Tag Archives | blogging

I love my iPad, and why social networks should all burn in hell

Written by on September 19, 2011
Filed Under Mobile Technology

It’s been a long, long, long week after getting my preeeeccciiioouss new iPad, downloading apps, sifting through it all and going through the settings to get it prepared for my Rocky Mountain road trip.  Not only that, I also went back through my iPhone as well and did some major housecleaning, and *ahem*, my MacBook too.  Yes I am a Macaddict, and I don’t care who knows.

Panorama at Captree State Park using AutoStitch, an iPhone app

The end result was to change everything about how I push my content to my blog and social networks, testing apps like Instagram, apps for photo editing and adding special effects, and finally apps to do some form of offline blogging.

A sephia colored photo of Robert Moses, edited on my iPad using PhotoForge2

It occurred to me that all these apps had one thing in common: they all had sharing functions that allowed me to share photos and other content I created to Facebook, Twitter, Flickr, even Foursquare, but no sharing function whatsoever to easily push the same content to the place I really wanted it to go:  MY &#@$($ING BLOG.

A closed Italian food stand, edited using ColorRange on my iPhone

It’s a conspiracy against bloggers I tell ya:  a systematic effort to ensure that social networks can all profit from the content I GIVE THEM.  And why not?  It’s the only way I can maximize my reach after all, even if it means I am in essence sending people AWAY from my site, and not TO it.  That’s why this last week has been an exercise in massive frustration on how I could somehow turn all that around.  How can I seed social networks with my content, and yet at the same time still give people a reason to come to my site, so I can continue to expand my readerships and metrics at least to the point where brands don’t roll around the floor laughing to tears when I tell them how much traffic my blog gets?  Aye, there’s the rub.

A paddler at Captree, filtered using Dynalight HD on the iPad

Since I want a large part of my blogging to involve the photography I do, I’ve had to establish a workflow that would make it easy for me to push my work everywhere on teh internetz, while still giving me plenty of time to enjoy my travels, and I think I’ve acheived that somewhat.  The first step was getting an Eye-fi card with direct mode, allowing me the pleasure of wirelessly transferring photos I take with my Canon s95 straight to my iPhone.  With the impending arrival of Apple’s iCloud, the photos will also show up on my iPad and my MacBook once I come across a WiFi network.  All my photo content will then be synced across all my devices, including my camera.  I can then use any of my Apple gadgets to edit, add special effects or filter these photos before uploading them to Flickr, which I decided to use as my central repository for my online photo collection.  With the use of an app called FlickStackr, I can upload these photos in an optimized and resized format, then use its sharing function to disemminate these photos on Twitter, Facebook, etc..  I can also use Blogsy to quickly showcase these same photos on my blog as well.

At least that’s how I think I’ll be doing it.  I figured I would use my iPhone for these tasks when I’m moving around, then my iPad when I’ve had a chance to sit down and take a breath (or when I’m dining somewhere), and finally my MacBook when I’m all settled in at the hotel.

I also have the option of emailing photos to Flickr instead, which is set up to automatically publish the same photo to my blog.  I’m not sure this is the route I want to take though, as I don’t have much flexibility in how I can resize photos or format the post, but it is an option.  It also has the advantage of forcing people to come to my blog to see the photo, rather than seeing it consumed on other social networks.  The only downside is that it doesn’t populate Twitter’s new user gallery of photos (they don’t see my blog as a photo service, the filthy scum suckers.)  Although… I could use Instagram for that instead.

In fact I’m starting to understand why Instagram is so popular now.  When they say it’s easy to share, they are NOT lying.  I can easily share each photo to Flickr, Twitter, Foursquare, Facebook at the same time without breaking a sweat, whereas with other apps, you can usually only do these one after the other, and often their sharing is limited to Twitter or Facebook only.  Notice though, there’s no option by Instagram to share photos to my blog.  Of course.

I guess I could either round up all the Instagram photos I’ve taken for the day and compile them into one post, but I guess this is still something I need to experiment around with.

In any event, at least the worst of it is out of the way, and I can finally look forward to a very hi-tech (and hopefully equally rewarding) road trip.  Assuming I don’t get hit by a train this week.

Comments { 18 }

Finding my place as a travel writer / blogger on teh internetz

Written by on August 30, 2011
Filed Under Blogging

Who am I?  What’s my purpose here?  And where did this rash on my butt come from?  *scratches*

These were questions that have been weighing on my mind lately, especially when I had to abandon an assignment I received after making a pitch to a popular travel site.   The assignment was to write an article about leaf peeping during the fall, and I was hoping I could get an article published there to boost my credibility as a travel writer, and also finally start developing what journalists call a “clipping.”  Clippings, if you don’t already know, are samples of work by a writer that were published at notable publications and popular sites.  It helps to establish their authenticity as a professional writer, as well as provide proof that they have access to outlets with a high circulation of readers.

As far as that goes, I have zero credibility as a travel writer, because I’ve never been published any where.  There may have been things published ABOUT me though (specifically police bulletins,) but I don’t think that counts.

