First, I'm lucky to have a good life, and so I prefer life much better right now than getting hit by a truck crossing the road today. Absolutely! That's what you expected me to say, right? But, I don't worry as much about what happens in the next billion years 'is all. I never functioned well out of a fear of going to hell. Well, I never had that fear. But I can visualize a heaven, and that looks much more inviting. I'm usually somewhere in between I guess. So here's my feelings why, once in a while, I think about the next world; purgatory, hell and heaven; the spiritual world; the soul's world not made for flesh.
Whew, a mouthful, but here goes:
I believe that the next world, the world of spirit, exists. Have you ever seen the movie The Seventh Sign with a beautiful and pregnant Demi Moore as the protagonist, and Jurgen Prochnow as the Angel Gabriel? I believed it, it was that real. It was really about a world of souls, the matrix, before they are conceived and born in this world. Riveting. It was somewhat based on the Seven Seals described in John's Book of Revelation, which I've read. Also riveting.
But has it already happened? Or is it happening now? (That's another blog)
My mind's not made up on whether a soul preexists, even tho I certainly believe the soul of the Manifestation (Major Prophet) does, because they must share the same soul in the same body, right? They know and repeat each others Message, for example love thy neighbor as thyself, or in these days, what seems to be needed, better than thyself. It seems it's part of every religious belief, One foretelling the Coming of the next, and I think it makes common sense. The spiritual principals are eternal, social ones change in every age.
My point is that I believe in the human soul, that each one of us has one, We choose to believe, maybe believe, or not believe. Totally our choice. Like every single thing in life. A choice, a decision. The way it should be, since all humans have had, and have, Free Will.
And choices and decisions have consequences as we all know.
I always thought purgatory was a Roman Catholic construct, created for those poor babies and children who die. But I believe the babies, and depending on early age, say before age 7 (that's what the Catholic Church teaches - before the maturity to know right from wrong), go straight to "heaven." In a way, I wouldn't mind going straight there either, and bypass what can be a part of life filled with sufferings. Certainly heaven exists for the little ones.
It also exists for each one of us, you and me:
"His unconstrained and sovereign Will, chose to
confer upon man the unique distinction and capacity to know Him and to love Him -- a capacity that must
needs be regarded as the generating impulse and the
primary purpose underlying the whole of creation….
Upon the inmost reality of each and
every created thing He hath shed the light of one of
His names, and made it a recipient of the glory of
one of His attributes. Upon the reality of man, however,
He hath focused the radiance of all of His
names and attributes, and made it a mirror of His
own Self. Alone of all created things man hath been
singled out for so great a favor, so enduring a bounty. " Baha'u'llah, Gleanings XXVII
We each have capacities. Either a thimbleful, a gallonful, or anything in between. We each have abilities and talents, sight and hearing, thoughts and feelings, opinions and convictions, and thousands more. Otherwise, how could we be called upon to account for our doings?
So we have free will because we know and believe certain things, like choosing independent over a political party. or a milk shake instead of a Coke (ugh - I like pepsi). We learn those things thru Nature - our personality, animal or human or inbetween; Nurture - care we received when young, and hopefully still receive; and Environment - growing up and what life throws our way. All three share a common thread - Education _ what we are taught or what we learn predisposes us to think and act in certain ways. That's why Education is the most important acquisition for humankind (I believe). Alexander Pope and others said it best: "As the twig is bent the tree's inclined."
So what's all this got to do with the soul? Our soul may be like a sponge or tape recorder, with an eternal energy source. Learning like we do but remembering everything. On earth and as far away as the moon, we learn how to think and act good, bad, or indifferent. Based on those learnings, we pass away to a spiritual place, a feast table, already prepared for us by our own doings. Not by "Well everyone else did it, so I followed." And the table may have a crumb on it because that's all we earned, or a full turkey dinner, or anything in between. And, we're hungry.
However, contrary to most opinions, it doesn't stop there. Could it? This is the spiritual world we're talkin' 'bout. As different to this existence as that of a baby's in the womb of it's mother. But just like a baby, the soul may gain its sustenance in the next world at that banquet table, similar to what we do in the physical world. Maybe.
