9 posts tagged “writing”

I am dating this for September since that month just ended, but these are things I have been looking over or caught my attention in the last few months (at least, since the last time I did this type of post). I mostly make a note of these for personal reference, so I can keep them  handy to help me with my own writing and blogging. So, here we go:

From Copyblogger:

• "How Your Emotions are Strangling the Life Out of Your Copy." This one struck pretty close to home for me. I do often let my emotional filters get in the way of my writing, especially when it comes to my blogging. I would like to reflect on this a little further, but in part, I know it has to do with the problem of preserving and maintaining an image. A librarian blogger, unlike others, has to keep a certain professional image. We often worry about what our employers, present or potential, may think about what we write. We often censor ourselves, and I think this can take a toll on writing. Definitely something worth pondering here.
  
• "S.P.E.E.D. Writing: Five Tips to Double Your Writing Productivity." I have to read this one a bit more closely, but so far, the ideas of structure and eliminating distractions are good. I think at times I select too many things, then feel a little overwhelmed to actually write things down.
  
• A list of "Top Ten Blogs for Writers for 2009." Some of the ones on the list I already follow, but I have to take a moment from my busy schedule to look at the others. 
• Here is a reminder of "Five Grammar Mistakes that Make You Look Like a Chimp." I will admit that it irks me when I see some of these in other people's writing. In fact, this was so good I went ahead and shared it on my Facebook feed.
  
• On "The Dark Side of Authority," about creating authority for your blog, but there is also wisdom about dealing with trolls on your blog comments. 
• "The Seven Deadly Sins of Blogging." I do need to reread this one again. 

From ProBlogger:

• "How to Create Reader Profiles/Personas to Inspire and Inform Your Blogging." I have to read this one more closely, but the exercise sounds like it would be a worthwhile thing to try out.
  
• I am not sure that passion is a panacea for solving blogging blues, but here is a good argument for "How Passion Can Transform Your Blog." Maybe one of the things I may need to explore is trying to blog a bit outside of just LIS. I have been reading some interesting things which, while interesting, are not necessarily library-related (at least not directly). Time is still a big challenge for me, but I know I have to work at it.
  
• "Brainstorm 10 Ways to Expand Your Blog." This is another exercise to try out. 
• "9 Things to do to Make Sure Your Next Blog Post is Read by More Than Your Mom." I am not a Twitter user, so I am not sure if I can make that tip applicable. At this point in time, Twitter is just not useful enough for me. Now, running a post now and then through Facebook could work since I do use FB regularly. Doing it in LinkedIn could work for the professional blog, but I need to get more content written over there before I can do it.
  
• Here is one on creating a blog maintenance routine. Definitely need to heed some of the advice here. 
• And here is one on how to create compelling content by being playful. I think I need to explore my playful side a bit more. When it comes to my writing, some of my best writing works well when it is playful. I think that I may be letting my concerns over professional image hinder some of that playfulness. 

From Write To Done:

•  "Nine Ways to Build a Bridge Between Who You Were and Who You Are." This deals with journaling, a topic that always interests me and something I am always trying to improve.
  
• "Why You Should Stop Waiting for Inspiration." This is something I may need to consider some more. 
• And here are "Five Ways to Build the Writing Habit." Given the writing funk I seem to be going through these days, I can use all the advice I can get. Maybe it is time to get back to basics. 
• And because you can never have enough tips, here are 176 tips for writers. 

From Dumb Little Man:

• Some important reminders on "Why Good Writing Matters--And How You Can Improve." 
• And for those moments, like the last month and half or so for me, "How To Write When You Think You Can't." This is more for people who think they can't write. I know I can write; I just need to get my mojo back in gear, so to speak, but still, a good set of reminders.
  

