I’ve just published a second blog compilation book full of webby goodness and organized so you can read it through or reference just the topics that interest you! Please click the cover to visit Smashwords for my new FREE book!
Posts Tagged With: blogging
More Books!
Examiner article: Writing careers beyond the book
Please read my latest Examiner article to see all the many ways writers can earn money with their writing in addition to their books: http://www.examiner.com/article/writing-careers-beyond-the-book
I would very much appreciate it if you would subscribe to my column! It’s free and it helps promote my articles.
Love Day Links
Love is about sharing, so I will!
Here are some gifts for you from other bloggers:
http://readfulthingsblog.com/2013/02/14/free-valentine-appropriate-kindle-books-for-today/
http://travelswithmary.com/2013/02/14/valentines-giveaway-from-audible/
(And don’t forget to comment on my previous post for a gift from me!)
And here is some interesting reading to entertain you:
http://julianfroment.wordpress.com/2013/02/14/why-do-we-read
http://therumpus.net/2013/02/the-seven-habits-of-highly-effective-mediocre-people/
Are you in love with me yet?
Author Blog-in Starts Tomorrow!
Sign up before it’s too late!
The author blog-in is starting tomorrow! Sign up now to get in on the action. Feel free to share the page with your author friends too. Spread the word and widen our audience about our wonderful books!
All the information is here: https://katepolicani.com/author-blog-in/
Holiday Blog Hop overall winners!
IWU HOLIDAY BLOP HOP – DECEMBER 10-14
Kindle Fire: Erica Alyson (@Erica_Alyson)
Kindle Fire: Krystal Shannon (@KrystalShannon)
$25 Amazon Gift Card: Gale Nelson (@pgan427)
Signed Books: Sarah Miles
eBooks: Linda Kwolek
Winners: please click on THIS LINK and send your mailing address or email (ebook and gift card)
***
On behalf of all of the contributing writers, we thank you for being a part of our blog hop.
From January 11-14th, we’ll be hosting another blog hop to celebrate New Year’s.
Writing Effective Posts
I’ve been learning a few things to include in posts that have really helped make my posts more interesting and get more views. They’re pretty easy to do and help turn an interesting post into a big success!
- Include pictures! I’ve been using http://www.sxc.hu/ to find photos. I grab the url directly from the page to cut down on storage for my blog. Be sure that the pictures you use are licensed or else you might have problems. Stock.Xchng has several types of photos, and some require that you notify or ask permission from the artist for any public work.
- Add links. Chances are that someone else has written a post about your subject or something like it. Adding links to their post (especially if you quote them) brings them in on the topic and increases your post’s visibility. Everybody likes to be quoted or have their work highlighted! Here are some other posts about better blogging: http://www.problogger.net/archives/2008/07/10/nine-signs-of-an-effective-blog-post/ , http://marketing.about.com/od/marketingmethods/tp/blogmarketing.htm
- Ask questions. Don’t you want to hear what your readers have to say about what you wrote? If your work is all info with no questions, they might not. To encourage replies and dialogue, ask some questions.
- Speak your own words. If you read your blog post out loud, do you sound like yourself or do you sound like a weirdo? Share your personality, not your writing proficiency. We visited your post to hear what you have to say. If we wanted cold, lifeless instructions we’d go to the airport.
I know I missed some! What makes your blog posts sparkle? What about your posts reflects who you are?
Author Blog-in Day 1: Post Your Own Book!
The Disenchanted Pet
By Kate Policani
Far into the future, the Earth is ruled by the ShaZha, a hyper-intelligent race of alien beings who are plagued by the violence and volatility of the human race. Supposedly intending to repair the broken societies and polluted planet, they have found the Human problem to be much more complex than they ever imagined. Zarah is a Prodigy, an obedient human, with a caring ShaZha master. Zarah wants to prove all her master’s hopes that humans can be civilized and responsible. When she is lost by her master and exposed to the other side of humanity, she must confront the possibility she might be not a valued citizen, but a pet.
I am currently writing my next book called The Stray, a second book set in the ShaZha Earth. It isn’t a sequel, but the story connects with The Disenchanted Pet
Buy The Disenchanted Pet on Amazon (Kindle and Paperback. Kindle copy free with Amazon Prime)
To buy multiple ebook formats, go to https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/93067
To buy the paperback, click here: https://www.createspace.com/3657962
For great reviews:
http://tahlianewland.com/2011/12/23/review-the-disenchanted-pet-by-kate-policani/
http://mainemuse.wordpress.com/2012/01/10/the-disenchanted-pet-by-kate-policani/
http://nadiariell.com/2012/01/18/a-book-review-for-the-disenchanted-pet-by-kate-policani/
http://www.speculativefaith.com/authors/kate-policani/
Long Synopsis:
The Disenchanted Pet is ashort Science Fiction novel that takes place in the popular “post-apocalyptic Earth” setting, exploreing the unique problems with the Human Race and how to “fix” it.
