the purpose of greater connection and deeper understanding, which we whole-heartedly support. However, my team and I will delete comments that are hurtful or intended to shame members of this community, particularly if they are left by first-time commenters. We have zero tolerance for hate speech or bigotry of any kind. Remember that there are real people on the other side of the screen. We’re grateful our community of readers is characterized by kindness, curiosity, and thoughtfulness. Thank you for helping us keep it that way.

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