And again, those evil folks may have a long dark trip before they even get to that crumb. Eternity goes on. People you have known may join you at your table, from the bad or the good. Eventually however, after you've seen what your physical body has caused, we see our errors and God's mercy and grace descends. More food and drink may be placed on the table. Now we meet the our loved ones like our spouse or mate, parents and children, and chat for eons. Along the way we chat with our best friends, and ex-bosses maybe, until we meet the glowing saints from our own lives, and the Saints of the [past? We've become so happy along the way, and others are also happier. Or maybe we console some of them along the way and them us, but always moving toward the Great Light? We pass thru purgatory or hell and into heaven. Every one of us. I believe that, notwithstanding this poor analogy. Again, free will. Just expressing some thoughts.
We enter the sanctified worlds, our mansions. Nearer to God. We meet Maids of Heaven (and not for copulation -- we aren't that person anymore), and His Angels. Paradise and nirvana can't be described in human terms, just like what I'm describing here is only my conception at this moment in time. As we learn more from the Prophets, these degrees, levels, tiers, become clearer. Limited to our human capacity to understand the unknowable, like going thru grade levels in school.
So, whether this life or the next, in both worlds, we may be on an expedition, not just to discover David Livingstone, but the truth. The true reality of our true selves and our soul. Not someone else's. Only our own.
So that's a philosophical view for today, what's you're take on the nature of soul and heaven?
By Rodney Richards
Like you, I've had many ups and downs, and quite a few sideways experiences. I firmly believe everyone should write theirs and share them, whether just for themselves or their kids. Here are some from my memoirs, observations and thoughts.
Tuesday, September 17, 2013
Friday, September 13, 2013
The Joy of Fingers
We do take our hands and fingers for granted, don't we? Whether typing today's blog, or lifting a cup of Dunkin coffee to my mouth this morning, fingers are indispensable miracles of the human body.
I was reminded of this a few weeks ago at my nephew's 17 year-old birthday party, combined with that of his 13 year-old sister a week earlier. Smart parents combining it. We had driven 45 miles north from three towns in Mercer County to attend. Nine of us, plus the four in the birthday family, still missing six from the immediate family.
My brother Ralph cooked hamburgers, hot dogs and lamb skewers on the grill, with tons of ordoerves (stuffed hot peppers my favorites), salads, fixins and lots of drinks, most non-alcoholic of course. All outside on his and Yvonne's large comfortable deck, with cushioned comfortable chairs and big picnic table, hot tub nearby looking inviting. A lovely sunny, moderate day to boot. Conversations were buzzing, and things going swimmingly. It would turn into a four-and-a-half hour affair -- a short get together for us.
Until my brother and I got back from picking up the cakes in downtown Ridgewood that is. Corinne's cake was from Carlo's, a branch of the famous Cake Boss bakery in Hoboken, as seen on TV. The cake for Corinne, a shore scene, with sand and seashells and umbrella, and blue fondant on the sides as the water. Strawberries and real cream inside. So beautiful you almost don't want to slice it. Almost. The other from Ben & Jerry's, a deep dark chocolate ice cream cake with marsh mellows and cookie dough. Decorated of course, for Julian, the older brother. Both cakes favorites of theirs.
We got back, extracted the cakes from the back of the SUV, placed them on the drinks table, and Ralph went inside. Unbeknownst to me, he left shortly after arriving. It was during the cake serving that I found out why.
Julian's friend had sliced his finger cutting one of the cakes! We hadn't known at the time, but Ralph had taken him to the hospital while we gabbed and ate. Nine stitches later, enough gauze and tape to make three fingers, and they were back. Then we heard the story.
Two summers ago Janet nearly cut the tip of her finger off using clippers in the garden. Six stitches at Robert Wood Hospital.
I did the same thing, last summer, working in our garden using the same clippers. I drove myself to Robert Wood with my blue garage sweat towel around my bleeding finger. Six stitches for me to. Being the type of person I am, three weeks later I went to the hospital's Accounts department and asked how much my stitches cost. After some searching and obfuscation, the clerk said it was $2,250. She wouldn't give me a copy of the bikll; she said that was for the insurance company only. Really?
The $2,25o mu8st have been for initial intake, an ER bed, diagnosis, swabbing/cleaning the cut with astringent (expensive astringent!), novocaine, a doctor, stitches, bandage, and outtake. Not too bad?
I've met people, men mostly, who've lost a finger or thumb, or half of one or two. You'd never notice it really. The men I met never pointed it out.
