Surgically removed

On Tuesday, my baby girl, the fruit of my loins, is having surgery. I’ve been effectively not thinking about this for weeks. But now it’s right here, days away. It’s a supposedly easy, out-patient thing, but she has to go completely under – and, well, it’s surgery. And she’s so little.

She’s having surgery to have her adenoids removed because she can’t breathe and because we’ve tried everything else and because they’re causing her pain and discomfort and hearing loss and tooth decay and god knows what else.

So, I’m trying to find something good here in this situation – because to sit around and worry is, well, really stupid. And here’s what occurred to me. There are times when I have tried everything, when I’ve explored every option – but the pain and discomfort and god knows what else is still there.

How cool would it be if surgery were an option for me? There are some things I’d like to have surgically removed. Like my knack for procrastination and people that don’t use their turn signals and the scarcity of time and my intense need for Vanilla Coconut Bliss with carob powder smushed into it.

I’d love to have those things hacked off. Or sucked out. Like liposuction.

In one of my favorite movies, Someone Like You, Ashley Judd goes to the doctor and asks him to remove her amygdala  – the part of the brain that retains sense memory – because every time she smells laundry or vanilla it reminds her of her ex-boyfriend and she’s thrown into a tailspin of heartache. It’s a fantastic scene. Raise your hand if you can relate.

What about you? What would you have removed? You know, if you could do it painlessly, easily, with no recovery time required – oh, and, of course, if your health insurance would cover it.

Image credit: aesop

The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo meets Writing Roads (another girl with a tattoo or three)

I’m bad at picking books to read at the bookstore, you know, when it’s just me and shelves of beautifully packaged words. Apparently I missed that gene. I get swayed by the cover or the fact that the author’s name kind of looks like mine and I’m blinded by the dream of being published. Anywho, the ones I pick up on my own almost always disappoint.

Thank the good lord, I’m very good at taking book orders recommendations.

I might be a little annoying about it too. I ask a million questions, like: Do any animals get hurt? (I literally can’t take it) and Is it scary? and How fast, exactly, do you think I’ll be able to read it? (Because the world has to stop until I finish). I like to get the full review before I invest my time and I like to know what I’m getting myself into it. I demand full ‘word of mouth’ service.

As a result, I end up with superb books. Books that smart people told me I had to read. Or else.

Even though I like girls with tattoos…

And so it was with The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo. First of all, I never would have picked this book up on my own. Even though I like girls with tattoos, I’m not into dragons. And it’s a murder mystery type of book, not my usual genre. But, my parents – who have a superb reading record (I did get that gene) – gave it to me for Christmas. And I saw their eyes light up when I ripped the wrapping paper away. And I knew that even though this book promised some unpleasant subject matter, and even though it started out with a lot of hooha about banking and business (yawn) – this book was going to be a keeper.

Turns out, it’s a trilogy: The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo, The Girl Who Played With Fire and The Girl Who Kicked The Hornets’ Nest. Adding to the intrigue is that the author, Stieg Larsson, died of a heart attack right after he handed in his manuscripts. He has no idea that he’s sold millions of books, that this book is becoming a raving hit and that three movies have been made based on the trilogy. A writer’s life is just full of ironical detours, eh?

Is fiction ever really fiction?

There’s also more intrigue in that his life oddly mirrors much of his protagonist’s life. You know how I love when art imitates life and when fiction isn’t really all that fictional. And, for the geeky among us, this is the first book I’ve read where modern technology (laptops, email, the internet, hackers) are seamlessly interwoven into the story without seeming artificial.

My latest GIG…

And then the planets collided and I was hired to do the social media marketing campaign for the first movie. The author, the books and the movie are all Swedish, and they’ve reached cult status overseas, both the books and the movie have won prestigious awards over there. My campaign over here is going to be very bloggy. I’m staging a mystery for readers to solve across the blogosphere...so stay tuned. You could win premier tickets, meet-ups with the actual girl with the dragon tattoo, shirts, books…the whole bit.

I think books are best found through word of mouth…and now I’ve been charged with the task of putting this book into as many wordy mouths as humanly possible. How cool is that?

And, between you and me, the book is that good. So, read it. Or else. And then, tell everyone you know about it. Or else. And then, go see the movie. Or else. And then, tell everyone you know to see it. You know, or else.

Need to improve your blog rank and traffic?

