This infographic summarizes the most important aspects related to Spilling the Royaltea. These include the site’s tagline, navigation, community guidelines, and goals. At the beginning of the semester, I created a diagram explaining the site’s navigation, but a lot has changed since then. Therefore, using this infographic, I was able to reflect on these changes and create a more representative navigation scheme showing where I am now. In creating this infographic, I also reflected on some of the community guidelines I would like to enforce on my site, including respect, tolerance, openness, and connectedness. Finally, I set out three goals for my site, which includes the more measurable, numerical goal of posting 2-3 times each week, and the more ideological goals of challenging readers and fostering open conversation.
Since the beginning of the Internet way back in the late 1990s and very early 2000s, making online comments on blogs and chatrooms have been around within the Internet. Websites like Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram were just starting to get popular, and more and more people started to buy devices that can connect to the internet. People started to realize that anyone can create an account and post what they would want to because they can put false information on their account. These are known as fake accounts, and whoever uses these accounts can get away from the consequences from the general public.
Since there is a sense of anonymity for these fake accounts when they post comments, the comments they post can get pretty cruel and concerning. An article called “The Psychology of Online Comments” by Maria Konnikova states that, “forty [percent] of people in the eighteen-to-twenty-nine-year-old demographic have posted anonymously.” (Konnikova, 2013). Hate comments can stem from many reasons, from a user not liking the other, to rumors’ being spread that make the public generate hate towards the user. Although it may not be nice to receive these comments, it is always a good idea to ignore them since it is just the internet; and if it gets out of control seeking support may be needed.
References:
Konnikova, M. (2013, October 23). The psychology of online comments. The New Yorker. Retrieved April 4, 2023, from https://www.newyorker.com/tech/annals-of-technology/the-psychology-of-online-comments
The original content debate. Indeed a hot topic in the realm of PUB101 – especially surrounding the conversation of AI, but, for once, I am not going to turn my ire as a creator and literature major to the growing world of artificial intelligence. No, instead I turn my ire to adaptations (which still stem from the capitalistic desire for money, so maybe my ire has and will remain with how capitalism is dictating our lives.) I want to be clear that I am not against adaptations or jukebox musicals or anything of the like, nor do I think creatives are entirely to blame (we all have to eat) – just that I think that the market is becoming oversaturated with unoriginal content, and this is incredibly sad to watch, especially in the AI age where art is being translated into unoriginal synthesised versions of itself, this time by tech.
This week’s readings did not focus at all on AI or capitalism or synthesizing art, though, so I certainly didn’t choose an ideal time to write on this matter. Instead, the readings explored comments, specifically as a creator who receives comments, so that is where my focus will be redirected. The video we watched in lecture, about dealing with receiving negative comments is something that really resonated with me, specifically as someone who was semi internet-famous in my adolescence. My popularity didn’t pertain to my personal self, thankfully, as my online presence was marked by a pseudonym, but the comments I received about my person didn’t seem to care. Indeed, as a young teen (15-17 years old to be specific) I would receive comments body shaming me, despite never having posted a photo or anything of the like of myself, comments calling me talentless, worthless, demanding that I kill myself, all because of my old fanfics. Yes, indeed, I was a fanfic writer, and, honestly, a good one, if the statistics that are still growing to this day are anything to go by. At the time of receiving these comments (angry over a chapter I posted in which I took a position on the anti-black racism discourse surrounding the original work I was fictionalizing), I had just under 50k followers, and my chapter was enough to get the property I was writing about trending on Tumblr; which, as always, invited both an influx of positive community, and negative people who wanted me to die.
