TinyWeeFiction

How much can you put into a story of 140 characters? Take a look at TinyWeeFiction and try it out. Bonus if you can come up with a web graphic for it too. (I didn’t, the one here comes from the site for TinyWeeFiction).

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I laughed at the idea of zombies. Now I’m picking up my ears and counting my fingers just like the rest of them.

I might have a million books. If I built a fortress with books I could live in their pages forever. Send ice cream.

How does snow look so pure, clean and soft when it falls but have such a huge impact once it lands?

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There are three. Can you work on some ideas for tiny fiction?

Count your characters online.

Attacking Animals

I’m watching a TV show (on National Geographic) about animals who have attacked people. Most of the people are tourists who want to camp or swim in areas where there are known predators. So, they are choosing to take a risk. The TV show is making it all look so shocking, as if these animals were daring to attack humans.

The problem is that the animals are trying to survive. Hunting meat is what they do.

I wish someone would make a TV show which would document more animal killings. Show how humans kill the predatory animals and how little room they have left to exist versus the space which humans take over. Not even counting areas which are long domesticated and urbanized. Just looking at the areas where predators like wolves, bears and such still have and notice how little space it really is when you discount areas where people are farming, have some sort of dwelling or use for tourist activities.

How is it we make so much drama about animals killing people and yet we hardly blink when it comes to how people are killing animals. Not only in the way we kill them for sport or as food but in the way we are gradually giving them no space left to exist on the planet.

Will it end up one day that we have no animals living in the wild at all? When they take the last of the wild areas to grow food for the over population of humans will the last of the animals be pampered pets, feral pets and animals in captivity, like zoos?

Don’t misunderstand, I do feel sad for the people killed by animals. I just see it blown out of proportion. If you think about the numbers, the humans are far more likely to be the killer than the one being killed.

If you were writing a story (non-fiction or fiction) about an animal attack would you be writing about an animal attack on the side of the animal or the human? Would you have some understanding of the animal or just be disgusted that an animal would attack a human?

Talking to Yourself Marathon

I do talk to myself and I don’t mind telling myself.

What do you usually talk about when you talk to yourself? Would you write it differently? Try it.

Blog Standards and Acceptance Guidelines

I picked this up at Clever Girls. I’m not in the US so I didn’t join. But, reading the standards for blogs was interesting. It’s good to see what other people think, what goals they set. Your goals can be different, of course.

As a side note, isn’t it ironic that when they say "about us" they mean US. A little Canadian snark isn’t a bad thing.

We Are Currently Seeking Bloggers Who:

Are U.S.-based*

Have a clear point of view

Post only original content

We do not accept sites with re-posted content or cut-and-pasted press releases

Post regularly: approximately once/week

Show evidence of readership engagement (comments, active Twitter and Facebook accounts, etc.)

Have been blogging longer than 6 months and receive at least 1,500 monthly pageviews

Devote 50% or more to original (non-sponsored and non-brand-related) content

Have good, clean design. This means blogs:

Are easy to read, both: in layout (original content should be easy to find) and color scheme (light text on dark backgrounds is not preferred)

Load quickly

Have a standard-sized header (approx 1-2.5″)

Are uncluttered

Host a minimum number of animated badges

Have some design elements: of course, not everyone is a designer (and design is subjective!) but preference will be given to blogs that show attention to detail and personality

In addition, blogs must:

Not display egregious typos or grammatical errors

Have 50% or more of the page design devoted to content, versus ads or badges

Use some language (not photos-only) and some visuals (not words-only)

Have comments enabled on most content-driven posts

via Acceptance Guidelines | Clever Girls Collective | Welcome!.

Who is the Big Winner in a Web Battle?

The end of Google Reader and the rush of new Feedly accounts has caused people to declare Feedly a "big winner" in the battle for picking up the sudden slack now that Google is closing Google Reader.

I think it is early to call Feedly a big winner. For one thing, it is not so hard to get a lot of new accounts when the tide turns suddenly. Keeping them is another issue. How will Feedly manage the load on their servers? Not so well that first several hours. I began setting up an account and could not complete the process. Is my half done account one of those they have counted as a new member? Likely. How many others are accounted for mistakenly this way?

