The Art Of Chess Blogging: Lessons From BlogChamps Season 9
Kia ora!
Welcome to another blog! As I informed you 15 days ago, today we will be talking about the latest edition of the best blogging competition on this website: BlogChamps Season 9!
If you are an avid reader, you will probably already know what this is. However, if this is your first visit, I recommend reading the articles about Seasons 7 and 8. Please find the links to them below:
• My Experience Running A Chess Blogging Competition
• How Writing Blogs Changes Our Relation With Chess
Anyway, in summary, BlogChamps is a club dedicated to improving and uniting the community of chess bloggers, where we help everyone to develop their writing and blogging skills.
As well as sharing many tips and experiences in our forums and discussions, we host regular competitions where every user has the chance to submit their posts, which will be judged by experienced members, and receive some feedback.
Each season lasts approximately three months. Today, I will tell you how the last one went and what lessons can be taken from it. For that, we will learn straight from the source, that is, the bloggers who performed best in each of the important areas.
Ready? Let’s go! Back to Top
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
1. Season 9 Summary
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2. How To Write A Great Blog!
2.1 - Thumbnail & Title | 2.2 - Topic | 2.3 - Writing
2.4 - Editing & Formatting | 2.5 - Analysis | 2.6 - Research | 2.7 - Humor
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3. My Thoughts
4. How (And Why) To Join Season 10?
5. Conclusion
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1. SEASON 9 SUMMARY
We start with a summary of Season 9. Once again, the numbers were awesome! We had 76 different users participating, with a total of 98 blogs submitted during the two qualifier weeks. In comparison, the previous season had also had 76 participants and 101 submissions, so we can say it was basically a technical draw.
And what about the quality of the posts? As expected, they were of an extremely high level. All entries during the knockout stage gave me and the other judges some real headaches to decide on the winner.
Unfortunately, we could choose only one of them in each match until the two finalists who would fight for the coveted Zachary Isaac Snow II Trophy were known. But regardless, every competitor must be proud of their work!
And of course, if you're curious to know, the final results of the season were as follows:
Gold: @PokeGirl93 with Polishing The Board: The History Of Chess In Poland
Silver: @Alina_Bakhtina_24 with Two Unearthly Worlds: How Chess Reached Space
Bronze: @nova-stone with True Wood: A rebel pawn's tale &
@Chesser1492 with From Posts to Progress: My Journey Through Blogging and BlogChamps
Without a doubt, Season 9 was a tremendous success. The general opinion, which is almost unanimous within the club, is that it was probably the best to date, or at least in the top three. Below is the blog that won it all, an amazing piece of writing about the history of Polish chess:
As the main coordinator, a huge thanks to everyone who took part by competing, judging, or simply spectating. You were all part of this great event in your own way. Special thanks to @ChocoCaramelPawn, who helped me a lot with the announcements and organization of everything. I was really in need of some support.
But much more important than winning or losing is understanding what we learn from this competition and how it can help us become not only better bloggers, but better writers in general. That’s what I want to explore now.
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2. HOW TO WRITE A GREAT BLOG!
2.1 - Thumbnail & Title
For a blog to be excellent, it must obviously grab readers' attention right away, which is why thumbnails and titles are so important. After all, these are what will determine whether people click on your content or not.
Those with a more loyal audience will probably be less affected. However, if you want to engage new readers and show your work to more people, this part is crucial!
@WinT0L0ss, creator of the best title of last season, and @AaravRoy_25, designer of the best thumbnail, shared their thoughts on the matter.
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@WinT0L0ss:
A title doesn’t always need to explain fully what's going to be in the blog; it should just be a hint of what they are about to read, so that readers are drawn in and want to see why the title is what it is.
Read: War and Piece
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@AaravRoy_25:
While making a thumbnail, I try to depict the theme of the blog through it, which catches the attention of my fellow readers. I am grateful to the judges for the award!
Read: Cheating, Drama, Jeans: Top 5 Chess Controversies
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Therefore, invest your time in these 'little things'. They are much more important than you might initially think. I certainly underestimated them when I started.
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However, grabbing the attention of your potential readers doesn’t mean they will necessarily click on it immediately. To ensure your post is read by as many people as possible, it is essential that you choose a relevant and interesting topic.
