It's like running...

Today I feel like a runner hitting "the wall."  All I can say is it hurts a lot right in the center where my heart should be.  I was strong.  It took a while to hit it.  It wasn't even over a query.  It was over reaching out when you're nervous about it and then getting your hand slapped.  The worst thing is it's my own fault for not paying attention to detail.  And that is all I'll say about it.

What picked me up a bit afterward was a very incredibly timely and thoughtful blogger award from http://jc-martin.com/fighterwriter/.  She sent me the Versatile Blogger Award.  Much appreciated, JC!

Rules:

1. Thank the person who sent the award and link back

2. Post the award on your blog

3. Nominate 15 other bloggers to pass the luv

4. Let nominees know you awarded them

I had a hard time picking bloggers for this list.  There are soooo many great people here, but I tried to choose those who I think haven't received this award before.  In no particular order:

1.   Brad Jaeger - Aspiring Author
2.   Damyanti @ Writing on writing : Amlokiblogs
3.   http://thewritejunkie.blogspot.com/
4.   Ellie Garratt
5.   http://wheelisonfire.blogspot.com/
6.   http://nicoleducleroir.blogspot.com/
7.   http://ishtamercurio.blogspot.com/
8.   Justine Dell
9.   http://gardenfulloflily.blogspot.com/
10. http://dlcurran.blogspot.com/
11. http://mylifeismybliss.blogspot.com/
12. http://www.apeekatkarensworld.com/
13. http://fromelysium.blogspot.com/
14. http://courtlyromance.blogspot.com/
15. http://maybegenius.blogspot.com/

And don't forget The Blogfeast is TOMORROW!  I can't wait to see your posts.  If you haven't signed up yet... well, why haven't you???  Or you can swing by here tomorrow anyway and check out all the awesome bloggers and their appetite-stimulating (or appetite-supressing, mwahahaha) posts tomorrow.

PS-About the wall... yeah, I know I'm supposed to keep running through it, and I suppose I will.

How Not To Build A Social Network

Is technology a bane or a blessing? If you know, you're smarter than I am because I haven't figured that out yet.

I was one of the first people I knew to own a laptop, and therefore technologically advanced (or was at the time). I bought it when I started my first year in college. Oops, just dated myself! Crazy, I know. You would assume that since I'm an electronics technician, I should be pretty knowledgeable in the technology arena, but I'm not really up to speed web-wise beyond the basics.

So now that I sporadically have time galore on my hands, I've been dabbling to create an online presence through blogging. I did some research on it, surfed blogs, read articles, checked out references, and then dove right in.

Only days later, I've discovered this stuff doesn't just come naturally. There's some work involved, and I've got a lot of catching up to do.
What I've learned so far:

• Know your purpose. If you don't know why you're writing, you can't know who's supposed to be reading it! If you don't know the viewers, how can you know what you should write or how you should promote your site?

• Keep it short. Surfing blogs is time-consuming, and when you have to surf fifty million blogs, the average viewer doesn't want to invest the precious minutes to read your 600-word essay.

• Keep it simple. Make navigation easy so viewers can find the meat of your blog right away. If you want the “ooh, shiny” distraction effect drawing viewers away from your content, I dare you to put a bunch of clutter and buttons all over your page.

• Do your homework while you surf. When you read other blogs, pay particular attention to what you like and dislike about the design and content. You'll soon figure out what to incorporate into your own blog.

There's definitely a lot more advice to polish a blog, but I'm just putting these out because they're all very basic things I didn't do. My blog is still a work in progress, but with the great advice I've gleaned from others more experienced than I, it will just get better and better.
Special Thank You to Elana Johnson!