This morning I told Morgan I would send her a list of information about blogs. After giving it some thought, I decided that if one person needed a little information on this, then it’d be a good idea to throw a post up about it.

Blog. It’s something we hear about all the time and maybe people just expect that you would know. After all, it’s common place in the world today. The one thing I can tell you about me, is not so long ago I had no idea what the difference was between a regular website, a blog, and a forum. When I asked about it, I got “Ugh, it’s just different and has comments.” Well, I can’t tell you how many times I would mistake a blog for a regular website. I think it was because a website could have a blog, but not be solely a blog and a blog could stand alone all on it own. And a forum, well…

I hope this helps you recognize the differences a lot faster than it sunk into my head.

Regular Website

• A place on the web with multiple pages offering different information about the website.
  • Think of a website as as your favorite department store. Think of all its pages as all the different sections in the department store. Shoes on one page or in one section and a whole bunch of other pages/sections with different things relating to the department store.
• It’s not a blog.
• It can have a blog attached to it.
• It’s not a forum.
• It can have a forum attached to it.
• It can be about anything, a company of any business (retail or not), offer a service, a nonprofit, etc.
• It normally has a more professional serious message and material on the site with proper English and correct grammar.
• No comments are allowed on any page of the website itself.
• Can have tags (hidden from visitors).
• Can have categories (May have different descriptive name. Example: Files, Departments, Sections, Rooms, etc.)
• The URL (a.k.a. website address) can end in .com, .org, .gov, .edu, .tv, .co.uk, .me, etc.

Blog

• Is not a website in the sense of being a traditional website, but is a blog website. LOL…yeah figure that one out!
• Can belong to a company, organization, nonprofit, person, or anyone for any reason.
• It has a more personal approach to its audience and most times information on a blog is as if the author is speaking to the reader directly; but can be more professional than others blogs at times.
• Can be a person’s journal, be used as a person’s business site, used to communicate to the public on a personal platform, to share videos or images, used to interact with the people, used to keep the public informed, and just about whatever the blog owner wants it for.
• Comments are open for people to leave their thoughts. (It is possible for the blog owner to turn off comments.)
• May be attached to a regular website or a forum; or, may stand alone all by itself.
• It is not a forum.
• It can have a forum attached to it.
• Can have tags and most definitely should have tags (visible or hidden from visitors).
• Can have categories (May have different descriptive names. Example: Files, Departments, Sections, Rooms, etc.)
• The URL (a.k.a. blog address) can end in .com, .org, .gov, .edu, .tv, .co.uk, .me, etc.

Forum

• A place on the Internet for people to seek and share common interests through conversation in the form of a posted message in a thread. Others who participate in the forum will reply by posting a message in the same thread.
• Also known as a message board.
• Can be public or private.
• May be attached to a regular website or a blog; or, may stand alone all by itself.
  
• The URL (a.k.a. forum address) can end in .com, .org, .gov, .edu, .tv, .co.uk, .me, etc.

Categories

• Titled to fit a specif topic or topics and are a filing system for your blog posts/articles or websites sections/topics/departments/etc.
• Can be very specific or broad and vague.
• Usually in the form of a list on the blog, website, or forum.
  

Tags

• Are not categories.
• Tags are your blog post’s keywords and should be use to draw traffic to your post.
• True descriptive tags should be used so a blog is trusted to provide the information the tags representc. You wouldn’t want to use the word “cakes” as a tag for a post about birthday wrapping paper unless your post includes information about cakes. If you did and there was no information in the post about cakes, you’re misleading the visitor who conducted a search using cakes as their keyword in their search phrase. You risk losing a potential faithful visitor no matter how good your blog’s information is.
• A person uses keywords to search for information on the Internet.
  • Example Keywords: Linda Carmical
  • Google Search Results

Keywords

• Descriptive word or words attached to a blog post. A keyword or keyword phrase is used by a person conducting a search in a search engine, such as Google, Yahoo, Bing, etc. to find information of interest.
  • Example: In this post some of the keywords I have attached are regular website, blog, categories, tags, keywords, forum.

I hope this makes it a little easier to understand better. I wish someone had given me this information a few years ago. Instead, I felt like I was expected to just know and that made it hard to ask. I felt silly.

See something I missed you think will help someone? I’d love to hear about it.

Do you have questions about the Internet, blogging, or other related information? Maybe I can help; just leave me a comment. 