But an 8th grade friend in Catholic school, Dave Shuster, the school tough guy and sometime bully, ran into a problem one day. Sacred Heart had a 7-foot tall spiked metal fence out front of its grounds. We all walked past it many times a day, starting with mandatory mass attendance for all students at 7:30 am.
I often hung with Dave, but not this afternoon, He left school with other eyewitnesses. Dave scooped down in his featherweights and black leather jacket . . . and jumped! High enough to touch the top of a spike on that fence, just to do it. We've all done dozens of things like that. Just kids.
But his gold-band ring got caught on the spike. As his heavy body fell back to the sidewalk, the top half of his finger ripped off. I hear it was bloody, but that he handled it non-challantly.he was out three days. It was so bad, they had to graft skin from his body to the finger to make it halfway normal-looking . . . .
The next day the thickly wrapped finger was a badge of courage.
Do you have any Red Badges of Courage?
by Rodney Richards
I was reminded of this a few weeks ago at my nephew's 17 year-old birthday party, combined with that of his 13 year-old sister a week earlier. Smart parents combining it. We had driven 45 miles north from three towns in Mercer County to attend. Nine of us, plus the four in the birthday family, still missing six from the immediate family.
My brother Ralph cooked hamburgers, hot dogs and lamb skewers on the grill, with tons of ordoerves (stuffed hot peppers my favorites), salads, fixins and lots of drinks, most non-alcoholic of course. All outside on his and Yvonne's large comfortable deck, with cushioned comfortable chairs and big picnic table, hot tub nearby looking inviting. A lovely sunny, moderate day to boot. Conversations were buzzing, and things going swimmingly. It would turn into a four-and-a-half hour affair -- a short get together for us.
Until my brother and I got back from picking up the cakes in downtown Ridgewood that is. Corinne's cake was from Carlo's, a branch of the famous Cake Boss bakery in Hoboken, as seen on TV. The cake for Corinne, a shore scene, with sand and seashells and umbrella, and blue fondant on the sides as the water. Strawberries and real cream inside. So beautiful you almost don't want to slice it. Almost. The other from Ben & Jerry's, a deep dark chocolate ice cream cake with marsh mellows and cookie dough. Decorated of course, for Julian, the older brother. Both cakes favorites of theirs.
We got back, extracted the cakes from the back of the SUV, placed them on the drinks table, and Ralph went inside. Unbeknownst to me, he left shortly after arriving. It was during the cake serving that I found out why.
Julian's friend had sliced his finger cutting one of the cakes! We hadn't known at the time, but Ralph had taken him to the hospital while we gabbed and ate. Nine stitches later, enough gauze and tape to make three fingers, and they were back. Then we heard the story.
Two summers ago Janet nearly cut the tip of her finger off using clippers in the garden. Six stitches at Robert Wood Hospital.
I did the same thing, last summer, working in our garden using the same clippers. I drove myself to Robert Wood with my blue garage sweat towel around my bleeding finger. Six stitches for me to. Being the type of person I am, three weeks later I went to the hospital's Accounts department and asked how much my stitches cost. After some searching and obfuscation, the clerk said it was $2,250. She wouldn't give me a copy of the bikll; she said that was for the insurance company only. Really?
The $2,25o mu8st have been for initial intake, an ER bed, diagnosis, swabbing/cleaning the cut with astringent (expensive astringent!), novocaine, a doctor, stitches, bandage, and outtake. Not too bad?
I've met people, men mostly, who've lost a finger or thumb, or half of one or two. You'd never notice it really. The men I met never pointed it out.
But an 8th grade friend in Catholic school, Dave Shuster, the school tough guy and sometime bully, ran into a problem one day. Sacred Heart had a 7-foot tall spiked metal fence out front of its grounds. We all walked past it many times a day, starting with mandatory mass attendance for all students at 7:30 am.
I often hung with Dave, but not this afternoon, He left school with other eyewitnesses. Dave scooped down in his featherweights and black leather jacket . . . and jumped! High enough to touch the top of a spike on that fence, just to do it. We've all done dozens of things like that. Just kids.
But his gold-band ring got caught on the spike. As his heavy body fell back to the sidewalk, the top half of his finger ripped off. I hear it was bloody, but that he handled it non-challantly.he was out three days. It was so bad, they had to graft skin from his body to the finger to make it halfway normal-looking . . . .