So anyway, I make this pitch about leaf peeping in the Smoky mountains and how to avoid the crowds during that time, and it gets rejected.  Partly because the topic was too narrow, and they wanted something a little bit more broader than what I proposed.  So I re-pitched the same idea, only including a few other places besides the Smokies, and this time it tentatively gets accepted.

Only problem was, they wanted 8-10 destinations covered, including a few international as well, and wanted details on where it was, what makes it such a great place to see the leaves change, when to go, how to avoid crowds, etc.

And they wanted an outline in two days, AND a 1,200 word article draft in a week or less.

What?

I suppose that’s normal for journalists who face these kinds of deadlines all the time, but… what?

It was an unexpected broadside in a week where I already needed to complete a few time consuming projects, but I was hoping I could still get to it and eventually get the article published.  But alas, it was not to be.

I noticed though, whenever I had time to spare for researching and developing the kind of article they wanted, that the art of writing was no longer becoming fun for me.  It was starting to feel more like… work.

It didn’t help that I had to write in a format that I have come to absolutely DESPISE too, a format known as “list articles,” where every title starts with “X amount of ways to do <fill in the blank>.”  And they are EVERYWHERE on the Internet.

“27 ways to wash your car!”  
“13 steps to tweezing your nose hairs”
“6,240 ways that you can bite me”

Ugh.  I can’t write like that.  And when I try to, it always builds up my anxiety to the point where I have to physically stop and take a walk outside just to calm down again.  I consider my writing to be a reflection of my personality, and when I have to write in such a rigid, stupid (yes, STUPID) format, it’s like I’m forcing myself to change my personality.

There are experts who say list articles are so predominant because they are highly popular and easy to absorb by people who tend to scan rather than read content on the Internet, and if I’m ever going to succeed as a writer, then I MUST WRITE THIS WAY OR BE A FAILURE FOREVER.

Oh, and it can’t be too long either, a rule I’ve already broken with this post.  Oh, and it has to include lots of photos to break the monotony.  Yet another strike against this post.

You know what?  The world’s smallest violin just emailed me to say, “I don’t give a rat’s ballsack.”

Has it occurred to any of them that maybe people scan content not just for lack of time, but because 99% of what they read is utter, soulless crap?

Do I need to be a part of the problem here, even if it may be the only way I can establish myself as a legitimate travel writer to the point where I could do this full time?

Or maybe I should develop my own path, and see where the road leads from there?

It’s not that I shun the work either, but it should be a FUN kind of work, you know?  I already have a soul-sucking, dead-end job, so why exert all this effort and play by the industry’s rules, only to exchange my current job for a career that will wind up being just as soul sucking?  Stupid.

There’s a certain… debonair quality to how I write:  comfortable, loose, carefree, and occasionally, somewhat insane.  But that’s me.  It’s how I express myself, and I find immense joy in that.

So I’ve made my decision.  If I’m ever to realize my dreams of being a self-employed writer/blogger, then it must be on my terms.

Oh, and in case you’d like a more detailed explanation of what those terms are, please see my article, “19 Reasons Why the Internet Should Acknowledge the Dripping Awesome Sauce That is Me.”  I’ll be publishing an eBook with the same title as well.

Comments { 16 }

Blogging Anniversary – Celebrating 5 years of rantings, screeds, wailings, gnashing of teeth, and unmitigated failures!

Written by on July 29, 2011
Filed Under Blogging

Exactly five years ago I started this blog.  Five years… my goodness has it been that long?

First it was a legal blog, but when that career path got derailed, then it became about… nothing.  Then it morphed into a series of online screeds about internet dating sites and how their creators needed to be exterminated from existence for unleashing such a vile plague onto the world.

But then I focused on… errr…. writing more rants on internet dating sites.

Yeah, it seemed like the well was pretty much dry.  I kept rehashing the same complaints over and over again, and just had nothing new to say anymore.  I thought many times about just deleting this blog altogether and moving on, because the hard truth was, my life, and thus my blog was going around in circles.

Pee Wee herman going around in circles

But then somewhere along the way, I decided to take a nice long trip to upstate New York after a very lengthy vacationing hiatus.  And eventually a seed was planted in my head:  why not blog about traveling?

Not too long after that trip, I eventually bought a GPS, discovered the joys (and horrors) of geocaching, and before I knew it, I had something new to write about again.

The more I focused on the traveling niche, the more I liked the idea of being a travel blogger.  Ever since I gave up on pursuing a legal career, my dream evolved into a desire to earn a living through the Internet, whether as a blogger or by some other means.  I wanted the freedom to move and live anywhere, the freedom of not having a boss or group of co-workers who dragged me down.  Being a travel blogger seemed like a good fit to achieving that dream.

But could I pull that off?  Eh.