#SHINEonline
#31DBBB

Write Right Already Part 2

Here’s the list of words and mistakes to wrap up my list of what drives me crazy. I’m not alone in my world of “what the heck did you say there?” There are a cagillion people just like me reading your content. It’s worth the effort it takes to pay attention to the details.

• Effect vs. Affect
• Aks vs. Ask
• Then vs. Than
• Fun Exercise

Effect vs. Affect

Ugh…this one sucks and I have to admit, I double check myself on it every time I use it.

• Correct: What sound effects does the car’s horn have? (Sound “effects” is a thing making it a noun.)
• Wrong: What sound affects does the car’s horn have?

• Correct: The car’s loud horn affects my ears. (Shows an action.)
• Wrong: The car’s loud horn effects my ears.

A previous boss once told me, “Effect” is a thing, a noun, and “affect” is an action of something, a verb.” Yeah, you guessed it. I walked away going, “Whatever; I’ll just always ask.” But really, I needed to work on knowing the difference for myself. I can’t always ask someone, unless of course I ask Google. Or, you can just go to DifferenceBetween.net.

Aks vs. Ask

I was the Training & Development Coordinator for Davis Vision, Inc. for more than a few years and facilitated a lot of training classes. The one thing that always stuck out like a sore thumb and I could never explain why it occurred, other than just pure laziness, was when a person would say…

“Can I aks you a question?”

My reply would always be, “No, but you may ask me a question.”

How can a person ever think that’s ok?

Then vs. Than

O.M.G. people! This one…drives me insane! Again, this one bugged me like nails running down a chalkboard for some reason. I could never understand how a manager in a position of authority, and one who was relied on to provide correct information to a huge department in a company, could never use the right word in a sentence.

• Correct: If you want to ride in my car then let me know.
• Wrong: If you want to ride in my car than let me know.

Think of the word “than” as making a choice over something.

• Correct: I’d rather ride in your car than walk to the store.

Fun Exercise For You on Part 2

There are a total of 5 incorrect words in the sentences below. Can you find them? If you want to play along, leave each one in comments with the correct one for each.

1. “Thank you for giving me a ride in your car George.”
2. “You welcome Linda.”
3. “Oh George, your nice. Were those all your cars in your garage?”
4. “No Linda, those were not all my cars; there my parent’s cars.”
5. “Than I guess I can’t have a ride in the pretty blue one.”
6. “LOL, probably not Linda; it might effect my life in the house.”

BTW…if you find any errors on my site, please let me know. I need to make sure I’m not a hypocrite!

UGH! Know Your Words! Write Right Already! Part 1

#SHINEonline

#31DBBB

There have been many times I’ve started this post but never finished it. I get so peeved to the point of being anal when I see typos, misspellings, broken English, and the wrong words being used. I know it’s not easy to NEVER make a mistake on your blog, I’m guilty of mistakes myself. But, I try to go the extra mile to have as few as possible and most definitely strive for zero mistakes since I seem to have zero tolerance.

• You vs. You’re
• Their and There vs. They’re

What particular errors bother me? Well.…

You vs. You’re

• “You welcome George.”

Really? No. This is the correct sentence.

• “You’re welcome George.”

Or, if you can’t remember the ever difficult R sound on the end, then you really have no right to the short version of the correct sentence. Just make my life better and use “You are welcome George.” Seriously, there is NO right time to use “you welcome” at any time or any place.

Your vs. You’re

Oh boy, another moment of “nails screeching down a chalkboard”. If you can’t use it right then you are NEVER allowed to NOT write out the two words separately. (Yes I know, it’s a double negative.) Here’s what I mean by that.

• “Your such a smarty pants Linda.”

Well you’re right if you use that pronoun in that sentence! The correct sentence is…

• “You’re such a smarty pants Linda.”

Here’s a good rule of thumb for it and the easiest way to remember when to use which. If you can make the sentence with “you are” and it’s correct, then you can use “you’re”. If you cannot, then you must use your.

• Correct: Your car is nice.
• Wrong: You’re car is nice. (You cannot use You’re because it would mean you’re really saying “You are car is nice.” and this is incorrect.)
• Correct: You’re in your car. (You use “You’re” because it means you’re really saying “You are in your car.” and this is correct.) *See how I was sneaky and used both words in the sentence.
• Wrong: Your in your car.

Their and There vs. They’re

They’re your cars. (Same “rule of thumb”, if it can have “they are” in the sentence then it’s they’re not any of the other two versions.

The cars are out there in the parking lot. (Eh, I know it’s boring; but it’s an example.)

