Stay Tuned for a New Blog Design

When I started blogging in November of 2006, I used an avatar because I wanted to give my readers an idea of what I look like, but I wasn't totally sure I should use a photograph. Mostly because I was new to blogging and unsure of how much personal information I could safely disclose (more on that in another post).

Over time, I got comfortable with using a photo, but I still liked my cartoon alter ego. She's sophisticated and a little sassy: just the persona I wanted to cultivate at the time. As my little brother once put it, "Sue, I hate to say this, but your cartoon self is kinda hot." He immediately added a disclaimer: "Don't get the wrong idea."

But, as my readership (and my freelance writing business) has grown, I've started to think about cultivating a more professional persona. The cartoon IS kind of girly, and since many of my new readers are male, I don't want to turn any of them away. I was chatting with my designer about updating the blog when I got an email from fellow freelancer Michelle Rafter, who wanted to use this blog as an example in her blog post about avatars. I'm flattered, of course, but I do think it's time for a change. So, next week, stay tuned for a whole new look. Enjoy the long weekend!

Welcome to Writer's Digest Readers!

To those who are discovering the blog courtesy of Writer's Digest's 101 Websites for Writers, thanks for reading. As the tagline goes, The Urban Muse is all about reading, writing, and being a freelance writer/creative soul. Usually I post musings on freelance writing, but sometimes I also share observations about life in general.

Here is a selection of my favorite posts so you can get an idea of what I cover:
Five Ways to Promote Your Blog
Five MORE Ways to Promote Your Blog
Six Ways to Find Writing Markets
Six Things to Do Before You Send Your Query Letter
Six Ways to Network Between Projects

If you like what you read, then please add me to your feed so you can stay up to date on new posts.

May 1 is RSS Awareness Day

Daily Blogging Tips has proclaimed May 1 RSS Awareness Day. Their goal is to get as bloggers as possible talking up the benefits of RSS so that more readers will use it. I thought I was a late adopter of RSS, but it turns out that the vast majority of internet users still have not caught on to how easy it is.

I signed up for Google Reader back in December, so here are my five reasons why you should use it, too:

1. See all of your blog reading aggregated in one place. This saves me a TON of time, because I just scroll through all the new posts and decide what's worth reading.
2. Don't waste time visiting blogs that haven't been updated. Before I signed up for RSS, I spent quite a bit of time each morning checking blogs that didn't have any new content, hoping maybe this would be the day for a new post.
3. Get recommendations on related blogs. When you sign into Google Reader, it suggests other blogs that you might like based on the content that is currently in your feeds (similar to Amazon.com recommendations). This is a good way to discover new blogs.
4. Find out what your contacts are reading. If your Gmail contacts choose to share their feeds, then you can see what they're reading and discover new blogs that way, too.
5. Show your favorite bloggers some love by subscribing to their feeds. Yes, you should still comment regularly, but subscribing to their feed is another way to voice your support. Bloggers love big numbers (at least this blogger does, so sign up for my RSS feed here).

This post from the archives has more tips on organizing information online.

Big News (not involving a ring)

On Friday I told my boss that I'm making the jump to writing full time. I couldn't blog about it until I told my coworkers and created a plan for the transition, but now I can finally share this exciting bit of news with all of you!

It's funny because earlier in the week, someone blogged about how two weeks is too much notice. I respectfully disagree, because I'll be consulting part time for my company for at least another month after I step down from my position. It's the perfect set-up for me and my coworkers, because they won't need to panic if they have questions and I won't have to worry about bringing in enough money during my first month or so on my own.

But even funnier are the reactions I've gotten. A few weeks ago when I emailed friends to say "we need to meet for drinks, I have big news on the horizon," not one but TWO of them replied with "You're engaged aren't you?"

And tonight, when I met Penelope Trunk for dinner, one of the first things she said was, "did you get engaged?" Must be the glow of someone who knows her days of riding the subway during rush hour and working out of a cube are almost over.

A few people were concerned for my well being ("what happens if you get sick?" "won't you be lonely at home all day?"), but most of my coworkers have been remarkably supportive. I was worried that some of them wouldn't see freelance writing as a legitimate career path, but after reading No More Mondays, I decided it didn't matter. This was something I needed to do, and I was going to do it.

I'll admit I've had a few moments in the last few days where I've been tempted to log onto Monster and search for a new job (which is silly because I could certainly resume my old post), but mostly I feel an incredible sense of liberation and relief.

Same Blog, New Domain

The old blogspot URL will still work, but you might want to update your bookmarks just in case. My new domain is www.UrbanMuseWriter.com (Google assures me that this link will work for everyone over the next few days). Happy reading!

Writer's Digest's 101 Best Websites for Writers

My June issue of Writer's Digest arrived today, and I was thrilled to discover that this blog is listed in their 101 Best Websites for Writers for 2008! The list is so new I couldn't find it online, but I'll be sure to post the link once it goes live. Thanks to those who nominated me, and welcome to Writer's Digest readers!

Here is the post mentioned in the round-up: Five Ways to Promote Your Blog
And here's the sequel: Five MORE Ways to Promote Your Blog

New Site for Finding Sources: Help a Reporter

Several months ago, I blogged about using social networking sites to find sources for articles. Well, last night I heard that Peter Shankman's group "If I Can Help a Reporter, I Will" has outgrown facebook, so Peter created a website for his network. The new site is called Help a Reporter, and anyone can sign up to recieve email notifications of current needs for sources. It's sort of like ProfNet for the masses, so people who've grown disillusioned with that site might have better luck here. The more people who join, the better the opportunities for writers, so go check it out!

Calling All Guest Bloggers!

I'm planning a little vacay in February, so I thought that would be a good time to open up The Urban Muse to some guest bloggers. Whether you're a seasoned blogger who'd like to share your insights with a wider audience or you're a newbie who'd like a little taste of the blogosphere before you jump in, this is your chance.

