National Family History Month 2013 - geneameme especially for Jill Ball

1. What are the titles and URLs of your genealogy blog/s?                                       Janelle's Family Tree Addiction http://janellestree.blogspot.com.au/ 
2. Do you have a wonderful "Cousin Bait" blog story? A link to a previous blog post might answer this question. http://janellestree.blogspot.com.au/2012/05/just-starting-out-with-ancestor-list-so.html This blog post was my very first, and I've had contact from several other relatives who found me when Googling their ancestor, so the whole reason for beginning the blog has paid off (insert wicked laugh here). 
3. Why did you start blogging? Is there someone who inspired you to start blogging? I started blogging initially to get my ancestor's names out there as "cousin bait" (tick), and now when I have something interesting happen or find out something fascinating related to my family or genealogy in general I think it would make a great blog post I'm inspired to write about it. I have a list of stories to be written, & not enough hours in the day to write them. Some are waiting on just that extra little elusive fact to complete the story. My blogging inspiration has come from Lisa Louise Cooke, who taught me how to set up a Blogger site on one of her podcasts, and also Jill Ball, who posts a little (or sometimes big) something almost every day. Jill's example has made me realise that I don't have to have a major article ready to write a post, it can be small and simple as well.
4. How did you decide on your blog/s title/s? I wanted to reflect how much of an addiction this hobby really is.
5. Do you ever blog from mobile devices? What are they? No, just the PC for now. I find it easier for flicking between articles, photos, and my tree to compile each post.
6. How do you let others know when you have published a new post? Until 3 days ago, nothing, but this time my post wasn't specifically related to my family, just an experience on Ancestry & Family Tree Maker, so I put a link on the Australian Genealogy Facebook page.
7. How long have you been blogging? Since May 2012, so still a newbie.
8. What widgets or elements do you consider essential on a genealogy blog? I love being able to add tags, to make the central themes or people I mention easily searchable in Google. I also love to read other bloggers' posts, so a Follow By Email link is handy. I've found that these don't show up when I'm reading a blog from my preferred browser, Google Chrome, so occasionally I need to swap back to Internet Explorer 10 to use this feature.
9. What is the purpose of your blog/s? Who is your intended audience? Cousin bait, and to inform and sometimes even entertain any readers. My audience is anyone who is interested in genealogy, particularly my own relatives. Especially whoever is the current custodian of a family bible I'd love to have a look at - whoever they might be!
10. Which of your posts are you particularly proud of? http://janellestree.blogspot.com.au/2012/10/my-favourite-convict-esther-salamon.html This post is my favourite so far, as it is a story about my first convict ancestor to Australia, and the amazing life she led. I'm proud of her survival sills, to die age 80, having many children and grandchildren who were all upstanding citizens. This story went on to be published in a book of convict stories called Convicts Down Under, compiled by the wonderful Maria Northcote who is the creator of the Genies Down Under podcasts.
11. How do you keep up with your blog reading? I read the overnight ones in bed of a morning on my iPhone while trying to avoid getting up, and the ones that arrive by email through the day I catch in an evening.
12. What platform do you use for publishing your blog/s? Blogger. It's easy-peasy to use. (except the insert link feature).
13. What new features would you like to see in your blogging software? An easier way to add a link. I seem to stuff it up (no idea why) even though I've read the instructions and watched how to do it on YouTube. Maybe it's a Chrome issue. Anyway, I'd like Blogger to notice that I'm adding a link and do the right thing with it automatically.
14. Which of your posts has been the most popular with readers? Amazingly, my post of 3 days ago has had way more views than anything else, although only one comment so far (thanks Jill!). The higher hit rate might be because more people are aware of my blog now, not necessarily the content.
15. Are you a sole blogger or do you contribute to a shared blog? Just me!
16. How do you compose your blog posts? I have an idea or a bunch of facts to make a story from, then I write it straight to Blogger, with a million tabs open for fact checking and I make sure any photos I want to add are saved to my desktop for easy retrieval.
17. Do you have any blogs that are not genealogy related? If you wish please share their titles and URLs. No, genealogy is my life :) Not enough time for any other hobbies.
18. Have you listed your blog/s at Geneabloggers? No, but I'll be submitting a request tonight. It doesn't show up when I search on the site.
19. Which resources have helped you with your blogging? All the tools I use for research: Ancestry, FTM, FMP, Trove, Google, just to name a few.
20. What advice would you give to a new Geneablogger? Articles don't have to be momentous to post. Just get started. Small is still good, and easier for followers to read.