The next day the thickly wrapped finger was a badge of courage.
Do you have any Red Badges of Courage?
by Rodney Richards
Thursday, September 12, 2013
The Joy of Order
What are the most powerful forces in the universe? You might say gravity, the force of attraction. After all, without that, form is formless.You might say magnetism and magnetic fields. Or light; after all it brings life and dispels darkness. You might say Nature, encompassing every solid, growing, moving or thinking object and creature.
So I thought about this listening to an unrelated topic being discussed on my car radio this morning on NPR, my favorite and only station. I hit 1 for Oldies and Goodies 'cause the topic wasn't hitting me. Classic '60s is my favorite -- that was my youth.
So, the force of attraction, which I think many of us may erroneously just call gravity. Attraction creates a sun of super-compressed gases, then a planet, both with gravity, then gravity and magnetic fields keep them in their orbits. That's my guess anyway. Its scientifically called intermolecular forces of attraction AND repulsion (Wikipedia). And its name sums it up.
Next? Maybe magnetism. Yeah, that's pretty important. Just like how I met Janet in 1967-- "forces exerted on magnets by other magnets," But many of us are more familiar with it physically as metal to metal. And most things, like plants, copper and plastic, aren't. So magnetism doesn't effect everything directly, but it seems to at least indirectly. Mass has a lot to do with it also, in my opinion. Janet I reached critical mass and maintained that magnetic field ever since, some moments stronger, some waner, but always there.
Take light, certainly a strong force at 186,000 mps. That's why I think SETI will be much more effective shooting light waves heavenwards instead of radio waves. Radio waves travel at the speed of light, but I don't think they go far enough (any scientists out there?) On earth, I think their limit is 62 miles. (Wikipedia) That's a long, long way from a light year.
Besides, I'm not a fan of SETI right now, even tho I understand the need, and loved Jodie Foster in Contact. Maybe in a hundred years when we have peace and unity of thought and of nations on Earth. I've seen a lot of sci-fi movies like Independence Day with one of my favorites, Will Smith, and the only saving grace was that the invading aliens unified our defenses, at least temporarily. The movie didn't go much beyond Will's and Randy Quaid's successes in defeating them. So who can say mankind will even unify enough to either repel or defeat them, and that we can stay unified?
Well, I believe we will anyway. That'll be a good day to attract superior extraterrestrial beings.
Attraction (gravity), magnetism and light. Would you agree they seem to be the strongest forces right now?
Well if so, or even if not, there's one force that unites them all in my opinion -- Order.
Out of chaos and gas, came attraction; a sun and its light; came planets and gravity as we know it and no real Superman, yet; came magnetism and the Aurora Borealis, Maglev trains, etc.
The common denominator to me is that the molecules, atoms, photons, electrons, Higg's bosons, ad infinitum, combined in billions of fashions just like stars and planets, like Nature and us.
Out of chaos came Order. Out of evolution and random selection came man and woman, from Homo Erectus to Homo Sapiens on our way to? Why do we seem to forget we're still evolving? Do we think just because we're alive right now, that this is our apex? That time won't change our difficulties into ease, our troubles into joy? (With our efforts.)
We all agree technology is revolutionizing our ordered life on this planet. But to me the masses don't quite see the same abilities in themselves, only a few activists, educators, anthropologists and socialists? But without these higher-level beings, there'd be no order in the family, and no tribe; no tribe, and no city-state; no nation, and no United Nations. And we are really all higher-level beings right now. We can do it!
So to me, Order appears to be the most powerful force in the universe, its overriding purpose and goal. And individuals and society are also the most powerful forces for achieving Order, for mankind's wealth, health, liberty and happiness.
What's the most powerful force to you? In the universe or in your life?
By Rodney Richards
So I thought about this listening to an unrelated topic being discussed on my car radio this morning on NPR, my favorite and only station. I hit 1 for Oldies and Goodies 'cause the topic wasn't hitting me. Classic '60s is my favorite -- that was my youth.
So, the force of attraction, which I think many of us may erroneously just call gravity. Attraction creates a sun of super-compressed gases, then a planet, both with gravity, then gravity and magnetic fields keep them in their orbits. That's my guess anyway. Its scientifically called intermolecular forces of attraction AND repulsion (Wikipedia). And its name sums it up.
