Awesome Reuseable Block Feature in WordPress

Recently, when editing a post on one of my WordPress powered sites, I noticed a feature or option that I hadn't seen before.

It first involves the creation/identification of blocks within a blog post.

But that's where the awesome-ness comes in. In the edit block option, under more options . . .

. . . all you need to do is click on "Add to Reuseable Blocks" and then name it.

Any edits you make get propegated across all posts that use this block.

Create content, and save it for you and other contributors to reuse across your site. Update the block, and the changes apply everywhere it’s used.

This is extremely handy when updated the Creative Commons Liscence, for example, like in this example of the music I use for my Stark Reflections on Writing & Publishing podcast.

And I'm a big advocate for proper attribution and credit for creative talent. I have been using Creative Commons for this blog almost since its very beginning in the early 2000s.

Cheers to Beers

Admittedly, I haven't been blogging here much, even though I'm proud to say that I have been blogging since my initial post on March 3, 2005.

That first post wasn't much, just a note that my friend from work, Mathew (work back then was Chapters Online, or Chapters/Indigo) had mocked me into starting a blog. It's short (so unlike me) and sweet (well I can sometimes be sweet) and called Beginnings. (I was unique, since it wasn't like many blogs, called "My First Post")

My second post, on March 9th, was a little more typical of the musings I would blog about over the years. It was called Not the TV show starring Dick. This one was about the growth of my Van Dyke beard. You know, the facial hair that everyone calls a goatee. (It is technically either referred to as a Van Dyke or a goatee and mustache. A goatee is just chin hair. A mustache is hair over the top lip. But, since laziness prevails and that affects language, most people call it a goatee. Gee, see how I like to rant about such things?)

In my first eight years of blogging I averaged between 180 and 190 blog posts per year, which was almost one every two or three days.

I haven't blogged as much since 2012. Perhaps one reason is that many of my updates end up being shared in the quicker click share of Facebook and Twitter and Instagram. Another part of the reason is likely that my "blogging" efforts were directed towards the Kobo Writing Life blog as well as other writing efforts.


But I still quite enjoy blogging. Heck, I've even started other blogs that align directly specific passions.

While the KWL Blog was focused specifically on writing and publishing, and I was able to channel much passion into that, Liz and I started Spirits Untapped, a blog that focuses on the spirit and spirits that inhabit beer and bar culture.

A "Beer with Norm" - What does it say about me for this being on my bucket list?

Yes, this will be information that we have started compiling for a forthcoming book in my "series" of books on the paranormal, called SPIRITS UNTAPPED: Haunted Bars and Breweries that likely won't be out for a couple of years; but we started this the blog in May 2016 and on the blog we decided to focus on the Spirit of Beer Culture, while throwing in a few spots about haunted locations.

For example, the first post, May 7, 2016, was about The Winking Judge on Augusta Street in Hamilton. I first learned about it when writing Haunted Hamilton: The Ghosts of Dundurn Castle & Other Steeltown Shivers. And it has since become a local "haunt" since I moved into an apartment "above" the judge in 2014.

The Winking Judge - One of our favorite haunts

On Spirits Untapped, Liz and I blog about such things as:

• Haunted Locations (which will end up going into the book)
• Breweries
• Memorable Beers
• Interesting beer labels and artwork
• Beer festivals
• The intersection of beer and music 

. . . along with other fun intersections from beer culture as well as a map tracking the various locations we have enjoyed beers together since 2014.

I'm pretty sure that the Spirits Untapped blog will continue to grow now that I have more time for writing, and that I'll also be returning to blog more here as 2017 draws to a close and we usher in 2018.

There's Nothing Virtual About Death

I found out a few days ago that a friend of mine died last month.

Here's where it gets interesting, but isn't all that unique any more - not in today's online and connected society.

I've known this friend for about 5 years, knew her under various names/nicknames as well as her real name. But we never met in person. We were blogger friends. We'd connected via a weekly blogging ritual called HNT (Half Nekkid Thursday) in which people would post photos of themselves, typically taken by themselves, and then visit the other folks who would post the same. The photos would run the spectrum from "nekkid" meaning simple self-exposure shots of a person in their daily lives, or perhaps a simple shot of the paper cut on their finger they got at work that day, a picture of themselves with a dear friend, all the way to racy and less interpretive shots of "nekkid." But, often, the "exposure" wasn't the removal of clothing, but a peek into a person's inner self, an exposure of them. That, in my mind, has been where phenomenal connections and friends have been made.

I made a lot of friends through HNT and blogging (I started blogging in March 2005), some of whom I've established personal connections with "off-blog" and some of whom I've even had the pleasure of eventually meeting in person.

I never met Melanie Elizabeth Phillpott VanWinkle (also known in the blogging community as Stealth Bombshell and Texas Spitfire - perhaps other nicknames) in person. But we connected via blogging, via photos, via comments and silly humorous exchanges, and connected with our real names, later, via Facebook.