The cars are theirs. (If you ask me, it shows possession here.) 

It’s vs. Its

These two little words gave me trouble in high school. I don’t know why it took me so long to figure out how easy this one is. It has the “same rule of thumb” here. If you can break it into two words (it is) in the sentence then it’s “it’s”. If you cannot break it up into two words then it’s “its” and shows possession.

• Correct: It’s the way its wheels are turned.
• Correct long way: It is the way its wheels are turned.
• Wrong: Its the way it’s wheels are turned.
• Wrong long way: Its the way it is wheels are turned.

Fun Exercise For You on Part 2

BTW…if you find any errors on my site, please let me know. I need to make sure I’m not a hypocrite!

UGH! Know Your Words! Write Right Already! Part 2

#SHINEonline

#31DBBB

Writing in the right style isn’t always as easy as one might think. Or, maybe the right way to think about it is it’s easier than you think to write in the right style. A writer just needs to remember:

• The article must focus on its intended topic(s).
• It also needs to have a strong opening sentence conveying the objective of the article.
• Every paragraph must have a purpose.
• There must be flowing sentences that get to the point without a lot of “big“words.
• The appropriate language style will ensure an article communicates its purpose and message successfully.
  

Really Good Tip! You might want to bookmark this page so you can refer back to it for the basics of writing a good article.

A Strong Opening Is A Must: It’s called a browser because people use it to browse web pages on the Internet. A person normally doesn’t spend an enormous amount of time reading what’s on a page as much as they skim through it. As they look over a site they’re deciding if it’s worth the investment of their time. For this reason an opening paragraph needs to convey what the article is about. You want to reel the reader in, “hook” them for more, and keep them there wanting more. Using hypothetical questions, quotations, and other tools will capture their attention leading them down the page.

Every Paragraph Needs to Have a Purpose: When a person finishes reading the first paragraph they should know what the article is all about. If there are multiple topics or points to make, then these should flow accordingly; they need to follow the same chronological order as you’ll have them listed in the article. *Note, it’s not always necessary to list all topics in the opening paragraph and frequently not needed. A good description providing an overall idea or objective as an opener can be a perfect beginning to a good article.

Example: “Some of the characteristics that Great Danes have are they are big dogs, males grow to larger sizes than females, they love to sit on your lap, they run like horses, and they are lovable dogs.” The article would discuss each point mentioned and it is best to discuss them in the order listed.

Be Sure Your Sentences Flow: It’s best to stick to shorter sentences over longer ones, but you never want a sentence to be choppy unless going for an obvious effect. This tactic should be used sparingly and as a rule no abrupt and choppy sentences should ever be used. Words to stay away from when starting a sentence are “and”, “because”, “however”, and “furthermore”. These are better used for compound sentences to join two simple sentences together.

Example: “Great Dane dogs need a heavy duty leash, because they are very strong dogs and otherwise might snap a flimsy one.“

Is it ever O.K. to End a Sentence With a Preposition? Absolutely.

Example: “What number did the last Quick Draw ball land on?” is much better than, “On what number did the last Quick Draw ball land?” The first sentence flows better and feels more normal than the second.

Keep it Simple Stupid: No, I’m not calling anyone stupid; far from it. This is just a good rule to live by in most areas of life, but more so in the world of writing. To be an effective communicator you need to be able to convey your message to an audience. If your words are “too big”, or “too smart” you run the risk of loosing a large number of readers. Simple thoughts and ideas are better than complex ones ninety-nine percent of the time. You’ll capture a larger repeat audience by giving them the information they need without “beating around the bush”.

Language Conventions: Who is the target audience? What language style does your client want? Be careful to use the appropriate dialect for the target audience.

Example: American English versus English from other countries.

If you like these tips and want to be the first to know when other writing tips are posted, follow my blog. No worries with finding all the writing tips, they’ll be stored under “Writer Information” for your convenience.

#SHINEonline

When it comes to using images on your blog or website you can’t be too careful. You can get into a whole heap of trouble if you use an image not owned by your or one you’re not licensed to use. Why take the risk? The amount of money you can be sued for makes it not worth it.

Here are some more of Janis’s great options to use when looking for images for your blog or website. Some are free ideas and others are inexpensive options to consider.

Take Your Own Pictures
If you cannot located a clip art or any other images you can use for you blog, why not create your own? To get an instant picture, take a photo with your camera phone or digital camera. Then, simply download to your computer and use it.

