Note: LIFT attendees come from all sorts of horizons. Clearly, if you’re already part of the “blogger crowd”, this workshop will have no (or very little) interest for you. If, on the contrary, you’re not that familiar with the whole “blogging/social media” thing, this might be exactly what you need. Read on.

Many people have heard about blogs, are curious about them, but don’t have one — either because they never got around to opening one, or because they’re not too sure how.

This very practical workshop is for you if don’t have a blog yet but would like to have one. In three hours, I’ll walk you through opening a blog on WordPress.com, setting it up, and publishing your first posts. You’ll be able to use it to publish notes on your LIFT experience!

We’ll also talk about the basics of blogging culture and communication and common issues that arise when using this medium.

Here is what I’d like us to cover in this workshop. (Of course, time tends to fly by, things sometimes take longer than planned, and fascinating conversations pop up from nowhere to keep us busy — that’s the workshop spirit.)

First, on the “blogging technique” side:

• opening your blog
• discovering the various options and settings offered by the blogging tool
• how to publish a post or a page
• linking to blog posts or websites
• organizing one’s content with tags and categories
• managing comments
• choosing a design for your blog and managing sidebar content

Second, on the “blogging culture” side, we might talk about:

• blogs vs. “normal websites”
• different uses of blogs (personal, corporate…)
• dealing with openness and conversation in a public space (negative comments…)
• blogging etiquette and ethics
• reading other people and how to promote one’s blog
• other “Web 2.0” tools to use in relation with your blog

Update: we will not have a room equipped with computers — please bring your laptop with you and make sure you will be able to connect it to the available wifi yourself. (The wifi itself is not a problem, just make sure you know how to use the computer you have.)

However, you do need to have a working e-mail address (!) and be comfortable using the browser and the keyboard — or it won’t be much fun.

If you have questions about this workshop, don’t hesitate to contact me.

Stephanie Booth was blogging before you even heard about blogs (mid-2000). She has worked as a teacher and is now self-employed, sharing her understanding of social media and internet culture through talks, consulting, writing and teaching.