Credit: It’s the Greatest (and the Cheapest) Gift you can Give

Today I’d like to talk about credit. Not the kind of credit you need to buy a house or a car, but the credit that you see when you first open a book or watch a movie. Nope, I’m talking about the credits that typically come from working on a project either alone or with someone else.

As I talked about earlier this week, I mentioned how important it is to look at the non-financial methods of how you feel validated about your writing. I think it goes without saying that this is a common desire for many writers, and I feel that there is a way we can help each other out. Giving someone else credit for the work they do is a great way of supporting your fellow scribe, because credit is free.

In my travels to various conventions, I’ve met quite a few “B”-list actors and stunt folk that have been kind enough to explain to me what it’s like working on various sets. One of these actresses (who shall remain nameless for privacy reasons) once told me how she doubled for an “A”-list actress in a well-known action movie. For whatever reason, the “A”-lister proclaimed that she did her own stunts to the media, which is not an uncommon thing for actors and actresses to do. Unfortunately, in this case the claim wasn’t true but there was no appropriate way for anyone involved to go and correct the mistake. Years later, the stunt double still remembers the claim and (you guessed it) will probably never forget it. What did the “A”-lister do wrong?
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How I Use Google Analytics for my Blog

Over the course of this blog I’ve talked about Google Webmaster Central for bloggers, Why I Heart Feedburner and Google’s Blogger: Pros and Cons for Freelance Writers. Today I’m going to talk to you in very general terms about how I use the free web analytics tool called “Google Analytics” on my blog.

Before I do, I’d like to offer that if you’d like to read up on Google Analytics there’s nothing like going straight to the source: you can read the Google Analytics Blog or the ROI Revolution Blog which is the company that performed the training I had attended. Second, web data is not like financial data no matter how many ways you slice and dice it. This means that while every penny may add up in your accounting software; not every visit will “add up” in web analytics so don’t get too obsessed over every, bitty thing.

Since installing GA early January, I’ve been using it to track comparison trends and understand where my traffic is coming from. My goals for my blog are different than a website that sells stuff or offers rapid-fire information; I hope that my content will be useful six months, a year, or even five years from now. I do not have buckets of traffic where I have even 1,000 plus visitors every day. Another way my needs are different from other blogs, is because blogging is a way for me to explore more tools, stay on top of web trends, network, make announcements and offer you my experiences to “pay it forward.” I’m not blogging for dollars; if I was, you’d better believe I’d be doing things differently.

Here’s an example of the comparison view graphs you can use to track trends in Google Analytics.
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Human Flipbook is Really, Darn Cool

On the YouTube! front, sometimes advertising is better than the home-brew videos. Check out this pretty awesome human flipbook that a sub restaurant, Erbert & Gerbert’s, put together for their store. Viral marketing at its finest; over 475,000 views on YouTube! alone!

Why Adult Gamers Get Such a Bad Rap

Gamers. By itself, it’s a word that innocently names people who play games. But who would you call a gamer? Somebody who plays fantasy football? Poker? Pokemon? Chess? More than likely, if you call someone a gamer it’s probably because they play tabletop, computer, or video games on a regular basis.

Do you want to be called a “gamer?”

If you’ve avoided the label, you’re not alone. While I don’t have the stats to say for sure, it’s not uncommon for me to meet so-called “closet gamers,” which are people who enjoy the occasional game ( or play the Nintendo Wii which some don’t consider to be true gaming ) but don’t really want to be lumped in with the stereotypes.

Gamers often get bad reputations because really gaming is about having fun and escaping the real world. That’s scary to a lot of people, because we’re trained to work and be productive. Games, cartoons, comics, and anime are supposed to be for kids, right? Never mind the success of Sin City, Resident Evil IV the video game, or Blood: the Last Vampire anime. Even though there are dozens of examples of adult-themed media that are out on the market, I often get the impression that society infers individual examples are okay as long as they are popular. A well-loved comic book like the Dark Tower series by Stephen King is then “socially acceptable” because it’s an exception—not the rule.
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Help me Out Here: What Industry RSS Feeds/Blogs/Sites are you Reading?

Hi everyone, just last week I was tipped off to a great new RSS feed aggregator tool that is more addicting than…well…cheesy nachos. (Only real cheese will do.) Once I have a chance to get it all set up, I’ll post about it with examples.

In the meantime, because this wondrous tool will allow me to separate out my RSS feeds by category, I am in sheer heaven. I noticed, however, that my RSS feeds for other authors, publishing houses, and industry blogs are sadly lacking. Can you help my lonely RSS feed reader? If you have the time, I’d really appreciate it if you left a comment on this post to promote your site, someone else’s site, or tell me what I should avoid.

Thanks (in advance). Happy feeding?!?! Er… Happy RSSeeding?!?

You know what I mean. 😉

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