Next? Maybe magnetism. Yeah, that's pretty important. Just like how I met Janet in 1967-- "forces exerted on magnets by other magnets," But many of us are more familiar with it physically as metal to metal. And most things, like plants, copper and plastic, aren't. So magnetism doesn't effect everything directly, but it seems to at least indirectly. Mass has a lot to do with it also, in my opinion. Janet I reached critical mass and maintained that magnetic field ever since, some moments stronger, some waner, but always there.
Take light, certainly a strong force at 186,000 mps. That's why I think SETI will be much more effective shooting light waves heavenwards instead of radio waves. Radio waves travel at the speed of light, but I don't think they go far enough (any scientists out there?) On earth, I think their limit is 62 miles. (Wikipedia) That's a long, long way from a light year.
Besides, I'm not a fan of SETI right now, even tho I understand the need, and loved Jodie Foster in Contact. Maybe in a hundred years when we have peace and unity of thought and of nations on Earth. I've seen a lot of sci-fi movies like Independence Day with one of my favorites, Will Smith, and the only saving grace was that the invading aliens unified our defenses, at least temporarily. The movie didn't go much beyond Will's and Randy Quaid's successes in defeating them. So who can say mankind will even unify enough to either repel or defeat them, and that we can stay unified?
Well, I believe we will anyway. That'll be a good day to attract superior extraterrestrial beings.
Attraction (gravity), magnetism and light. Would you agree they seem to be the strongest forces right now?
Well if so, or even if not, there's one force that unites them all in my opinion -- Order.
Out of chaos and gas, came attraction; a sun and its light; came planets and gravity as we know it and no real Superman, yet; came magnetism and the Aurora Borealis, Maglev trains, etc.
The common denominator to me is that the molecules, atoms, photons, electrons, Higg's bosons, ad infinitum, combined in billions of fashions just like stars and planets, like Nature and us.
Out of chaos came Order. Out of evolution and random selection came man and woman, from Homo Erectus to Homo Sapiens on our way to? Why do we seem to forget we're still evolving? Do we think just because we're alive right now, that this is our apex? That time won't change our difficulties into ease, our troubles into joy? (With our efforts.)
We all agree technology is revolutionizing our ordered life on this planet. But to me the masses don't quite see the same abilities in themselves, only a few activists, educators, anthropologists and socialists? But without these higher-level beings, there'd be no order in the family, and no tribe; no tribe, and no city-state; no nation, and no United Nations. And we are really all higher-level beings right now. We can do it!
So to me, Order appears to be the most powerful force in the universe, its overriding purpose and goal. And individuals and society are also the most powerful forces for achieving Order, for mankind's wealth, health, liberty and happiness.
What's the most powerful force to you? In the universe or in your life?
By Rodney Richards
Tuesday, September 10, 2013
The Joy of Blogging
After writing over 100 blog articles between my two blogs, this one and http://goodideasfornj.blogspot.com/ which is more a state government/business/NJ blog, I feel qualified to write a little on the subject of blogging mechanics, since my earliest blogs are now a few years old.
So I'd like to break it down into two major categories. Using and Posting.
First, use a free blog site. There's many, Wordpress, Weebly and Blogger are very popular, each with over 10 million users. And the majority are free. Don't ever pay to do this. Don't ever let others write your blogs and tweets for you (in my opinion). The one I use is Google, i.e. Blogger. So I'll restrain myself describing it, even tho my blog addresses are "blogspot" and not "blogger." That still confuses me.
Using a site comes down to two things: ease of use for you, the creator and author, and the abilities of the site/company you choose. The most important part of having a blog at all, straddles both: Signing Up More Readers. At no cost to them, right now. In any blog, its the most important metric, which is why you get a daily trending/numbers chart, a mandatory metric in any business, especially for sales. And blogging is a business. Well you can make it one. Many have. For example I like the Huffington Post (issues of the day), and Jane Friedman (on writing), among others.
When I get on websites I think I can trust, I look at their "About" and "FAQs" first thing. Blogger doesn't have those (every site should), so as a blogger you almost only have your posts to explain why and what you're blogging. That leave's your masthead to do the job for you.
Your masthead is what your reader sees first, so be aware.
