reading your twitter feed (pt2)...

...can reveal information about others' blog credentials.

If you're the curator/editor/researcher/photographer of an important art institution's blog feed, it's a BIG deal.

Jacob Horn - Editorial Assistant at New York's Whitney Museum is taking over the museum's Instagram account.....

He specialises in:

"Writing and editing, research experience, technical literacy, communication, social media, museums and cultural institutions" 
- from LinkedIn

Whitney Museum on Instagram

Instagram

Instagram

Instagram

see also: part 1 of read your twitter feed

read your twitter feed (pt1)...

...because it can contain useful snippets of information.

Using my phone's Twitter app I checked my account - the one linked to this blog. 

I limited my reading to the last 24hrs of its timeline feed.

I either 'retweeted', or 'favourite-d' things I wanted to follow up using the symbols on the lower edge of my timeline of tweets

 ....i.e. things tweeted by those I've chosen to follow

This screen grab of a tweet from @DazedMagazine is particularly pertinent to those using Flickr as their photo blog....

notice the orange star is highlighted - because I saved the tweet to my favourites

It links to an article about Flickr - a popular photo blog for artists, that is about to make money from the images you may have there.

"Are you one of the millions of people signed up to Flickr? It's time to switch your license settings. The Yahoo-owned photo-sharing site has just announced that it will start selling prints of some 50 million Creative Commons-licensed images, but the photographers involved won't see any of the profits. Nope. Not a single penny." 

Read more of the article at Dazed magazine's digital publication site

If you use Flickr and wish to change your Flickr license settings consider the pros and cons of doing so.

The Creative Commons site lists the various licences available to you.


reading your twitter feed part 2

Expose yourself!

Use your blog to show others how you make your work. 
Expose its process of manufacture - what inspired it, what you're thinking of now, and perhaps, what you're considering doing next. 

Sharing your preliminary drawings, photographs, thoughts and ruminations will highlight your creative process to others. 

Magda Bolinska on flickr

t.radclyffe's sketchbook, and completed illustration

Nicholas Stevenson's: website and blogs....

Nicholas Stevenson's Tumblr blog

....and on Soundcloud

fame....and fortune

Blogging for money? There's a thought.

Zoe Griffin - the Sunday Mirror's former showbiz gossip columnist, and now 'lifestyle blogger', emphasises the money making potential of blogging in her book 'Get Rich Blogging'.

Its fame, fortune plus fashion and lifestyle content is something you may wish to sidestep. Its practical tips however are invaluable.

An example:

'Searching for free images....every blogger should bookmark ....Creative Commons....here you can find free images to illustrate virtually any subject'.

cc search

long time no blog?

If you don't have time to blog, don't beat yourself up about it....and don't apologise for it.

What have you been doing in between times? If it's relevant...blog about it.

I've been reading....

my copy purchased here

Austin Kleon's books are full of relevant stuff delivered in a meaningful and yet light way.

I'm looking at number 3 on the list.....

....and reviewing my methods....

why blogging is good for your cv....

A regularly updated blog is a see-able, readable, watchable space that can say something about you and your interests......and your self discipline, professionalism and focus, plus your ongoing curiosity....and your generosity.

An article at the 'buffersocial' blog highlights some of the things we do because we blog:

Curating 

Crafting 

Posting 

Scheduling 

Measuring 

Analyzing 

Responding 

Listening 

Engaging 

Helping 

Planning 

Experimenting 

Some of these would be perfect on a cv, and evidence of your blog would prove you're as good as your word.

A selection of creative cvs / résumés

Melissa - on fabric

mistis

iTudor

ChuckDLay

fede-moral

doing something about the 'about' section!

In the lower right hand corner you'll find an 'About Me' box

(unless you've changed its default position in layout)

If you click on the g+ (Google Plus) or 'View my complete profile'
links, you'll be taken to the blog's profile page

The profile page defaults to 'posts'.

You'll see a three column round up of all the blog's posts.

This view of the blog is another way - besides 'blog archive' - to find things.

Click on:      

Here you'll find opportunities to share information, including:

Work

Basic information

Story

Education

Contact Information

Each box has an blue edit button lower right

When filling these - Don't give away more information than you really need to

I've decided to give this much information ---> my / the blog's profile

-----

Whilst editing you'll see this top right...

