Category: Technology

Links Galore

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Lots of links to start your week off right:

  • I know this guy! Matt walked across the country, so now he’s walking every street in New York City.
  • “It’s not surprising that writers, historically technophobic and requiring either sequestered mental space for composition or greater proximal awareness for gathering material, would recoil from smartphones.” Has the New York Times seen #yalit?
  • I’d attend “How to Explain to Your Parents That Your Novel is Not Based On Them” and other rejected AWP panels.
  • New thesis topic: cultural myths and literary tropes in pizza delivery menus that I will never throw away.
  • Why can’t scientists write like poets? I know a few who certainly could handle/appreciate that kind of language.
  • Is our personality in our genes? Maybe not.

Which Tribute Are You?

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My Hunger Games Tribute persona:

Name: Twill Goldenwood

Congratulations! You had the honor of being a District 12 tribute in the 69th Hunger Games!

You were killed by eating a poisoned apple.

Very Snow White! Get your Hunger Games name and history here.

Pin It

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If you’re on the internet, you’ve probably heard of Pinterest by now. If not, it’s a social network/media site in which users can create virtual inspiration boards by pinning and sharing images. People are kind of obsessed. Frankly. I prefer Tumblr because I think it offers more variety as a site and, since I already post pretty much everything there that I would post on Pinterest, creating a general account there would be a little repetitive.

But Pinterest can be more than just a fun social network. It can actually be a great writer resource. On her blog, agent Rachelle Gardner talks about things writers should know before they start pinning. One point I found interesting:

“3. People spend significant TIME on Pinterest.
Users spend more time on Pinterest (average of 15 minutes per visit) than they do on Facebook (average of 12 minutes per visit) or Twitter (3 minutes). And by “people” I mean your potential readers.”

Part of me wonders if this is the novelty factor. It’s a very new experience for most users, so I wonder if there’s a lot of initial build as people create their boards, and if those people will gradually fade away, like most bloggers. Still, it’s a fun diversion with minimal downsides for the average user. (Unlike Facebook, you don’t have to put up with potentially obnoxious status updates. Stupid people on vacation while you’re stuck at work!)

As a writer on Pinterest, you can have boards for your favorite books or books you wish you’d written. For example, Raul Gutierrez has a board devoted to Gotta Get Kids Books–a fantastic collection.

Although I don’t have a generally public Pinterest account, I do use it. For me, it’s a great way to post images that inspire me for or remind me of whatever project I’m working on. I think it’s similar to creating a playlist for your novel–it helps create a mood so if you’re stuck, you can scan through the collection of images and perhaps get inspired. So I don’t share my boards or even invest that much time in them, but for me there’s a great writerly tool.

Do you use Pinterest? Or do you think it’s a passing online fad?

(image: Pinterest)

Sharing is Caring (and Blogging)

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I stumbled across this old blog post at Kidlit.com about writers blogging. Mary’s advice, in very short: don’t feel like you have to blog. If it feels like a chore, don’t do it. Another interesting point she makes:

“If there’s one thing I’ve learned about the Internet from actually working for it for all those years, it’s that users come to the Internet to see, “What’s in it for me?” They want valuable content that speaks to them. They Google: “How do I get this stain out of my white carpet?” “Is it okay that my baby is turning sort of purple?” (It’s probably not.) “How do I stop the hiccups?” “What’s a great summer BBQ recipe?” Most writing blogs — and most blogs in general — are about the writer of the blog, not about the user.”

Very true. I think this is also what stops people from actually blogging, too. I’ve seen friends start blogs with great enthusiasm and gradually blog less and less, and eventually their most recent post was from months ago. Part of it comes from lack of interest in the project, but I think part of it is also that people don’t really want to craft a post about their thoughts or lives. It’s hard work and doesn’t necessarily add much to the internet.

For me, blogging is about sharing. I don’t post a lot about what I’m working on or who I am. I blog because there are so many awesome things to share (here, mostly about writing and reading young adult/children’s literature), and it’s way easier to collect and share these things in one place. Hopefully that means something close to good content. If I can share these things with my friends, awesome. If I can also share them with people I don’t know but who have similar interests, even more awesome.

Let’s Learn and Explore

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We’re coming up on the end of February vacation for a lot of schools. In case you or your kids are on break and you haven’t seen anything cool yet, check out the National Children’s Book and Literary Alliance’s list of awesome museums across the country. Not a bad way to spend a Friday!

Some of the great museums included are the Eric Carle Museum of Picture Book Art in MA(somehow I still haven’t been there yet!) and the Museum of Science and Industry in Chicago.

Another on my to-visit list is the MIT Museum, which explores invention and technology. They have robots!

Have you visited any cool museums lately?

Links Galore

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A few more links to get through Tuesday:

City of Videos

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Even though there’s still a lot of debate over the ebook, technology can be a very useful tool for writers. One recent example: well-known author Avi is launching a video contest for his novel City of Orphans. Details via readergirlz:

“Any teacher or librarian is eligible to submit a City of Orphans video for a student or classroom in fourth through ninth grade. Options include formats such as live action, documentary-style, readers’ theater, costumed theater, and book trailers; the format is not as important as the entrants’ demonstration of creativity and their interpretation of City of Orphans. An online voting process will help determine the winners, who will receive prizes ranging from an in-person visit and lunch with Avi (one Grand Prize) to Skype visits by Avi (nine Finalists). Five contest voters are eligible to win autographed copies of City of Orphans.”

Sounds like a cool project for a classroom or library group! I like that the video style is open, too; I think that will inspire a lot of different interpretations and allow readers to really have fun and explore their thoughts on the book. I haven’t read City of Orphans yet but it sounds like something I would have loved when I was younger.

Check out readergirlz and Avi’s page for more details.