Readers, like you, never really know what they're getting into until they get into it, and hopefully "like" your blog. That's why I have a masthead logo I purchased cheaply from iStockphoto. And I sweated out the few short sentences I used there to describe my blog. Have any suggestions?
Also on Blogger I can list sites I follow, which are Proust.com, an intimate, family and close friends FB site, only 10 times better, and my son Jesse's Blog, based on his 2010 book A Secret Peace. Both excellent. That's a nice feature and tells your readers more about you, but subtilely. So please list your top favorites.
So what should ease of use mean for you? Mainly there's compose and post functions, and a dashboard for other things like past blogs, earnings (?), stats, and more.
When composing remember it may not be WYSIWYG; Blogger is not, so don't hyphenate words. That's another reason to check your fully posted blog.
You should be able to edit, update, save old posts, save drafts, and delete a post at any time, all helpful as I skim thru my blogs to see what I've written about and not duplicate them. Also helpful for writing Part Two's or follow-ups, these functions become important. I've updated and re-posted many times, sometimes miutes later, a day, a week, or a month apart. This one I re-posted 8 times. I haven't deleted one yet.
This is heavenly! You can actually remove or change what you wrote, it doesn't have to haunt you forever when you take a lot of flak because of your opinion. To hell with them! "Delete." (Unless someone who really hates you printed it out.) It should also have decent editing tools like Blogger does.
Second is the ease in which new readers can subscribe, your number one concern, and where it posts to, number two. Blogger uses extra gadget buttons to do this for FB and Twitter, and they're obtuse. So with my blog, when I post Google+ comes up automatically so I can share it there, which is great. They have a feature to do that on FB and twitter but it's hard to find. Gadgets only do what they're creatyors let you, for example, I can't just add a plain vanilla FB button by itself. Everybody has to make a buck after all. But, if you post, and proof your day's blog, which you should always do, click the "more" button on the toolbar and then you can send out your post to them.
And you automatically want to post an announcement of your new blog on Google Plus. In no time they'll be an automatic way to announce it on FB, Twitter, LinkedIn and others, I hope. Blogger lets you enter a + message as soon as you hit "post." Invaluable. But -- it would be better to also do it easily on other sites as well. So check out the gadgets you add very carefully.
Like too many supposedly "Intuitive links" if your blog reader clicks "Subscribe," thinking they'll just give their email address, thinking that's supposed to be it, sadly it's not. They must first sign up with Netvibes or Yahoo! Why? I have no freakin' idea. A sure way to turn potential readers away. No explanation or description is given as to why you need to do that, like 50%+ of all links on the Internet that I've found, whether on Google look-ups or businesses, organizations, and especially government sites.
Getting the day's news out is key if I want to grow readership. Or you don't have to care and write diatribes for fun. Good luck with negativity on your blog. There's enough of that in the media. But there's always a chance "if you build it they will come."
Posting, i.e. writing the blog itself.
1. It should be easy and comfortable - Show facts, thoughts, experiences - and opinions based on the first three.
2. Be as honest and forthright as you can. Don't flip-flop, don't guess (unless its about the future - that's okay, we all do that - that's the most fun.) If you speak from your spirit it'll automatically be interesting.
3. Get to the point.
4. Make it flow logically from each concept, sentence, paragraph, to the next.
5. Use colorful language, mostly verbs and adjectives that you chose from a good Thesaurus to avoid duplication; and the five senses.
6. Use all the exclamations and adverbs you want to, like I do, despite what Stephen King and good writers/editors/publishers say. But don't go overboard.
7. You are free to follow current universal writing rules:
1. There are no rules anymore, they're gone except for Elements of Style.
2. Write your blog piece when you're hot if you can (no, not under a sunlamp), when the idea, memory or issue is hot and fresh. This could be the first rule.
3. Edit, cut, rewrite, polish and format after the story is on that blank blog page or Word sheet on your computer. I do all that after I write the piece in full, post it, and review it again days later. The tools Blogger gives me has make it much easier, but I agree, it can get tedious unless you want to produce your best work.
Always remember: Everyone likes good stories -- just like good jokes. You're not writing a textbook with no thoughts, opinions or dialogue.When you've done a bunch, go smell the roses and treat yourself to a getaway with your most intimate friend. (Gee, maybe I should do that.)