Zarah is a young, optimistic girl, entering into the exciting world of adulthood with an idealistic perspective. But Zarah lives in the a future where Humanity is ruled by an alien race occupying Earth in order to rehabilitate and repair the planet and its people.
Reality intrudes on Zarah’s unspoiled outlook when she is attacked and separated from her SaSa, an alien guardian who is like a parent to her. Trapped within the Feral Facility, pregnant and separated from her home and new husband, she learns all the mistakes about the reality she believed in. She sees that the “Ferals”, who who aren’t serviceable within the ShaZha’s plans, are not necessarily the monsters her Prodigy society has portrayed them to be.
Suffering through the harsh truth about her world and the errors in her ideals, she must face a future without the assurances upon which she always relied.
The Disenchanted Pet appeals to Science Fiction lovers as well as readers who have never explored the genre before. It explores the disillusionment of growing up and the harsh realities of adulthood, but with aliens.
Cover Art by Heidi Barnett and Erik Sederstrom warpfrenzy@msn.com
When You’re Stuck – How to Beat a Writer’s Block.
What do you do when that blog post or chapter or poem just won’t COME OUT of your head?! Writer’s block hits anyone who writes, whether for their own amusement or for more serious reasons. But what do you do?
- Talk to someone about it. Call them up or have a meeting, whatever gets it done. You can talk to another writer, your Mom, or your favorite Sci-fi nerd. Whoever you think knows something to help get you started. There are even message boards online to talk about writing.
- Take a break. Sometimes you just need a little time and perspective to figure out what to write next. Hopefully you don’t have an immediate deadline. Don’t agonize over your issue the whole time, either. Get completely away from it. You’ll find that sometimes your subconscious can accomplish things your conscious mind can’t manage. My breaks from my writing sometimes take weeks or months. Then suddenly I have the answer and my writing continues.
- Blow something up! Not for real. I mean with your writing. This can mean literally including an explosion in your story or just resorting to something outrageous to spice things up in your project.
- Input. I simply can’t write anything unless I have an “input”. It doesn’t even have to be the same genre as what I’m writing. I just need to read what others write to fuel my own inspiration. Sometimes a really good movie, television show, or even a song will also inspire me in my writing. Try being the audience for a while so you can continue to be the storyteller.
- Clear Distractions. Maybe your workspace is too chaotic for you to think well. I know that is frequently my problem with three active kids in the house. If you can block those out, you may be able to get the inspiration you need to going. Your computer can be a distraction, as you know. Pull out a pad and paper (old-fashioned, I know) or try a plain-text editor like JDarkRoom http://www.codealchemists.com/jdarkroom/
- Make it challenging. Sometimes it’s not the chaos that gets you but the tranquility. Plan some events, start another project, or something…and squeeze that writing out of yourself with pressure! That’s how I usually do it, so you can tell it works.
- Set goals. Sometimes a goal, especially one you’ve shared with someone else, can help you get going. You know what’s reasonable! Set a goal and keep yourself accountable to reach it!
Do you have any other ideas for beating writer’s block?
These bloggers do!
http://fictionwriting.about.com/od/writingroadblocks/tp/block.htm
http://storytellingnomad.wordpress.com/2011/10/05/top-10-writing-distractions/
http://www.webook.com/911writersblock A fun tool to help you get past it! Dial your solution.
**What did you think about the GIFs? Annoying? Fun? It was fun to make but I don’t want to give you seizures.
More Social Media for Bloggers
On my latest foray into blogging success, I found some more social media sites that bloggers can use to promote their blog. I know. Do I really need more of this? Well I’m trying it, since promoting my blog is also promoting my books.
Bloggers.com: This seems like Facebook for your blog page. You discover and follow others on the site based on their blog. I’m not sure of the value of it yet. I have a lot of “followers” simply by signing up but they don’t seem to have anything in common with what I blog about. I think the idea is to browse for blogs through their site and connect that way. Three blog views have come my way through Bloggers in the past month.
StumbleUpon: Take note of what you like on the web. That’s what this is. It’s a like and share generator for websites. It’s simple and elegant. I haven’t seen any views yet since I started it. You can plug it in to your WordPress site.
