Digital Memoir Links

Here are some links you might helpful when writing your own digital narrative.

Sample narrative weblogs:

http://tammypowley.com/
http://www.superherojournal.com/
http://www.dooce.com/
http://tappingflamingo.blogspot.com/

Free places to blog:

http://wordpress.com/
http://www.blogger.com
http://blog.com/

How-to Blogging Videos:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MWYi4_COZMU (wordpress)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qWy4hJgOedU (wordpress)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=31Of-Shuyu8 (blogger)

Memoir how-to’s:

http://theamericanscholar.org/how-to-write-a-memoir/
http://www.creative-writing-now.com/how-to-write-a-memoir.html
http://www.oprah.com/omagazine/How-to-Write-Your-Memoir-by-Abigail-Thomas
http://www.rd.com/money/great-tips-on-how-to-write-your-memoir/
http://ashleyanderson.suite101.com/how-to-write-a-memoir-a171259
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=5340618
http://teacher.scholastic.com/writeit/memoir/

For some inspiration, go to TED.com and watch this video of Carmen Agra Deedy who tells a funny story about her mother.

How to Make Hot Links

This is how to make a hot link to a web site such as google.

New Blog Class Scheduled – March 08

Spring is in the air as well as weblogging at Indian River Community College’s Lifelong Learn Institute.

I am teaching a Blogging Basics class there next month. Classes will be held at IRCC’s St. Lucie West campus March 5th, 12th, and 19th.

You can find out more about the when/where/how at the LLI web site.

Starting a Blog

Once you know what you are going to write about, you are pretty much ready to get started blogging. The next step is to decide where and those new to blogging usually start with some of the better known free blog networks available such as wordpress.com, blogger.com, or livejournal.com. These are some of the better known free networks, and for the most part, they are fairly user-friendly. Each is a little different when it comes to templates (how the finished blog looks) and interface (how you operate the software).  Start by going to some of the free networks and looking at other blogs to see how you like the templates as well as the general feel for getting around the network. If one seems easier to use than another, then you might want to try starting a blog with that one first. Most of the free blog places on the web try to be user-friendly, but it can be very subjective as to what seems easy to you versus another person. If you like one over another, then this might be a good place to try setting up your first blog.

Blog Topic Brainstorming

When starting a blog, one of the most important and probably the most difficult steps is deciding what topic your blog will cover. Many journal-style blogs cover a number of topics. For example, dooce.com talks about her dog, her daughter, her husband, her house, and her religious beliefs. However, even though she covers a number of topics in one blog, all of them are related to her own life experiences, which mirror those of many of her readers and could be one reason her blog is so popular.  To become a regular blogger, meaning some who will post entries multiple times a week if not every day, you need a topic you are passionate about. Writing about the same thing day after day can get really boring if it is something you are only mildly interested in. It can also become challenging after awhile to think of something to say that some one else will care to read. Make a list of ideas that you are (if not passionate about) very interested in, something you do regularly right now: 

• What do you do for work?
• What sort of hobbies do you have?
• What do you read about regularly?
• What activities are important in your life?

All of these can give you ideas for blogging.  

Joining the Blogosphere

Most bloggers start out as blog readers. They usually have a few blogs they like to read regularly, either by bookmarking them on a web browser and visiting daily or subscribing to an RSS feed. So, if you want to join, that’s your first step: become a blog reader. After becoming a reader, the next step is normally to start commenting on these blogs, thus becoming part of the conversation; however, technically to become a full-member of the blogosphere, you need to blog. It sounds like a large leap from reader to casual commenter to blogger, but because of the free access to blog software and user-friendly platform most of them have, it’s really not that difficult.  You’ll need to determine the answers to the following questions to get started blogging: 

• What is my purpose for blogging?
• What type of blog do I want to write? Filter? K-blog? Journal? Combination?
• Who do I want to host my blog? Assuming you want free hosting, options might be WordPress.com or Blogger.com (for example).
• What do I want to blog about? Can you word this topic into phrase, tagline, or subtitle?
• What would I like the title of my blog to be? (This can affect your URL.)
• Do I want my blog to be public or limit it to a select group who will need a password to access it?
• Would I at some point want to earn some revenue from my blog?

Blog Hosting

Many web hosts (Internet Service Providers aka ISPs) these days can host a blog, so if you don’t want to use a freebie blog any more, you can check first with your local ISP to see if it has this available. The thing is that you will need some place to host (as in store your web files), but you also might need some place to get the weblog software. Tyepad (http://www.typepad.com/) is one place that provides both hosting and software to run your blog. However, many regular Internet hosts do not provide the software to blog as well, so you need to buy this yourself. It’s not like using HTML, which is a language, not a software package. With HTML, anyone can create a web page using something as simple as Notepad. You just need to know the language. Blog software isn’t like this. It is software that, if you plan to run your own blog minus a network of any kind, you need to buy.

Blog Post Brainstorming

Normally, the first post most bloggers make on their blog is sort of an introduction. For example, they’ll talk about who they are and why they are writing the blog in the first place – their initial reason for setting it up. But, then what do you do? Sure you had lots of ideas at one time, but now you find yourself staring at a blank screen and your mind is blank as well. Here are a few ideas to get your blog brain jump-started: 

• Write a tutorial, a “how-to,” related to your topic.
• Review a book (great way to add an Amazon affiliate link too).
• Examine the pros and cons of an issue.
• Answer a question from a reader or address a comment made.
• Interview an important, up and coming, or controversial person your niche.
• Post about a current event or news item related to your topic.
• Write a post aimed at beginners in your area of expertise.
• Debunk a myth related to your topic.
• Post about frequently asked questions in your topic area.
• Write a post about another blogger’s post.

I borrowed a few ideas for the above list from the following blog post, which has lots of other great ideas to get your blog brain going:http://www.ihelpyoublog.com/20070316-101-great-posting-ideas-that-will-make-your-blog-sizzle

Blog Parts & Pieces

HWY Blogs has an excellent visual break down of the parts and pieces that make up a blog:

Not all blogs have all of these items, especially numbers 13 and 14 (above), but generally, this is a pretty good visual example.

Blog Preliminaries

Before jumping into the blogosphere and starting your own blog, it’s a good idea to do a little preliminary brainstorming first. Below are a few questions to consider before starting your first blog: 

• What is my purpose for blogging?
• What type of blog do I want to write? Filter? K-blog? Journal? Combination?
• Who do I want to host my blog? Assuming you want free hosting, options might be WordPress.com or Blogger.com (for example).
• What do I want to blog about? Can you word this topic into phrase, tagline, or subtitle?
• What would I like the title of my blog to be? (This can affect your URL.)
• Do I want my blog to be public or limit it to a select group who will need a password to access it?
• Would I at some point want to earn some revenue from my blog?

By answering these questions before you start up a blog, you can save yourself a lot of time and thoughtfully create a blog you will enjoy blogging on regularly.