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Let's say Miguel Cabrera is the main BYB blog, and Curtis Granderson is something posted in a FanPost or FanShot. See how well they can get along?

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[Editor's Note: Bumped up for the sake of discussion.]

Okay, we had a little bit of a digression in one of our previous posts that deserves its own discussion. It's something I've been meaning to address anyway, so we might as well do it during a week in which there's not much news happening. 

Sometimes, breaking news (or what's passing for it right now) gets posted in the comments thread of another post. As I'm not always at the computer when these stories develop, it's great that you guys post links to pertinent articles so others get a chance to read them or comment on them. 

It's very much appreciated. If it's something that deserves a front page post of its own, I'll do my best to get that set up in a timely fashion. (And I try to give proper credit to the commenter who posted the original link.)

What I'm wondering, however, is if those links (and subsequent responses) sometimes take threads too far off-topic or if news and potential discussions get missed. If so, that can be avoided. And that's the whole point of this particular post. 

The SB Nation platform allows people a unique opportunity to start their own threads and post their own articles in FanPosts and FanShots, something that most other blogs don’t allow. These features - found on the right-hand sidebar - haven't quite caught on here (and maybe I'm to blame for that, as I haven't explained or sold them very well).

But if you surf around SBN, those sections thrive in other blog communities around the network. I don't see why the same couldn't happen here, which is why I've been beating this drum. (And I apologize if I've been kind of a bully to anyone, in the process.)

I understand that links and stories come up naturally in the flow of conversation, which might be why they often get posted in a comments thread. And there's definitely a place for that when it comes to Open Threads or a Morning Prowl that covers a bunch of different topics.

But let's use yesterday as an example. In a post about a potential Tigers-Mariners trade falling through, a link to an article about the AL MVP vote was posted. I eventually got around to writing about Miguel Cabrera receiving a MVP vote.  Unfortunately, I did so approximately five hours later. Hopefully, I usually respond faster than that. But if another story had developed, maybe there would be no front page post on the topic. And with that, perhaps a chance at a good discussion is lost.

Say you were a new visitor to the site and were skimming each of the posts. Would you have seen the Cabrera discussion? Maybe, if you click on an active comment thread. But if it was in a FanPost or FanShot, maybe you see it because it's right there on the front page.

I can also promote that content to the main page, if warranted. (But to be honest, there have been posts I didn't promote in the past because of incessant typos or factually incorrect information. We try to keep it looking relatively professional here.) In addition, you can link those posts to your Twitter account, if you'd like to share it with friends and followers. Readers can also subscribe to them via RSS.

What is a FanPost? Ideally, it's an original article, commentary, or discussion thread written by you. They're found on the right sidebar, underneath the first ad. Maybe you have something to say, but don't want to start your own blog. Maybe you've written something that you want to be posted on the BYB main page. Here's your chance. There's a 75-word minimum, so if you don't have that much to say, perhaps it's better suited for a FanShot.

What is a FanShot? Ideally, it's a referral to content on another site. For instance, a link to a news article. Or a photo you've seen (or taken). Maybe it's a video. It could also be a quote from an article or a chat. You also have the opportunity to add your own comments to what you've posted, which can either explain or embellish the content. These are now located underneath the FanPosts. (I originally had them lower, so maybe they were getting missed.)

[EDIT: Both FanPosts and FanShots can also be accessed by tabs at the top of the page, underneath the banner ad.]

If you think a FanPost or FanShot is worthy of more attention, click on the "Rec" button to highlight it for other readers. If a post gets enough recommendations (I changed the minimum to three), it should get permanently stuck to the top of the section. (I say "should" because, for some reason, this feature isn't working here at BYB. I've submitted a bug report about this, but the tech crew currently has bigger fish to fry.)  You're also free to link to your FanPosts or FanShots in other comment threads.

However, if you want to use FanPosts and FanShots simply to promote your own site or material without being an active member of the BYB community, those posts are almost certainly going to be deleted. (And I've trashed a lot of 'em.) If you want to advertise on this site, I can refer you to our marketing department. If you participate in the conversation here and would like to share something you've written, that's fine. (Just don't take it too far.)

Maybe these features aren't for every community. If BYB ends up working best without them, so be it. But I think it's a shame they're going to waste, sometimes to the detriment of the rest of the site. 

If you've read this far, I thank you. I know I went on quite a bit, but I wanted to clarify my position as clearly as I could. I hope I did so. Please post any questions, suggestions, and concerns in the comments or send me an e-mail.

(Thanks to Sky Kalkman and Beyond the Box Score, whose explanations of these features helped with this post.)