Guest Post

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Sunday, July 9, 2017

Blogger Recognition and how Lyrical Pens came to be

cj Sez:  I’ve been tagged for a Blogger Recognition Award--a kind of blogging award chain letter, and here are the rules:
1- Thank the blogger who nominated you and provide a link to their blog.
2- Write a post to show your award.
3- Give a brief story of how your blog started.
4- Give two pieces of advice to new bloggers.
5- Select other bloggers you want to give this award to.
6- Comment on each blog and let them know you have nominated them & provide the link to the post you created.

And here are my responses: 
1-  Thanks Candace Marley Connor, a wonderful SCBWI author, mother, and fellow Mobile Writers’ Guild member, for nominating me to participate in this blogging event. It’s a bit like practicing flash fiction, and that’s a great writing exercise.  (By the way, Miz Connor’s post for this event is downright wonderful. Just click on her name to read it.)

2-  I am now writing a post to show my lovely award. 

YIPPEE ! Quite lovely, don’t you agree?

3-  Here’s the brief story of how the Lyrical Pens blog got started:

Lyrical Pens began on June 22, 2009, when I clicked “publish” on my first post. You can click on the date to read it. Joyce Scarbrough was my first (and only) commenter…Thanks, Joyce, although it seems to have started a one-of trend (sigh). The blog was intended as a marketing tool for three writing/critique-group buddies (Mahala Church, Tracy Hurley, and me) who wanted to “get our names out there.” Mahala and Tracy had just co-founded the Mobile Writers’ Guild, and I had joined them as a charter member and Secretary…or maybe that was Treasurer (faulty memory). Go-getter Tracy worked through the technical part of building the website, and it hasn’t changed all that much since it began. Sadly, Tracy Hurley died in December 2010, and Mahala and I carried on. Today, where once there were three, there is now one. Mahala retired from the site in 2016.

4-  Two pieces of advice to new bloggers: First piece of advice comes with a caveat: “To thine own self be true.” That is to say, identify your goal for the blog and write your posts with that in mind. Do you want to share tidbits of personal data to grow your relationship with fans and readers? Do you want to share professional writing stuff for fellow authors? Maybe it’s a combination of both, which is where Lyrical Pens sits, although it does lean more toward the professional writing information.

Second piece of advice: A blog is a great way to build an author brand if you link your posts to your author Facebook page, Twitter, Instagram, et al. Be sure to embed buy links and book trailers.  Did you notice I wrote “author Facebook page?” I have two FB pages, one for personal and one for author stuff. Your personal social media followers aren’t there to be sold to; they want to share conversations. Keep the advertising low-key on those sites. A new book notice or reminder is fine, but heavy slugs of “Buy My Book” advertising in every post might drive away some of your new Friends.

5-  I'm nominating one author, Sojourner McConnell (the nom de plume of Vicki Goodwin Turner), for this award. Sojourner is a relatively new blogger and has a brand new book release with great reviews, “Who’s That in the Cat Pajamas.”   
 
6- I dropped Sojourner a note to alert her about the award.

Okay, that’s my post for today, and I’m sticking to it. You-all guys keep on keeping on, and I’ll try to do the same.

cj
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4 comments:

  1. And what a ride it was and still is thanks to your interesting and friendly posts and great pictures. Marilyn gave the blog its name, one that suited all of us perfectly. Congratulations on a well-earned blog!

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  2. cj Sez: Thanks, Mahala, for the applause. I dearly miss Tracy, the spark plug of our group, but I'd like to think she'd approve of where the blog has gone.

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  3. Great advice, cj and thanks for playing along! It's neat to see the evolution of your blog. I remember first following your blog when you and Mahala did the Stuff and Nonsense contest (loved those!! They were my first foray into flash fiction) and now I enjoy all your writing tips!

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  4. cj Sez: Thanks, Candice, for the opportunity to play. And I'd forgotten about Stuff and Nonsense. Maybe I need to think about a resurrection. Best wishes for continued success with your writing

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