This is a familiar client/Writing Roads scenario:

Me: If you want to be part of the world online, you must have a blog (for all of these reasons and more)

Client: Okay great…how often will I have to post? Like once a month?

Me: Uh, no. A little more than that.

Client: Twice a month? Just tell me how often should I publish to get the most ROI?

Me: Honestly, as much as possible. But at least 2-3 times per week.

And then they pass out.

The thing is, I’m not just talking out of my arse.

Take this blog, for instance:

• I used to blog Monday – Friday. As a result, after about 9 months of steadily rising stats, I had an Alexa rank of 123,000. (Which is really, really good – Google is #1)
• Last spring, I got insanely busy and I decided it wouldn’t hurt to drop down on my posting. So I went to Monday, Wednesday and Friday posts, 3x/week. My Alexa rank steadily fell to the 300,000 mark. (Not anywhere near as good)
• About 3 weeks ago, I started posting every day, Monday – Friday, again. No less busy – possibly more, but I just wanted to (because I love writing this blog), so I did. And I’ve watched my Alexa rank rise 100,000 spots and my spider (and visitor) stats increase. That’s 100K in about 13 posts. As of this writing, my rank is 199,000 (and rising)

The proof really is, as they say, in the pudding. If you want your blog to do better, (one of the methods that works is to) write, produce and publish more good content that tells the world all that you know about your chosen topic.

The good news, for both of us, is that if you don’t have the time or ability to do all of this blogging, you can hire someone to do it for you. I know, it’s a brilliant solution. You can do what you do best (cut hair, build houses, train chickens, whatever) and I, or some other writer, can do what we do best – produce engaging content. It’s a win/win sitch. No heavy lifting required.

Image credit: The Truth About…

Geek Girl Camp 2010!!!

It’s that time again, yes, indeedy. And, I’m so excited. After a fantastic inaugural year – in which Geek Girl took off like gangbusters (on Red Bull) – I can’t wait to see what this second season brings.

What? You don’t know about Geek Girl Camp? Or the Geek Girls? Where do I begin!

1. The fabulous, brilliant, selfless, kind and energetic fireball otherwise known as Leslie Fishlock, had an IDEA.
2. She was on a mission to make sure that every woman/girl/chiquita had the opportunity to learn about tech (computers, social media, apps, programs, you name it) in a safe, non-threatening, supportive way.
3. Boom. She assembled a world-class, top-notch team (cough, cough – yes, if I do say so myself) of Geek Girls to teach, share and spread the good word.
4. Two Geek Girl Camps (GGC) exploded on the scene last spring (on Cape Cod and in Boston) offering full day seminars with loads of workshops on every technology topic imaginable at an insanely affordable price ($140) – oh, and there was a party with a signature alcoholic beverage to boot.
5. I was honored to teach 10 workshops at GGC over 2 days about blogging (how to, abc’s, finding voice, using blogs to grow your business) and social media.
6. Geek Girl for Hire was created – sending out single or multi-womaned troops to companies and organizations everywhere teaching geek and tech.
7. Operation Laptop Donation for Women was put into full effect – taking discarded laptops, cleaning them up and giving them to women (going back to school or work) in need.

The first Geek Girl Camp for 2010 has been announced, and I can’t wait to lead my blogging workshops and be a part of this phenomenalness again! I hope to see you there. Tell everyone you know. Here’s the deal (and make sure you grab the discount code at the bottom, you only have until Jan. 1st!!!):

The color blue to you, the color blue to me

Granted, I live in a place that is considered to be a vacation paradise. And granted, I used to feel that way when I didn’t live here. And granted, I still do feel that way some days, but having lived here for a couple of years, many days it just feels like ‘home’ or ‘the place that I live’.

So, I was shocked today when, as I was on my way to do something as mundane as possible (in this case, getting gas), I saw a woman contorting her body in the weirdest way in the fire department parking lot. What in the world is she doing? I’m thinking to myself. And then it became clear. She was taking a picture of the fire truck’s license plate. Not even the big fire engine, mind you, but the fire truck, the one that looks like a big red pick-up truck with a decal on the door…because that’s exactly what it is.

Back in the 80′s, Dennis Miller put out a comedy record called The Off-White Album. And even at the ripe old age of 15, the raunchy, sarcastic wit on this album did not get past me. No, sir. In particular and in one segment, he made rabid fun of pot smokers and mused about a stoner pondering life’s big questions in the midst of his dazed high. In the voice of an uber-stoned Bill or Ted, he asked “How do I know that the color blue to you…is the same color blue to me.”

