This guest post is by Leanne of IronicMom.com.
Although Shakespeare wouldn’t have known words like Twitter, social media, and blogging, he no doubt would’ve embraced these new terms. After all, he coined an estimated 1700 words and had a lot of fun playing with language.
But what do you get when you take Shakespeare’s words out of context and apply them to blogging? You get sage advice that has—in its own way—survived more than 400 years.
Here are words from the Bard, applied to blogging.
On the length of posts
Brevity is the soul of wit.
(Hamlet)
Translation: Keep posts and paragraphs short.
On posting too infrequently
I wasted time, and now time doth waste me.
(Richard II)
Translation: Post regularly, or your blog’s energy and following will wither away.
On finding images
Suit the action to the word, the word to the action.
(Hamlet)
Translation: Ensure your image is related to your content; if it’s not obvious, use a caption make the connection.
On the importance of blog design
The apparel oft proclaims the man.
(Hamlet)
Translation: Appearance is important. If you wouldn’t wear 35 accessories, don’t put that many on your blog.
On content
More matter, with less art.
(Hamlet)
Translation: Photos and images are important, but fantastic content is what keeps readers returning.
On avoiding controversial topics
Boldness be my friend!
(Cymbeline)
Translation: Don’t be overly afraid of divisive topics; they can attract and engage readers. Deal with them maturely, and invite readers to disagree.
On commenting
They do not love that do not show their love.
(Two Gentleman of Verona)
Translation: Ensure you read and comment intelligently on other people’s posts. Blogging is about building relationships, and—if you’re genuine—commenting is the best way to do so.
On dealing with hostile comments
I am not bound to please thee with my answers.
(The Merchant of Venice)
Translation: Hostile comments are rarely fun to deal with. It’s usually best to remember that you don’t have to please; instead, aim to critique the idea, rather than the person.
On being preoccupied with statistics
All that glitters is not gold.
(The Merchant of Venice)
Translation: While stats do indeed glitter, they don’t tell the whole story of a blog’s success. Check them, use them to improve your blog, but don’t let them distract you from writing and building community.
On verifying your sources
Lord, what fools these mortals be.
(A Midsummer Night’s Dream)
Translation: Don’t immediately trust what other people have put on the Web. For example, there are several quotations from seemingly reputable sites that are attributed to Shakespeare; cross-referencing revealed the quotes aren’t all his.
On the need to proofread
What’s done can’t be undone.
(Macbeth)
Translation: Think before you hit publish; ideally, leave your post 24 hours and reread it again.
On helping other bloggers
How far that little candle throws its beams! So shines a good deed in a weary world.
(The Merchant of Venice)
Translation: Find someone less established to help out; this is the spirit of blogging.
Leanne’s motto is “If you can’t laugh at yourself, laugh at your kids”; you can read her attempt to survive parenting at IronicMom.com. Leanne also co-created the website, WordBitches, where she and two friends use sass to motivate each
other to write 500 words each day.
To sum it all up:
Be awesome, or fail.
Well, yes. But I think that this post is about much more things.
WOW… Great post! I known that Shakespeare had loads of quotes. But I never thought of implementing them into blogging.
If there’s one thing I learned in college: Shakespeare applies to everything!
So glad I followed your tweet over.
This was wonderful.
Great post. So much to learn from Shakespeare – he’s truly timeless.
I think that the more we read, on wide ranging topics, the less writer’s block we’ll have, and the better our own writing will be. Everything we need to inspire us is out there somewhere, sometimes in seemingly unlikely places.
More on Shakespeare: I just read that he influenced Beatles lyrics: http://bit.ly/fa0mlt – which isn’t surprising, because literature was the foundation for much of Led Zeppelin’s stuff: http://bit.ly/i0rzYi
Funny how a lot of rockers are really well read. It’s good for bloggers to know.
Posts on your blog are consistently excellent and useful. Thank you.
Susan
Thanks, Susan. And thanks for bringing up the lyrics influence. There are a lot of people who don’t realize they’re quoting Shakespeare when they’re singing along to The Beatles.
