You Might of Noticed

I have started my 2013 blog writing schedule early.

I needed to work on the proposed schedule to make sure 1) I could write it, 2) it wouldn't be too taxing on energy resources, 3) practice writing sentences.

I did this purposely. I need the cognitive practice. I'm finding just writing the new nonfiction, Don't Get Your Panties in a Wad, was too scattered. If you've been following my blog, you've noticed I've complained bitterly about my loss of this particular cognitive function in writing.

Blog writing is the way I've chosen to relearn this skill. I practice my spelling, grammar, sentence structure, and staying on task skills this way. It's a mental exercise besides word games that I've played far too much of lately. As one of my many challenges recovering from my stroke, has been the "dyslexic ADD" that has affected my mind. It has basically affected the way I live and work the strongest...besides typing one-handed and the aphasia.

I have to say that the impact of aphasia is lifting or not as noticeable. I read each of my to blogs aloud to my husband before I publish them as well as new tidbits. There aren't too many times now that my deaf husband asked me to repeat what I said because he couldn't read my lips properly. So that's definite improvement. Unless, I'm tired or drugs slur my speech, I talk almost clearly. It's still a monotone voice, but I am able to now raise my voice a few levels higher to an almost shout. The baby monitor still come in handy between rooms.

I still have yet to take up my ministry again. I just don't have confidence in my voice. I was such an animated speaker before. Yeah, I'm one of those people who used their entire body to speak. It still takes me a while to find the right words to say. Anyhow that's on the slate for the new year...like a lot of other things.

So bear with me in this exercise towards a new normalcy.

Keep Writing and loving the Lord.

Wednesday Writerly Ways~ Websites

Part of getting readers to follow you and know you is a website. Last week's topic was on platform building and this is part of it. What's the sense of publishing a book, if it doesn't sell, right? It's all about marketing.

When I first learned about platforms or reaching readers, I realized I needed a website. A daunting thought by any stretch of the imagination. There are domain names, building a site or hiring someone to build it, and maintaining a site. It was basically overwhelming for me. Now keep in mind, I was a computer programmer in an earlier life.

The look has to be just right. There had to be a reason why people would frequent your site besides the books you were selling. I had two choices 1) either build it myself (DIY), or 2) have someone else build it for me. I mentioned before about me being eclectic, eccentric, and creative. This is not without built in complications.

1. Website DYI- There are tons of programs and books on the subject. There are even sites on the web that help you build your site in a preprogrammed templates.

1) Searching for a domain name- this can be easy or complicated depending on what name you pick and let's face it, the internet is full of websites. I did a web search under my real name...a psychologist in Texas has my name and has a website.

 Part of this search was using various last names including my maiden name, my ex's name (not that I wanted to credit him with anything other than a sperm donor for my terrific children), mother's maiden name, my grandmothers' maiden names, and names I made up. They were all taken at least once.

I do this also with writer names too. If another person or writer has your name that could be a bad thing or a good thing, but when there are seven with your name, it can be confusing really fast for a reader to find you. This can be cheap or expensive depending on the domain name you pick.

2) The design- KISS (keep it simple stupid). The more complicated it is; the harder it is to get around. Have you ever been to a website that had tons of flashy things, twenty buttons or windows to find what you wanted, or scrolling banners that slid in and out while you were trying to read something? Was it enjoyable? And yet, there isn't many websites that I'll visit that doesn't have one or multiple of these items. Keep the bells and whistles to a minimum. With my personality that can be difficult.

3) Maintenance- Who is going to maintain your website? Are you going to DYI all the html files and formatting? What about adding text to update your site as you publish more books? What if you want to add more picture do you have a resource available to convert your picture to the source code?

As I said, it can be daunting. Or if you have a couple thousand dollars lying around, you can go with option two...hire a company who specializes in web design. I didn't.

I went with a website company with templates. There was a fee for registering the domain name and hosting fee...all in all about $105 a year. Relatively cheap. I spent hours picking a simple background, the perfect layout, just the right amount of pages or tabs and voila, I had a website. This was the best semi-professional way to my way of thinking.

What I didn't take in consideration at the time 1) How the website would appear in the SEO, 2) The cost over the years versus the profit, and 3) the exposure I would gain.

• The website appeared on search engines as hosted by &#$% the main website which irritated me to no end because you have a limited amount of space which will show on a search engine search. This took up valuable space.
• The amount of views was small because nobody knew who I was and there are TONS of other websites. That's all the internet is.
• For months the website got one or no hits at all. I believe after the first year and the end of my contract, there were sixty hits. Now I've been a previously, traditionally published author of nonfiction books and articles for decades, but I could not draw people to my site. I was disappointed but the lesson was learned.

When it was close to the end of the first year of my website, I messaged a friend who designed several sites. It was before publication of my second novel. A bookstore wanted my website address before setting up a book signing.  I didn't want to use the one I had previously plus it was under a new author's name.