I remember really thinking about that and freaking myself out a wee, tiny, little bit.

And I think that we can all agree that the woman with the camera in the parking lot today proves that Dennis Miller and his stoner were really onto something. Because to that woman, the license truck was picture-worthy, exciting, something to write home about. To me – cantankerously and jaded, perhaps – it was a dented piece of metal, just a license plate.

Can any two people look at the same object or have the same experience and feel, see, hear, smell, taste and analyze it the same way? Is a rose just a rose?

I’m going with no. (And if you do some research, you’ll see that Gertrude Stein didn’t think it was either.) It’s part of what makes writing (and reading) (and blogging) (and practically everything) so exciting – there are as many interpretations as there are fingers, eyes, ears, noses, mouths and minds. The experiences may be similar, but not the same. Even without the pot.

Image credit: atomicshark

Blog content: trunks, branches, leaves

I just came across a post by Ari Herzog where he answers the question, ‘Should bloggers only blog about one topic or is it okay for them to talk about a lot of different things?’

I was relieved actually to see that his answer was quite liberal; he (with quote help from Jake Halpern) said that bloggers need to blog about what interests them. If the topics start to spread, so be it.

But, I have to add something to that. I agree that if you aren’t writing about your passions, then the writing will fall flat. Still, I think there has to be a tie that binds. It could be an industry, a product, a service, a genre, a person, a group, a pair of pants…something.

When I talk to companies/business about blog content strategy, I use the image of a tree. The blog’s main topic, your main theme is the trunk of the tree. All of the posts that you write are the branches and leaves of the tree.

Some posts will literally spring from the trunk, like those first two or three branches that separate and grow up and out.

Some posts will be quite far removed from the trunk, they’ll be those teeny tiny branches, fifty feet out, reaching into the sun – but they will still be connected to the trunk, they’re definitively part of the same tree.

And then you’ve got the posts that are everything else in between. But there’s always a connection, no matter how small.

Why is this important?

1. You don’t want your readers to get lost or confused. Make them feel good and smart, not disoriented and dumb.
2. You want to have a point. Otherwise you might end up sounding disoriented and dumb.
3. If you’re blogging for business, it’s good to have a tie back to your product, service or industry. If your blogs purpose it to showcase your talents as a dance coach, I’m not sure how talking about the many ways to cook an egg will help you.
4. You’re building a relationship with your readers. If you always blog about painting and suddenly throw in some posts about roller derbies, they’re going to feel a rift in the relationship. They might even feel abandoned and leave you comments like, ‘I don’t even know who you are anymore.’

I’m all for expanding your content. The more branches you create, the more likely you are to catch the web traffic blowing by in your tree. Just do your readers a favor and maintain your core connection.

Image credit: joiseyshowaa

Free eBook – Finding Your Voice in a Crowded World: Personal Branding, Social Media and You

So excited about my new ebook that I wrote with Ron Miller for our Soc Media 101 site (tips & how-to’s for beginners). Actually, the idea for the book came first and the blog formed around it…

Finding Your Voice in a Crowded World: Personal Branding, Social Media and You takes a look at how you can make yourself stand out when everyone’s hopping on the social media train. And you get two perspectives: my marketing/creative writing perspective and Ron’s technology/journalism perspective.

Read it, Enjoy it, Pass it on…(and thanks for being such wonderful blog readers and commenters!)

Click the book, get your free download!

When people are searching for Dirty Dancing, but find You

As much of a control freak as I am, there’s something that I love about the randomness of the internet and social media. Perhaps because the form this randomness takes is in wowzah bursts of opportunity. You know, that you can start talking to someone on Twitter about dogs and the next thing you know you’re writing the blog for the American Kennel Club. Or you reconnect with an old friend from high school and they hire you to ghostwrite their shark taming memoir.

Neither of those things has actually happened to me…yet. But other wild things have, so I’m not ruling anything out. The point is that anything can and will happen when you cast your net.

Last Search Terms

If you have a blog or a website, and it has any sort of analytic capability, you’ve probably noticed that there’s a section within your stats that serves as a bastion of randomousity. (Yes, I made that word up.)