Beyond that, will Feedly keep it’s new accounts with new features, will they adapt what they have for what the Google Reader crowd will be expecting? People seldom want change, even when they make a change they really want everything to be about the same. The Google Feedlies won’t want to learn how to use a new site, with different software, different buttons to mash.

Anyway, what I really got thinking about is how small this little battle is compared to past web service/ software battles.

The first which comes to my mind is the browser wars between Microsoft’s Internet Explorer and Netscape Navigator. At the time MSIExplorer won. Even now you could be kind and say MSIExplorer is still the winner. But, it would be a kindness. At this time Microsoft’s Internet Explorer is the web browser which has to be coddled along when it comes to web design and development. Code has to be added for it, like bottle feeding an over grown baby. Poor Netscape is gone. You may find an old version, unsupported and dusty. Isn’t there some quote about the heros of the past or the underdogs?

The other big battle was the one between the ruling blog software (not counting Blogger/ Blogspot, this was a war between the stand alones, the blogs for people who bought domains and learned how to write code, or at least manipulate and customize it).

In the beginning Ben and Mena Trott had Movable Type as the most popular, undisputed champion of the blogging world. If you had a blog, on a domain, you were most likely, proudly running Movable Type. Then, along came an upstart, WordPress. At first WordPress wasn’t even an underdog, it was just some little pretender to the throne. Movable Type was king, who needed anything else? Then… Movable Type made a change… just one change… they asked people to pay for what had been free. The utopia toppled, there were grumbling rebels and when the rubble and smoke cleared WordPress (and Matt Mullenweg) were sitting on the throne. Movable Type hung on, there were many who kept their old versions afloat, stubbornly refusing to be disloyal. But, in the end, a blog software is only as good as the community support behind it.

Now, Movable Type is a relic, still standing in some far off place, unknown to anyone but old timers. WordPress was the big winner, in that case there was a big winner. I couldn’t say the same for the battle of the web browsers. Neither of them have ended on top. Firefox and Google Chrome have a friendly rivalry, not a war, not a battle, but not quite a friendship.

What do you think were the biggest wars for turf online? There have been a lot of them, even for the people who haven’t been online for the long haul. Which one or two web battle comes to your mind and what did it change for you?

Apply for Writing Jobs

I applied for a topic to write with About.com. When ever I look at writing jobs, particularly staff writers for a publisher with some prestige, I like to see what they look for in writers. It’s a good idea to see how you measure up, find areas you could improve in and research more about.

When working with potential Topic Writers, we look for the following:

Writing Ability: A strong writer whose content is not only informative and factual, but compelling enough to make readers want to see more. We have an expectation that Topic Writers can self-edit, so we’ll be looking for writing that is free of spelling and grammar errors.

Web Savvy:: Someone who grasps the idea of formatting for the Web, whether from prior experience or from our guidance. We expect writers to organize their content into clear, easy-to-understand sections with effective use of bold and bulleting. We also expect our writers to have a good sense of when and where to link to other related content. Candidates who have a good command of blogging and social media will have an advantage.

Topic Expertise: An expert in the topic with the ability to cover the basics with ease and the passion to research anything they don’t already know.

A Desire to Educate: A teacher who can communicate the basics of the topic to a neophyte audience in a way that’s not only easy for a novice to understand, but interesting, too.

Passion: Someone whose passion for the topic motivates them to write in-depth about something they love. Writing for About.com is a long-term investment of time and energy, and those who treat the job as a labor of love tend to do best.

via Apply to Be an About.com Topic Writer – Apply for freelance writer jobs.

Micro Fiction: Horror

MicroHorror.

What’s this all about?

The mission of MicroHorror.com is to be the Web’s premier free repository for horror microfiction. We went live on May 7, 2006. Come and enjoy the stories, and if you’re a writer, we invite you to contribute.

What is microfiction?

Microfiction is also referred to as flash fiction or short-short stories. The general goal of a microfiction author is to tell a story, set a mood or depict a scene in as few words as possible. There is no official limit on how long a story can be before it no longer qualifies, but on MicroHorror.com, you will find no stories longer than 666 words.

