Posts tagged as:

writing

Why Blogs Die – and How to Save Yours

by Barbara on June 11, 2009

I’m guilty. I have started and abandoned more than one blog. This time, it will be different. How can I be so confident? Because I’ve changed my approach: my blog is not a writing project; it’s a publishing project.

In recent history, writers and authors (whether literary creators or business communicators) have reached audiences through entities such as publishing houses, newspapers and magazines, and organizations that produce newsletters, white papers, and other materials. These publishers supplied the specialized technical skills (like printing) and money required for production and physical distribution. Blogging technology eliminates lack of such skill and lack of money as barriers. The cost of blogging is minimal. The technical skills required are relatively easy to acquire and cheap to buy.

Publishers have always done more than produce and distribute. Writers who excel at generating texts often don’t have the knowledge we need to create and maintain a sustained venue for writing. Fellow bloggers, join me in a commitment that goes beyond a pledge to blog “regularly.” Let’s address the strategic and tactical demands that ongoing publishing requires:

Identifying an overall purpose for the endeavor and a strategy for realizing that purpose.

Editing and curating content so as to align with the purpose.

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Talking Sex, Politics, and Religion

by Barbara on May 31, 2009

Stephen King said, “If you intend to write as truthfully as you can, your days as a member of polite society are numbered, anyway.” This quotation is salient to the writer trying to negotiate a social media presence.

Professional and business types advise that job seekers and business owners stay away from controversial topics that might alienate future employers or customers. Meanwhile people advocating for political and social change gather online to organize and debate and educate by bring difficult conversations to more and more people.

Choosing a strategy might be seen as a fairly simple matter of priorities, of deciding on a primary purpose for the Web in one’s life – unless …

You are both an activist and a job seeker or business owner.
You trade in ideas: day job or no day job, an aspiring artist whose work covers political topics can not afford to avoid “politics” online.

Consider this interesting project by a corporate consultant; it addresses the price of letting these taboos stand: Excerpts from “Sex, Politics & Religion at the Office”

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