Tumblr: Tumblr is similar to Stumble Upon except that you can syndicate your own blog through it. It has lots more features, too, none of which I have used yet. You can add pictures and other content to your existing posts too. Are you starting to see a pattern of replicating work. Yep, me too. You can also plug Tumblr into your WordPress site.
Digg: They should call it “Ditto”. Digg is all about reading blogs and letting everyone know you read them. You can mark blogs down on your “reading list”. I need a nap.
Reddit: Reddit looks like a site made in the 1990’s and never upgraded for style. You can’t link to your own blog, but you can share your own posts. Manually. It’s supposed to plug into WordPress, but I haven’t seen any indication it works unless someone hits the “Reddit” button about one of your posts. You can also do a “search”.
Here is blogger John Rampton’s suggestion on being a top blogger: http://www.johnchow.com/how-to-become-a-top-blogger-in-social-media/
If anyone has any awesome tips on these or any other social media sites, I’d love to hear them.

No, I don’t know this girl. It’s just a fun pic.
Flood of Information
Dwain the tub! I’m dwowning! …in information.
I love to read my followers blog posts and keep up to date on what you guys are doing! But it’s gotten to be entirely too much. I tweaked my settings to get a weekly digest and I get 85+ emails. I’m bummed that it’s more than I can manage.
All of this web stuff feels like more than I can manage. WordPress, Facebook, Twitter, Triberr, StumbleUpon, Goodreads, Writing.com, Google+, Reddit, Tumblr, Klout, Linkedin, and too many others flood into my computer every day, and they all link to each other. How do I handle it all?
Somebody has a great opportunity to create a multi-site dashboard that filters this stuff for you. I think it will take a computer guru just to calibrate it, but I’m willing to try if it means I can see the stuff I want to see. But I only want ONE. I refuse to endure five or six programs that do some of what I want. I know you can do it, hackers of the world! If it’s already out there, please let me know.
Do you feel swamped too? What ways do you handle aaaaallllllll the information? (I mean other than setting your computer on fire and giving up.)
Here are a couple of people’s perspectives on our Flood of Information: http://www.business2community.com/social-media/a-flood-of-information-do-you-remember-life-before-social-media-056696
A phrase that made me laugh: infobesity – http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Information_overload
And these guys who say I’m in the minority: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Information_overload
High time for some links!
I haven’t done this in such a long time! Here are some good old-fashioned links for you! I decided to focus on the topic of “Promotion” this time.
http://addictivestory.wordpress.com/2012/08/29/calling-all-indie-authors-who-wants-book-promotion-prompt-16/ This looks like a great opportunity to promote! I’m totally signed up!
http://smartamarketing2.wordpress.com/2012/08/28/persuasion/ Here is a blog on marketing discussing the AIDA method of promotion.
http://anovelperspective.wordpress.com/2012/08/27/book-wars-the-pr-offices-of-my-book-is-better-than-yours/ Here is a cool article on a particular etiquett,e problem for promoting authors.
http://www.useit.com/alertbox/weblogs.html is a good breakdown of how to make good blog posts especially number 3 about post titles!
http://paulstamatiou.com/how-to-boost-your-blog-traffic This one had lots of meaty goodness. I followed a lot of his suggestions.
And this one was just funny: http://blog.nathanbransford.com/2012/08/the-publishing-process-in-gif-form.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+NathanBransford+%28Nathan+Bransford%2C+Author%29
Author Blog-in Coming Soon:Sign up now!
Don’t forget to sign up!
The author blog-in is coming up. To get your choice of days, please sign up now. Feel free to share the page with your author friends too. Spread the word and widen our audience about our wonderful books!
All the information is here: https://katepolicani.com/author-blog-in/
Today Is My Day!
I’m not re-blogging for the blog-in because today is my day to be re-blogged! I’ll take this opportunity to thank all the friends who participated and viewed all the wonderful books. Also I’d like to invite you to sign up for Author Blog-in II coming in August. Just email me at katepolicani@gmail.com with the word Author Blog-in in the subject line to get on the list at https://katepolicani.com/author-blog-in/.
Author Blog-in Day 1: Post Your Books
Have you posted yet? Don’t forget! If I don’t have your links, the others may not be able to find them. I don’t have everybody’s links, so be sure to get it to me somehow.
Interesting fact completely unrelated to the Author Blog-in: a few of you don’t show up on a search for your name. I’ts important to register your pages with search engines so you can be found by your fans.