7 replies to this topic

[MinigunL5]

I am trying to start a Lasius Aphidicola colony. I am interested in recording this to. The thing is I don't know how. I've read other peoples journals but I'm still unsure. I if anyone has any tips or guides they would really help!

All help is appreciated.

[Solenoqueen]

Take what I'm about to say with a grain of salt, I suck at writing journals.

Generally, you just want to provide consistent updates on the colony you're referring to. I recommend setting time parameters for every update(ex. once every week, once every two weeks, etc) so you can get in the habit or whatever. Most people tend to talk about any worker/larval increases, as well as any suspicions or worries they have on their mind about their colony. Feel free to jot down anything out of the ordinary that crosses your mind, because don't forget, this is a public forum in which there are a lot of knowledgeable people who are ready to help you with any of your antkeeping concerns.

Oh yeah, and make sure you add pictures. People love those. They don't have to be super high quality, but a decent picture would be appreciated. Sometimes I just phase through and skim an entire block of text that comprises someone's journal, and just take in the picture. I'm a visuals guy, but then again, it's all really up to you. You can be as short or verbose as you want, add some high quality pictures or none at all, it's really up to what floats your boat. 

Don't feel pressured to make a journal either. I have two colonies I just haven't journaled at all because I feel that I'd tweak the posts and stress about them all day and stuff, and my ants are thriving. Maybe I'll show you guys my cocks... my Novomessor cocks. 

[Skwiggledork]

I just started my first journal a few weeks ago. There really isn't a formula that you have to follow, just like any other journal. You just use it to keep track of what's happening. Some of my updates have just been dropping a picture with no commentary, just to show the growth.

[Serafine]

- Create a new topic in ant keeping journals.

- Make a nice starting post listing some information about your ants and show your setup.

- Post (relatively) frequent updates with pictures (they don't have to be perfect, as long as it's not just brown blobs or specs it's fine).

 

Some things that can help:

- Give your colony a name, that helps people relate to it.

- When you design a new outworld you can make a small tutorial or just show some work-in-progress pictures.

- Give some information on how your ants generally act and how they react to things. This in particular helps people starting with the same species.

- Anything you can assume to be useful for other keepers of the species or interesting for everyone else.

[AntsDakota]

I try to organize my journal and make it consistent, as I too am visual, and can’t really follow a journal that randomly updates on different colonies in different orders with no pics.

[Nare]

If it's got pictures (almost) every update, it's good in my books.

[MinigunL5]

Thank you all for the help!

[Canadant]

Pics! I'll take anything. Love seeing them.