Debbie Ridpath Ohi: UPDATED: My Bluesky Starter Thread. Newest version can always be accessed via debbieohi.link/starter. More #BlueSkyTips, resources etc: debbieohi.link/bluesky-tips Note: These are just suggestions; there's no ONE right way to use Bluesky. Feel free to share with anyone who needs it! cont'd 👇🏼

UPDATED: My Bluesky Starter Thread. Newest version can always be accessed via debbieohi.link/starter. More #BlueSkyTips, resources etc: debbieohi.link/bluesky-tips Note: These are just suggestions; there's no ONE right way to use Bluesky. Feel free to share with anyone who needs it! cont'd 👇🏼

Filling out your profile helps show you're a Real Person (not a bot). Including a LINK in your profile bio gives people more info & a way to verify. Make an intro post that gives people an idea of what you're about. Give them a reason to follow you, not just "buy my stuff." #BlueSkyTips

DO take the time to explore & tweak your SETTINGS, esp MODERATION options. Bluesky offers users many ways to curate what we each see (& don't see) on this platform & continues to add more. You can not only block/mute users but also mute in text and/or hashtags, for example.

You can send/receive private text messages on Bluesky. Go to your Chat settings to set permissions about which users can send you a DM. You can also turn off DMs completely if you prefer. As on other platforms, however, be wary about clicking on links in DMs, esp if DM sounds odd.

Thanks, Debbie! That was exactly the information I needed today. I haven't gotten around to familiarising myself with all the new features yet.

If you find your feed too quiet or too noisy, tweak your Following Feed Preferences. New to Bluesky? I strongly advise setting Reply Filters to "Show All Replies" at first so you don't miss conversations / potential interesting people to follow. Image: my current Follow Feed settings. #BlueSkyTips

Confused by what someone is replying to? Click on post & scroll UP to find the start of the thread. I love discussions on Bluesky but they can get confusing (seeing replies out of context etc). To help with this, I set my Thread Prefs to sort replies to Oldest first & also turn on Threaded Mode.

When posting images, add ALT text. Not only does this help visually impaired readers who use screen readers but helps w/discoverability (custom feeds, search). To remind myself, I turn on "require ALT text" via Accessibility Settings. This is also where you can disable GIF autoplay. #BlueSkyTips

Hashtags can be a powerful discoverability tool; they are searchable platform-wide AND just within a user's feed. If you're thoughtful about what hashtags you use, latter can be SUPER handy in helping followers find categorized posts (or art!). I wrote more about hashtags here. #BlueSkyTips

Interesting as always

That is super handy!

I use deck.blue (Tweetdeck clone) for many features, esp for embedding links like this: I WANT TO READ *ALL* THE BOOKS launches from Simon & Schuster Sept.17! If you pre-order, fill out this form & I'll enter you in a mthly giveaway. Embedded links look cleaner than bare URLs. #KidLit #BlueSkyTips

🔖

Bluesky enables users to create LISTS as well as CUSTOM FEEDS. See this thread by @boringstorybook.com explaining the difference with specific examples. See my drawing for another way of comparing. Here's an index to some of my feeds. #BlueSkyTips

Instead "why aren't people coming to MY posts & interacting with MY content?", make effort to engage with others on their profiles. Not all will reciprocate; be patient. One way to see if someone engages with others is to check their Replies tab. More tips: debbieohi.link/bluesky-tips #BlueSkyTips

New To Bluesky? Here Are Some Tipsdebbieohi.link (Last updated June 23rd, 2024) – Shortlink to this post: https://debbieohi.link/bluesky-tips Quick navigation: Book Launch threads – Bluesky Lists – Bluesky Feeds – Feed Index – Hashtags – Community e...

We can all help increase community engagement here: If you're excited to see someone join Bluesky, encourage them to STAY ACTIVE here by following / liking / sharing / replying. Engage with others in the way you'd like others to engage with you on this platform. #BlueSkyTips

In addition to using deck.blue (mainly for embedding links), I use BlueSkyFeedCreator.com for most of my custom feeds. SO easy to use, excellent user documentation, developer is a great communicator and super-helpful. Here's an index to my custom feeds: debbieohi.link/feed-index #BlueSkyTips

Bluesky Feed Creatorblueskyfeedcreator.com

I've created some #kidlit Starter Packs (or Topic/Theme packs) to help Bluesky newcomers connect. Just check my "Starter Packs" tab on my profile; I've found the shortlinks don't always work. I'll try to revisit each regularly to replace dormant accts w/ those more active on Bluesky. #BlueSkyTips

I'm new to Blue Sky, and I've just added two Kid Lit threads based on one of your posts. But I don't like all the YA stuff. Is there any way you can add a Picture Book community?

Hi Marta - I lack the time to create & maintain a general Picture Book community feed (I've already spent waaaay too much on Bluesky community-building that I could have been spending on my own work 😉) but you or others are welcome to create one.

Hi Debbie - when I get a little better at navigating Blue Sky, I might. Thank you for doing what you've done already.

Thank you so much 💜📌

📌 Thank u 💜

Thank you 📌

Thank you!

📌

Thank you!

📌

📌 thank you!

📌

Post