New Blog Talk Radio host: Sass Ashe of S.A. Writing Services

Radio: We've come a long way Baby! 

Description: Join Sass Ashe of S.A. Writing Services for a short show where she will discuss the brand new All the Write Tips website. You'll also find out about a brand new book to help you build your writing career. I know you're busy, so am I, but take a break and take some notes, you'll learn something to help your career!
All the Write Tips: Live Launch Celebration

Beginning blogger blues, burnout and Betty Boop

My B-word choices included blogger, burnout, blues, beginning blogger and – did I say burnout?

Actually, the mood is not as bad as that but there are some lessons here.

In fact, I may treat myself as a new blogger and start from ground zero, almost: a step above, "How to Blog: Blogging Tips for Beginners," which is useful if you need it.

Back to the blues: One advantage a beginning blogger holds over me is that they don't realize what they don't know – to include some very demotivational statistics.

Also, new blogger Betty Boop is likely to be less distracted than I am -- and maybe you are/have been. I just spent 78 minutes looking at infographics on the color impact of websites on buyers. At least I wasn't playing Farmville...I think. 

This is Betty Boop out pimping her wireless potato peeler social application to some angel investor laden network who is more interested in her peeled Facebook photos while her biz site is causing self-induced blindness because it is so damn ugly!

The point is she's making money by working smart -- even if her I.Q. is 98 -- and I'm stressing over the hexadecimal value of my links across 3 operating systems and smartphones – not that this is done in vain mind you.

WELL, I do have some advantage with my years of experience in running a successful web design and marketing business along with a an internationally renown website of 800-some hand-coded pages of content. The advantage is just not showing itself at the moment. (I need structure). 

It also means that I know enough to recognize that I am antiquated about a few things (knowledge can be dangerous). Things I may have to pay someone else (or a service or application) to handle. This is tough for me to admit, for I am both independent and frugal.

But, say my Wordpress theme is corrupted (not to mention I need a Blogger design and SEO optimization atm) or I want a serious Facebook page, or I need modernized CTR analytics – there will be no time left for content.

Especially, now that blog success is less dependent on content than it is networking – oy! Seriously, that's the advice of the times. Admittedly, it needs some context.

As for burnout: It's more to do with B-list clients and overcommitment to things I'm less passionate about. I know what I want to do (mostly) and where I want to (and do) excel, but there is this other B-word, bills.

So, bloggers, this is not meant to discourage. Maybe you can relate – save for the Betty Boop anecdote – and want to share your blogger blue days and how you got past them. And, feel free to name your favorite websites for beginning bloggers.

Also, know this, as demotivated as I felt when typing the first keystrokes, I feel MUCH better now. I didn't throw in the towel on the A-Z challenge on day two as I expected, and for that I'm proud. Now off to invent a 4G tater peeler app of my own.    

The 3 A's of awesome for you, your life and your blog

50,000 blogs are started a day.

Neil Pasricha's blog 1000 Awesome Things was one of them, off to a slow start like most. At this moment it boasts 30,786,253 hits.

Inspired from multiple tragedies in the author's life, 1000awesomethings won Webby's World's Best Blog award. This 18 minute video covers its inspiration and inception.

Highlights
 

--Attitude
“It ain’t gonna go according to plan”

--Awareness

A sense of awareness like a 3-year-old and why it works.

--Authenticity

Take a lesson from Rosey Grier – The Rams & needlepoint.

There are thousands of the things to be happy about, with only 100 years or less to enjoy them.

I am going to grab a copy of Pasricha's first or second book.
(Read twenty pages here.)

By nature, I have the attitude and authenticity down, imperfectly, but what I miss most is awareness.

It is detailed observations, finely-honed memories or recollections that often makes a gifted storyteller and a grateful, interesting life – and who knows, maybe an awesome blog, too.

...

From the book:

“But when bad news washes over you and when the pain

sponges and soaks in, I really hope you feel like you’ve always

got two big choices:

1. You can swish and swirl in gloom and doom forever,

or

2. You can grieve and face the future with newly

sober eyes”

And, then: remembering, reading and thinking about awesome things from “batteries are included” to being reunited with an old friend.

,,,,,,,

What's your awesome of the day?

Today, after two days of struggling with it, I wrote an editorial, in part criticism of, April's National Donate Life Month. After thinking, man I shouldn't go there emotionally, the tone, message and voice came together...to be more than a opinion piece. To be what I wanted it to be.

After the 15th edit, it hit me.

It's done and the ball is in the stands. I heard the pop. 

Teary-eyed I smiled, that I did my best. Jim agreed. 

Sorry, otherwise it would be chocolate related.

Blogger dynamic view help, a new look

Mashable has announced some exciting new changes to blogger in 2011, with a few new features, namely Blogger dynamic view formats, available today. See: Google Gives Blogger a Dynamic New Look

If the /view feature doesn't work, ensure that your settings as follows, according to Google:

Your blog is public. Your readers don’t need to login to view your blog.

