Shazam! Gets a Clue: Blogging Etiquette (and a bunch of rhetorical questions)

I’m new to this blogging caper. Obviously. I’m not too hip to the customs of the culture. I’m no computer nerd.

“Really?!” I hear you shout.

Like many, I read blogs and have done for some time. There are even a few that I view religiously. And I’d like to link to them. I have even figured out how to do so. My mother would be proud.

But is there a Blogging Code of Conduct that I need to follow? Is there an Essential Online Tome that I have somehow missed? Do I just go right ahead and link to my idols or do I need to let them know? If I were to inform the blogging goodnesses out there that I choose to link to their masterpiece on my little ole’ blog would they really give a shit? Are you sick of my rhetorical questions just yet?

I wouldn’t want to come off like some sycophantic starstruck fan ie. “Love your work, hope you don’t mind that I’ve linked to you”. And why would they mind? Surely they’d be glad of the publicity. And there’s sure to be a heap of traffic coming their way from my site. Isn’t there?! Huh?

Even worse, I don’t want to come across as “I’ve linked to you, now it’s your turn to link to me”. I can’t think of anything worse. I’ll recommend sites that have consistently made me laugh or think about things in a different way. Laugh mainly. I like the funnies. I’m not about to ask these clever and funny folks to add my site to their links. Treś uncool. The sites I like generally have an air of editorial integrity, they are written by people who are not afraid of speaking their minds and I’d hate to think that they are easily swayed by some crappy contra deal. And it doesn't get much crappier.

So... I'm just gonna link to ‘em and shut up about it. And if there's a problem with that, please let me know.


NOTE:
Will you, dear reader(s), think I’m simple if I admit I needed to look up the spelling of ‘etiquette’?