So, how do you select a good one? My take: You should tell your audience something new. Talk about things they probably didn't know before and wouldn't easily find elsewhere. Ideally, you should either choose a more alternative subject or show a well-known theme from a different perspective.
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@ColeZwynenburg, the author of the Season 9 article with the best topic, also kindly shared his thoughts:
I’d say don’t try to force a topic or copy what others are doing. Write about what genuinely interests you and what you’re curious and passionate about. The best ideas come naturally when you stop trying to chase them.
Read: The F Pawn
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This is valuable advice, as it is obviously much easier to write something great if you are passionate about it. The judges have noticed that we tend to appreciate pieces more when the writer has a personal connection with the topic.
Next, we move on to what I consider to be the soul of any good blog post.
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Nothing is more important than good writing that engages your readers and draws them into your story. The choice of words, sentence length, grammar, tone, and pace are all vital to ensure people remain entertained throughout.
It's no coincidence that the winner of Season 9 was also the author of the piece that won the award for best writing. @PokeGirl93 shared her thoughts on how to make it stand out.
I believe it's about expressing your personality through your writing. The words should sound natural, as if someone were talking directly to the reader about their feelings.
Read: My Sincere Opinion On Women’s Titles And Tournaments
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Similarly, it is also about making the text engaging for whoever is on the other side of the screen. The winner of the 'Most Engaging' blog of the season, @Chesser1492, offered some valuable advice.
Writing an engaging blog is easier than you may think. To make the reader feel hooked from the very beginning, they must feel talked to. Let them be part of the blog.
Read: What If You Were Beth Harmon?
Therefore, make sure you prioritize this before anything else. Good writing can compensate for other aspects not being optimal yet, but bad writing will surely ruin your blog, no matter how good the rest is.
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Now, I would like to talk about the visual aspects of a blog. Editing is crucial because something easy on the eye is much more likely to be read to the end, providing a pleasant experience for your audience.
This includes adding relevant images to break up the text, avoiding paragraphs that are too long (no more than six lines), using quotes where necessary, and ensuring the article has a good overall structure. Many of these points can also be found in the Chess.com tips: 'How to Properly Publish a Post'.
The good news is that this is an easy thing to learn. Simply observe what good bloggers do and try to emulate them. In this case, copying what works is not a problem, but a sign of wisdom.
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@SPK1729, winner of the Best Editing award in Season 9, gave his opinion:
I started with plain text, but thanks to people like @VOB96 and @KevinChessSmith, I learned to bring my imagination to life through tools like Canva, AI, and HTML. For me, editing is about choosing the right fonts, colors, and images that match the concept of the blog.
Read: Game Review By SPK1729 😉
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That concludes our discussion of the essential elements of a good post. Now, let's talk about some aspects that depend on the type of text you are writing.
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Not all blogs focus on chess games. Even if they include some, analyzing them will not always be necessary for the topic at hand. Depending on the subject, it is acceptable to show games purely for entertainment purposes without providing an in-depth analysis.
However, if your blog is reviewing a tournament, teaching an opening you like, or discussing masterpieces played by historical players, it is essential that you analyze the games and provide commentary.
Although I am not a specialist, I would say that the best blogs contain some human analysis. Readers want to know YOUR thoughts on the moves. You can mention what the engines say, but it should never be considered the most important thing.
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Please welcome @nova-stone, who wrote the best analysis of the season and is here to help me.
In my view, analysis doesn't have to be 10 variations wide; 47 moves deep on every turn, or engine-level accurate. However, it should be: Functional, when it serves the story or the point that you want to communicate; Genuine, using your own words and insights; And fundamentally correct, with no glaring errors such as inappropriate moves or inadequate explanations.
Read: A bish of a knightmare
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Important: This also applies to the annotations (!!, !, ?!, ??, etc.). Please don't just copy them from Stockfish.
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Some blogs are personal and require nothing more than your passion and perspective. Others are articles that share stories about chess players, interesting facts, and intriguing personalities. For the latter, it is good research that determines its quality.
When conducting your research, please don’t simply copy everything from Wikipedia and publish it on your blog as if it were your own work. Always ensure that your page is the only place where all the information compiled from different sources can be found.
This requires effort, time, and dedication, but it will certainly make your post more memorable and well-received. As Chris Martin wisely sings: 'Nobody said it was easy'.
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The article with the best research on Season 9 was also written by @nova-stone, who again offered us some advice.