I would have never thought Shakespeare would have such great insight into the blogging world, although I can’t help but disagree with the point about length. I love lengthy posts that fully cover a topic. Nice compilation! :)
Short posts allow you to post more often and are awesome for readers in a rush (as we all are). Long posts cover topics thoroughly, but only highly interested people read them.
Both short and long posts are good, but you have to stick to one.
I like to do a combination of both, depending on the subject. You can also elaborate on short posts in the future with longer ones.
I agree with Elizabeth. I post both long and short articles. If you only do short posts, you may find it difficult to establish yourself as an authority in your niche.
I agree on the first and second points, but strongly disagree on your third. Where’s the harm in providing a mix of short and long posts? Some subjects lend themselves to certain lengths. If you were trying to convey that consistency keeps readers, I agree with that principle, but I don’t think it applies to length.
Yes, you’re right. You’re free to write however you want. It’s your blog, right? I just meant to stick to either specific subjects, or general subjects. Usually, long posts are based on general topics. If you wanna write more about something specific, go ahead and write a longer post.
Agree with you. A variety is great.
It’s important to consider your readers preference too. It’s pretty much a known fact that attention spans are getting shorter and shorter. However, if your niche likes to read and will read longer posts, write on! If not, use them less frequently and save up the long stuff for a book potentially.
I like that idea of saving longer stuff for a book…
I too like to read and write long posts for the same reason.. They most of the times cover all aspects of a topic. Short posts tend to just touch the topic and leave you high and dry. :-)
I’d agree that a mixture does work; however, I do read some long posts that ramble. I also read some great ones. I think it’s still possible to be “brief” (or get to the point) in a longer post. I know readers often feel cheated if a post is too short (under 100 words). Dividing a post into parts is also another good strategy.
To blog or not to blog, that is the question…
Well said, Andrew. I wonder what the “slings and arrows” of the blogging world are?
I loved this Leanne! A perfect blend of humor, truth, and history.
Why didn’t I have an English teacher like you?
Move to Canada. You can still have an English teacher like me. ;)
Sage wisdom indeed. This is the first post I’ve read that encourages helping other bloggers out. Bravo – love to see that!
Thanks, Joy. Some of the biggest rewards I’ve had blogging are helping a couple of newer bloggers out. That, and collaborating with a few other bloggers (and I have more plans to do that in the future). Maybe that’s an idea for another post: ways to mentor other bloggers.
Leanne, perhaps Shakespeare was referring to blogging when he coined those phrases, and he was simply ahead of his time. But it is interesting how well his philosophies fit into the overall theme of what we do. I’ve made many of these mistakes and have learned from them along the way.
I doth think I shall now write a post me fair lady.
Matty, your last line made me smile! The blog’s the thing!
This is wonderfully clever – and great advice, too!
I’d add – “To thine own self be true . . .” (Hamlet).
Believe in what you are blogging and do it for the love of it!
Really enjoyed this. Thanks.
One of the best lines that the bard has coined. A great addition!
HI Leanne,
A very good interpretation of Shakespeare. Well my favorite is “I am not bound to please thee with my answers.”
Wonderful post and all useful, nerve striking stuff.
Cheers,
Jane.
Thanks, Jane. May the blog be with you (uh oh. I’m mixing Shakespeare with Star Wars now).
How creative you are! Awesome job tying Shakespeare’s wisdom to the modern world!
Thanks, Tara. There is a lot of wisdom we can recycle. Happy Weekend!
As an author, blogger and lover of Shakespeare, just wanted to say, great job! Both fun and informative. Isn’t it amazing how truly classic and evergreen some advice really is?
Thanks, Cheryl. Great to meet another lover of the Bard!
Absolutely brilliant Leanne! I also just checked out your website and am cracking up. Search Bombing is one of the greatest blogging inventions I have ever seen!