My friend asked me if I had a blog. Did I have followers? On average, what were my hits per blog? What was the main subject of my blog? I told her. She told me that me I already had a website and didn't need a new one.

While once upon a time (she writes twisted fairy tales) there was a difference between blogs and websites, today there is none. A blog can serve as both. Thank you, Charlotte! You saved me a ton of $$$$.

What an eye-opener! It was so simple. Did I have a following? Did I promote my books? Do I talk about me as an author? Do I entertain readers? Do I offer other information? Yes, yes, yes YES! I had a website without doing double the work. What was even better, Blogger/Blogspot is owned by Google which means they love it. It appears in other search engines as well. Wheeee! Can you say "jackpot" and "cha-ching"? Add Facebook, Twitter, RSS feeds, e-mailability and keywords...double jackpot in possible hits.

Granted for the most part, there is a set guideline on the design of the site...just like the other one I paid for. There are constrictions, but isn't everything on the web...we are governed by size, layout and html. It's free so there's no cost versus profits. :) There are analytical tools available to see how many hits per blog and where their from. I can maintain it myself. I can add, delete, and update it to my heart's content. Best yet, I was already doing it so why not have it do double duty?

I frequent a lot of blogs and websites of writers and nonwriters. I see something I like and incorporate it in mine. It may not be exactly the same, but the idea for it may have come from another source. I can change it every month if I want to but that would be crazy and time consuming so I prefer quarterly. Do readers find this disconcerting? Possibly, but the important thing to note is that I can do-it-myself.

So why do you need a website too as an author?

Keep writing and loving the Lord.

Tuesday Tumbling Term

re·view  (r-vy)
v. re·viewed, re·view·ing, re·views
v.tr.
1. To look over, study, or examine again.
2. To consider retrospectively; look back on.
3. To examine with an eye to criticism or correction: reviewed the research findings.
4. To write or give a critical report on (a new work or performance, for example).
5. Law To reexamine (an action or determination) judicially, especially in a higher court, in order to correct possible errors.
6. To subject to a formal inspection, especially a military inspection.
v.intr.
7. Law A judicial reexamination, especially by a higher court, of an action or determination.
8. A musical show consisting of often satirical skits, songs, and dances; a revue.

Now as a writer and author, we are mostly concerned with 1-4 definitions of this word.

Which is better no review or a bad review? We all want reviewer to say wonderful things about our baby, don't we? Any review is free publicity, right? Wrong. But what if it isn't good? I've been an indie author for almost two years now and I can say, to me, a bad review is worse sometimes. As my momma used to say, "Opinions are like a$$hole. Everyone has one."  Some things to think about when leaving a review or comment...

 

The Reviewer
While most people are hesitant about writing a review of any kind, they are not opposed to reading them. People tend to look at stars or symbols when choosing books. Personally, I tend to read the reviews, and then review the reviewer. If they consistently write bad reviews, then why are they reviewing in the first place? What it boils down to is attention. What does it say about someone who leaves consistent bad reviews...they have a really sad life when they have to cut someone down to feel better.

If the reviewer has given a mixture of review, I tend to pay more attention. They know their own mind and they are a fair judge of what is right. So in short, grade the reviewer or source.

What Does It All Mean
So what do bad reviews say about you as a writer? Possibly nothing and possibly everything. If the review is about formatting, you may want to redo it. If the review focuses on what is wrong with the book, they probably do it consistently. So take these with a grain of salt and consider the source.

If they are known for balanced in their reviews. I'll consider these more heavily weighted reviews than those that are not. If they say it's bad then it probably is and needs more editing.

My Way
I prefer the tempered approach of reviewing that isn't always given. I learned this method with customer service auditing. Everything is not all bad nor all good. Everything has strong and weak points. For example, if the story is good but the grammar is bad, then I'll say so. By the same token, God forbid, the story is bad and the grammar is excellent my review will be balanced. Although that's the main reason I read is for the story. Now if is totally stinky, I won't review it. Personally, I hate the star rating system. It's too confining and an easy out for laziness.

I always make a point of writing a review of what I read, that's just me. I don't expect everyone to have this standard. Though, it would be nice from a writer's stand point. It's an affirmation and acknowledgement of someone's effort. If writing was easy everyone would do it. Some writers slave at their writing for decades before they publish, or at least a couple months of sweat and furrowed brow to produce a book. Comments would be nice, but the fact is many don't. From over 1,000 book sales I might receive 1 review. So if everyone goes by my standard, my novels must be really stinky or only read by non-reviewers.

So what do you think of reviews and reviewers?

Keep writing and loving the Lord.

Monday's Mailbox ~Blushing

It's that time again...Tilda the mailbox had this to say this week, and yes, I'm tooting my own horn.

1) ӏ'm amazed, I must say. Seldom do I come across a blog that's equally eduсative and еntertainіng, anԁ let me tеll уou, yοu've hit the nail on the head. The problem is something not enough folks are speaking intelligently about. I am very happy that I found this during my hunt for something concerning this.