As a result, I feel like I’ve garnered a thick skin in regards to hate comments, mostly because I’ve grown up and gained an awareness of nuances in the people commenting. As Jon Ronson contends at the end of his Ted Talk “When Online Shaming Goes Too Far”, it is pertinent to prioritise the human rather than ideology. That is, it is important to remember that these opinions being expressed online do not exist in a vacuum, that there are real people behind them that have lived real lives that differ from one’s own in order to inform their opinions that may contradict our own. Now I don’t think this can be translated to all situations, for example, the homophobic people who decided I should kill myself violently for existing in a way that they didn’t like do not simply get a pass on their violent rhetoric that emboldens support for the eradication of marginalized groups, but for situations where opinions simply differ, where a consensus is not reached, and one party isn’t ideologically opposed to the existence of the other such to the extent that the beg a child to take her own life, it is so important to remember that humans are nuanced.
I don’t particularly look back on that part of my life with negativity, and I think that’s important to note, too. For every negative comment I received, I also received thousands of positive ones, encouraging me, disproving the hateful messages I was receiving, and complimenting the very writing so many people hated so much. There isn’t a way to please everyone, I’ve learned, but there is a way to be kind about the things we disagree with, and I think a lot of people would do well to remember that.
For our final mini assignment, we have to make an infographic describing our online identity. I chose to focus on the main 4 social media sites I currently use, divided into how I browse and create content on each.
I find the contrast between Tumblr and Twitter to be especially interesting, since they have only gotten more different over the years I’ve been active. Tumblr is by far my favourite social media site for posting art and other photos, since the quality isn’t ruined by compression like Twitter.
You can also add as many tags as you want to a post, which doubles as a more relaxed form for both the creator and other users to make comments. There are also more options for arranging images, and the overall culture allows art pieces posted years ago to suddenly gain traction again in a way that Twitter directly discourages.
I’ll definitely miss making these mini assignments now that this course is ending, but I appreciate the prompts for giving me an excuse to get creative!
This week, we learned about the importance of media across multiple channels. A classic example is Pokémon, which kevinbrittenylauren labels as “transmedia storytelling”. To create a “coordinated entertainment experience”, Pokémon is reinvented to be independently interesting in varying mediums: playing cards, television, video games, and more. As someone who grew up consuming Pokémon content, I can vouch for its success through effective transmedia innovation. I have countless memories of watching the cartoon with my brother before school, opening packs of cards and slotting them into plastic sheets in binders, and playing video games on my Nintendo DS and later on my iPhone when Pokémon Go was the biggest craze. While melatonin gone missing surely does not have the marketability and consumer potential that Pokémon does to shape-shift into different forms of media, I wonder what my blog look could look like across multiple channels.
An App
A melatonin gone missing app certainly feels like the most conceivable and relevant channel that melatonin gone missing could thrive on. Like any news app or blog app, users would be able to browse the app to read posts, comment and interact, and consume visual media on a more consistent and higher quality platform than in a desktop or mobile browser.
I imagine designing this app would be really fun. It would be open to regular revamps, giving the site more ways to grow. If I ever chose to expand melatonin gone missing, I would definitely go for an app first.
A Podcast
In grade 12, my best friend and I had a podcast to commemorate our final year of high school. It gained more traction than we expected, as a good chunk of our grad class and other close friends who went to other schools listened and supported our podcast on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and other platforms. People were even asking us to appear on guest episodes, which was awesome. With this experience on how to record, edit, and promote a podcast, I have faith that melatonin gone missing could be great in podcast form.
I envision it would just be me and sometimes a guest, discussing various topics that would definitely be in a content post. Spending 30 minutes to an hour chatting about things like Taylor Swift, TV shows, celebrities, and everything and anything else would be fun to record and hopefully a fun listen for loyal site visitors who wants an eyes-free, hands-free, giggle-infused version of the blog.
Plus, to keep it on theme, episodes could be recorded late at night, to really capture the half-delusional essence of melatonin gone missing.
Social Media
Lastly, if melatonin gone missing were to truly thrive outside of its browser domain, social media accounts would be crucial for online presence, legitimacy/trustworthiness, and overall growth- both in and of itself, and to new audiences. Instagram, Twitter, and Tiktok would probably be the main three social channels that could effectively promote the blog (and the app/podcast!) and gain a fanbase, sponsorships, and general public interest. That is to say, melatonin gone missing would blow up the internet!
