Word Grrls is about creative writing inspiration with the focus on writing prompts/ exercises. I've been writing on the web since 1998. I admit I can be opinionated (some claim eccentric and some are kind and say I'm wise) but I love web writing and publishing, particularly blogging. To me blogging is still about free writing and creativity.

I have been publishing Word Grrls with a daily entry since November 2007. Before that it was weekly. I'm used to having a publishing schedule and I like the discipline of having that schedule to stick to.

I would very much like to be part of 9Rules and the community here. Not only as a help in promoting Word Grrls but to be part of something bigger again. I miss working within a larger network of sites. People get a lot of feedback and push to keep going in an active community. I also like to be part of building something. I was an active editor at Dmoz.org for over ten years cause I enjoyed tidying and adding to the categories and finding new ideas and hobbies for myself.

I can't pick a favourite post. In a blog each post should be able to stand on it's own. Most people only skim the first post before they decide to read more or click off. I like my current post about the goldfish. It may be a bit dorky but it was what I thought about at the time I saw the baby goldfish in the backyard pond.

I don't know what else to babble on about. I've done more than a few sentences. I would appreciate to hear back from someone. I applied March 8th 2009 and was pretty disappointed when nothing happened and there were no updates on the 9Rules blog. I really hope 9Rules is going to revamp and start up again. Being part of 9Rules was one of the goals I had for this blog at the time I started it. :)

Do you remember 9Rules? It was a blog network, quite busy a couple of years ago. Then it seemed to drop off a cliff one day. It has since been bought up by SplashPress Media.

Once upon a time there would be a gush of interest each time they auditioned new blogs to join the network. I submitted for the last audition but that was at the time they faded away and I never heard a thing. But, now they are revving up again, hoping to regain their place as a network people want to be a part of.

I do. Mainly because I want to have other bloggers to talk to, to compare ideas, successes, failures and just know there are others out there who are in the same boat. You can add your blog to the submissions at midnight on October 1st, 2009. Yes, tonight.

From a Chinese fortune cookie: "Select from the past only what is useful for dealing with the present."

Yes, another Chinese fortune cookie. It's not that I've been spending a lot of time eating Chinese food lately, I just save up my fortunes to see if one of them comes true. So far it's still a work in progress.

Write your own Chinese fortune. Try one modern style (optimistic and generalized) and try another the of the old fashioned kind which were kind of spooky and mystical. The sort of cookie you open with your fingers crossed and your breath held, suspense making your fingers tremble in case this fortune said something you didn't want to hear/ read.

You're making a ship in a bottle. It's something you've always thought would be interesting to do one day. Like making paper doll chains into infinity, or bungee jumping... well, maybe not so much, it seemed creative, intricate and something you could boast about making later and then give away to relatives when you got tired of it. Plus, you heard once that your Great Grandfather used to make them.

Only, when the glass bottle company delivers your glass bottle, it's a baby bottle. What kind of ship would you design to fit inside a baby bottle? Or would you go with something completely different?

“Better to write for yourself and have no public, than to write for the public and have no self.” - Cyril Connolly

Part of running a blog is promoting it. It is easy to cross the line from promoting into spamming. At that point most bloggers also lose track of the content in their blog, they run out of time, energy and passion for it. They can get content from other sources: free content online, guest bloggers or quick content like quotations used as a whole post. Some bloggers will also steal content. At this point there is very little of yourself in the blog. It is just a business, a means of harvesting money from the Internet. If that is what you want to do wouldn't getting a second job be a lot more effective? Why make pennies when you can make dollars?

Blog, if it is still your passion, if you still balance your writing and your promotion. Blog if you still love the creative aspect of writing, styling your blog with images and HTML. Promote your blog, but schedule your time for it. Don't lose track of the content you are promoting.