To check what the public sees, click on the down arrow next to 'Yourself'....

This will give you a view of your profile as others will see it.

Always consider what you share - double check everything.

Happy? Publish.

good bios

personable...

Sandra Dieckmann

"Sandra is an artist & womanimal. 
 She was born in Germany, works and lives in London and will go elsewhere."

on Facebook, Instagram, Tumblr

Sandra Dieckmann

Wolf-gang

to-the-point...

Drawings and Notes

"A weblog about drawings, scribbles, notes and an occasional painting or photograph."

on Twitter, Blogger and Tumblr

Drawings and Notes blog

Artist - Alexi K

"I do not work for free. Neither should any artist, but there are always exceptions on a project, so I maintain an open mind and consider each project individually.

I prefer a reasonable up-front fee for a consultation and / or sketches. My time is as important as anybody's, and that's what you are paying for." 

on Blogger, Twitter, Wordpress

talking about yourself

Completing the bio, or 'about me' information on your blog isn't easy....but it is important. It helps to establish your blog and to gain an audience.

The recommended word count of a bio is 160 - 250 words. What you say could and should tell others' a little about your blog. It might say something about you too - on a professional level.

The balance between being informative but personable is something you probably won't get right first time.

If you want or need to use more than 250 words, consider using a hyperlink so those who want to read more can.

Here's a useful article for writing a professional social media bio:

'buffer social'

and one pitched at artists too:

Fine Art tips - Lori McNee

a 'to-do' list

do something about the 'about' section! - a short bio + pic'

contact fellow bloggers - leave some comments

work out how frequently to blog - once/twice a week....less...more?

find some collaborators - set up some interviews

add a blogroll - list some favourite blogs

Photo credit: Ever

blog thoughtfully

So... you blog about something / someone or, somebody else blogs about you.

How easy is it to permanently remove blogged words and visuals? 

A good habit is to work on the assumption that once you've posted 

something it stays there forever. 

The only thing that'll 'disappear' your content is search engines not being able to find it. 

"More than 18,300 Britons have asked Google to remove search results about them under the 'right to be forgotten'. A total of 18,459 web links to British people - out of 60 000 requested - have been  taken off the search engine." - Metro newspaper - 13 October 2014

The story was also covered by the Guardian newspaper - 12 October 2014

Think about what you say in your blog. Always be considerate, always do your research. 

Currently fewer than a third who request 'removal' of content (through Google's search engine) are successful. 

not-so-secret-formula for becoming known...

"Do good work and share and share it with people."

"Make stuff everyday.....Fail. Get better."

"Put your stuff on the Internet".

- Steal Like An Artist - Austin Kleon

Austin Kleon: a writer who draws (and blogs)

Influence others with your ideas. Get them thinking, creating too....

Sketchnotes of Austin Kleon’s Creative Mornings Talk on Showing Your Work

from The Graphic Recorder Blog

sound blogging

Not all blog content is visual.

Blog content can be auditory too.

Consider recording sound on your smartphone - use Voice Memo on an iPhone

or perhaps a sound app like audioBoom

or, upload sound to your blog from elsewhere on the internet.

There are many free to use sound sites available (remember to credit any you use)

I often use Freesound.org

for example....

what is trolling?

Online trolling is the posting of offensive, upsetting and inflammatory comments  on social media (e.g. Facebook) and micro-blogging sites. Anyone who does it is called a troll.

The term can also be applied to those who post rude and inappropriate opinions and comments on blogs.

The aim of the troll is to post things where they can be seen publicly, and where they can illicit a reaction.

It is important to consider how you might deal with this if it happens to you.

Should visitors to your blog say whatever they want? after all - it's a public space.

The answer is no. 
You don't have to accept any of the above bad, online behaviour.

Remove comments if you want to.
--------

link ---> How to remove comments on Blogger

-------

What to do if someone trolls you on Twitter

Click on the cog symbol

- top right of your Twitter page 

A drop down menu appears...

Click on settings...

 You'll see this menu in the left hand column of the page...

 Click on 'Help'...

You'll find yourself on Twitter's 'Help Center' page.
Look for this box....

Clicking on 'Online abuse' will give you lots of information about what to do, and how to report abusive content to Twitter.