As Bryce J. Renninger says, users “[choose] a platform informed by their personal tastes as well as wider social trends and practices”. So, these social media platforms clearly reflect current trends around how people communicate and share media online, and would therefore be very effective in contributing to audience outreach for my blog.
So to wrap up, if my blog lives on past the end of PUB 101, keep your eyes peeled on Spotify, the App Store, and your favourite social media platforms for the evolution of melatonin gone missing!
References:
Renninger, B. J. (2015). “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
Whippersnappers, B. is for. (2013, November 21). Pokemon as transmedia storytelling. kevinbrittenylauren.wordpress.com. Retrieved April 10, 2023, from https://kevinbrittenylauren.wordpress.com/2013/11/21/pokemon-as-transmedia-storytelling/
Photos:
Kee, E. (2023, February 7). Download now! free android & IOS apps of the week. NextPit. Retrieved April 10, 2023, from https://www.nextpit.com/free-apps-of-the-week-6-2023-a
Podcasting 101: Getting your podcast out there. West Vancouver Memorial Library. (2023, January 27). Retrieved April 10, 2023, from https://westvanlibrary.ca/event/podcasting-101-getting-your-podcast-out-there/
Staff, S. (2022, August 17). 1044% increase in social media account hijacking. Security Magazine RSS. Retrieved April 10, 2023, from https://www.securitymagazine.com/articles/98185-1044-increase-in-social-media-account-hijacking
Web and multimedia blogs. BLOGS | Touro GST. (n.d.). Retrieved April 10, 2023, from https://gst.touro.edu/Blogs/Pages/wmmBlog.php
Does it make sense to integrate transmedia storytelling for Spinning with Stufful?
When reading “Pokemon as Transmedia Storytelling,” I found it interesting to observe how the world of Pokémon extended past an animated series and became a massive franchise, complete with card games, handheld games, and mobile games. With Pokémon Sleep set to launch this summer, and my current Pokémon GO antics, the show I used to watch as a child is truly beginning to merge effortlessly into my everyday life.
When I try to draw parallels to my blog, and how transmedia storytelling could be integrated to that sort of effect, I can only really think about repurposing content onto different social media platforms. Henry Jenkins explains in “Transmedia Storytelling 101” that in transmedia storytelling, “there is no one single source or ur-text where one can turn to gain all of the information needed to comprehend [the universe]” (Jenkins, 2007). That means that my audience might come to my blog for one type of content, and related additional content might be on my TikTok page, and so forth.
In that sense, I could see this happening in very subtle ways. While I haven’t taken care at all to post on my Twitter account, my audience could receive bits and pieces of my everyday gameplay as it happens through there, instead of waiting for me to write a lengthy blog post. That would be one realistic and easy way to stay connected with my audience while giving them a glimpse of the person behind the blog. Additionally, TikTok could be another reasonable place to incorporate transmedia, since games are a visual experience. Content from the blog can be previewed to reach a broader audience, and TikTok is an entirely different medium that opens up opportunities for short-form, bite-sized content that isn’t suitable for Twitter.
Spilling the Royaltea has gone through quite the journey throughout eleven weeks of consistent posting. As my process posts come to an end, it’s time for one last blog design update as the fourth and final installment of the blog design process post series.
Additions and Deletions
At Spilling the Royaltea’s inception, I created a category called “the chronicles of Harry and Meghan” with the hopes of writing documentary and book reviews. At this time, Prince Harry’s book, which took the media by storm had just been released, and Harry and Meghan’s Netflix documentary had come out just a few months prior. They were a huge topic of discussion all over the news, social media, and just about everywhere else, and this was basically my motivation for creating the blog.