In my blog stats, this section is called ‘Last Search Terms’ and it shows me what word or phrase visitors typed into their search engine that led them to my site.

I marvel when those terms include ‘marketing writer,’ ‘how to use Twitter,’ ‘optimism in recession’ and ‘copywriter, finding my niche’ – the search engines really earned their paychecks there.

Dirty Dancing

But, some time ago, I wrote a post about viral marketing that was inspired by the Oprah show. Oprah featured people who had found fame and fortune via YouTube and their (cough) ridiculous viral videos. One of these videos included a bride and groom that learned that final Dirty Dancing dance and performed it at their wedding. In true Oprah fashion, Patrick Swayze came out and danced with the bride on the show. The picture at the top of my post shows Patrick Swayze and Jennifer Grey mid-dance in the movie circa 1987.

I’m shocked by how many times my ‘Last Search Terms’ shows that people landed on my site having searched for ‘Dirty Dancing.’ At least twice a day, every day. Just imagine their surprise. They do get their Dirty Dancing picture, but it comes along with a blog and website about copywriting, marketing, freelancing, social media…the works.

While I don’t actually know if those random customers become readers, subscribers or clients (I mean, really, who would admit that in the end), I can only guess that some of the people searching for ‘Dirty Dancing,’ ‘elevator music writing’ and ‘yoga book children’ arrive here, look around and stay – deciding to continue looking for all things ‘Nobody puts baby in a corner’ at some later date. That this randomness of search landing has actually led them to something and someone they needed (even if they didn’t realize it originally) is pretty cool.

Getting caught in the branches

When you write your blog, start with a clear goal and a main theme. This is the trunk of your blogging tree. Then, each post will contain variations on the theme, offshoots, branches. Some will be thick and sturdy, very closely related to the main concept, and others will be smaller and thin – still connected, though perhaps more far reaching. Build a big tree – with plenty of branches for easy and intriguing landing for a wide range of people and interests.

Unless that branch is hanging on a neighboring tree or lying on the ground, it is connected. And as the winds of the internet blow by, you never know who’ll get stuck in your branches, eat a leaf and fly on, and who will build a nest – long lasting and here to stay.

Don’t pick the G.I. Joe action figure

Image courtesy of Destro

We have a toy philosophy for our kids that basically states: go open ended.

But, back to the toys. If you give kids a G.I. Joe action figure, you’ve basically defined for them the who, what, how and why of the toy. I mean where do they really have to go with it?

Juxtapose that with a wooden block. A wooden block can be anything. A dog, a car, a mountain…could even be G.I. Joe.

A static, brochure website is the equivalent of the G.I. Joe toy. Basically, it is what it is. You can change up your content or your images (if you have an easy to navigate content management system (CMS))…but to really expand it any way, you’d have to pay big bucks to a designer or coder. Just like you’d have to buy G.I. Joe’s new uber-tank to expand his outfit and capabilities.

But, the blog is the wooden block. It’s designed to be anything you want, anything you can imagine – and it’s made to grow by:

• the blogger him/herself
• the theme
• the blogging software
• the blog posts
• the plug-ins
• the widgets
• the links
• the readers
• the subscribers
• the sponsors
• the writer’s growing expertise
• the industry’s transformation
• the traffic
• the comments
• the search engine ranking
• the inquiries
• the relationships
• the technological advances
• the infinite possibilities…

Which one do you want??? Just askin’…

You get to choose what happens next

Do you remember those books? You started reading and then came to a point where you could:

1. Go up the ladder.
2. Climb down the hole.

Whichever choice you picked offered new choices, and so on and so forth. It was exciting because one physical book actually contained several stories. The number of possible stories was ultimately fixed, however – let’s say limited to 50 different variations that you could take.

But, that was the 80′s.

Today, I open up Firefox and I start reading my daily feeds. That first post contains about 5 links, and it all begins. I click on a link, read that article which contains other links. The machine is set in motion and there is no way of knowing where it will take me, what I’ll find. And, there is no fixed number of stories. I suppose some MIT scholar could give us some idea…but it’s a big number. Huge, incomprehensible to the likes of me.

It speaks to me of potential and opportunity as a writer, as a speaker, as a consultant, as a person. It reminds me that the possibilities are endless and that I can create whatever I want in my work and in my life. Exactly the sentiment I’m riding as I burst into this new year.

And…you?