What's Your Clickabillity?

This business with Google Reader got me thinking about which blogs I read faithfully, and where I choose to leave comments. I discovered certain posts have a native clickability quotient.

It starts with an interesting title for the post. This is followed by a great (right) hook in the opening paragraph. Pun intended! 

A good blog post is a lot like writing a novel. If it meanders, is riddled with typos, or just plain dull, you probably won't get much action on it. 

Everyone has his own taste on what makes an interesting post. My two favorite types of posts are anecdotal and informational, but only if they're short and to the point.

There are a few well known and much loved bloggers out there who beat a dead horse and all its relatives when they write informational posts. I almost never read them. I know someone, somewhere will tweet or repeat the key points without me have to muddle through all the verbiage.

Here at Casa Maria, I follow a few simple rules.

• No excerpts. I dunno. Excerpts always feel like verbal masturbation. But maybe it's just me. 

• No whining...unless I can be funny about it.

• Tell tiny stories inside my posts.

• Share a little about me. Not a lot. I don't want anybody stabbing their eyes out.

• Check for typos. This might be a personal blog, but I take pride in my words. My name's connected to them.

• Check my sources. I try to be very careful with my facts when I write a how-to post. (Those posts are usually on the Back to Basics blog, but occasionally I do them here too.)

And my #1 rule:

• Talk to people instead of at them. I almost always end my posts with a question. This is really important for me because the whole point of this blog is to grow relationships with readers. You can only do that if you encourage reciprocation.

So what about you? Are there blogs you read where you never comment? How come?