However, as the semester went on, I found it extremely difficult to get documentary episodes in, or find the time to sit down with a book that wasn’t an academic journal or textbook. Therefore, as the other categories started filling up, “the chronicles of Harry and Meghan” stayed empty for over half the semester.
Because I didn’t see myself having the time to watch the documentary or read the book, I decided to switch this category to a “ranked” one. The ranked category is exactly how it sounds: it ranks all things related to the royal family. I created this section because sometimes, I need to be shallow and fluffy. My “hot takes” and “news” sections are usually more critical and thought-provoking in nature. They involve topics like racism, sexism, sexual assault, and much more. While these topics are what I want to shine a light on the most, many royal family followers (including myself) enjoy some lighthearted material from time to time.
Preview of a blog post in my new “ranked” section
Therefore, this “ranked” category discusses some other things that weigh a little lighter on readers’ chests, like fashion, or Prince Louis’s antics, or even just an informative post on the late Queen’s grandchildren, who always steal the spotlight at any event featuring the royals. It also includes a Fashion, FAST! segment, which featured quick hot takes on royal fashion decisions.
I felt a little disappointed that I was unable to watch the documentary or read the memoir, especially because these two pieces were the main motivators in the creation of my blog. But at the end of the day, Spilling the Royaltea as a digital garden is supposed to represent me and my interests. This means that I have the room to make changes when things don’t work and learn new things from these changes. So creating the “ranked” category to add a different perspective on the site wasn’t a bad thing at all. It just allowed me to share another side of myself with my audience and it worked out pretty well, in my opinion.
Consistencies
Aside from “the chronicles of Harry and Meghan” which turned into “ranked,” the other sections on Spilling the Royaltea stayed the same. “Hot takes” provided opinion pieces that aren’t really broadcast in the mainstream, like the fact that Princess Charlotte has all the characteristics to become the future Queen, or the fact that the royal family is a racist institution that needs to do better. Further, “news” followed the things that were in the mainstream, but provided critical takes on it, like the fact that royal titles recently changed for a bunch of royal family members, but not Lady Louise due to sexist, patriarchal protocols.
And of course, my predetermined PUB 101 content and categories remained pretty much the same throughout the semester, with the simple addition of the “essay” sub-category, for, well, my essay.
Revisiting my Audience
At the beginning of my blogging journey, I imagined my audience and wrote content directed to it, as suggested by Hollenbaugh. I envisioned my audience as royal family followers. These were not necessarily people who loved them, but also included the people who love to hate them.
This meant that I was going to try to write content that didn’t purposefully portray a pro- or anti-royal family stance. Instead, I was just going to try to write about my own opinions, and I don’t think this could be even more true after eleven weeks.
The most important thing for me when writing my blog was making sure I didn’t become the right-wing, conservative Daily Mail, who endlessly supports the royal family and endlessly hates Meghan. So I included some more Daily Mail-type content, like the fact that Archie and Lilibet shouldn’t use royal titles, but not because I just wanted to hate on Meghan. I actually thought they shouldn’t use their royal titles. But I also included some pro-Harry and Meghan content, like my second mini assignment, written from the perspective of Princess Diana, who defends Harry and Meghan’s decision to step back from the monarchy.
Excerpt of my blog post, “Piping Hot Take: Archie and Lilibet Shouldn’t Use Royal Titles” which takes a critical stance against Prince Harry and MeghanExcerpt of “Mini Assignment 2: Love, Princess Diana – Messages from Heaven” which supports Prince Harry and Meghan’s decision to step back from royal duties
The Future of Spilling the Royaltea: Transmedia Integration?
This week, we learned about transmedia integration, or repurposing our blog content for multiple platforms.Renniger explains that certain social networking sites are especially suited toward addressing counterpublics. Aspects of certain platforms help communicate messages that deviate from the mainstream, or the dominant “public.”