Thanks, Clay. For the rest of you, if you missed Search Bombing, the April Fool’s trend that has many bloggers staying up to late, here’s the link at my site: http://ironicmom.com/2011/03/31/search-bombing/
It should be “All that glisters is not gold.” If you’re quoting Shakespeare, get the quotes right ;)
Thanks for weighing in. I went with “glitters” because most productions of The Merchant of Venice now use “glitters.” If you want to read more about this, there are a couple of sentences on it here: http://www.phrases.org.uk/meanings/28450.html
Wow, this post is amazing!
The writer of this post must put some long time to write this! I really like these types of posts when someone publishes quotes and then comment them.
And, isn’t that weird that even after about 400 years you can apply these tips today, in 21st century, isn’t that strange?
I really liked that quote:
“More matter, with less art.”
It is so true! I go various blogs not to watch pictures, but read great content… If someone stopped providing great value, I would immediately stop visiting their site. Well, nice design helps, but it is not everything.
And you know, when you meet someone, first of all you look at what clothes they wear. When you say goodbye, you look at the person and not clothes and appearence!
“Brevity is the soul of wit.”
It is so true… When I get a product from someone and all what they have are just some videos, where they give me 20% of info and 80% of fluff… I hate these products! Itr is a waste of my time.
It is the same with interviews. Sometimes people just talk about something that is completely unrelevant about the topic that they should be talking about. I hate these!
Don’t get me wrong, there are a lot of high quality videos and interviews. For example, product “Affiliate Promo Formula” has about 10 videos, but these all videos last about 1 hour and it is still an awesome product. There is not fluff at all. John Thornhill managed to say what he wanted to say in 1 hour while for many other people it would take 4 hours to cover the same info.
By the way, this post is about quotes. Let me add several more quotes to this great post:
“You can’t ride two horses at the same time”
“The bad news is time flies. The good news is you’re the pilot.” (Michael Altshuler)
“The key is in not spending time, but in investing it.” (Stephen R. Covey)
“Time is what we want most, but what we use worst” (Wiliam Pen)
Matt Poc
Thanks, Matt, for the great comment. You’re absolutely right: Matter supersedes art, especially after first impressions. I love the Covey quotation you offer. I need to rethink how I conceive time: “investing” it is a great revisioning of that.
Great advice!! Of course, the classics had a lot to said to us, but always remember that 1.- We are reading the sentences in our time and cultural values, very different from the one on they wrote, and 2.- Is OUR interpretation of THEIR ideas, not exactly THEIR ideas….
I told this because my today post, “Aristotle’s economic thought” tries to get an opinion on the iPhone or global crisis from Aristotle. (Sorry pals, it’s in spanish; but you can translate automatically with the tool at the top of the blog).
And on Shakespeare’s quotes, I left with two or three ideas to do… Thanks!
Saludos,
Gonzalo.
Gonzala, you make a great point. Cultural context is very important. the Aristotle post looks interesting: I wish my Spanish were better!
So, he has a nose for prose to which thy blog grows.
Clever!
This was a whitty post. I thoroughly enjoyed it. In high school I took AP literature, and I had to create a soundtrack for Hamlet. I used all modern punk music and got and A. It is amazing how many things can be related back to Shakespeare. Thanks for the trip down memory lane.
Punk and Shakespeare? A fab mash up. Will would have been rocking out in Stratford.
A plague on my house for not finding you sooner. Genius.
Mercutio, one of my favourite characters ever.
Awesome way to link blogging & Shakespeare!
Isn’t that “Brevity is the soul of Twit…?”
Uber clever.
Leanne,
I was going to write a blog about something similar to this without the Shakespeare references though.
You should still write it.
Leanne, what a wonderful post. Of course, I went scrambling to find a quote to add to your list, but I think you’ve pretty much got it covered!
OK, just one:
“A fool thinks himself to be wise, but a wise man knows himself to be a fool.”
Don’t just pontificate — try to start conversations, ask for others to share their knowledge
A great addition. I must be really wise because I know I’m foolish. Sigh.
You spent a ton of time getting these quotes together. Congratulations.
Yup. Likely should’ve fed my kids instead. ;)
This was so fun!!
