Random header image... Refresh for more!

What is #MicroblogMondays…

Take back your blog.

MicroblogMondays is a response to the mass exodus from long blogging in your own space to writing status updates on other social media sites.  Instead of writing out posts in their own home on the Web, more and more people are opting to place their brilliant, witty observations or thought-provoking images in someone else’s home; namely, Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, and the like.

And while those sites as well as the communities that have sprung up in those spaces are lovely, they don’t really fulfill the purpose of blogging in the first place: to plant your flag on the vast surface of the Internet and say, “here I am.”  Here, being your own home.  Because while you may have accounts on various social media platforms, you don’t actually own your space on Twitter or Facebook or the like.

Please understand: I am not proposing that people stop using other social media sites; only that people make a commitment to microblogging one day per week in their own space.

Yes, I said microblogging.

As in creating a post that is between 1 word to 8 sentences long.

Nothing huge.  No massive time commitment.  Just taking a passing thought, writing it up in a paragraph, and posting it in your own space.  You can promote it on Twitter with the hashtag #microblogmondays, you can mention your post on Facebook, you can let people know on Instagram where to find you one day per week, but you’re going to put your words or images on your blog.  And then you’re going to come over to Stirrup Queens and look for my weekly MicroblogMondays open thread and add a link to your post.  And peruse other people’s posts who have taken back their blogging space and utilized it at least one day per week so that if Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram were to disappear one night, there would still be a place — under your control — that people can find you on the Web.

So what to write about?  Take anything you would have thrown up on Facebook or Twitter or Instagram and place it on your blog.  A passing thought.  What you did over the weekend.  What you’re looking forward to during the week.  What you’re worried about.  The strangest thing you observed on your way to work.  The funny thing your kid said.  A great picture you took during a hike.  A funny picture you forgot about until you found it while looking for something else.

Anything.  Don’t stress this.  Just write.

If you’re stuck, you can even scroll through a week of Tweets or Facebook status updates, find one that you think deserves a little more unpacking, and do so on your blog.  Or go look for an image you posted on Instagram and create a complimentary one.

If you’ve missed your blogging space and want to keep it going in this minimal, basic way (and hopefully you will be inspired to write longer posts on other days of the week by making the commitment to post once a week), here’s what to do:

  1. Write a very small post between 1 word and about 8 sentences long.
  2. Put #MicroblogMondays in the title or use the image at the top of this post (just right-click to save it to your computer and then upload it to your blog).
  3. Come over here and read my #MicroblogMondays post and add your post URL to the linky box at the bottom of the post.
  4. Read other people’s microblogging posts.
  5. Rejoice that you posted at least once this week to your blog, not someone else’s space.
  6. No, you don’t have to write your post on Monday.  You can write it any other day of the week and schedule it to run on Mondays.

Last three rules:

  1. The linky list closes on Tuesday morning.  You get about 24 hours to add your post.  If you missed this week, just participate next week.  If you’re going to be out of town, ask a friend to post your link for you.
  2. Link to the post itself, not your blog URL.  Any non-post URLs will be removed.  Just so you understand, the permalink to this post is https://www.stirrup-queens.com/2014/09/what-is-microblog-mondays/.  The main URL for this blog is https://www.stirrup-queens.com.  Only use that first permalink; the one that goes directly to a post.
  3. Only personal blogs can be added to the list.  I will remove any posts that are connected to businesses or are sponsored posts.  You may end up with new readers or traffic to your blog, but the point of this exercise is to connect as individuals with ideas bouncing around in our brains, not to tell people about products or services.

Hope you’ll join along every Monday.  You can find all old #MicroblogMonday posts via the category menu on the left sidebar.

Wanted to add that you don’t have to confine this activity to Mondays.  I set it at the beginning of the week so you could feel inspired to know you checked off your post per week by Monday morning.  But feel free to microblog in your own space any day of the week.  Or several times per day.  Short posts rock.

*The first MicroblogMondays post will go up in a few hours.  So get microblogging!  Remember, only 1 word to 8 sentences for the whole post.  Everyone has time to write a paragraph!

41 comments

1 Liz { 09.01.14 at 9:43 am }

So I just put a quick post on my blog. It was longer than anything “micro,” but just your posting this got me to throw up something quick instead of feeling like I need first “cover” the last three weeks of appendicitis (child #1) and birthday (child #3). Thank you!

2 emma { 09.01.14 at 10:13 am }

I love this idea!

3 Tara { 09.01.14 at 10:50 am }

This is such an awesome idea. You’re a genius, Mel!

4 loribeth { 09.01.14 at 2:15 pm }

Fun! 🙂 Mine is up now.

5 Tracie { 09.01.14 at 3:42 pm }

I love this idea! Making a note to remind myself to participate next week.

6 dennasus { 09.01.14 at 4:47 pm }

LOVE this! Especially as I had planned to use September to get back on the blogging horse. Or something like that 🙂

7 Karen { 09.02.14 at 8:11 am }

I LOVE THIS. 🙂

8 JustHeather { 09.02.14 at 11:20 am }

Love this and it got me in gear! Thank you! Exactly what I needed.

9 Valery Valentina { 09.02.14 at 4:33 pm }

I tried, but micro is a bit short!

10 Laurel Regan { 09.02.14 at 5:22 pm }

I like this idea a LOT. I missed out yesterday, but plan to start next Monday. Thanks for the inspiration!