Spilling the Royaltea could be considered a counterpublic of royal family followers who are more objective (i.e. both critical and supportive) in their stance, which is a pretty uncommon thing. Therefore, I could move more of my content on TikTok, where small creators with minimal reach can most easily become popular. I could make videos using small segments and keywords from my articles and create slideshow-type TikToks, which help tell a story. Or I could narrate stories while pictures and videos show up behind me using the green-screen effect.
I could also move to Twitter and post short previews of my posts, and then link my blog so that readers could learn more. Or I could create longer-form versions of my TikToks and post them on YouTube, or even post my TikToks on YouTube shorts. The possibilities are endless.
Hollenbaugh, E. E. (2021). Self-presentation in social media: Review and research opportunities. Review of Communication Research, 9, 80–98. https://doi.org/10.12840/ISSN.2255-4165.027
Renninger, B. J. (2015). “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
This week, our focus has been on various types of media and trans media storytelling, a concept that has gained a lot of popularity recently. Social media has become an indispensable part of our lives, serving as more than just a means to connect with friends and family members. It has now become an impactful tool for businesses and individuals to showcase their brands and engage with their audience.
As a social media enthusiast, I found this idea to be particularly fascinating. In this blog post, I will share my thoughts on the subject, and also discuss how I use social media platforms like LinkedIn, Instagram, and TikTok for different purposes. Furthermore, I will delve into the reasons why I haven’t shared my transformation journey on any of these platforms yet. So, let’s explore the topic together!
Recently, I have been thinking about sharing my website as it is a part of my online art portfolio. As someone who aspires to be a UX/UI designer, I want potential employers to see my characteristics alongside my projects. Furthermore, by sharing my story, I hope to provide insight into my self-development and the journey I have been on. I believe that posting blogs is an excellent way to achieve this, as social media platforms are not suitable for long-form writing.
While transmedia storytelling is often associated with large corporations, brands, or franchises such as Pokemon, Harry Potter, and Star Wars, it also exists on a personal level through our involvement in the social web. Social media platforms, including Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, and personal blogs, provide a platform for us to share unique narratives about ourselves, our interests, and our passions.
Building digital legacies involves accumulating tweets, status updates, and blog comments, which tell a story and are fed by our social media outposts. Adopting social technologies is driven by the compulsion to seek out those who share common ideas and beliefs (Lynch, 2021).
As a content creator, how we tell our stories can have a powerful impact on our audience. Using multiple platforms to share our content and weave a coherent narrative, we can reach a wider audience and connect with them on a deeper level. However, it is also crucial to find a balance between the different platforms we use. Each platform has strengths and limitations, and we must adapt our storytelling approach accordingly.
For instance, Instagram may be great for visual storytelling and building a personal brand. At the same time, LinkedIn can help us showcase our professional skills and connect with potential employers or clients. Similarly, TikTok is an excellent short-form video platform that captures attention quickly (Social Pilot, 2021).
Of course, creating content for multiple platforms can be challenging and time-consuming, especially for someone who is just starting. But I believe that the benefits of transmedia storytelling outweigh the costs. By investing in our personal brand and online presence, we can create opportunities for ourselves and achieve our career goals.
In conclusion, transmedia storytelling is a powerful tool for individuals who want to build their personal brand and share their stories with the world. Using different platforms to showcase other aspects of our lives and interests, we can create a more complete and compelling narrative that resonates with our audiences and helps us achieve our goals. So, if you’re looking to transform your online presence and tell your story in a more engaging and effective way, I encourage you to explore the world of transmedia storytelling and see what it can do for you.
To conclude this post, I would like to encourage you to take a few moments to watch a comprehensive video on social media strategy. This video has been a great help to me in gaining a better understanding of the subject, and I hope it can provide you with valuable insights as well!!