What’s so special about horror microfiction?

Unfortunately, this is a question that can only be answered by an opinion. As for me, I’m a horror fan just like I assume you to be. I like to be scared and disturbed by what I read. I also love short-short stories, and love the emotional impact that can be crammed into a few well chosen words. Horror, I’ve come to believe, is particularly well suited to the microfiction form, and the best horror microfiction can be as brief and shocking as a punch to the stomach.

What are the guidelines for submitting stories?

There are three main rules for submissions: Stories need to be in the horror genre, they need to be under 666 words, and most importantly, they need to be written by you.

Bring Back The Equalizer

One 80’s TV show they should make over is, The Equalizer. Does anyone else remember that one? Edward Woodward starred in it. He was an older man, retired from the CIA or something. Kind of a crusty, grumpy old guy at times but he would take up a cause from the little guy and fight for it. But, he stayed on the straight and narrow, if someone lied or became dodgy he didn’t just meekly accept it.

At least that’s how I remember it. The actor, Edward Woodward, died in 2009. (I looked it up). So they can’t bring him back as his Father or Grandfather or anything else like that. It would have to be a new character without links to the old Equalizer, which would work just fine really.

I remember my Dad watching the show. I didn’t usually like all his cop shows, but The Equalizer was different. That show had a personality of it’s own.

I’ve been watching the remake of Beauty and the Beast, based on the 80’s show which starred Linda Hamilton. I’m really disappointed in it. The new show lacks all the romance and poetry and the world building fantasy of the old show. The very things that worked so well have all been stripped away. Instead they have tried to go for a newer angle, newer urban legends. Instead of people living in home made communities under the city they have governments creating super soldiers.

What old 80’s show would you like to see remade and what kind of spin would you put on it to make it new, for this century?

Measuring Time Without a Planet to Stand On

Imagine, if you will, a civilization of people who are born, live and die on a spaceship. Far, far, far back in their history there may have been a planet where their species originated but they have been on this spaceship so long, no one knows what day and night are. No one knows there are seasons or any kind of weather or climate at all. They don’t land on other planets, their culture has grown to fear any natural environment with their contagious diseases, dangerous and unpredictable plants and animals. The life they know is on the spaceship and the ship has everything they need.

How would these people measure time? Not so much the passing moments. They could measure time – the passing of seconds – in their heartbeats or the amount of breaths they take. How would they measure longer time periods without marking the time when one day turns into another? On a spaceship there would be an endless day. The best they could do would be marking days by taking shifts at work, and then the time they sleep. There would be no seasons. No way of accounting for years, as we measure them.

If time were all measured as just a quota, wouldn’t you miss measuring time by seasons, the sun and moon? Our measurements for time are almost poetry compared to the plain measurement of just counting how many shifts you had at work. Wouldn’t it be sad if they measured time by how many generations of their family had died, how many Grandmothers and Grandfathers they have? We think about ourselves by generations. Pagans think of it as the young woman, the Mother and the crone.

Dealing with Weaknesses

Your can more than compensate for any weaknesses you might have, so don’t beat yourself up or feel less than for having them. Here are my 4 strategies for managing them.

Transform them. Just like Suzi did, how can use your strengths to overcome your weaknesses? What strengths can you apply that will transform your ability to deliver? Your strengths are more than a match for any weakness, don’t let yourself think otherwise.

Eliminate them. Do you actually need to do what you’re weak at? If you don’t need to do it, why do it and beat yourself up about it? Like me playing catch, if you can eliminate the activity without dodging responsibility or eliminating something you enjoy or something important, by all means go for it.

Delegate them. Is there someone else you can give the task to? Can you outsource the activity or give it to someone who’s stronger at it than you? Again, if it’s something you can delegate without it being a way for you to dodge responsibility or avoid screwing up, then go for it.

Minimise them. How can you minimise the weakness? Is there something you can learn that will improve it or the impact that it has? What’s a way that you can practice or get better at something that might be a weak point? Remember, you’ll never excel at a weakness so know when to call it quits.

via 4 Ways to Show Your Weaknesses Who’s Boss | The Confidence Guy.