Your blog has feeds fully enabled. In the Settings | Site feed tab, you have enabled either Full or Jump Break for your Post Feed.

You have not disabled dynamic views. In the Setting | Formatting tab, the option for Enable Dynamic Views is set to Yes.

These changes will not only improve the experience for some blog readers but make Blogger more accessible to mobile formats and tablets.

Planning ahead for your blog; interview with Darren Rowse

This video is aimed at bloggers serious about longterm monetization efforts and advertising strategy. In other words, not niche blogs designed to pull in $15-50 a month. If that is your strategy and it works, run with it.

Image by  comedy_nose

Otherwise, Google Adsense has dried up for many bloggers, and more innovative methods are required to make money. Product sales are hot. People who can sell an in-demand product, like some crafty Etsy people I know, possess an advantage. Yet, this doesn't mean content providers are doomed. (More on that soon).  

Here Michael Stelzner from SocialMediaExaminer interviews Problogger's Darren Rowse as the well-known, well-paid blogger provides an overview of changes he's witnessed in the industry in the last year.

For those interested, Rowse has a professional 4-week blogging course. To include one on (ahem) "voice" (inside joke). It's called (free plug) ProBlogger Academy and is located at Sitepoint.com.   

Note that most anything you want to learn about blogging and marketing (to include that located at Problogger.net and Copyblogger) is free on the web. So, paying for content is not necessary if you have the time to sort through and find what you want to know.

Meanwhile, I'm going to wait for some reviews on this (no offense to the authors) and explore other options first. Still with Rowse's reputation, it's worth mentioning. 

Related: Check out Brad Sylvester's recent post on keywords and titling.  

Nat King Cole's 'Fly Me to the Moon' for poetry

Though a beautiful song, Nat King Cole's "Fly Me to The Moon" is not my favorite of his (those two are forthcoming), possibly not my favorite version of the many that exist. But, I chose this particular song due to its reference to poetry...and the music. 

Who else is overloaded, feeling like they need to relax and ...
b-r-e-a-t-h-e?
This is the music for it. 

The lyrics (partial) ...

Poets often use many words

To say a simple thing

It takes thought and

time and rhyme

To make a poem sing

With music and words

I've been playing

For you I have written a song

To be sure that you know

what I'm saying

I'll translate as I'll go along

Fly me to the moon

And let me play among the stars...

As far as Nat King Cole,  incidentally, you'll have a few future posts to skip if you're not a fan. To be honest, I had only a vague recollection of his music, and largely Christmas songs at that, until a couple of years ago. 

My husband Jim -- an unrivaled Beatles fan, and rather decent singer fixed that cultural deficiency which has proven rewarding to say the least.

Even YouTube comments from younger generations echo his belief that Cole's voice is unmatched to this day ...the word "clarity" often applied.  

Some handpicked facts and anecdotes about the song: 

• Fly Me To The Moon is found in some modern games, to include Fallout: New Vegas -- which I suspect most players don't notice.
• There are a fair number of modern movies that include it, such as Space Cowboys and WallStreet, so it's likely to sound familiar. 
• It looks like there are over 15-20 versions of Fly Me to The Moon. I've heard about eight and so far find Cole's and Perry Como's the best. I didn't like Tony Bennet's version and Frank Sinatra's is fine if you want perky. 

Did anyone else think he was "a white guy" as a kid..even until later in life? I'm usually way off base anyway when imagining what a singer looks like. But I suspect there were some cultural influences at play here ...whether his voice was natural or cultivated to lose its ethnicity I haven't a clue...but aim to find out. I know he was the victim of racism in his career.

Otherwise, I can't remember when I first saw Cole. Then again most the music my parents listened to was a blur until years later. I think it's a Gen X thing. Cole died young,1965, from lung cancer not long before I was born. 

Are you a Cole fan or are you new to his magic, your thoughts?

April blogging challenge: One way to start a blog

"April Blogging Challenge - What Was I Thinking?" Marie Anne St Jean asks.

While I'm pondering the answer (and paybacks) if you are ready to get your blogging career or hobby site started, this is one way to kick-start it. Simply do it.

Then you can blame (or thank) her, not me.

This is the short version of the April 2011 A-Z blogging contest, see Marie's site for the details:

"The challenge starts April 1, 2011 and the idea is to write a blog post every day except Sunday, making the topic of the post be something that starts with the corresponding letter of the alphabet."

I decided to woman-up for the challenge last night, despite literary and entrepreneurial obligations due most every direction.

Now, A-words are on my mind nearly non-stop and it is ... annoying, but also inspiring, given most of my news writing and other work offers little creative freedom.

Though admittedly, it is difficult to write about non-work related topics and proficiencies, and instead focus on more creative interests.






QOTD: What "A-word topic are you starting with? Or if you're not participating, what prompted you to start blogging?