And don't worry about your audience, but keep one or more of them in your mind as you go along. For my first book Episodes (due out next month on Amazon), its for me first, come hell or high water. Then for acquaintances, friends and family, psychiatrists and bipolar folks like me. If the public buys it? Well and good, I hope they enjoy it. But I didn't write it to create fans. You shouldn't either. Just be yourself. You've been given this gift, this expressive ability, and truly it's the foundation for individual development and a great society.
Take me, since being home after retiring in 2009, I found I love writing honest prose -- essays and books, even a few styles of haiku, even fiction, which is brand new for me.
And that's all you need do -- find a quiet place and -- Start!
By Rodney Richards
So I'd like to break it down into two major categories. Using and Posting.
First, use a free blog site. There's many, Wordpress, Weebly and Blogger are very popular, each with over 10 million users. And the majority are free. Don't ever pay to do this. Don't ever let others write your blogs and tweets for you (in my opinion). The one I use is Google, i.e. Blogger. So I'll restrain myself describing it, even tho my blog addresses are "blogspot" and not "blogger." That still confuses me.
Using a site comes down to two things: ease of use for you, the creator and author, and the abilities of the site/company you choose. The most important part of having a blog at all, straddles both: Signing Up More Readers. At no cost to them, right now. In any blog, its the most important metric, which is why you get a daily trending/numbers chart, a mandatory metric in any business, especially for sales. And blogging is a business. Well you can make it one. Many have. For example I like the Huffington Post (issues of the day), and Jane Friedman (on writing), among others.
When I get on websites I think I can trust, I look at their "About" and "FAQs" first thing. Blogger doesn't have those (every site should), so as a blogger you almost only have your posts to explain why and what you're blogging. That leave's your masthead to do the job for you.
Your masthead is what your reader sees first, so be aware.
Readers, like you, never really know what they're getting into until they get into it, and hopefully "like" your blog. That's why I have a masthead logo I purchased cheaply from iStockphoto. And I sweated out the few short sentences I used there to describe my blog. Have any suggestions?
Also on Blogger I can list sites I follow, which are Proust.com, an intimate, family and close friends FB site, only 10 times better, and my son Jesse's Blog, based on his 2010 book A Secret Peace. Both excellent. That's a nice feature and tells your readers more about you, but subtilely. So please list your top favorites.
So what should ease of use mean for you? Mainly there's compose and post functions, and a dashboard for other things like past blogs, earnings (?), stats, and more.
When composing remember it may not be WYSIWYG; Blogger is not, so don't hyphenate words. That's another reason to check your fully posted blog.
You should be able to edit, update, save old posts, save drafts, and delete a post at any time, all helpful as I skim thru my blogs to see what I've written about and not duplicate them. Also helpful for writing Part Two's or follow-ups, these functions become important. I've updated and re-posted many times, sometimes miutes later, a day, a week, or a month apart. This one I re-posted 8 times. I haven't deleted one yet.
This is heavenly! You can actually remove or change what you wrote, it doesn't have to haunt you forever when you take a lot of flak because of your opinion. To hell with them! "Delete." (Unless someone who really hates you printed it out.) It should also have decent editing tools like Blogger does.
Second is the ease in which new readers can subscribe, your number one concern, and where it posts to, number two. Blogger uses extra gadget buttons to do this for FB and Twitter, and they're obtuse. So with my blog, when I post Google+ comes up automatically so I can share it there, which is great. They have a feature to do that on FB and twitter but it's hard to find. Gadgets only do what they're creatyors let you, for example, I can't just add a plain vanilla FB button by itself. Everybody has to make a buck after all. But, if you post, and proof your day's blog, which you should always do, click the "more" button on the toolbar and then you can send out your post to them.
And you automatically want to post an announcement of your new blog on Google Plus. In no time they'll be an automatic way to announce it on FB, Twitter, LinkedIn and others, I hope. Blogger lets you enter a + message as soon as you hit "post." Invaluable. But -- it would be better to also do it easily on other sites as well. So check out the gadgets you add very carefully.
Like too many supposedly "Intuitive links" if your blog reader clicks "Subscribe," thinking they'll just give their email address, thinking that's supposed to be it, sadly it's not. They must first sign up with Netvibes or Yahoo! Why? I have no freakin' idea. A sure way to turn potential readers away. No explanation or description is given as to why you need to do that, like 50%+ of all links on the Internet that I've found, whether on Google look-ups or businesses, organizations, and especially government sites.
