Have you ever come across a profound quote, startling statistic, or hilarious one-liner that you just had to share? Don’t just paste it into a block of text – use Tumblr blockquotes to make it pop!
Blockquoting is an easy yet eye-catching way to call attention to impactful snippets of text. Your followers will be drawn to quotes that are visually set apart.
But blockquoting is not just about tossing in random quotes. Use this formatting power wisely to enhance your posts, attribute sources properly, and keep your readers hooked.
In this guide, you’ll learn insider tips to level up your blockquote game. We’ll cover:
- What blockquoting is and when to use it
- Step-by-step instructions to add blockquotes without coding
- Advanced HTML options for greater customization
- Best practices for interesting and relevant blockquotes
- Creative blockquote ideas to make your posts shine
So whether you’re a blockquote novice or a formatting pro, bookmark this guide. Let’s dive in and take your Tumblr posts to the next level!
What Are Blockquotes and Why Use Them?
A blockquote is a way to distinctly format a direct quotation within your own content. On Tumblr, activating blockquote formatting indents text on both the left and right margins, setting it apart visually. This draws the reader’s eye straight to the quoted content.
Blockquotes are ideal for:
- Sharing inspirational, funny, or thought-provoking quotes and passages from other sources. Putting these in blockquotes allows you to seamlessly integrate them into your own posts.
- Providing a clear visual distinction for text that is being quoted or is not your own original writing. This helps avoid confusion and makes it easy to identify the source material.
- Attributing quotes and content to the original author. Blockquote formatting helps you properly cite where the excerpt came from.
Creating Blockquotes in the Tumblr Editor
Tumblr makes it super simple to create blockquotes right within the editor. Here’s how:
- Highlight the text you want to display as a blockquote. You can select anything from a single word to entire paragraphs.
- Click the “</>” button in the formatting toolbar at the top of the editor window. This may be tucked behind the “+”.
- The selected text will automatically indent on both sides, transforming it into a blockquote!
That’s all there is to it. The Tumblr editor does the coding behind the scenes. Now your quoted content will stand out from the body text.
Formatting Blockquotes with HTML
For more control, you can add blockquotes using HTML markup. To make a blockquote, place <blockquote> before the content and </blockquote> after it like this:
<blockquote>Quoted content goes here</blockquote>
The result will be the same indenting effect as using the editor toolbar. You can chain together multiple <blockquote> tags to indent nested quotes further. Each level gets indented a little more:
<blockquote> <blockquote>This quote is indented more</blockquote> The outer quote </blockquote>
To attribute a quote to its original author, add a footer after the quoted content:
<blockquote>Genius quote</blockquote>
<footer>- Albert Einstein</footer>
Best Practices for Impactful Blockquotes
When adding blockquotes to your Tumblr posts, keep these tips in mind:
- Quote Accurately: Take care to copy quotes as they were originally written or uttered. Don’t paraphrase, as that could misrepresent the original meaning and intent.
- Provide Context: Give some background about the person being quoted, explain why you selected the passage, or relate it to your overall post topic. This helps the quote make sense.
- Attribute the Source: Always credit the original author, speaker, or work the quote came from. This gives them recognition and upholds ethical sourcing.
- Use Sparingly: Space out blockquotes meaningful rather than overfilling posts with too many. The more you use, the less impact each one will have.
- Match Indentation: Think about how you want to nest or structure blockquotes. Indent quotes further to subordinate them under broader ideas.
Get Creative with Blockquotes
Blockquotes don’t have to just be for long formal quotes. Here are some creative ways to make use of them on Tumblr:
- Showcase funny one-liners or witty quips from TV shows, movies, or comics. The blockquote draws focus to that specific line or joke.
- Highlight impactful lyric snippets from songs and music videos. Link these to videos or audio posts!
- Pull out a poignant phrase from a long chat log or conversation and feature it prominently.
- Share inspiring advice, self-affirmations, or words to live by. Blockquotes give them prominence.
- Extract the core message behind a long-winded rant or story. Boil it down to the essential quote.
The key is to identify captivating short quotes and give them space to shine. With attention-grabbing blockquote formatting, they’ll stick in your readers’ minds.
Conclusion
At this point, you have all the knowledge needed to start blockquoting like a Tumblr pro!
Implementing tasteful and relevant blockquotes will make your posts pop. Readers will better absorb quoted wisdom and witticisms when they stand out in indented blockquotes.
So don’t be shy about quoting outside sources or even your own content. Use blockquotes to highlight the good stuff!
Your followers will appreciate quotes that resonate with them emotionally or intellectually. And creative micro-quotes integrated into multimedia posts can add flavor and personality.
As you build your blockquote skills, remember to cite sources and stay relevant. And don’t overdo it – space out blockquotes between paragraphs of original writing.
With practice, blockquoting interesting content will become second nature. So try it out and watch as your posts grab more attention!
FAQs
Don’t see your blockquote question addressed here? Ask away in the comments!
Q: How do I make a blockquote show up on mobile?
Simply highlight the text and tap the “Q” icon to format it as a blockquote. The indenting carries over when the post goes live.
Q: What’s the best number of blockquotes per post?
We recommend sticking to 1-2 per post max. Sprinkled sparingly, they will have more impact. Too many will be overwhelming.
Q: Can I customize how my blockquotes look?
Yes! You can tweak padding, colors, fonts, etc for blockquotes only by adding CSS rules in your theme’s stylesheet.
Q: Do quotes within quotes work?
Absolutely! Nest multiple levels of blockquotes to indent quotes-within-quotes. Just be sure to close the HTML tags in the proper order.
Q: Is it okay to make minor edits to quotes?
Our advice is to quote exactly, even if there are small errors. Paraphrasing could misportray the original meaning and intent.