LOL Day 8: FAQ

It's time again to begin planning for this year's Love Our Lurkers event. Here are our frequently asked questions.

1. What is LOL Day?


2. Which blogs are participating this year?


3. How can I let people know my blog is a part of LOL Day 8?


4. Do I have to register in advance?


5. Can readers who don't have a blog join in?


6. What's a lurker?


7. How should those who choose to delurk identify themselves?


8. When should I publish my LOL Day message?


9. What should my LOL Day post say?


10. Don't we love our regular commenters too?


11. Are there any LOL8 logos I can use?


12. What about the rest of my questions?

1. What is LOL Day?

LOL Day is an annual celebration of our unseen readers. Most bloggers are aware that only a small fraction of their readers ever leave comments or otherwise make their presence known. Visitors, whether silent or verbose, are welcome all year round. But on this one day, we invite our shy friends to peek out and say hello.

This year's event will occur on Tuesday, November 12. On that day, more than one hundred like-minded bloggers will post a message on their blogs inviting their silent readership to come forward, typically by posting a comment.

Some lurkers provide a complete introduction. Others can muster only a "Hi." These responses are both welcome, as is any response in between.


2. Which blogs are participating this year?

Part of the fun of Love Our Lurkers Day is that no one can be certain who will join in until the day arrives. Each year, we have several long dormant blogs come to life for this occasion. I can tell you that we had 144 blogs participating last year. I hope to see even more this time.

The vast majority of these blogs were dedicated to some element of consensual adult spanking, domestic discipline, TTWD, and/or dominance/submission. Other bloggers are free to adopt the Love Our Lurkers theme, but we prefer to avoid links to or from purely vanilla blogs. It would spoil the fun if an unsuspecting person were offended or outed.


3. How can I let people know my blog is a part of LOL Day 8?

On November 12, you will want to publish a LOL Day 8 post on your blog. In this post, you can invite your quiet readers to say hello. Some blogs provide clever incentives (such as promises of a LOL Day spanking video with a certain number of swats per comment). Others appeal to readers' sense of community and desire to be included. Still others just ask very nicely. All of these methods can work.

I plan to keep a list of active blogs as a part of my post. If you send me an e-mail or leave a comment when your post is up, I will add your link to the list.


4. Do I have to register in advance?

No. Just let us know when your post goes up.


5. Can readers who don't have a blog join in?

Absolutely! Everyone is welcome on LOL Day. I hope you will visit your favorite bloggers and tell them what you like about their blogs. Or strike up a conversation by asking a question. Or just share some observations about life. We'd love to hear your voice.


6. What's a lurker?

A lurker is internet slang for someone who visits blogs or forums and reads silently, but does not comment. Some people perceive this term to mean something sinister, but in this usage, it's neither positive nor negative. The vast majority of all blog visitors don't interact, so we're all lurkers some of the time.

For those who dislike the word, please feel free to substitute silent readers or silent visitors.


7. How should those who choose to delurk identify themselves?

On this blog, I allow anonymous comments. I don't want identity issues to stand in the way of someone who has something to say. Even so, I much prefer to associate a name with someone I meet. That way, when they return, I will remember them. Even if it's a fictitious name, it's preferable to simply Anonymous.

For blogs that restrict who may comment, it might be advantageous to disable this feature temporarily.


8. When should I publish my LOL Day message?

I've found that bloggers who post early in the day tend to get more traffic than those who wait. But posting prior to the date seems to have the opposite effect.


9. What should my LOL Day post say?

There are a number of different sorts of appeals that bloggers use to persuade their readers to delurk. The common thread is expressing appreciation to our readers and sharing a desire to better understand those who visit. These are some themes I've seen used effectively:

• Here are some facts about me and my life. I invite you to share as well.


• This is a wonderful community. We would like to count you among our friends.


• How about just a "Hello?"


• Adult spanking can change lives. Let's join the conversation.


• Several of our most noted bloggers first appeared on LOL Day.

I think it's important to be yourself and to convey something of the character of your blog. That's why your readers keep coming back.


10. Don't we love our regular commenters too?

Of course, we're counting on them to help us support and encourage some of the newer and smaller blogs.


11. Are there any LOL8 logos I can use?

You bet!

12. What about the rest of my questions?

Enter them as comments below and I will try to answer them.