SUBSCRIBE
SUBSCRIBE
SLJ Blog Network +
  • 100 Scope Notes
  • A Fuse #8 Production
  • Good Comics for Kids
  • Heavy Medal: A Mock Newbery Blog
  • Teen Librarian Toolbox
  • The Classroom Bookshelf
  • The Yarn
  • Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • About TLT
  • Reviews
    • Book Reviews
    • A to Z Book Lists
    • Book Review Policy
  • Teen Issues
  • Middle Grade Mondays
  • Programs
    • TPiB
    • Tech Talk
  • Professional
    • Teen Services 101
    • Things We Didn’t Learn in Library School
  • MakerSpace
  • Projects
    • #SVYALit
    • #FSYALit
    • #MHYALit
    • #Poverty in YA Lit

June 25, 2013 by Karen Jensen, MLS

How to Tumblr, part 1

June 25, 2013 by Karen Jensen, MLS   4 comments

Get ready to jump in with my go-to method for learning something new – start doing it. Okay, yes, usually I read a few articles and ask some of my younger friends about their experience with whatever the new thing is. After that, though, when a new social media platform comes on the horizon, it’s best to just jump in with both feet.  (I promise this won’t hurt.)

So, first things first, go to https://www.tumblr.com/ , fill out your email, choose a password, enter a username, and click on the BIG button at the bottom that reads ‘Sign up and start posting.’ Before you go, you may want to brainstorm a few possible user names, the one you usually use is probably already taken. Yes, seriously. Go ahead, I’ll wait here for you.

Okay, so you’re back. Did it ask you your age? Good. You have to be 13 years old to use Tumblr. In fact, here is a screenshot from their terms of service that I absolutely love (because, be honest, it’s not like you really read them before you agreed to them.)

SCROLL TO KEEP READING THIS POST

ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISEMENT


Unless you’ve skipped ahead (in which case, go for it – you don’t need me!) you are on a page asking you to ‘Find Blogs. Follow five.’  Oh, yes, in case you didn’t know, Tumblr is a blogging platform. You don’t actually have to do this, but now would be a good time to search for people or organizations you’d like to follow. You can follow us! Just type in teenlibrariantoolbox – it should be the only search result. ATTENTION KAREN: now is when you can search for Doctor Who!

Here are some other library or YA related Tumblrs you may want to follow:

  • thelifeguardlibrarian – who compiles a list of Tumblarians (more on that later)
  • Libraryjournal
  • Schoollibraryjournal
  • Himissjulie
  • Fancylibrarian
  • Yaflash
  • Bookshelfporn
  • Bookavore

Now you may want to look for some of your favorite authors. Just go ahead and search. A random sampling of some of the Tumblr authors I follow includes Maureen Johnson, Sarah Reese Brennan, Ally Carter (theallycarter), Laurie Halse Anderson, Rachel Hawkins (therealladyhawkins), and John Green (fishingboatproceeds). As you can see, some of them have had to pick rather odd names. Just search for your favorites. You may also want to search for other people you follow on other platforms (Facebook, Twitter, Instagram.) Also, sometimes the web site freezes at this point. No worries, just close it and open again.
At this point you will want to log in to your email and verify your Tumblr account. They have sent you an email, just follow the directions. It should take you back to Tumblr. You’ll be at your dashboard. Let me stop here and explain a little more of what Tumblr is about.

Yes, Tumblr is a blogging platform, but it is also an interactive social media web site. When you log in, you aren’t shown your blog you are shown your dashboard, which is an aggregate of all the Tumblrs you follow, with entries in reverse chronological order. That is, the most recent Tumblr entry by one of the Tumblrs you follow will show up at the top of your dashboard. You can scroll down to the last one you recognize and start from there – although I wouldn’t advise it. You see, once you really get going on Tumblr you’ll realize that a lot of what is going on is people reblogging other people’s content and either adding to it or commenting on it. So something you visually recognize might be a reblog of something else. This is especially true if you follow users who follow each other. This is where the interaction happens. In my experience, it’s best to just read from the top down. (Your mileage may vary.)

So, for the next couple of days, explore on your own. See if you can find Tumblrs you’d like to follow. Go to The Lifeguard Librarian’s Tumblr page here http://thelifeguardlibrarian.tumblr.com/tumblariansand follow some interesting looking libraries or librarians. Maybe even click the heart symbol on the bottom of an entry you particularly like. I’ll be back in a couple of days with part 2 of How to Tumblr, and we will discuss reblogging, creating your own blog entries, and customizing your Tumblr. Until then, best of luck!

Filed under: Social Media, Tumblr

SHARE:

Read or Leave Comments

About Karen Jensen, MLS

Karen Jensen has been a Teen Services Librarian for almost 30 years. She created TLT in 2011 and is the co-editor of The Whole Library Handbook: Teen Services with Heather Booth (ALA Editions, 2014).

