Fitmarker now supports article submissions and micro-blogging for each and every one of it's users. While articles and blog posts cannot be voted for, they can be commented on and they show up on the main page under the "Latest Member Articles" section. There are no limits as to how many articles and posts you can write so the sky is the limit... But you should obviously keep the topic related to fitness.
To start, the first thing you'll need is an account. So register an account with us (it's easy, free and confidential). Once you log in, you'll notice that there is an avatar which appears at the very top left of the homepage, right next to the "Home" button. Refer to the picture below for more information (Note: your avatar might be the default firefly depending on whether you have a Gravatar or not).
Once you click this avatar, you'll be taken to your personal profile page. On the left hand side you'll see a bunch of menu options. Select "Journal". This is where you can write your articles from so pick a title, write something interesting and post away! It's just that easy. One suggestion - if you are planning on writing something big and in-depth may we suggest that you use Word, OneNote or some other writing program with an auto-save feature in case shit happens. Losing your work is no fun.
One thing you'll notice is that Fitmarker doesn't have a whole bunch of fancy tools for article writing, and the reason for this is that the content is the name of the game. It's the focus. However, there are a few things you can do to make your content easier to read.
Making things bold - This is easy, just wrap the sentence or paragraph with the following tag...
Linking To A Site - Again, this is fairly straight forward if you know how to use the html "a" tag. Or you can just copy the example below and throw in your link and anchor text where stated and it will show up nice and underlined...
Italicize - Works just like the tags you use for bolding your words but instead use the letter "i". See example below...
Underline - Works just like the tags you use for bolding your words but instead use the letter "u". See example below...
Strikethrough - Sometimes you'll want to emphasize up your stupidity errors and this is when the strikethrough option comes in handy. Again, works just like the bolding tag but instead you use the word "del". See example below...
Images - If you want to embed images into your post (which is a very good idea) then you may do so using the code below. Just throw in the appropriate image link and adjust the numbers for the width and height if necessary and viola! It'll be up.
One thing you need to remember is that Fitmarker has "friendly urls" enabled. This has it's pros and cons. The pro is that the url will match the title and therefore is very search-engine friendly. The bad news is that if you edit the title, you'll end up changing the URL... and if you gave the link away to a few friends, then changed the title, they won't be able to find your article. Therefore, it's VERY important that once you publish your article with a chosen title, to NOT edit it later.
For those that don't know how friendly urls work, here is an example: Say you published an article with the title "Deadlifts Are Awesome". The link to that article will automatically become "http://www.fitmarker.com/deadlifts-are-awesome" - and if this article becomes popular on search engines and other sites, the last thing you'll want to do is change up the URL. So keep that in mind.
If you wrote some killer content, then there is no reason why you can't use the exposure to attract some attention onto yourself. However, don't get carried away with it. It's perfectly reasonable to throw in a link to your personal site or blog here and there but if your posts are nothing but link spam, they will be deleted at the discretion of Fitmarker mods and/or admins. If you are unsure about anything, feel free to contact us.
We strongly suggest that you write unique and original articles and refrain form duplicating your old work. In fact we already have a feature for content you've published in the past... It's called the "submit link" button. Fitmarker is a great platform to launch your writing career because of it's established user base. If people like what you have to say then they will always come back for more, count on it!
Also, you may use this feature as a progress log which can help motivate and inspire others. Are you on a goal to drop 20lbs? Awesome, why not write a daily journal about it on Fitmarker and let the community help, encourage and chime in on your progress? Not everyone's a professional content producer so don't think you have to be as well. Write about whatever floats your boat. Most importantly, have fun with it. If you have any further questions about writing articles or blog posts, feel free to contact or PM us.
-The Fitmarker Team