I couldn’t shake off the feeling that I would be doomed to fail, just like I’ve failed at everything else in life.  Indeed, Mashable.com had just celebrated their own blogging anniversary a few days before me.  They only started their site a year earlier than I did, and they are now a multi-million dollar enterprise.   In my case, I grinded away on this blog for 5 years, trying to brainstorm ways to rake in traffic, develop an income and ultimately achieve my dream.  And after 5 years, I have nothing to show for my efforts.  At one point though I thought I was making progress, as my site was gaining almost $600 of revenue a month during its high point, money I was able to set aside to fund more traveling adventures.  But then Google inexplicably reduced my ranking and my traffic, effectively erasing 3 years of the progress I was making.  Now I only make $200 a month in revenue if I’m lucky.    Definitely can’t quit my deadend job now.

Do I give up?  I want to, but it would be stupid to abandon a blog that’s still making me money.  Plus a friend of mine is convinced I may be on the precipice of something huge, especially after the year I’ve had, and that I definitely should NOT give up now.

Indeed, I have traveled a lot for the past year, more than I’ve ever traveled in decades.  Before all this I hadn’t flown on a plane in literally 20 years, but in the past 10 months alone I’ve already flown 4 times, driven over 6,000 miles, and visited nearly half the states in the U.S.  It has been a banner year so far, and during that time I’ve attended conferences such as BlogWorld and SXSW, worked with several sponsors who provided me free products, paid me good money, even funded some of my trips, and am now taking a travel writing seminar to improve my skills even more.

I may also wind up being a featured columnist for a company blog this fall, which could open doors to even more opportunities.  As the summer winds down, I’m getting myself ready for that possibility too.  I’ve been busy behind the scenes just trying to prepare myself and practice for the potential life of becoming a freelance writer, including forcing myself to research the best notetaking tools, experimenting with and reviewing iPhone apps related to the travel niche, improving my photographic skills both on my camera and on the iPhone, and finally, developing a database of newsfeeds that can inform me with relevant news around the industry without overwhelming me with too much info.

It’s been a lot of work, but I hope, truly hope, that someday, it will all come to fruition.

And if not, well, I do have that trip to the Rocky Mountains to look forward to.  :-)

Walking on railroad

Where will my blogging journey ultimately take me?

Comments { 14 }

I’m in it for the long haul

Written by on April 24, 2011
Filed Under Blogging

I’ve been cleaning out my news feeds and have been utterly amazed at the number of blogs I subscribed to that are no longer active. Now they are merely memories of times past, relics of the Internet that have faded into oblivion, their authors having either grown tired of writing or simply moved on with their lives. Just now I read a post of a popular travel blogger who is also planning to hang up his hat after 6 years of travel blogging. The lifestyle of always being on the go and writing on a regular basis eventually wore on him, and it made me wonder: will it wear on me too?

After looking back, I realized I had been blogging in one form or another since 2000, and while I’ve maintained portals and a variety of blogs over the years, the one constant through it all is that I never really stopped writing. I would shut down a blog and declare once and for all that I would never, EVER write again, only to start a new blog the next day.

Even the major headaches of revamping this site wasn’t enough for me to say sod all and go play video games (although it came CLOSE to that at times.) I guess when it comes down to it, I really am a writer at heart. I enjoying sharing my stories… despite the fact that my prose is utter crap half the time and that I often write like a petulant third grader who’s just been sent to time-out.

But still, I write. And write. I’m here to stay.

Comments { 2 }

I’m getting antsy in my pantsy

Written by on February 2, 2011
Filed Under Personal Reflections

It’s been 8 weeks since I traveled, and the restlessness from not having gone anywhere for that long is driving me bonkies. Even a day in Manhattan hasn’t been enough to satiate my wanderlust. I feel the road calling, and I must heed its call if I’m to maintain my sanity.

I took a break in January from going anywhere partly to catch up my finances, and to take a break from running around the country, but I’m now thinking this was a mistake. I should have gone somewhere, ANYWHERE, even if it was just for a weekend. Oh well, lesson learned. :-D From now on I will make the point of fleeing at least 150 miles away from here once a month.

Fortunately I won’t have to worry about this until April, since I have a Nor’ Easter of a trip planned for this month, followed up with a trip to Texas next month. With the impending arrival of my iPhone, I’m really hoping this will breathe new life into my blogging content, as I can post more pictures and videos on the fly while I journey around.

In addition, after signing up for both Southwest and Jetblue’s rewards program last weekend, it occurred to me that I can take advantage of some truly awesome deals when flying around the country since I can leave on a moment’s notice. It’s one advantage to being single and having a lot of time on the books, because I don’t need to plan ahead and pay premium as a result: I can come and go as I please. Just before I saw a deal to fly to Denver for only $84, and I almost took it were it not for the trips I already had planned. Only a year ago I would have scoffed at the very notion of criss-crossing the country for a weekend on a moment’s notice, but now, it’s something I intend to do on a semi-regular basis. Las Vegas really opened my eyes to this. I don’t have to hide under my bed anymore.

And it all begins with a trip to Portland, Maine, right in the middle of a snowy winter gone wild.

Comments { 1 }
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