I've left Entrecard after a lot of loyalty and hope for things to grow and improve there. I did not take the decision lightly but it is based on something I feel strongly about though my opinions have weathered some storms and changes.

I strongly feel that a forum or blog owner must moderate comments and posts made by readers and users of the forum. It is a responsibility of the site owner to keep things civil and flowing. Also, they have the right to choose what is appropriate and what is not. However, no one should have their voice taken away based on their status, even if that is user status for the site or network. Being new to a site does not mean you should be ignored or not allowed to speak. I think a lot of people at EC will not have bought over 400 ads.

I don't know what my own status would be as far as that goes. I am not waiting to be approved or rejected based on the amount of ads I have bought. I asked for my account to be terminated and allowed them to do what they will with my remaining credits. There is a rumour that the moderators are stealing credits from abandoned or deleted accounts. Just a rumour but would not surprise me to know some are giving in to temptation. A lot of things going on with online networks are based on greed and opportunity. It is not easy to find one which has real ethics it stands behind.

This is the note I left at Entrecard:

Please delete my account. I've been loyal to EC for a long time but having to be approved to join the forum to have a voice at EC has crossed the line for me. I'm not asking to be approved or rejected I'm just done here. Any mods can take my credits - as I have heard they are doing anyway. Good luck to EC but Graham has gone far too far this time. My widgets will be taken down as soon as I send this note.

I think anyone upset with the way things are going at Entrecard should join the forums at CMF Ads. Even if you are not sure about using the ad exchange network there the forums are good. There is a real exchange of information and fun with bloggers, not all the talk is about CMF Ads.

I haven't really thought a personal blog could be a niche blog. Seemed there was just too much to pack into or nail down to become a niche. I was wrong.

I read a post from Lorelle who has become famous (at least to me) for her posts about WordPress. She posted about her cousin's personal blog as part of a series about personal blogs. Lorelle says her cousin, Duke, has the example of a perfect personal blog. Not to my thinking as I'm not a fan of any blog with a black background, but there is something to be learned from Duke's blog. It fills a niche, nicely. Read the description of his blog, that's where the niche gets nailed down and he slides right in. It's very well done.

Duke, maybe with help from his cousin, has used his personality, his interests and become a niche blog. I bet it wasn't done in a day. But, it was done and I think this really does show that any personal blog can become a niche, if we take some time to think and plan. Come up with a few lists about who you are and what you most like to post about. Even though there are thousands of Mommy Blogs there is something unique about yourself and your blog that you can find a niche too. I'm going to work on it for That Grrl, my own personal blog.

Blogger: A person who does unspeakable things with a keyboard.

Come up with your own witty description of what a blogger really is. I posted this one to the Entrecard forums today.

Say something relevant to the post itself. Come up with a comment more interesting than “I agree” or “Me too”. It’s not that tough to stretch out a thought beyond two words. Why do you agree with the post? What was your own experience? Most blog comments are on the short side. Find a bit more to say and make yours longer to stand out. A longer comment also gives the feeling you are interested in the post and the blogger and able to string together ideas yourself. Others are more likely to click on the link to your blog if you seem to be someone who can write and write well.

A blog post looking for advice or answers is a great time to get noticed. If you know of a resource, have an opinion, or experience that would help leave that in comments. Give a link to the resource if it is online, even if it is your own site. However, if it is your own site make that clear. That way the blog owner and readers will know you aren’t just spamming your URL, it’s posted for a valid reason.

On the other side of giving information, ask a question yourself. What would you like to know more about? What detail or information might have been left out of the post? Think of a real question, not fluff just to leave a comment.

Be supportive and uplifting and sincere. Everyone is glad to have a comment that spreads good cheer and brightens their day. You can’t smile at others through your comment but you can send a smile in text. If you can’t be uplifting don’t be a wet blanket and do not be obnoxious. That should not even need to be said.

Write with personality, passion and humour. Don’t leave a bland comment that could have been written by half a million other bloggers. Come up with something uniquely you. Maybe a different turn of phrase. How about a funny anecdote. Maybe part of a quote relevant to the post if you really just don’t have a personality of your own. (But I know you do!)

Don’t post a comment at all if you really have nothing to say or if you are posting just to create controversy. A flame war may get you traffic and it will get you noticed but is that really how you want to be known? Besides, that kind of attention is short lived. No one really wants to watch a flame war except the two people in the middle who can’t seem to let go.

Last of all, proofread your comments before you click to post them. Spelling errors are one thing but typos just look clutzy. You can try to avoid them or just not bother and give the impression that you don’t care. Also, don’t leave a comment that is a solid block of text. It is easier to read a long comment if it is broken up into individual thoughts/ ideas.

Happy commenting. Let me know if you have other great commenting ideas.

Meanwhile consider using CoComment. Your comments from other blogs are posted to your own blog in a widget. Nice way to show that you actually do make comments and give links to the blogs you read. Although it is too late for the 31 Day Comment Challenge which utilizes CoComment too.

You can join up IComLeavWe for July, join before the 21st.

IComLeavWe - International Comment Leaving Week Blogging is a conversation and comments are honoured and encouraged. I like to say that comments are the new hug–a way of saying hello, giving comfort, leaving congratulations.

People talk about having a successful blog. Most of those people are the money making, SEO, business bloggers. That's fine for them to measure success in terms of number, scores, ranks and ads (sometimes even revenue). It's not for me.

I don't blog for those reasons so my success isn't measured that way. I blog for personal reasons and success isn't really what I'm looking for from this blog. Often I write to hear myself think. I draw to keep myself working on understanding how to draw, learning by doing. I wished I could draw for a long time and suddenly, once I actually started doing it, I realized I could. A personal achievement. That's a successful blog for me.

I love exploring, decorating, and meeting people through my blog. Posting my photos of flowers, abandoned farm houses. Making changes to my template, taking a risk on them totally bombing and then fixing them again. Having new people comment on what I have done here and visiting them in return for more ideas of what I can do and in some cases making a personal connection that I want to keep and grow. Those are things that make a successful blog for me.

Success isn't really the right word though.

I joined up Entrecard as an experiment, something new to try. I like joining new sites and networks and learning a bit about how they work. Seeing if there is something that will interest me about it. Entrecard has become partnered with SezWho. I don't think it is a site I would have joined if it wasn't for the partnership with Entrecard. I really don't like the idea of rating/ scoring comments given to my blog posts. That seems very arrogant. I don't want to do it. If I can automatically set it to score every comment at 100% I will do that. I moderate my comments and filter out any junk. Every other comment I fully appreciate and don't feel I have the right to sit and judge them. A comment is freely given and should not be something that falls to the "successful" blogging scheme.

I've set up SezWho for those who want to score big with this. It seems like a get points quick scheme and little of real value to me. But, I am giving it a try, for now.