Author Archives: Karen Tang

Process Post #12 Writing After Dusk Community Guidelines

This week’s reading about comment moderation was interesting and made me think of how I wanted to regulate my website. As Konnikova (2013) claims” anonymity has also been shown to encourage participation; by promoting a greater sense of community identity, users don’t have to worry about standing out individually”. Therefore, I want to enable commenters to have the flexibility of posting anonymously or through their personal profiles. I want to ensure that Writing After Dusk is a safe space and community for people to connect, and I will do anything to support their needs and concerns. As a result, I will have open comments rather than banning comments since it can produce “less than desirable effects, including a diffusion of responsibility: you feel less accountable for your own actions, and become more likely to engage in amoral behavior” (Konnikova, 2013). I want my audience to communicate freely and passionately about what they think about what I’m writing, and I hope they engage with one another too. My writing will be read and reacted to and will help drive engagement.

Writing After Dusk Community Guidelines:


– Before posting, is it kind, thoughtful, and beneficial to hear?
– Hateful, racist, sexist, misogynist comments are prohibited
– Explicit, rude or aggressive comments are prohibited
– Respect and acknowledge other people’s opinions even if you do not agree
– Respect the privacy of other members
– Bullying, trolling, and harassment is not allowed
– Sharing/plagiarizing my work is not permitted without permission
– Spam and promotional content is not allowed

References:

Konnikova, M. (2013, October 23). The Psychology of Online Comments. The New Yorker. https://www.newyorker.com/tech/annals-of-technology/the-psychology-of-online-comments

The Ghost of You Haunts This Empty House

This house is slowly collapsing on itself ever since you’ve been gone; life has been a whirlwind of lost time. The departure of you has created a void within me. I have realized that I’m more fragile than I once thought I was after you left me impairable by your destruction. I could never understand how such deep penetrating sorrow can drill into my brittle bones without puncturing the walls of my lungs, how my chest can be full of love and sorrow all at the same time to bear it all. 

Time slowly escapes me; the only evidence of lost time is tainted behind my sullen eyes and the dark shadows beneath them where the ghost of you haunts me. I can feel misery slowly spreading itself inside of me, the heaviness of sadness weighing on my chest, remorse tugging on my shoulder blades, a seething longing building up in my throat of things left unsaid. A darkness has loomed over me, gradually spreading into my chest like a fatal poison bringing me closer to death second by second. A self-inflicted death, I don’t think I could ever stop loving you as your presence wraps around me like a second skin. Maybe love has always been a fleeting nature of a tender dying matter that could never be kept for too long.

The day you left, something shifted inside of me. I started tearing down the wallpaper in our bedroom and repainted it as if it could undo all the memories that were held within the walls. Sweet nothings scattered across the floorboards, I tore them apart one by one, hoping that your voice inside my head would ease away. I took down photographs of us, but your image lives permanently on the walls of my mind. I changed the sheets, but your scent has engulfed the entire house. I took the batteries out of the clocks because time has ceased to exist ever since you chose to abandon me. All that remains is the emptiness that has settled inside of me of all the things I’ve lost and loved.

Process Post #11: Publics and Counter-publics

“networked publics are both the “space constructed through networked technologies” and the imagined collective that emerges as a result of the intersection of people, technology, and practice … [T]hey allow people to gather for social, cultural and civic purposes, and they help people connect with a world beyond their close friends and family” (Renninger, 2015).

Renninger (2015) highlights, “SNSs are not inherently good at fostering whatever kind of communication one wants to engage in at any given moment”. I can attest to this as I find reaching new audiences and readers incredibly hard. I have read thousands of ways to attract readers and have been doing the work by posting consistently (once a week on Medium/Thought Catalogue). I had a few loyal readers who would comment on my pieces, and I am ever so grateful for them, but my stats were falling short of where I wanted to be. Looking at stats can be toxic and depressing, so I wouldn’t say I like to do it often, but knowing which pieces people gravitate to the most is helpful. The four affordances of SNSs are “persistence (posts are recorded and archived), replicability (content is easily duplicated), scalability (visibility of posts is great), and searchability” (Renninger, 2015). Out of the four, I execute persistence and scalability fairly well by posting on a schedule and having aesthetic visuals to match the piece I wrote.