All I ask is that you keep it between 250 and 750 words (or thereabouts) and focus your post on some aspect of writing. Since the guest post is for exposure, I'll even post something that has already appeared elsewhere or will appear elsewhere in the future provided you own the rights and don't publish it on the same day (how disappointing would that be for readers to eagerly click on a link to your blog only to find the same exact content as they just read?). That brings me to my final point... I'm happy to include a link to your blog, website, MySpace page, or other site provided it's appropriate for a general audience.

Email me for more information.

Happy Blogaversary!

Today marks one full year since I started this blog, and I'm amazed by how much it has grown and evolved. One year ago, I tentatively entered the world of blogging with posts about trying to break into bigger markets and improve my craft.

Now--230 blog posts and countless* comments later--uh, I'm still posting about trying to break into bigger markets and improve my craft. But I've "met" a lot of writers and bloggers who have graciously shared insights and encouragement every step of the process. I've also upgraded to a custom template (thanks, Goofy Girl!) and learned a ton about blogs and writing for the web.

Here's are some of my "greatest hits" from the past year:

• Beating Burnout
• 4 Must-Read Articles for Writers
• Things a Publisher Should Consider
• Weekend Adventures
• How Creatives Deal with Criticism
• Query Challenge Recap

Thank to all of you for reading my writings (and occasional rants) this year. Here's to many more!

*I started adding up all the comments and my calculator went a little wacky. Suffice to say, it is a LOT!

Happy Turkey Day!

This Thanksgiving, I am thankful for:

• My health
• Friends and family who support my writing habit
• Friends and family who appreciate my cooking
• My trusty laptop (we've been through a lot together)
• The not-so-trusty electricity in my apartment (it may be unreliable, but at least I have it)
• Coffeeshops that are open late and offer free wifi
• The Boston Public Library System (who, I might add, have not yet figured out that I moved across the river - shh!)
• Being able to make money doing something I love
• Half.com
• Editors who actually return my emails and increase my pay rates
• Netflix
• Chai lattes with skim milk
• My wonderful blog readers!

I'm hoping that most of you are celebrating with your family instead of reading my blog, so there will be no 5 Q's this week. Happy Thanksgiving!

There's a Fine, Fine Line*

There's a certain editor that I've been working with on an essay. I sent him a first draft and after sitting on it for a few months, he told me it was too strongly worded. I think some of my best work is very strongly worded (in fact, I won an award for a scathing editorial I wrote in high school, I would link to it, but it doesn't exist anymore), and I think my perspective was/is totally valid.

Still, he's the editor and he wouldn't publish it in its original form, so I sat down to rewrite the essay. I think version 2.0 might be even better because it's less raw emotion and more justified indignation. Yesterday, I called the editor to see if he agreed with me. Turns out he misses some of the "vinegar" as he calls it. I hope that the third time is a charm, because I don't know how many more rewrites he'll give me before he just gives up!!

In other news, Wednesday is traditionally when I would post an interview with a fellow writer. Life has gotten a little hectic for me to find and interview someone every single week, so I'm cutting back to every other week. If you're a book publicist now would be a good time to pitch me, since I've gotten through my backlog and I'd love suggestions for other writers to interview!

*post title borrowed from the title of my favorite song from Avenue Q.

Desk, Sweet Desk

This may be cleanest it will ever be, but it's finally set up!
*Sighs contentedly*

No 5 Q's This Week

Still getting settled; thus, there will be no 5 Q's this week. But feel free to check out the archives or leave a comment if you have suggestions on which writer I should feature next!

A Comment About Comments

Until recently, there was no need for me to police comments, because all you loyal readers have been incredibly supportive and professional. So for many of you, I’m preaching to the choir (sorry for the silly cliché). But just in case, it’s worth noting that I DO moderate comments and reserve the right to delete them if they fall under one of the following categories:

1. Blatant (and unrelated) marketing. It’s cool if you want to share your writing-related business, but if your product or service doesn’t relate to my blog, then don’t try to market it on my blog (yeah, I know sometimes my Adsense doesn't make sense, but we'll let that slide).


2. Threats or disparaging comments. Dissenting opinions are one thing, but if you express a strong hatred for me or the other writers I mention, that’s not cool and it’s not going on my blog.

Any questions?

Joys of Moving

Today I went to the bank to change my mailing address (they won't let me do it online because of security concerns). I pulled out my personal and business debit cards and handed them to the bank teller. Eying my black Visa card, he asked if my boss had authorized me to change the address on the small business debit card.

"Actually, I'm the boss. It's a sole proprietorship." Such sweet words!

You would think that having family close by would help ease the stress of moving. And you would be wrong. So things might be quieter than usual on the blog for the next week or so. I always say that and end up posting more than usual, but this time things probably will slow down for a few days. Stay tuned...

Welcome to Urban Muse 2.0!

Last week I broke up with my boyfriend just after our one year anniversary (the irony is that I had just finished an article on "Couples Vacations" two days prior). This week I have a cool new template so I can reinvent myself as even sassier and more fabulous than before. I'm thrilled with the new look that Goofy Girl created!

On a more humorous note, there's this blog review site where I wanted to submit my blog after the redesign, but I couldn't find the link. I tried googling various phrases like "blog reviewers" and "woman reviewing blogs" until I got so frustrated that I googled "review my blog, darn it!" The correct link? ReviewMyBlog! As the ex used to say, "sometimes you're the dumbest smart person I know."

No 5 Q's This Week

Due to the holiday tomorrow, there will be no Q & A posted this week. But if you're in need of a writing fix, check out the archives and come back next week for more interviews with fabulous freelancers. Happy 4th of July!