There is a lot of information on what to write in regards to advice content, but especially for those new to writing advice the "how to" can be a little bit daunting. So this is a bit of a guide to the general information you need to write an
advice.
Getting started
First of all you need a topic. I won't say much about this because there is plenty of other great advice on the topic. However, you should aim to have something that will allow you to write at least 50 words.
You have a topic, so what's next...
Now you just need to click on the link on the green toolbar at the top of the minti page that says "Write Advice". It is the second link from the left so should be pretty easy to see.
Before you start to write...
Once you click on the "Write Advice" link you will be taken to a page where there are two boxes at the top. The one on the left is headed "A few important points to be aware of..." and the one on the write is "Tips and Hints" and has links to a couple of excellent articles to help you out. The first time you write advice, you should read both these boxes and links thoroughly so that you know what's expected of an advice article. Don't worry, it won't take you long.
The title
Once you've read through all the information, scroll down the page until you come to a green box where the article is meant to be written. The first thing you'll come to in the green box is the word "Title" and a white box below it. You should write your title in this box. Your title should let people know what is in the article.
The content
This is where it gets fun. Below the title box is a white box with the word "content" above it. Here is where you write the body of your article. There is a small toolbar at the top of the white box which you can use to give your writing emphasis.
- You can put words in bold by clicking the "B" button.
- You can put words in italics by clicking the "i" button.
- You can put emoticons in by clicking the "
" button.
- You can add numbered lists by clicking the "123" button.
- You can add bulleted lists (like this one!) by clicking the button with three dots.
Adding pictures
Pictures can really add to your message. To add a picture, scroll down the page until you get below the advice content. You will see a word that says "Images". Below this there are two white boxes. The first says "Title" and this is where you would write a title for your picture if you choose. The second box says "File". To find your photo (and populate this box), click on the button to the right of that box that says "Browse...". This will allow you to browse your computer and choose a file. When you have found one you like, highlight it and click "open". It will then close the browsing box and the file path will appear in the "File" box.
If you want to add more than one picture, click the green button below the Images section that says "more images".
Now you have some choices
If you scroll down the page a bit further you have a couple of choices which are represented by a couple of tick boxes.
The first box says "Publish Anonymously". It will not usually be ticked. Unless you have a good reason to be anonymous, it is good to let people know that you've written an advice. It allows other people to connect with you and - as they get to know you on Minti - to know they can trust what you're saying. However, if you need to be anonymous, you can choose to tick this box by clicking on it.
The second box says "Add this advice to my watchlist". This box will usually already be ticked. By having it ticked, whenever someone comments on your article, it will be recorded in your watchlist so you can keep an eye on it. However, if that does not appeal to you, you can choose to untick this box by clicking on it.
What next?
Below these tick boxes are two buttons. A green one that says "publish" and a blue one that says "save as draft". If you're happy with your article and are ready to show the world, its time to click the "publish" button. However, if you need to stop part way through, or if you want to come back to it a bit later on before showing everyone else, then click "save as draft".
Tagging your article...
Once you click on one of the buttons above, it will take you to a "tag" screen. This allows you to put some "tag" words on your advice to help make it easier for people to find when they search. On the right hand side of the screen is a grey box with a number of suggested words. If you click on a word in this box it will add it to the tag list. Wait between each click to give the computer time to add the word.
The second way to add "tag" words is via the grey box on the left side of the screen. Inside the grey box is a white box. Click your cursor in the white box and then type your word. Then click the green button next to it which says "add tag". You can add as many tags as seem appropriate.
Adding links to other articles
Once you've added some tags, you'll notice there are 4 tabs just underneath the title of your article. They are (in order from left to right) "Content", "Tags", "Advice Links", "Bookmarks". To add a link to another advice article, click on the tab that says "Advice Links".
The next thing to do is to find the article you want to add. There will be some suggested articles if you scroll down the page. To add any of these, click the green button next to it on the right hand side of the page.
If none of these are suitable, or you're looking for something else, you can type a keyword or two into the white box just above the suggested advice titles which says "Advice search". Once you've typed in the words, click the green button to the right of the box that says "search". It will then bring up a list of articles which you can add by clicking on green add button to the right of the advice title. You can do this as many times as you want to add all relevant articles
Adding links to other websites
To do this, click on the tab that says "Bookmarks". You will see two green bars - one which says "Add Bookmarks" and one which says "Add link". Below the "Add link" bar are three white boxes.
The first box says "URL". This is where you put the web address of the website you want to link to e.g. http://www.minti.com. You might find it useful to have a second internet window open. Then you can find the internet address you want in the second window. When you've found it, highlight the address in the address bar at the top of the page. To copy it you can press Ctrl and C on your keyboard. Then click in the "URL" box and press Ctrl and V to paste the address in the box.
The second box says "Short Description". This is what people will usually see when they click on your article. This could be something like "Minti - Parenting Advice Website".
The third box says "Long Description". In this box you can write a more detailed description of the website and why it's relevant to your article.
Editing your article
If you've only just saved your article, you can go back and edit the content by clicking on the green tab that says "content".
If you've saved it as a draft you can edit your article at a later time. When you're ready, go to the orange bar at the top of your Minti site and click on the link that says "advice". This will bring up a list of all the articles you've ever written regardless of whether they are a draft, live or deleted. Find the article you want to edit and click on the title. This will take you directly to the content tab so that you can edit it.
If you've published the article, you can still edit it. Click on "advice" in the orange bar and choose the article you want to edit. If it's published, it will take you to the article itself. In the top right hand corner of the article are a number of hyperlinks ("email", "print", "watch/unwatch", "delete" and "edit"). Click on the hyperlink that says "edit". This will take you back to the content tab. Don't forget to either publish your article or save as a draft when you've finished editing it.
Deleting your article
Sometimes you might decide that an article you've written needs to be deleted. The way to do it is to click on the "delete" hyperlink when you are in the article itself.
And now you have written an article! People are able to vote or comment on your article, so check back regularly - or monitor your watchlist - to get some feedback on how its been received. This can help you to write even better advice next time.
And most importantly have fun! This isn't meant to be a chore, its meant to be a way to share in the Minti community. So go for it!
(June 2007) (