11 Vidya Sury { 09.03.14 at 12:19 am }

Lovely idea! I am in from next week – only because I missed this Monday!

Just one question – how do I pick the pomegranate off your header? ♥

12 Louise { 09.03.14 at 9:32 am }

what a great idea! looking forward to next Monday!

13 Carol Graham { 09.03.14 at 12:42 pm }

I’m in – I think I get it. 🙂

14 md { 09.04.14 at 2:18 am }

awesome idea, thank you for hosting this!! i am always thinking of random thoughts, aka status update kinds, but never seem to get around to blogging about them. this is perfect 🙂

15 Aditi { 09.09.14 at 1:24 am }

This is a great idea! Will be joining in from next week! Have a great week!

16 J { 09.15.14 at 3:24 pm }

Great idea my friend 🙂

17 elly stornebrink { 09.22.14 at 8:50 pm }

GR8 idea! Love it! Short and sweet, especially to start the week! 😉 <3

18 The Imp { 09.27.14 at 9:53 pm }

Fantastic idea! Now, if I can just remember to get back here to post in time, LOL!

19 Wendy of the Rock { 11.09.14 at 8:30 pm }

…totally confused newbie blogger attempting first Nablopomo and so stopped by to check out what this nifty Microblog Monday logo refers to… just read the explanation, and about 10 of the “microblogs” listed on the roll… only one of which were between one word and 8 sentences long… Have I missed something? do I have this wrong? Confused…

20 panamahat { 11.13.14 at 6:25 am }

Love this idea. Hope to get my sh*t together enough to participate. Soon!

21 Amanda { 11.17.14 at 8:45 pm }

What a great idea. Contemplating a link up next week if I can figure out the technical side! 🙂

22 MGThatsme { 11.18.14 at 11:08 pm }

I love this! I’m in!

23 Foxy { 11.20.14 at 2:34 pm }

this is exactly what i need! thank Mel!

24 Teresa Speight { 12.29.14 at 10:22 pm }

I love this idea…..microblogging

25 Kay Lou { 01.06.15 at 8:30 am }

I’m loving this idea. Hope I can get a;; the linking straight. This is a good way to get going again! Thank You!

26 Debbie D. { 01.19.15 at 10:56 am }

Excellent idea! This is my first time, but I will definitely participate more often. Thanks for the opportunity. 🙂

27 Rebecca { 01.26.15 at 10:33 am }

Love this, just what I needed to be inspired to find my way back. And I did end up writing more then a paragraph, ha!!

28 aish { 02.13.15 at 9:35 am }

I happened to land on your link from unpregnantchicken.com. What an awesome idea, microblogging! Thanks!!!

29 nina michelle { 02.14.15 at 6:43 pm }

I have mourned for years about the lost community of blogging. This is an excellent idea.

30 nina michelle { 03.08.15 at 10:47 pm }

Just one more thank you although I just up and started a new blog. I didn’t realize it really had to be 1 to 8 sentences… So I will try next week to play Micro Monday. I am just happy I actually took the time to write something.

31 Rajiv Bakshi { 03.30.15 at 8:48 pm }

I think I will write 🙂

32 Cristina Parus (CreativeMAG) { 04.14.15 at 2:14 am }

I have discovered your blog long time ago and was sitting nicely in my bookmarked sites. Now I am visiting again and I adore this idea with the microblogging! Of course, my intend for my blog is to post way more often than just once per week, but the idea is great, Monday after the weekends and it might very well work for me! 😉

Hugs and love,
Cristina

33 JRosemarie { 06.05.15 at 6:33 pm }

I wish I saw this earlier. I have gotten so busy I don’t post to my blog much. This is ideal for me. Thing is once you put the idea to paper it might just become a full blog post. Who know? Still, I’m happy I don’t have to bury my blog now. Thanks.

34 Marina { 09.30.15 at 7:23 am }

Want to learn about micro blogging and how it works

35 Chandni { 01.08.16 at 2:44 pm }

What a wonderful concept. We do this all the time. Post musings, observations, thoughts, post ideas even .. Like little notes to self on Twitter…
I used to feel these tiny little thoughts need to be captured but never realized that a blog post doesn’t need to be a well researched 1000 words piece. It can always be an idea that needs to be written down , shared , thrown out there in open for a discussion or just noted to go back to it later.
Following your blog and shall take up #MicroBlogging now ..

36 Ekhlas I { 02.23.16 at 11:46 am }

I love this idea, too bad I missed it, I will post for sure next Monday!

37 SHALINI BAISIWALA { 09.19.16 at 10:17 am }

Awesome idea and I am hooked to it too; just uploading my post for this. thanks

38 Deepa { 09.19.16 at 2:13 pm }

I liked this concept. Linked my monday micro blog to the website here. Will try to link whenever I can 🙂

39 Kenya G. Johnson { 09.25.16 at 1:51 pm }

LOVE this idea! Hope to see you tomorrow!

40 Deepa { 10.03.16 at 1:03 pm }

Love this concept..trying to post whenever I can!

41 Sravani { 11.21.16 at 10:33 am }

hoping this is where I need to submit my link. happy microblogging mondays.

(c) 2006 Melissa S. Ford
The contents of this website are protected by applicable copyright laws. All rights are reserved by the author