I keep clipping items about blogging and writing in my feed reader. Some of them are things I want to read later, and others are things I might want to try out. As often happens, life has a way of trumping blogging as the old saying goes. So for now, as I have done before (like here and here) I am gathering together some posts on blogging and writing that I think are must reads and not to be missed. For me, kind of like making notes in a commonplace book. Actually, when I think about it, this blog serves as sort of a commonplace book for me. Anyhow, here are the links with some notes:

• Some items from Problogger:
  
• "5 Ways to 'Systemize' Your Blogging," a guest post by Nick Thacker. Thacker mentions keeping a schedule, which is something I have found myself struggling with as of late. Not because I lack things to post about. What I find difficult is hunkering down to put the posts together, or at the least, make a schedule of ideas, then hunkering down to put them together. 
• I liked this post because once in a while we do find ourselves without Internet access. Mr. Rowse in his blog suggests then "How to Improve Your Blog When You Have No Internet Access." This happens to everyone at one point or another, so these are ideas on making the most of the time when you can't get online. 
• Rowse warns us of 21 Mistakes Bloggers Commonly Make. Right away I know I am guilty of number five: irregular posting, at least for my main blogs (it is not an issue here). Part of it goes back to my struggle with finding the time and probably need to focus more too. 
• And readers come and go. I never worried too much about how many readers my blog has. But it is reassuring to know that readers come and go, so don't be depressed about it. Learn here then "How to Lose Readers [And Not Get Depressed]"
• More on consistency and keeping a schedule: "Be Consistent and Useful: Thoughts on How Often to Publish on Your Blog."  
• This I definitely need to read and heed closely: "Develop a Plan to Boost Your Blog's Profile and Readership Online." Not so much because I want to suddenly get famous, but because there is some good advice here on planning for blogging long term as well as some very good reflective questions I would like to write out when I get the chance. 
• An assignment: "Write a 'Review' Post." You would think that as a writer and librarian I would be able to write some pretty decent book review posts. I read a lot. But taking the time to write something substantial, something you could call a review, is not something that come easily for me. Maybe this is something I can work on. I certainly review articles from the library science literature, but I would like even for those to improve on the style a bit. To supplement this, I would also read "What is the purpose of a book review? And are book reviewers writing anything useful?" by Michelle Kerns over at examiner.com.And since we are on a roll about reviews, I may as well toss this on as another bonus or supplement: CW at Ruminations reviews the book Half of a Yellow Sun. What I found useful in this post was the simple review format CW uses.
  

• From Write to Done:
  
• "The Cycle of Creativity and How to Ride It." I need to look at this one more closely.
  
• This one looks very reflective: "Are You a Spiritual Pioneer?" 
• I need to work on improving the "about" page I have now on my main blogs. Maybe this advice will help. Here are "Five Tips (and a bonus) on How to Write a Fantastic About Page." After all, the "about" page is one of the first impressions a reader gets about your blog and you. For me, since I use The Gypsy Librarian as a professional tool, I would like to improve that.
  
• A guest post by Jonathan Mead on "How to Create a Highly Viral Blog." No, I have no aspirations of infecting anyone. Having said that, there are some basics here for writers that are very good.
  
• From Anecdote:
  
• A white paper on "How to be memorable and inspire action at work by telling stories." This is for more than just blogging and writing, but since I often use my blogging as a way to tell stories, I think it belongs on this list. And at times, my blogging does lead to action at work or just professionally. 
• From Copyblogger:
  
• "Your Blog vs. The World: 7 Steps for Winning the War for Attention." The advice on knowing your audience is good advice for any writer. 
• And sooner or later someone might say something you may or not agree with. Someone might leave a comment in your blog about something you wrote. I am also thinking of a recent comment I got that I did not get back to. So, you should know "How to Handle Criticism." From the list, I liked the last one: let it go. I think that is why I did not go back to that one comment. Sometimes it is better to just let it go.
  

I find helpful to read about how to be a better writer. Writing for me is something that I enjoy, but it is something that I have to work at. In other words, I am nowhere near being gifted when it comes to writing. So I need all the help I can get. Every so often I try to go back and look at some of these ideas, maybe try something new. In the meantime, here are a few things I have been finding around the web recently, mostly for my reference, but if they help anyone else out there, have at it.