Getting the day's news out is key if I want to grow readership. Or you don't have to care and write diatribes for fun. Good luck with negativity on your blog. There's enough of that in the media. But there's always a chance "if you build it they will come."
Posting, i.e. writing the blog itself.
1. It should be easy and comfortable - Show facts, thoughts, experiences - and opinions based on the first three.
2. Be as honest and forthright as you can. Don't flip-flop, don't guess (unless its about the future - that's okay, we all do that - that's the most fun.) If you speak from your spirit it'll automatically be interesting.
3. Get to the point.
4. Make it flow logically from each concept, sentence, paragraph, to the next.
5. Use colorful language, mostly verbs and adjectives that you chose from a good Thesaurus to avoid duplication; and the five senses.
6. Use all the exclamations and adverbs you want to, like I do, despite what Stephen King and good writers/editors/publishers say. But don't go overboard.
7. You are free to follow current universal writing rules:
1. There are no rules anymore, they're gone except for Elements of Style.
2. Write your blog piece when you're hot if you can (no, not under a sunlamp), when the idea, memory or issue is hot and fresh. This could be the first rule.
3. Edit, cut, rewrite, polish and format after the story is on that blank blog page or Word sheet on your computer. I do all that after I write the piece in full, post it, and review it again days later. The tools Blogger gives me has make it much easier, but I agree, it can get tedious unless you want to produce your best work.
Always remember: Everyone likes good stories -- just like good jokes. You're not writing a textbook with no thoughts, opinions or dialogue.When you've done a bunch, go smell the roses and treat yourself to a getaway with your most intimate friend. (Gee, maybe I should do that.)
And don't worry about your audience, but keep one or more of them in your mind as you go along. For my first book Episodes (due out next month on Amazon), its for me first, come hell or high water. Then for acquaintances, friends and family, psychiatrists and bipolar folks like me. If the public buys it? Well and good, I hope they enjoy it. But I didn't write it to create fans. You shouldn't either. Just be yourself. You've been given this gift, this expressive ability, and truly it's the foundation for individual development and a great society.
Take me, since being home after retiring in 2009, I found I love writing honest prose -- essays and books, even a few styles of haiku, even fiction, which is brand new for me.
And that's all you need do -- find a quiet place and -- Start!
By Rodney Richards
Monday, September 9, 2013
A Hiatus for Two Reasons
My Dad, who everyone called Ralph except my brothers, sister, and I, an old-school, fine, good Italian man and pasta king, passed away at 4:01 pm on August 24th in Capital Health Hospital, Hopewell.
After his breathing calmed, then phased out slowly, his soul departed to heaven, I am confident. His loving family and many grandchildren and cousins surrounded him in his last minutes.
I am still in the process of writing that poignant, and family unified story, but you won't see it here.
I am also editing, polishing and cutting the final version of my first book, Episodes. It's a telling and a showing of my ups and downs with mental illness between 1979 and 1996. I've already successfully cut 30 pages in the last week, working on my target of 300. Feverishly editing in fact, but after 4 or 5 hours a day, I have to put it down. With much help from my many Ideal Readers, and best friend Spud who's almost done the covers, I'm setting October 1st as the final deadline, when it will be available on Amazon.
But I have been taking notes for blogs, including Charter Schools, scam artists by phone and Internet, children's identification, a first, and many others.
Hope to see you back soon.
Caio
Rodney
After his breathing calmed, then phased out slowly, his soul departed to heaven, I am confident. His loving family and many grandchildren and cousins surrounded him in his last minutes.
I am still in the process of writing that poignant, and family unified story, but you won't see it here.
I am also editing, polishing and cutting the final version of my first book, Episodes. It's a telling and a showing of my ups and downs with mental illness between 1979 and 1996. I've already successfully cut 30 pages in the last week, working on my target of 300. Feverishly editing in fact, but after 4 or 5 hours a day, I have to put it down. With much help from my many Ideal Readers, and best friend Spud who's almost done the covers, I'm setting October 1st as the final deadline, when it will be available on Amazon.
But I have been taking notes for blogs, including Charter Schools, scam artists by phone and Internet, children's identification, a first, and many others.
Hope to see you back soon.
Caio
Rodney
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