So I never knew her in person, but I knew her just the same. She touched my life, she made me smile, made me laugh, made me cry, made me think. I am a richer person for having known Melanie, even in this limited virtual way. And I am mourning her loss, but at the same time, wanting to celebrate her life and the fact that I have gained simply by knowing her.

The joys of the virtual online world exist. You can connect and share and communicate with great people you'd otherwise not have the pleasure of meeting in person. And that experience can enrich your life - because that's what other people do; they enrich your life.

But here's the rub: when that person dies, particularly when there's no "physical world" interaction in which people close to them know you know one another, what is the result? What is the healing ritual?

Typically, death involves ritual, involves a chance for people to say goodbye, for some ritualized sense of closure (even if the pain of that loss never fades away). But in virtual death, what is the ritual, what is the manner by which we can share our appreciation for having known a person, our sense of loss, our grief?

There was a fascinating discussion of this on a recent episode of CBC Radio's Spark between host Nora Young and guest Adele McAlear. And discussions like this help when dealing with this virtual loss. But it's true that we need to figure out a way to handle this all to common situation. A good conversation to continue.

But back to Melanie.

I found out Melanie died through another online friend who has enriched my life but I've not met in person. Osbasso recently posted a tribute to Melanie on his blog - the blog, whose weekly ritual connected Melanie and I, and thousands of other people together.

How do I properly grieve, other than post one of my favourite pictures of her and say something about her?

Thank you, Melanie - thanks for connecting, and thanks for enriching my life. May you rest in peace. May your dear friends and family find peace and comfort in all of the memories you gave them. And thank you for touching my life - there was nothing virtual about the way you enriched my life.

Melanie Elizabeth Phillpott VanWinkle

March 20, 1978 - April 12, 2011

EerieCon 13 Panel (Handling Social Media)

As I promised during a panel this past weekend, as well as mentioning on my blog a couple of days ago, I thought I'd post some thoughts based on notes I took and discussion that took place during one of the panels I sat on during EerieCon 13 in Niagara Falls, New York.

This particular panel was called:

I CAN'T BELIEVE YOU SAID THAT!
How do you handle all the social networking: Facebook, Twitter, Blogs? What if someone gives you a bad review? Panelists: Lois Gresh, Stephen B. Pearl, John Harlacher. Moderator: Mark Leslie.

The first thing to note is that none of the panelists (including myself) are social media experts. We are merely authors and creators who use social media to connect with fans, with other creators and with the online community in general - so we were speaking about our own experiences.

That being said, it became obvious from the questions that audience asked us that while we're not experts, we do have enough experience to share some basics. And a lot of the questions were from those writers and creative types who haven't done any of it and didn't know where to start. That's what I'm offering here. A basic look at where one might start. I'll make no claims to be an expert, just someone who is willing to share from his own experience.

Before I get into this topic, I should point out some speculative fiction authors I'm aware of who have a really good handle on social media. Check them out and you'll find tremendous value in what they offer and how they engage in social media.

Michael A. Stackpole (whom I regularly listen to on the Dragon Page: Cover to Cover podcast), continually offers useful tidbits and advice, both on that podcast, and on his own website. Definitely worth checking out both.

My friend, Robert J. Sawyer, also has a plethora of content useful for other writers and is a social media magnate. (His site, with over one million words, 720 documents and 25,000 links, was the first-ever science fiction author website, established June 28, 1995)

Below I'll post some links that I believe will be helpful in understanding the basics of what some social media is, but I wanted to spend some time talking about why.

Marketing guru Mitch Joel (check out his blog and podcast for incredible value when it comes to social media) regularly states to his clients that they shouldn't be asking IF they should be employing various social marketing strategies, but rather WHY? and to what end.  IE, the question isn't "Should I be on Facebook?" but rather "Why should I be on Facebook?" and "What do I want to get out of being on Facebook?" - pose that same question with each social media element you investigate.

As an author, ask yourself first WHY you want to do it and WHAT you want to get out of it. Take the time to seriously explore the details, and here's why - because engaging in social media takes time. As discussed on the panel, it usually takes at least an hour a day.

The issue for writers, of course, is that hour (or more), is most likely going to eat into time you can be spending writing new content or doing the other activities involved in writing: research, market submissions, editing, filing and organizing, planning, etc.

It's interesting to note that for the panelists, most of them (John being the exception, since he is likely the most savy of us to employ social media to connect with customers and fans, given his focus has been through his haunted house business in NYC and LA) engage in social media BECAUSE THEY FEEL THEY HAVE TO. Lois and Stephen are involved in various social media outlets (website, blog, Facebook, etc) but would rather be spending their time writing and focusing on that. This is a decent and important recognition of the time it takes away from actual writing.