• Copyblogger suggests "How to Be a Better Writer in the Next Ten Minutes." I liked the one about stepping away from the keyboard. One of the things I have been doing lately is turning off the computer at home as well as the TV earlier in the evening so I can get some more reading done. For one, I do want to read some more. But second, I like reading because it can help me become a better writer as well.
  
• This is more about productivity than the actual writing craft, but it is useful nonetheless. ReadWriteWeb offers a guide to online collaboration tools. One of these days, I have to add ReadWriteWeb to my feed reader. Right now it is one of those blogs that I hear about when someone else picks it up, which tends to be good enough. However, since I do need to weed my feeds a bit, maybe I need to weed some of those other guys out and add RWW in instead. Something to ponder.
  
• Once a year (I think it is once a year), Problogger presents a series on how to build a better blog over a month. I pick and choose things that interest me or that seem to be more applicable to my personal amateur situation. I mean, for instance, I have little interest to none in making money with my blogging (at least for now). But other tips are great. Here is one on developing an editorial calendar for your blog. I have tried to do this for the library's blog at my workplace, but the success has been a bit mixed, mostly due to the many time constraints I face. However, I am not quite ready to give up on the idea yet. He also came up with a suggestion to come up with 10 ideas for posts. Now that I like since it gives some concrete prompts I can try. And here he offers a whole bunch (ok, 27) of must-read tips and tutorials for bloggers. Now, I have not gone through that list yet, and a lot of the stuff is more for professional bloggers who deal in marketing and SEO, but there are a couple of things on content I would not mind looking at later.
  
• From the Anecdote blog, "Three Story Plots We Humans Dearly Love." Anecdote also invites us to ask "Does Your Story Have Impact?"
  
• Write to Done offers "7 Easy Ways to Energize Your Creative Writing Powers." This blog also offers "The Naked Writer," discussing how much a blogger or writer reveals in the writing. This is an issue I have pondered and considered once or twice, but I think I may need to revisit it a bit more in light of some recent events. We'll see. In addition, here is one on "Quote-Hunting: How To Improve Your Writing and Your Life." Collecting little quotes, which I often jot down in my personal journal, is one of my little pleasures plus something that at times invites reflection for me. I may have to read that post a bit more closely to see what I can learn from it.
  

These are some links to items I have found recently that provide good advice for bloggers and writers.

• Here are "7 Reasons to Include Humor in Your Work" from the Write to Done blog. 
• When it comes to things we may disagree with, sometimes you feel like ranting or just really putting out a rant. Sometimes you do need to rant. But often it is better to think things through a bit, then post something critical and thoughtful. Here are "10 Tips for Criticism Without Harming Your Reputation." This is basically a small primer on how to criticize. From The Blog Herald. 
• Here are "Ten Free Resources Every Writer Needs." From the Write to Done blog. 
• Maybe "You Need a Blog Strategy." From ProBlogger. 
• ProBlogger also has "5 Lessons You Can Learn from Blogging."
• Additionally, Problogger offers some tips on "Updating Old Posts on Your Blog." That last is something I certainly need to be reviewing, some of the old posts on my blogs. 
• Copyblogger offers "10 Surefire Steps to Beating Blogger's Block." I know I get the dreaded blogger's block once in a while, so I can use all the help I can get. 
• Copyblogger also suggests that "Everything I Need to Know About Blogging I Learned in High School." An interesting notion. Personally, I am not fond of remembering high school, but this post is worth a look. 
• Also from Copyblogger, "The Ultimate Blogger Writing Guide." I am not sure it is the "ultimate" given that so many people out there give good advice about blogging, but this post does give a nice basic list of things to keep in mind. 
• Sometimes you have to take a stand. This is something I can learn and need to work on since in my professional blogging, I do tend to be a bit gun shy. I will say it's mostly because the last thing I want is to get dumped by certain libloggers big shots if I "don't get it" (their term). Anyhow, we can all benefit and learn "How to Strengthen Your Writing By Taking a Tough Stand." This item comes from Write To Done. 

And finally a bonus item. It is not quite about writing, but it still deals with blogging. Here are "16 Essential PC Applications for Bloggers" by Ruchir Chawdhry.The post is presented at Problogger. If you go to the link, you can find a similar list for our friends who use Macs.