:)
Love this post. I helped my son do Grades 11 and 12 English at home, so for a couple of years we’ve been up to the eyeballs in the words of the bard. “Double, double toil and trouble…”
Here’s another apt quote for blogging (not that I really know anything about blogging…): “This above all: to thine own self be true.”
(I’ll stop now!…) Very fun stuff, Leanne!
I love that quote from Hamlet. And if you read blogs, I suspect you know plenty about what’s good.
nice one…
just loved them, would definitely love to use these
This was a perfect read for a Friday. Thanks for rounding up all of these quotes!
You’re welcome. Saturday was actually the 395th anniversary of Shakespeare’s death.
Very cute post. Love it. :) Thank you.
I loved this post! That Shakespeare sure did write real good. ;) And I love your motto–I may have to adopt it myself!
Laughing at “real good”!
This is terrific. I needed to apply your proofreading advice on my easter egg post. I posted it in a rush, then read it again after publishing and saw my misspelled words glaring at me!! Usually I always “sleep” on a post and now I realize how helpful that practice is!
Great advice on everything.
Thanks. I know what you mean. The homophone part of my own brain seems to go dormant at about 11 p.m. daily.
You must be a genious to mix Shakespeare with blogging and get a good result :)
Genius? Nope. Weird? Likely.
This post made some really good points like checking your sources and posting frequently.
I love how you used Shakespeare to address each topic. I am required to have a blog for a social media class I’m taking this semester, but I don’t know if I’ll keep it once the class is done. I think it’s a good idea for me to just keep on posting though.
I’m glad you reassured us that it’s okay to talk about controversial topics; you’re definitely right, it keeps people talking. All of my blog posts would fall under the controversial category and I feel confident enough to keep writing the way I do.
Thanks for the comment, Rockey. A social media class? How cool is that. And regarding controversy, I always think: without a problem, there is no story. Hope you ace your class!
Would Shakespeare consider blogging as writing or an art form, I think not. But on the other hand, times are evolving.
Shakespeare was a pretty “go ahead” guy, I am sure he would have embraced new technology; and as he did in his day – push the limits.
Good question. He may be rolling in his grave now. But he’s been there for 395 years. I figure some exercise would do those old bones some good.
A nice theme for a post by combination the old (Shakespeare) and new (blogging) with the common theme of writing!
Fortune does favor the bold
Great quote!
Shakespeare would have rocked at blogging. Thanks for the great tips!
It’s probably about time I covered a controversial topic on my blog.
Good luck!
interesting information, some may say that they are applicable in everyday life…
Good point. I think you’re right: beautiful words + universal themes = why Shakespeare is still read today.
I just love your take on Shakesphere. Who knew he had such sage advice. Great post with excellent advice.
Glad you enjoyed it!
Wow Shakespeare is a master blogger thanks Guru.
I know. Who knew, right? :)
Blog it or not blog it,that’s a question.
LOL
:) Clearly the answer is to blog it.
Leanne, you rock. This was great!
Thanks, Jennifer!
Great idea Leanne! Thanks for give we good idea and tutorials to blogging better!
You’re welcome – Darren’s site is great for ideas!
Brilliant post. It’s like they say if you want to learn you should learn from the best. It’s amazing how obvious things you point out in this post are but how blind we are to noticing them till it’s pointed out to us.
You’re right, Mike. I think your comment applies to a lot more than blogging.
Just shows that timeless wisdom is…timeless. The ever meaningful, ever appropriate bard.
He is the man.
Genius post. One of the most creative blogging tips posts I’ve ever read. Thanks for a good chuckle and some great insights.
Thanks, Adriel. Glad you had a chuckle!
A great idea to emerge Shakespeare into the internet blogging
a very cleaver post, i just love the spirit of these ideas.
“Spirit” is a great word. It’s also very applicable to Shakespeare.
Gorgeous! Thanks for a witty, amusing and pertinent post. Love it.
You’re welcome, Amanda.
You reflect the incandescent mind of Shakespeare in this post about Shakespeare and blogging. A positively brilliant post!
I love this! It really is brilliant. I’m going to share it all over the place.
Thanks so much.
Aww, thanks Barbara!