Consulting many different sources gives a broader perspective from multiple angles. Good research helps shape the narrative of the author's work and improve its instructive potential.
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From my personal experience, I usually spend more than 60% of the time allocated to my blogs reading about the topic and finding sources to use. I only start writing and decide what to include or not once I have all the necessary information.
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Finally, we should remember that not all blogs are completely serious. Some posts focus on entertaining and amusing the audience, and we should bear in mind that this is a skill that can also be developed.
Firstly, not all jokes are acceptable. If you choose a satirical or humorous blog, make sure the content is appropriate and does not disrespect any religion, culture, or country.
Besides, effective satire requires a solid understanding of the subject, so you must always demonstrate your knowledge rather than just trying to make pointless jokes. Humorous blogs are more challenging to write, but when executed well, they tend to be memorable.
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The author of the best satirical blog last season was @Deepsealore:
It must be considered that to be funny, you must roast people. There is simply no other way.
Read: Fifty Shades of Sicilian: What Your Chess Opening Says About You
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However, I would like to point out that I don't think you must necessarily roast people. This was just a joke. Some other good examples are:
- If Openings Were People by @Chesser1492
- Crazy Chess Conspiracies Uncovered! by @ALondoninVienna
And well, I have also written many articles that shouldn't be taken seriously, but I will not bore you with self-promotion. Instead, let's focus on users with less visibility.
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3. MY THOUGHTS
I hope you found this article useful and that it will help you to learn how to write better, communicate more clearly, organize your ideas, and connect with your readers more effectively.
These skills are useful not only for blogging on Chess.com but also in many other areas of life, such as work, leisure, court cases, or any other situation where you might need them. Believe me, people who can express themselves always have an advantage. Pilots, please learn it.
From my perspective, coordinating BlogChamps has helped me a lot since I joined, particularly with thumbnail editing and broadening my horizons. Many users there, whether "official" Top Bloggers or not, are very talented people who have taught me a great deal and continue to assist everyone in the community.
In addition, leading such a large project forced me to develop skills in planning, organizing steps, coordinating people, identifying areas where flexibility is required, and dealing with the various difficulties that arise along the way.
However, if you are still not convinced after everything, I hope the next chapter will change your mind, as I am going to explain exactly how and why you should join us in the next season!
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4. HOW (AND WHY?) TO JOIN SEASON 10?
The 'how' is very simple. All you have to do is join the club via this link: Join BlogChamps, and then register to participate in the competition by writing a comment in the appropriate forum.
We generally accept anyone, unless you have previously been banned for misbehaving. Also, please note that competing is not mandatory. Spectators are welcome, too!
But why should you do it? Because there, you will meet some of the most passionate bloggers on this website. They are willing to create and foster a positive environment in which we can all communicate, share ideas and experiences, give and receive advice, and support each other through our struggles.
Moreover, even if writing is not your hobby, reading the work of so many people from different cultures and countries will also teach you more about chess: its history, great players, famous game analyses, curious facts, interesting personalities, and much more. It is a true gallery of ideas and creativity!
I would also like to take this opportunity to talk more about BlogChamps' twin club, The Blogger Awards 2.0. There, we hold monthly contests to recognize the best blogs in each of the categories presented in Chapter 2. This gives everyone the chance to identify their strengths and areas for improvement.
Interested? Stop wasting time and come to the blogging side of the force. If you have any questions, please message me privately, and I will explain anything that is not yet clear. We hope to welcome you soon!
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5. CONCLUSION
In conclusion, I must once again deviate from the main topic to discuss something much more important. As everyone reading this is probably aware, the chess world lost Grandmaster and famous streamer Daniel Naroditsky on 19 October.
This was, of course, a shock not only to me, but to every fan of the game around the world. Danya, as he was affectionately known, was a great inspiration to many of us, helping to bring many people into our circle with his light-hearted livestreams, insightful comments, and respect for his audience.
Therefore, on behalf of the entire blogging community, I would also like to offer my deepest condolences to his family and friends who are suffering from this tragic loss. They can be sure that, although his time here was shorter than anyone wished for, it was certainly worthwhile. He was a wonderful asset to the sport he loved, and I am sure that is what he wanted most.
And to my readers: stay safe and strong. Many of you wrote tributes to him or simply paid your respects quietly. Everything is valid. I’ll see you again on 15 November for the next episode of the series The Chessboard of the World.