I found this neat list a while back of "10 Things to Write in Your Notebook." It is exactly what it says: ten things you can use as writing topics for your notebook or journal (or blog). The commenters also add their own ideas, which means you get a bit more than ten ideas. Definitely a nice little list for when you get writer's blog.

Found at Life is a Journal.
 

I have recently seen a few pieces here and there about the concept of a personal library. When I moved out of Houston to take my current job, I had to do a major weeding of my book collection. For one, it was for practical purposes: we could only carry so much given it was just the better half and me doing the move. Two, we did not have a lot of space in the new place. Three, I had not weeded for a while. Anyhow, I have been pondering writing some kind of post about having a personal library and what kind of items would be essential. As usual, I don't have a lot of time to write it fully, so I am just making some notes here for later.

Here are the items that stimulated my thinking:

• From Britain's The Guardian's Books Blog, not quite about a personal library, but this piece on "Getting remaindered is not the end of the line" got me thinking. I do buy a lot of my books as remainders when I can. Obviously it is cheaper for starters. And two, often I can get the hardback instead of the paperback. However, I tend to be selective when it comes to my books, and sometimes a paperback is fine. It depends on the book, etc. Anyhow, this article did give me some food for thought, plus it has a couple of interesting links. I may have to add the Books Blog to my feed reader at some point too.
  
• Donald Altschiller, writing for The Wall Street Journal, gives a small list of books essential to a reference library. This is the piece that prompted my thinking. I wanted to write a post with a list of my own, adding things not on the WSJ list, and make it a bit longer maybe. Still thinking on that one.
• The Freakonomics Blog asks as well which books have to be in your reference library.  
• Also writing for The Wall Street Journal, June Fletcher explains why libraries are coming back in style. This refers to home libraries. This goes along, for me at least, with the fact I have my own workstation room at home. It does have my small library, but it is not TV free, and my small laptop. I get a good amount of writing and blogging done there. I set it up when I went to graduate school, and since then, every place we live, I have to have my own space for study. It's basically my writer's room. By the way, if you need some inspiration to make a writing room of your own, or you are just curious, The Guardian has a series on famous writers' rooms. Worth a look.
  
• Blake at LISNews asks which reference book would you like to see made into a movie. I just thought it would make a cool prompt. I will also admit that for at least one of the titles on Blake's list, it would have to be a porn film (or at least an erotica film). 

Anyhow, this is just an idea for now. Maybe later I will be able to make the essay or post I would like.

I have been tinkering and messing with this draft for a while. It was intended for The Gypsy Librarian, but I just don't quite feel like finishing it. Mostly, I am not sure where to go with it because I do not quite have the answer to the title question. Anyhow, here goes:

I am going to let you in on a little secret. I don't read literary book reviews very much. Sure, I scan items in places like The Times Literary Supplement and the New York Review of Books, but for the most part I find them pretentious and overdone. Part of the reason is that those reviewers often use words clearly meant to inflate their text. Bob Harris, of the New York Times blog Paper Cuts, wrote a piece on "Seven Deadly Words of Book Reviewing" that nicely summarizes a lot of why I tend to skip literary book reviews. Then again, since I am more of a popular book reader anyways, that might be another reason. Anyhow, the post is worth reading as well as some of the comments where people add their own words to the list.

I am always looking for any prompts and ideas to help me with my writing. Liz Strauss, of the Successful Blog, has posted a small list of questions as part of her post on "Writer's Block: Unblanking the Blank Screen." The questions she provides are:

1. What something have I learned or learned about lately?
2. What news have I heard that I’d enjoy adding my point of view to?
3. What have I read that I might want to recommend?
4. What pithy comment was left on my blog this week? How might I respond?
5. What pattern, behavior, trend have I noticed?
6. What question do I have that I want answered?
7. What skill or a technique might I teach?
8. What argument might I give the pro/con to?
9. What lesson have I learned this week? What funny story can I share?
10. What pet peeve or problem have I got a solution to?

I think I will find these useful when I am running a little low on ideas and steam.