To incorporate more transmedia within my blog and to engage my audience, I can create Tik Tok account dedicated to my weekly content pieces of poetry/prose where I do weekly readings. In addition, I can create exclusive content on Tik Tok before it launches on my blog to encourage my followers to follow my journey on Tik Tok since it is such a big app with a broader audience and the ability to get more views. Further, I can create another Tik Tok account dedicated to book reviews on the creative process to generate a conversation and exchange book recommendations that could be featured on my blog. I can also make an Instagram account and easily transfer the Toks to Instagram reels to gain more views and help solidify my audience.

References:
Renninger, B. J. (2014). “where I can be myself … where I can speak my mind” : Networked counterpublics in a polymedia environment. New Media & Society, 17(9), 1513–1529. https://doi.org/10.1177/1461444814530095

Peer Review #3 Thebaristababe

First Impressions

Diving into Kristie’s site Thebaristababe, you have a very strong impression of what her blog is about, from the visuals of her holding cups of coffee to her heading “Everything Coffee”. Kristie has a very clear menu interface with all her assignments organized from this class, and her content pieces are easy to navigate. As Hollingsworth (2021) notes, “good SEO means a better user experience .. [it] offers users the information they are looking for in fewer clicks, quickly, and easily”. Further, it is an excellent way for readers to grasp what your blog is all about and increase user attention and behaviours via Google Analytics, which can help you improve your blog. Below the visual header, Kristies has an elaborate about section and explains what her blogs entail:” weekly content on my favourite coffee shops, and different specialty coffee that I make as my daily encounters with caffeine”. On the right hand, a search bar also makes her content more accessible to users.

Friendly Recommendations:
I love the fun visuals you have added, but they may take up too much space where the reader might not realize you have put an intended about section below the visuals since it takes up the whole screen page. Likewise, the search bar is not as easily accessible if you do not scroll down to the entire page on mobile, which is essential as the data.ai findings showcase Gen Z being a mobile-first generation. Speaking of accessibility, you have yet to download the accessibility plug from WordPress which can prevent users from engaging with your site.

Content

I was unsure about what the section “Daily Doses of Caffeine” was about until I saw you explain it in your process post #3: “where I post all things coffee. Whatever is on my mind during the day or a random coffee thought that pops into my head, this is where it will get posted”. I enjoyed reading this section of your blog, and I loved the cute visuals you added. They also follow uniformity in formatting and are easy to follow with the break up of white space and text.

Friendly Recommendation:
It would be beneficial if you had a subheading under the title “Daily Doses of Caffeine” explaining what the section is about because readers might not stumble across your process post like I did to understand the section.

As a reader, it can be hard to discern where one post ends and where a new one starts, and It could be helpful to break up the text by adding visuals, increasing the font size for headings, etc. Everything looks like a uniform long text, which can be hard to read.

As Hollingsworth (2021) states, “establishing a brand as an authority takes patience, effort, and commitment and relies on offering a valuable, quality product or service that allows customers to trust a brand”. Your coffee reviews consist of 5 main factors: the coffee shop, drink, ingredients, rating, and extra note that adds a nice touch of personalization. Further, I love the intimate visuals you choose to accompany your reviews, but apart from the visuals, it can be hard to discern where one review ends and starts, similar to your process post page.

Friendly Recommendation:
The visuals do not align with the text correctly, so it can be hard to tell which visual matches the review. I’m unsure if it’s a template issue, but adding space between each post and emphasizing the size or bolding the text can create better fluidity, cohesiveness, and cleanliness.

Overall, Kristie has an intended audience targeted towards coffee drinkers and lovers; since her blog is intimate and personal, I am unsure of whether she wants to monetize her content. However, if she does, I have a few suggestions for revamping her site through a new rating system and social media interventions. Coffee rating reviews can be more concise with comments on coffee profiles such as acidity, bitterness, sweetness, sourness, and the overall body of the coffee. She can also link the social media handles to the coffee shop and create a google map of all the coffee shops you have reviewed for readers to have the ultimate coffee shop experience, boosting engagement and connectivity. Moreover, adding your social handles can create a closer connection to readers, and she can add a page on her blog dedicated to reader-suggested coffee shops that you go to and review.

Check out Kristie’s blog here!

References:
Hollingsworth, S. (2021, August 6). 15 Reasons Why Your Business Absolutely Needs SEO. Search Engine Journal. https://www.searchenginejournal.com/why-seo-is-important-for-business/248101/#close

Process Post #10 Analytics, SEO, and Audience Growth

According to Data. ai’s, State of Mobile 2022 report people, on average, spend 4 hours 48 minutes on their mobile devices, which equates to 1/3 of our day. This is important to remember because as someone who is cultivating and growing a brand/website, it is important to think about how my website designs translate on mobile devices. I have to consider if my website is accessible and easy to use on mobile devices to capture the attention of more readers. It is essential to have well-functioning and mobile adaptability because that is the new target audience; with Gen Z being a mobile-first society, it is paving the way for the future of technology and media (Data.ai., n.d.).