Purchase Pictures

There are many image sites where you can purchase a picture, or a package of pictures for a fee to use as much as you want. Typically, paid for images are of higher quality than free images.

Some of these sites will provide free versions of an image, but will have a watermark in the middle. That might be okay for some uses, but it will not be the best choice for most of your imaging needs.

• Shutterstock Images: This website provides images you can use for your blog, for a fee. You can use these images for free, but they will have a watermark in the middle. Depending on the picture, and the size, you may not be able to see the watermark on the pictures.
• iStockphoto: Another great source of images. You purchase credits that you can then redeem to download an image of your choice. Different sizes cost a different amount of points. The smallest picture comes out to $1 each. There is a weekly, free image provided on the home page. Just like Shutterstock, you can use the images for free, but they will have a watermark on them.

Researching For a Resource Article

I’ve had more than a few writers ask me how to research and collect good information for a resource list article and do it in a short amount of time. Sometimes they have concerns over how long it takes to do the research (especially if they’re new at it) and I must admit, depending on the topic it can be a little tedious at times. I don’t know a thing about the brain other than it’s my thinker and it’s the boss of my body; it may take me a little bit, but I know how to research and write up an intelligible and interesting article about it.

When a writer tells me an article is taking more time than they would like, I ask them the same questions every time.

1. What browser are you using?
2. What is your routine for researching? In other words, I need what steps you’re doing.
3. How much time are you on a site?

When I write any article I have to do my research and a resource list article is no different. I find the most efficient process for a resource list is to use Firefox and search out all the sites I need that meet the specific criteria I’m looking for. I then list the URL and grab the contact information if I need it. If my article has sections, I format my list into those sections first. Once I have the number of resources I want under a section, I change my search phrases accordingly and repeat until all sections are full.

When I have collected all of the sites I want to talk about in my article, I go back to each one and take a brief, but good look over the site’s page or overall site depending on the information or services the site offers. (An in depth reading is rarely needed to write a thorough description, but there are times it’s required.) I read and review enough until I’m comfortable I have the information I need to write my description. At the same time, I’m deciding what title I want to give my resource and embed a link into. This could be as easy as the site’s name or a post’s title. Once I’ve decided, I embed the link I’m using into the title as the resource. If the site is dedicated to the topic I’m writing about, I’ll often make sure to go to the About page. Here you can find out the site’s mission and its goal or purpose. This helps a great deal with writing a description when I get stuck.

I call this the “Hit and Run”. This style of researching keeps me from spending too much time on the site the first time I see it. It gets me in the mindset that I’m there for a professional purpose. I won’t get paid for taking a leisurely stroll through the site. Bookmark! Bookmark! Bookmark! I’ll check the site out down the road.

Once I have collected all the URLs, the contacts I need (if needed), and written all the content I need to, including any additional formatted content my client wants, I save the article as is. (This is my go to draft if I need it.) I then save a second article in the format my client wants; I call this my clean copy and it’s the one I’m going to use as my final draft.

Now…

1. What browser do I use?
   • Firefox. Why? Because it has great add-ons and is extremely user friendly. It cuts my research time down.
     
2. What is your routine for researching? In other words, I need what steps you’re doing.
   • Get in a site and get out as fast as possible! (If I like a site it gets BOOKMARKED and checked out later. Time is money!)
     
   • Collect URLs
   • Collect Contacts (Only if needed)
   • Go back to site and decide what title I’ll use, review, and write my description.
   • Write all other content for the article needed.
     
3. How much time do I spend on a site?
   • Only as much as I need to get the information required. (Bookmarking is a wonderful thing.)

Always approach a writing project as “this is your job and money in your pocket”. Not doing so slows you down and keeps the change in your pocket small.

Do you have tips to cut down the research time it takes to write a resource article? Tips are welcome and encouraged! Please share!

#blogboost
#SHINEonline

On occasion I’ve had some extra work so I’ve found myself in a position to offer my overflow to others. I’ve posted an ad on WAHM a few times along with a few other places and have always been pleasantly surprised at the responses I get. Most of the people responding have good writing skills and have pretty much mastered the art of peaking my interest enough to get to the next step in the interview process.

On the other hand, there are those who possibly think it just really doesn’t matter if they take the time to show good penmanship in their initial email of “Hey there! I’m interested! Pick me! Pick me!”

When I see…

1. “I saw you hiring on WAHM.”
2. “i would like more info. please send.”
3. “Hello Ms. Carmicle…”
4. “im an excellent writer.iwould like to write for you.please send me information.”

