Blogging Organization: Spreadsheets and Other Boring Stuff

I take it for granted that most people who blog or manage websites have day jobs and other responsibilities. But, heck, even if blogging if our full-time job, we still need to stay organized. I have had some questions about this, so I thought I would share one thing that has really helped me: a spreadsheet.

I use Excel but you can just as easily use Google Sheets or any other program of your choice. This applies only to my reviews, which I consider to be the core of my site and my main subject of interest.

Number: I assign each film I review a number for easy reference later. Obviously, the row numbers and reference numbers are valuable in calculating how many reviews I have written. (Now at 452, thanks very much!)

Title: Self-explanatory.

URL: In addition to keeping a word processor file for each review, I use the Internet Archive’s Wayback Machine for additional backup protection. I submit each review in the Save Page box and paste the permalink here.

Fun Size: I like to repurpose older content by, among other things, making mini versions of older reviews. This helps newer readers find older content that they may have missed and I hope they are amusing enough for longtime readers.

GIF: I like to have at least one GIF for each silent movie and I keep track of my GIF making here.

Rounded Score: Self-explanatory, though I don’t use this much. I find that people often react to the score rather than the review and so I add scores once comments are closed, which is why you never see them on newer reviews.

I also keep a list of upcoming theme months and the films that I plan to cover for them. While I try to have these planned well in advance, I will shift things around if some particularly juicy silents come my way. I’m not sharing an image because, well, it’s just a list of titles. (And anyway, that’s Top Secret.)

I know this is all pretty simple stuff but it’s amazing how a little bit of effort in cataloging can pay off later.