2) Woah! I'm really enjoying the template/theme of this blog. It's simple, yet effective. A lot of times it's tough to get that "perfect balance" between superb usability and visual appearance. I must say you've done a amazing job with this. Additionally, the blog loads super quick for me on Chrome. Exceptional Blog!

3) You should be a part of a contest for one of the finest websites on the web.
I am going to highly recommend this web site!

4) I’m a long time watcher and I just thought I’d drop by and say hello
there for the very 1st time. I critically appreciate your posts. Many thanks
You might be my function models. Many thanks for
your post.

All I can say is "thank you" and blush becomingly at such high praise. Can a sexegenarian still blush? A sexegenarian is someone in their sixty's. Now get your mind out of the gutter <g>. You betcha. I can get that warm, fuzzy glow creeping up my neck, over my cheeks, and to my ears just like a teenager.

Are you surprised? I can hear you now... blushes show embarrassment. Surely someone your age can't be embarrassed. Praise is not something I accept well. I feel that there are more worthy and accomplished folks out there in the cyber world...so I blush because I am worthy and have touched someone. I feel honored that I hit a nerve and garnered a response.

On "Wednesday Writerly Way," I'll be talking more about websites as a promotion tool. This blog is not only a way to vent, although I do this quite a bit, it's a selling tool. It's a way of promoting and get readers to know me. This is my website, as well as my blog.

I thought I would share.

Keep writing on loving the Lord.

Sunday Stroke Survival and Writing

How do you stay motivated to write or keep doing the same thing day after day for months?

Most times the answer is to see progress. That's okay in my writing life. In writing. you have ideas and memories bouncing around your brain, and being put into your word processor. If all else fails there is the word count on the bottom of the page. That's enough to satisfy most times. What do you do when the thoughts won't come? All the times when you are looking at a blank page and you can't decide what to write next?

I have always written both novels and nonfiction writing in linear terms. I would start at the beginning, progress to the middle, and keep going until the end.  It was my problem solving strategy too. Even though I looked for unorthodox solutions or thinking outside the box, I could do all things in life in this fashion. I could micro and macro manage at the same time. It was one of my greatest gifts, besides faith, as a writer and a person.

All that changed May 25, 2012. I am forgetful if I don't write it down. I'll have a brain fart when two or more thoughts clash in my brain at the same time. Think of it as a Doh! moment or your brain going blank. I know I walked into the kitchen for something but for the life of me, I can't remember what it was. For most people, it's retracing your steps until you remember, but for a stroke survivor living in a house that is not handi-capable it's a royal pain in the backside. I finally stopped hitting myself on the forehead. It was causing severe headaches from doing it so often.

 In therapy they tried electric stimulation to get my foot to raise up to a dorsiflexion (when you arch your foot upwards from the ankle instead of the foot drop position) and evert ( turning your foot outwards instead of rotating inwards). It was a miserable failure. While they could get my ankle to do one or the other, the therapists could not position the electrodes to do both at the same time. My brain just couldn't work my foot in two directions at the same time. It still can't without going into clonus (tremors). I've spent months trying with no positive results just like movement in my arm.

The simple act of walking requires both of these movements at the same time. While the AFO handles the foot drop and the eversion, my brain is conscience of both impulses going through it leading to the tremors. It's a no win situation. My brain as well as my muscles get exhausted almost the same time, but surprising enough, my brain over stimulation does not occur with bicycling unless I've peddled over three miles.

As a result of my stroke, my brain now functions in random thinking mode. Nothing is linear. It's more like squiggly lines that don't begins or end in any clear path. I make three editing passes with every blog to get cohesiveness so it's not some ramblings from an injured brain. It's practice in trying to accomplish less  random thinking.

It's a total about face to the way I usually write and it is very confusing. While I see the word count increase, my writing is disjointed and hopping all over the place. It's more than a bit disconcerting to me. So while I'm writing my new book, I feel like there is no forward progress being made despite the word count. It's totally different than anything I've attempted in my life.

I recently had a thought that if I bought left-handed scissors I might be able to cut with them better. After talking to a few lefties, I was assured that it would work.  It worked so now I'll attempt sewing. Easy stuff at first, and then work on more complicate things. I've always enjoyed creating something from nothing, and maybe why I love writing so much.

Try as I might my handwriting, although clear and partially readable, is still primary school level. I just don't use handwriting skills that much these days. I guess I could cheat and type out my grocery list, and print it out, but then I would get no practice.

There is something about forcibly learning to do something you're not used to which changes your perspective about learning how to do new things when you are used to doing it a certain way. I wrote once about letter writing becoming a lost art form, for me now it's true unless I keep working at it. I honestly work so hard at living and trying to get some semblance of normal I just don't have the energy to relearn something else to acceptable levels.

So how do you keep yourself motivated?

Keep writing and loving the Lord.