I could go on, but I think these are good examples to talk about.

1. “I saw you hiring on WAHM.” Do you really think anyone will take you seriously if you don’t write in proper English? If you cannot form a perfect sentence, then don’t expect to receive a reply of interest.
2. “i would like more info. please send.” Seriously? (“i would like more info”) Thank you for saving me the time of replying to you. If you can’t take the time to capitalize and complete a word, see ya!
3. “Hello Ms. Carmicle…” Hello to you too, but who is Ms. Carmicle? You really couldn’t take the time to be sure you spelled my name correctly? Hello, I’m Ms. Carmical.
4. “im an excellent writer.iwould like to write for you.please send me information.” LOL …no you are not. I cannot let you. Sorry, I will not.

Tips to Get a Writing Gig

1. Write in complete intelligible sentences.
2. Punctuate properly, it matters.
3. Don’t abbreviate; you’re not texting for goodness sakes. You’re applying for a writing job so act like it.
4. Don’t misspell the person’s name. When you do it says you’re careless and don’t take pride in what you’re trying to do or take it seriously. I promise you, it’s very serious to the person looking to fill a writing position.
5. Slow down, proofread, walk away and come back then reread your message. You’ll be glad you did. More often than not you’ll see corrections you need to make.
6. Don’t over kill with enthusiasm. I already know you think you’re the right person for the job and don’t need a full page letter telling me so. The long sales pitch is NOT going to get read. Keep it brief and to the point.
7. Pay attention to the directions in the job/project posting. Simple things you overlook could cost you the gig. It’s a way to see if you pay attention to details and can follow instructions. I’ve learned to watch closely for those who don’t. It sets a precedent for what’s to come. Oh, and if you tell me flat out, “Well, I didn’t read the instructions and just gave you what you wanted.” Hello? No you didn’t because you didn’t follow the instructions …at all. The most you’re going to get out of me is a dumb founded laugh. How is it a person thinks they gave you what you asked for if they didn’t read what was needed? I still giggle over that one. BTW, he does not write for me.

I know I have more tips, but these are the ones that come to mind for me. I have some funny ones I just can’t put up; I feel like the person could stop by at some point and see it posted. I don’t think it’s fair to do that to a person. My advice to anyone applying for a writing gig or any job, is to make absolutely 100% sure you do your best to write correctly. If you don’t, I’d lay odds you won’t even be considered.

If you have any tips you can share to help those looking to land their next writing gig, please leave them in the comments. I know I didn’t list them all and there are some really great ones out there. I can always use more to share!

#blogboost
#SHINEonline

One of the most valuable resources for a freelance writer is an online community filled with other writers. There are numerous writer forums to choose from but one thing they all have in common is a need for members to be polite to one another. After all, you never know when the person you are slamming is going to be in a position to hire you, or keep you from being hired. You would think the number of freelance writers online would be huge but in fact, niche circles tend to be quite small with many writers knowing each other or having mutual friends. Keeping that in mind, how should you behave in online forums?

• Post Frequently – You need to build a report with the other forum members. You can do this by taking the time to post information you think will be useful to other members of the community. While frequency is important, so is quality. Asking questions and promoting yourself is fine but try to add posts of substance and value as well.
• Be Helpful – Read the forums on a regular basis and not just when you need a boost or when you have a question. Other writers, new as well as experienced, will be searching for motivation and assistance too. Offer a comment of encouragement or a solution to a problem whenever you are able.
• Be Polite – Even if you think someone is being a twit, don’t slam them. If you can’t say something nice at least try to put your statement as politely as possible.
• Clients – Often potential clients will haunt forums trying to get a feel for new writers or finding out what current writers have to say about them. If you have a problem with a client, a forum is not the best place to air all of your dirty laundry. If you are convinced an ‘opportunity’ is a scam, you should absolutely warn other members, politely of course. But if the client is legitimate and the two of you are not getting along, you should probably keep that private or at least limit it to direct messages from people who have specifically asked for additional information. New clients who are watching will remember how you have talked about previous clients.
• Signature – Your signature is a great place to self promote. You can add links to your favorite content, your primary web page, or an affiliate product. However, adding multiple links that creates an excessively long signature can give the appearance of spam. Pick one or two favorites per forum.

How do you think people should behave when they are on a forum? Did I miss one, or more, of your pet peeves? Leave it in the comment section, so everyone can work towards being a better community member!

<3 Birdie