Happy Friday, everyone! How was your week? No, for real – I’d love to hear about it. Drop me a note in the comments below with the three adjectives that best describe your week. Extra points for anyone who uses a word I have to look up. (Note: your points aren’t actually worth anything, but you might get a shout-out in next week’s 7QTs for your creativity.) 😉
Speaking of creativity: goodness, the landscape of blogging has changed since I first started writing (it’s part of why I switched to WordPress). A nice abstract theme and a cozy little circle of 15 people who’d found you and commented on pretty much everything seemed to be the norm back then; now it’s all catchy photography, click-bait-titles, and anonymous FB shares with comment threads I’ll never see.
But that’s okay. There were rumors 2-3 years ago that blogging was going to become a thing of the past, but the blogging community has rallied to the challenge to remain relevant, and I’m so glad we have. I learn so much every day, from all of the blogs I read but never get around to commenting on. I know Michael Hyatt says that traffic metrics are mostly vanity, and not as valuable as an email list (by the way, feel free to join mine!). But vanity or not, those metrics tell me that people are reading what I write – which is one of the many reasons why I write what I write. My blogging career started out as more of an online journal, but that quickly changed when people I didn’t know IRL started reading what I was writing, and commenting on how my stories and thoughts mattered to them.
Before I even knew that you could be strategic about building a platform or influencing people, I instinctively started to try, simply as a way of saying ‘thank you’ and ‘I see you’ to the people who took the time to visit my little corner of the internet.
So here we are, in a new era of blogging – and what is the number one social promotions problem we have as bloggers? Imagery. How in the world do you navigate the crazy world of image sharing via the internet without violating copyright laws?
In a nutshell: read the licenses, go overboard on attribution, and when in doubt ask, or don’t use the photo at all. I try to leave a source note on every image I use, even if attribution isn’t required, just out of respect for the artists who have taken as much time and care with their photography and graphic design as I’ve taken with writing my posts. For awhile I kept a paid subscription to depositphotos.com (which I’m sure I will someday reinstate, once I’m able to afford it again), and if you’re looking for a free resource, unsplash.com has been one of my go-to stops for months. But I came across an article this week that every blogger needs to bookmark: 15 Amazing Sites With Breathtaking Free Stock Photos.
Talk about click-bait: this is every graphic designer’s and blogger’s dream. Please pay attention to the attribution notes – but there are some great resources to be found in that article. I’m looking forward to spending more time exploring each of the sites it mentions, and streamlining my ability to find the perfect photo for every post – without going bankrupt to do it.
If there’s an award out there for the youngest advocate of gender equality, I’m pretty sure an eight-year-old girl named Els is in the running for it. A Mighty Girl, a website dedicated to girl-power, shared her story on Facebook this week. Els has an issue with the way children’s books have been classified as “for boys” and “for girls” – and she spoke up about it. Way to go, Els. I think Emma Watson would be proud.
So… I wrote a post this week about the one thing worth bottling up, and I have a confession to make.
Most of the time I was writing it, all I could think of was this:
The year-long birthday celebration is (sadly) coming to a close, but yesterday I came home to a lovely surprise:
© 2015 Simple Felicity
This has been the Best. Birthday. Ever.
I highly recommend turning thirty-nine right about the time one of your best friends does, and celebrating it this way. Because it’s awesome.
Also, books…
(HT: Sara Rendall) I’m not sure you should really attempt to read this in one sitting; it’s really worth more like 45 days of concentrated meditation – but here are 45 Quotes From Literature That Will Actually Change Your Life.
Because of this list, I am actually going to get around to reading The Great Gatsby. Not now, but hopefully over the summer.
What about you? What books are on your bucket list to read this year?
For more Quick Takes, visit This Ain’t The Lyceum!
Have a great weekend!
