Your subdomain is the first thing people see when they visit your microblog. It's part of your URL, your identity online, and honestly, it's something you'll see thousands of times. So yeah, picking the right one matters.
I get a lot of questions about this when people are setting up their Jottings site. "Should I use my real name?" "What if I want to change it later?" "Are there any words I can't use?" Let me walk you through what I've learned from helping people make this choice.
Your Subdomain is Your First Impression
Think about it like a book cover. People don't judge books by their cover, right? Well, actually they do. Your subdomain shows up in every URL, every social media share, every time someone bookmarks your site. It's part of how people remember you online.
I use vishal.jottings.me because it's straightforward. No confusion. My name, my microblog. It works because it's me being myself, and people get that immediately.
But that's not the only way to do it. Let me break down the main strategies I've seen work well.
Three Solid Naming Strategies
Strategy 1: Your Real Name
This is the most common choice, and for good reason. If your name isn't already taken, use it. Benefits:
- People remember it easily
- It directly connects your writing to your identity
- It works great for professional writing and personal branding
- No confusion about "who's behind this?"
John might choose john.jottings.me or johnsmith.jottings.me. Both are strong choices because they're memorable and authentic.
Strategy 2: A Topic or Theme
Some people prefer to separate their personal identity from their microblog. Maybe you run a tech analysis site, or a daily photography journal, or you want to share thoughts under a brand name.
themorningbrief.jottings.me or shutterframejournal.jottings.me work well here. The name itself tells visitors what to expect.
The tradeoff? If your topic changes or evolves, your URL might feel disconnected from your content. But if you're building something bigger, this approach gives you room to grow.
Strategy 3: A Creative Handle
Maybe you have an online persona or a nickname that people know you by. I've seen morningpages.jottings.me, wandering.jottings.me, thoughtshelf.jottings.me.
These work if they're meaningful to you and somewhat memorable. Avoid anything too cryptic unless you're okay with people asking "what does that even mean?"
What Makes a Good Subdomain
Regardless of which strategy you pick, here's what separates a good subdomain from a mediocre one:
Keep it short. Less than 20 characters is ideal. Every letter you add is a character someone has to type or remember. alex.jottings.me is better than alexandersmith.jottings.me.
Make it pronounceable. If you have to spell it out every single time, it's too complicated. Can you say it out loud without sounding ridiculous? That's the bar.
Avoid numbers and hyphens. I get it, sometimes the name you want is taken. But john7.jottings.me or john-smith.jottings.me immediately feels like a compromise. It's harder to type, harder to remember, and it looks less professional. If your preferred subdomain is taken, try a variation instead.
Don't use trendy words. I see people wanting to use current slang or buzzwords. Here's the thing: whatever sounds cool right now will probably sound dated in three years. crypto.jottings.me made sense in 2021. It's a lot less interesting now.
Reserved Words You Can't Use
Jottings reserves a few subdomains for core platform features. You won't be able to use:
www,mail,ftp(standard internet stuff)api,admin,dashboard(platform infrastructure)help,status,support(customer service pages)blog(reserved for our own content)auth(authentication pages)
If you think of something and it's reserved, we'll let you know right away. No surprises there. Just try a different variation and you're good.
Think Long-Term, But Don't Overthink It
Here's my honest take: people overthink the subdomain choice. They spend weeks debating between three options when any of them would work fine.
The truth is, your writing matters way more than your URL. Someone could find you at the most perfectly chosen subdomain in the world, but if your content doesn't resonate, they won't come back. Focus on writing things worth reading, and your URL will take care of itself.
That said, here are two thinking exercises that help:
The five-year test. Can you see yourself using this subdomain five years from now? Not because it'll blow your mind then, but because it won't embarrass you either.
The introduction test. How does it sound when you tell someone about it? "You can find my thoughts at..." Try saying it out loud. Does it flow naturally?
One More Thing: You Can't Change It (Yet)
I want to be transparent about one limitation right now: once you pick your subdomain, that's your URL. We don't have subdomain transfer functionality built in yet. You could use a custom domain (like blog.example.com) and point it to your Jottings site, but the jottings.me subdomain would stay the same.
So take that five-year test seriously. Pick something you're genuinely okay with for the long haul.
But here's what I love about that limitation: it means you have to be intentional. You can't flip your subdomain every other month just because you're in a different mood. That intentionality leads to more thoughtful choices.
The Bottom Line
Your subdomain is important, but it's not as important as what you write. Pick something short, memorable, that represents who you are or what you're building. If it passes the five-year test and sounds natural when you say it out loud, you're ready to go.
The rest is just writing.
If you've been sitting on the fence about starting your Jottings microblog because you couldn't settle on the perfect subdomain, this is me giving you permission to just pick one. Your future readers won't be judging your subdomain—they'll be reading your words.
Ready to claim yours? Start your Jottings microblog today and share your thinking with the world. No algorithm. No ads. Just you.