SEO is another crucial component in a well-functioning website as it enables us to understand and reach readers and can help create better user experiences for them to be captivated (Hollingsworth, 2021). Further, SEO “establish[s] a strong foundation for a beautiful website with a clean, effective user experience that is easily discoverable in search, thanks to the trust and credibility of the brand and its digital properties” (Hollingsworth, 2021). SEO is important to consider when creating a website because our words and hashtags matter to create visibility. A good heading should never be too long, and I heard that the best titles fall short of 6 words. Technology and the internet will continue evolving and changing, but SEO can help us stay relevant.

References:

Data.ai. (n.d.). State of Mobile 2022. Data.ai.
https://posiel.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/dataai__state_of_mobile_2022__en.pdf

Hollingsworth, S. (2021, August 6). 15 Reasons Why Your Business Absolutely Needs SEO. Search Engine Journal. https://www.searchenginejournal.com/why-seo-is-important-for-business/248101/#close

The Importance of Having a Routine

Being a writer or anyone pursuing a creative field is difficult because you have no one to push you to do the craft except for yourself. As a result, it is easy to get burnt out or fall behind on creative work. Therefore, creating consistency through implementing a routine that will help you produce good work is essential.

#1: Eliminate All Distractions
Eliminate all distractions by putting your phone away or putting it on do not disturb. If you’re working on a device, clear all the tabs you do not need and close all the programs you don’t need. A further tip is to delete the messing app from the dock to prevent you from being distracted by incoming messages.

#2 Empty Your Mind
Before you sit down and start your creative process, you must clear away any distractions. As an overthinker, I find it important to empty my mind by journaling or meditating to clear any lingering thoughts and worries. It is also a great time to set your intentions and be relaxed before you start working.

#3 Set the Mood
Whether it’s lighting a candle/incense or playing music in the background, it is important to stay zen and relaxed to help you focus on the task at hand.

#4 Come Prepared with All Your Materials 
For me, I know when it is time to write when I have all my material laid out for me and a freshly brewed hot cup of coffee. Further, having all your supplies will help you enter a flow state as you do not have to keep moving around and encountering distractions.

#5 Get Working
Some days are better than others, but as long as you dedicate even 5 minutes to the craft, you are one step closer to getting better each day. I work organically, and sometimes hours go by, and sometimes I spend more time staring at a blank page but learn what works best for you. You may want to do the pomodoro method or see where the day takes you.

The Art of Cultivating Taste

“Nobody tells this to people who are beginners, I wish someone told me. All of us who do creative work, we get into it because we have good taste. But there is this gap. For the first couple years you make stuff, it’s just not that good. It’s trying to be good, it has potential, but it’s not. But your taste, the thing that got you into the game, is still killer. And your taste is why your work disappoints you. A lot of people never get past this phase, they quit. Most people I know who do interesting, creative work went through years of this. We know our work doesn’t have this special thing that we want it to have. We all go through this. And if you are just starting out or you are still in this phase, you gotta know its normal and the most important thing you can do is do a lot of work. Put yourself on a deadline so that every week you will finish one story. It is only by going through a volume of work that you will close that gap, and your work will be as good as your ambitions. And I took longer to figure out how to do this than anyone I’ve ever met. It’s gonna take awhile. It’s normal to take awhile. You’ve just gotta fight your way through.”

– Ira Glass, This American life about Storytelling

I can’t remember when I stumbled upon Ira Glass’ concept of cultivating taste, but it has stuck with me ever since. I was going through writer’s block and felt so seen and heard reading his words. As a perfectionist, it is very defeating to sit down and produce “shitty” and unsatisfactory work where the feelings you want to explain are not piecing together the way you want them to. Some days are better than others, where the words can flow out of me naturally, and some days I am left staring at a blank page until I feel defeated enough that I no longer want to write anymore. But, on the days when everything works in your favour and you feel proud of what you have written is the best feeling in the world to me. Whenever I feel down and doubt my writing abilities or feel like I have created the best work and peaked as a writer, I return to this video and feel reassured. Whenever I feel a sense of imposter syndrome or a writing slump, his words comfort me like a blanket in the death of winter.

Check out the full video series of Ira Glass talking about storytellng here