Sidepodcast

Must Comment Monday is Back

Every now and then, you might hear us mention Must Comment Monday and wonder what it's all about. It is something we want to keep up all year round, but find difficult to do during the busy F1 season. However, now the off-season is well and truly here, it is time for MCM to make its triumphant return.

What is it all about?

If we learnt anything from the Interview with Bloggers series we did recently, it was that bloggers like comments. In many cases, they are the reason the blog exists in the first place. A comment can make a writer's day. Even if it doesn't agree with the sentiment of the article, some well-placed discussion is why we are on the web in the first place.

Must Comment Monday has been around for years, pre-Sidepodcast even. It's an initiative to turn readers into active participants rather than passive observers. Commenting only needs to take a few seconds, and it can make all the difference.

What does it involve?

It's really quite simple, and there are only a couple of guidelines to make things easier.

1. Comment on any blog post you read on a Monday that was written on that day.
2. If a writer publishes several posts a day (this means you, Joe), you only need to comment on one of them.
3. Try and further the conversation, but if you're really stuck, even a 'keep up the good work' can have the desired effect.
4. You don't need to comment on a blog that requires logins and/or signups. Although if you already have a login for the blog, then you probably should.

What is there to gain from this?

It's been said a few times before but if you're not a blogger, it's hard to explain how much a few words can mean. It can provide the inspiration to keep on going, and it's a great way of connecting with the person behind the words. Plus, we made a pretty badge, and I know you can't resist the badge.

Where's the best place to start?

Well, it's funny you should ask, but there have been a plethora of blogs popping up from Sidepodcast commentors of late. For Sidepodcast, the Must Comment Monday initiative is aimed at F1 blogs only, but there is nothing stopping you from spreading the love and commenting on other blogs as well.

There's an ongoing list of new and existing blogs over on the wiki, but here are some of our favourites to get you started. If you find any more, or if we have missed you out, let us know, and we'll pop you on the list.

• BlogF1
• F1 Tailpipe
• F1 Wolf
• James Allen on F1
• Joe Saward
• Making Up The Numbers
• Natural Born Racers
• Only One Timo Glock
• Pitlane Fanatic
• Racing Eagles
• Sofa F1
• The Blog of an F1 Loonie
• Too Much Racing

We also ask bloggers themselves to take part in, and promote Must Comment Monday too. Feel free to either grab the badge above and post it on your own site, or have fun creating your own. You can link to this explanation, the dedicated page or blog about how comments make a difference to you as a writer and encourage more. By all means Tweet, Facebook or do whatever you can to promote more interaction in your blog.

Finally, come back and let us know your Must Comment Monday experiences - did you find new friends, new blogs, or new ideas? Or is the whole thing a bit of a chore. We want to know.

Must Comment Monday (redux)

Earlier on in the year you may recall the introduction of Must Comment Monday. The premise was simple - further the F1 conversation by means of the humble comment.

As it happened, not long after the concept debuted, Formula 1 went a bit mental and we had a tough time keeping up with comments on this site, let alone anywhere else. However, now that the season is over, and given that this year there's no long-running espionage scandal bubbling away in the background, it feels like a quiet enough period to take a second stab at it.

A quick reminder then. The idea is a simple one - if a blogger publishes a post on a Monday and you happen to read it, then you must leave a comment. Ideally it would be the kind of input that furthers the conversation in some way, but honestly anything that turns someone from a passive reader into a contributor is good in our book.

The theory is, feedback encourages bloggers to write more, which in turn increases the likelyhood of better and more informed conversation. If you missed this the first time round, or need a refresh of the rules (all two of them), we have a page just for you.

This is meant to be a bit of fun to occupy persons during the "quiet period" and our goal is to try and keep this up until the racing gets going again in Australia.

It would be most excellent if anyone is considering taking part. Let us know, and we'll begin this coming Monday. Also, feel free to promote your blog in the comments if you're planning on posting and we'll promise to stop by and say "hullo".

Must Comment Monday

You may have heard us mention it on the show, and you may have noticed us littering comments around the web yesterday, but what does it all mean? Must Comment Monday is back!

What is it?

You see these things all the time: Photo Friday, Talky Tuesday, Question Saturday. Some of them are genuinely cool things to take part in , and some of them are just a way for people to come up with ideas to fill their blogs. Sidepodcast doesn't like to miss out on anything, so we're resurrecting one of the best: Must Comment Monday.

This is something that I came up with, back in the days before Sidepodcast - those long, long hours spent thinking about things other than Formula 1. What was that like? With the demise of my personal blog, Must Comment Monday went out the window as well. But it was a good idea, and that's why we're bringing it back.

What does it mean?

Everybody loves to read blogs, but sometimes it's only when you feel exceptionally compelled that you might leave a comment. Comments take extra time, and does anyone read them anyway? As a blogger, I can tell you that comments are about 70% of the reason why we blog. The rest is all about having a platform to moan about Mosley or brood about Button.

Here at Sidepodcast, we live to read your comments. You guys add so much to the conversation and are incredibly intelligent, picking us up when we're wrong, and teaching us things we don't know. In my case, that's quite a lot.

Anyway, Must Comment Monday is an attempt to make commenting a part of the routine. Each Monday, every F1 blog we read, we're gonna comment on. It's as simple as that.

Are there rules?

Generally, I stick to a few rules:

1. You comment on a Monday, therefore the blog post should be from Monday. If there's more than one post that day, you only need to comment on one, but feel free to do more if you want.
2. You don't have to comment on blogs that require you to sign up/log in.
3. "I agree" or "Right on man" is not really adding anything to the conversation, and is therefore not really in the spirit of the game.

What do I have to do?

Nothing. You can sit back and revel in the improved conversation.

Or you can take part, join in the fun and make Monday your commenting day. If I'm not convincing you yet, here are two more things I'm gonna try.

First, leaving a comment can seriously make someone's day. You can be happy in the knowledge that you made a blogger smile. You might start a conversation, make new friends, revel in a new found social circle.

No?

Okay, fine, then we've made you a button badge:

Isn't it pretty? You can't possibly resist the button badge.

Must Comment Monday. You know you want to.