I have a slightly different perspective on that - yes, I see social media as necessary, but I have also gotten so much valuable return on that investment of time, that I see it as a delightful necessity. (But yes, a huge time-sucker that takes away my writing time) - Of course, when I first got into blogging, back in 2005, I used my blog as a writing warm-up exercise. I'd blog for 10 to 15 minutes, then kick right into writing or editing projects. But often, the content itself that I've engaged in has led countless people to me and my writing, connecting me with readers (in the same manner that attending a con or book reading/signing helps me to connect with and share my writing with new readers)

My own basic reasons for having a website and being engaged in or having a blog, podcast, Twitter, Facebook, and Goodreads? Basically, connecting with readers, other writers and friends. But it's also important to be discoverable. So, someone hears one of my works, or reads one of my stories in an anthology or magazine and they like it and want to learn more. They should be able to type my name into Google or other search engines and immediately find out more about the author, more about the person - and potentially learn more about me and my other available works.

Once they find me, is there something potentially interesting for them to read/listen to/learn more about? I hope so. What I write isn't for everybody, but if it is your cup of tea, perhaps you'll get something out of it. That's why I continually offer free content, so people can, without any cost, sample what my writing is about. And if they like it they might either buy something or tell a friend.

But back to some basic advice if you're an author looking at getting into social media:

1) Don't dive in head first into unknown waters. Take a bit of time to first ask what you want out of it, and test the waters. Pick one or two that look interesting to YOU, register for an account, and first, just listen, check out what others are doing, follow some conversations; then, once you become a bit more comfortable, start testing it out.

2) It takes time. You start a blog, a podcast, get a Twitter account, etc from scratch. Don't expect people to come running immediately. You need to invest in and develop a community online. That means not just pushing out blatant self-promotional stuff (although you can't help buy do that once in a while when talking about your upcoming or available work or events, etc), but engaging in discussion, offering and giving to the community. Like-minded people out there will eventually connect with you. But it takes time - a whole lot of patience, time and really hard work (just like writing, which is what you already know about)

3) If it's not working for you, drop it and try something else. Most social media is free in cost (but not free in time) - it's not a mortgage that you have to invest 20 years in paying. If, after a bit of time and experimenting, it's not working, then don't waste your time doing it. (Think, again, of the way you approach a writing project - if the story or characters are not working, you try to fix it, try to change, but sometimes you just tear it up and start something else)

Here are some amazingly wonderful looks at WHAT various social media items are and how they work from the good folks at commoncraft - simple, eloquent introductions you're likely to find useful:

Social Media in Plain English
Blogs in Plain English
Twitter in Plain English
Podcasting in Plain English

Also, Chris Brogan (another social media guru and colleague of Mitch Joel), offers a great step by step suggestion for authors getting into social media - check it out, here.  Also, his book: Trust Agents, is an amazing book to read. Yes, it's for businesses, but writing is a business so books like this are well-worth exploring. You might also check out his book Social Media 101 (You say you don't read. Really? I thought you called yourself a writer. But that, my friend, is a whole other discussion for another day)

One last thing, and this is something I mentioned during the panel, and was a direct response to the question on the panel topic:  What if someone gives you a bad review?

First of all, bad reviews are part of the game, and, in my opinion, perfect evidence that not everything you write is going to be enjoyed by everybody. Get over it. If all you have are GOOD reviews, then people simply aren't being honest. Reacting to a bad review is almost never a good idea. I think the best way to illustrate this is to point to a recent online review in which the author attempts to respond to the review and very quickly the conversation devolves into ridiculous absurdity, with the author coming off looking extremely unprofessional.

Read this review, but, more importantly, read the comments - the author demonstrates (sadly, because I feel terrible for the hole she dug herself into -- no, not just a hole, a gigantic pit) how easily taking the path of commenting on bad reviews can go.

One of my fellow panelists offered this wonderful advice - don't push into social media any comment/content that you wouldn't want posted on a gigantic billboard.  Simple yet very solid advice indeed. I would also caution you not to let social media take over all of your writing time - like commenting on reviews, it's a very easy pit to fall into.

Hopefully, this post has offered at least a bit of info and links to content that you'll find useful and helpful.

State Of The Blogosphere

I just took an interesting Technorati "State of the Blogosphere" survey which was emailed to me.  It takes about 15 minutes.  Thought I'd post the invite here for other bloggers out there to discover.

2010 State of the Blogosphere Survey

 
Since 2004, Technorati has been tracking the Blogosphere through our State of the Blogosphere study. The goal of the study is to create a complete snapshot of the activities and interactions that make up the Blogosphere by asking you, the bloggers, to share some information about your habits. The survey includes questions like how, when and why you blog. Is this a side business, full time job or something you do for fun?

Please feel free to send this link to other bloggers you know. And be sure to check back on Technorati.com in November for a summary of the results.
The 2010 State of the Blogosphere Survey: http://research.opinionguru.com/mrIWeb/mrIWeb.dll?I.Project=A17275