ADVERTISEMENT

Related Posts

January 2014

Take 5: DIY on Tumblr

by Karen Jensen, MLS

July 2013

How to Tumblr, part 2

by Karen Jensen, MLS

September 2020

What Do Teens Mean When They Talk About an Aesthetic

by Karen Jensen, MLS

August 2017

Sunday Reflections: Boyfriends, Breakups and Blocking - Oh My! Talking with teens about a different type of access

by Karen Jensen, MLS

April 2015

Tech Talk 2015: Index to TLT Posts on Technology, Social Media and More

by Karen Jensen, MLS

ADVERTISEMENT

SLJ Blog Network

100 Scope Notes

One Star Review, Guess Who? (#181)

by Travis Jonker

A Fuse #8 Production

Fuse 8 n’ Kate: Will Spring Be Early? Or Will Spring Be Late? by Crockett Johnson

by Betsy Bird

Good Comics for Kids

Monkey Prince Vol. 1: Enter the Monkey | Review

by J. Caleb Mozzocco

Heavy Medal

Heavy Medal Mock Newbery Readers’ Poll Results

by Steven Engelfried

Teen Librarian Toolbox

The Value of Innocence for BIPOC Students, a guest post by David Mura

by Amanda MacGregor

The Classroom Bookshelf

The Classroom Bookshelf is Moving

by Erika Thulin Dawes

The Yarn

A Book 25 Years in the Making: Marla Frazee Visits The Yarn

by Travis Jonker

ADVERTISEMENT

Related Articles on SLJ

21 Books About Children and their Names

The Human Rainbow | Dr. Ibram X. Kendi on Antiracism

Pronouncing Kids’ Names Correctly Matters. Here’s How to Get it Right.

8 YA BookTubers To Watch Right Now

37 Kidlit and YA Titles in Honor of Hispanic Heritage Month

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Cari Rérat says

    June 26, 2013 at 3:13 pm

    Oh, how I would love to use Tumblr… sadly, it's the only social media that my library blocks… 🙁 Too much “adult” content.

  2. Robin says

    June 26, 2013 at 6:11 pm

    Are you in a school? My workplace blocks Tumblr and Facebook, but not Twitter or YouTube, but I'm in a school. I wonder how many non-school libraries have Tumblr blocked…

  3. Cari Rérat says

    June 26, 2013 at 9:17 pm

    I'm in a public library. We have full access to Twitter, Facebook, MySpace (not that anyone uses it), YouTube, Blogger, WordPress, etc, etc, etc. but not Tumblr… From what I can gather, part of the problem is that our internet filter has flagged it.

  4. Katy Jane Miller says

    August 23, 2013 at 11:40 pm

    I asked my librarian to take off the blocks and she did. I advocated that that that was where the teens were and we needed to reach them.

ADVERTISEMENT

Archives

Follow This Blog

Enter your email address below to receive notifications of new blog posts by email.

This coverage is free for all visitors. Your support makes this possible.

This coverage is free for all visitors. Your support makes this possible.

Primary Sidebar

  • News & Features
  • Reviews+
  • Technology
  • School Libraries
  • Public Libraries
  • Age Level
  • Ideas
  • Blogs
  • Classroom
  • Diversity
  • People
  • Job Zone

Reviews+

  • Book Lists
  • Best Books
  • Media
  • Reference
  • Series Made Simple
  • Tech
  • Review for SLJ
  • Review Submissions

SLJ Blog Network

  • 100 Scope Notes
  • A Fuse #8 Production
  • Good Comics for Kids
  • Heavy Medal
  • Neverending Search
  • Teen Librarian Toolbox
  • The Classroom Bookshelf
  • The Yarn

Resources

  • 2022 Youth Media Awards
  • The Newbery at 100: SLJ Celebrates the 100th Anniversary of the Award
  • Special Report | School Libraries 2021
  • Summer Reading 2021
  • Series Made Simple Spring 2021
  • SLJ Diverse Books Survey
  • Summer Programming Survey
  • Research
  • White Papers / Case Studies
  • School Librarian of the Year
  • Mathical Book Prize Collection Development Awards
  • Librarian/Teacher Collaboration Award

Events & PD

  • In-Person Events
  • Online Courses
  • Virtual Events
  • Webcasts
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Advertise
  • Subscribe
  • Media Inquiries
  • Newsletter Sign Up
  • Content Submissions
  • Data Privacy
  • Terms of Use
  • Terms of Sale
  • FAQs
  • Diversity Policy
  • Careers at MSI


COPYRIGHT © 2023


COPYRIGHT © 2023