Wednesday Roundup - 04/04/07
Wasn’t there a book in the ’80s about this date - April 4th? Ah, thank you, Internets - yes, there was. (Ignore Amazon, that’s the reprint date. It was out in the late 80’s.)
Welcome, my friends, to the carnival that most definitely will end - just as soon as I get up from this chair to get myself a latte - easy on the foam, there, Ricardo. It’s the debut of a new feature (you can expect more of those) - the ever-so-cleverly titled “Wednesday Roundup” where I take the best from the best and serve it up to you piping hot as only reheated leftovers should be. The flavor is so much better the second time around. Just like stew!
Hey, did you know that plugged-in power bricks make nice foot warmers? It’s true. Moving on!
Kudos for the best blog name evah go to the staff of Bite Communications, which is, according to Typepad, “a world-renowned public relations agency committed to building brands and squelching the status quo with the “tenacity of a mule.” OK. If you say so! (See how agreeable I am without coffee? Yeah, that won’t last.) They named their blog “Bite Marks” - which promptly sent yours truly into a giggle fit - and got Typepad’s coveted “Feature Blog” status for their troubles. Go Biters!
Deborah Ng at About Weblogs starts a debate about “blog posts” versus “articles.” Well, I dunno, Deborah - in my day job, an article is a much longer piece of writing that’s developed around a (usually) slightly broader topic that’s developed with case studies and cites, whereas a blog post … is the same, but shorter? That’s about the only difference I can come up with, at least in law related blogs. What do y’all think? Is Deborah’s distinction a workable one? Does it matter?
Lorelle VanFossen of Lorelle on Wordpress travels over to ProBlogger to remind us all what may be so obvious it’s been lost - the internets, she is all about the words and the writing of the words. She then kindly helps us get better at both to improve our blogging by offering up 30 tips to think about. You should go read them and implement those tips immediately. (Like how I used #17 right there?)
Tony Hung of Deep Jive interests has an opinion - boy, does he ever - about the Calacanis/Patel sitch. (Watch this space tomorrow for my own thoughts on Tony’s take on the same sitch. Convoluted enough for ya? It’s the lack of CAFFEINE, I’m tellin’ ya. Ricardo, where are you, man? Ahhh… much better…. )
There’s more - oh boy is there - but Ricardo just took a bunch of croissants out of the oven. Later, lovelies.
katherine neville, bite communications, bite marks, deborah ng, lorelle vanfossen, tony hung, darren rowse, blogging, blogs, improve blogging
April 4th, 2007 at 11:29 pm
Thank you for the kind words. I’m sure all of us blogging need a little kick in the verbal buns once in a while to remind us that blogging is a growth process. It helps to remember that words are our currency and we need to work as hard at making them work for us as we do on filling our blogs with advertising.
April 5th, 2007 at 7:53 am
Thanks for stopping by, Lorelle! I really enjoyed the article and have it bookmarked as part of a group of pages that serve as a de facto writing guide for me while blogging. Those of us who write in other medium for our daily bread also have a unique problem - how to switch styles efficiently. Blogging definitely has its own “vibe” as opposed to, say, writing an appellate brief.
April 5th, 2007 at 11:07 am
I do believe there’s a difference between blogging and article writing, the most important being community. I feel bloggers write more with community in mind in hopes of stimulating discussion and provoking a reaction.
When I’m writing an article or working for one of my corporate clients, I’m not necessarily looking to shock and awe.