Bibliography:
Britten, K., & Lauren, L. (2013, November 21). Pokémon as Transmedia Storytelling. Kevin Britten & Lauren. https://kevinbrittenylauren.wordpress.com/2013/11/21/pokemon-as-transmedia-storytelling/
Patel, N. (2018, April 3). How to Create a Social Media Marketing Plan: The 6 Step Framework. Neil Patel. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vaMx2pG3LJw&t=561s
SocialPilot. (2021, April 22). The Power of Social Media Storytelling: Why It Matters and How to Do It Right. SocialPilot. https://www.socialpilot.co/blog/social-media-storytelling
Lynch, M. (2021, March 1). Which Social Networks Should You Focus on? 5 Key Questions to Help You Decide. HubSpot. https://blog.hubspot.com/marketing/which-social-networks-should-you-focus-on
The Original Broadway Cast of Mean Girls the Musical(ph. Joan Marcus)
It’s 2023. You open your phone to the news that Mean Girls The Movie Musical is in production, a movie adaptation of the musical adaptation of the movie of the same name. Do you follow? With the oversaturation of unoriginal content on the Broadway stage and in the surrounding industry, it calls into question why nothing seems to be original anymore; just a retelling of a retelling in a new form.
In recent years, you couldn’t browse the titles on Broadway at any given time and not recognize at least one or two from movies, books, albums or other properties that already existed. Jukebox Musicals like The Cher Show, Jagged Little Pill, Ain’t Too Proud, MJ, and so on or adaptations of films like Mean Girls, Beetlejuice, Moulin Rouge, and the like permeated the market, translate well known and well loved properties to the stage. The question this engenders, then, is why? What makes original work so difficult to bring to stage? Why are we turning to preexisting properties in order to create theatre when original storytelling ins built into the medium’s history?
This, of course, can be answered like any other question in the postmodern world: money. There is ascertain guarantee of capital that reiterations or revivals or adaptations carry with them, either from fans of the original work, or the nostalgia factory that revivals like Company or Jukebox musicals like MJ provide. Ticket sales, then, are practically promised, and ticket sales means the longevity of the musical and the ability for the theatre to keep its lights on. Of course, theatre is a market, an industry, and it would be ignorant to suggest that art needs to meet some kind of moral or artistic standard in order to validate it. Indeed, to suggest that musicals need to be original stories in order to be good is simply wrong, however it is fascinating to see just how quickly the market has shifted away from original work to adaptation.
And they can’t be blamed for this pattern, either. Shows that do present completely original material are often overshadowed by their big-named competitors or the preexisting fans of translated media. As a result, though, we are also seeing the translation in the opposite direction. Musicals like Mean Girls, Wicked, In the Heights, The Prom and countless others are either in the works or already released, bridging the industries the other way, and likely amassing much more capital than a singular stage in a singular city could ever.
The thesis of my entire existence is that capitalism is the death of art, and I stand by that, however I would be remiss not to acknowledge the incredible art that has resulted from these attempts at generating capital. Indeed adaptation and translations of content can be some of the most influential and poignant pieces of art, allowing for material to find new life and a new audience. It is a little sad, still, though, to see media become an echo chamber of art that once was, leaving little room for the potential at something new, waiting to be born.
This week I’ve been tasked with reviewing the website of a classmate, Olivia. Olivia’s blog is named Spilling the Royaltea and focuses on hot topics involving the British royal family, whether positive or negative, mundane or sensational.
Her blog posts are separated into three main categories: hot takes, ranked, and news. Hot takes refers to drama involving various members of the family, ranked pits endearing moments and fashion choices against one another, and news involves reporting the latest updates relating to the royal family.
From a marketability standpoint, Olivia’s blog seems to cater towards a unique audience. Since Olivia stays impartial in her overall opinion on the royal family, she can create content pertaining to both fans and critics alike. This offers her more flexibility when creating blog posts, which she takes advantage of.
This can also give rise to pushback from either community, as Bryce Renninger (2015) points out in his writing on counterpublics. Renninger states that “…counterpublic communication online is often tenuous, at risk of being disrupted, ridiculed, dismissed, or ignored…”; fortunately, Olivia doesn’t seem to have this problem.
Despite my negative stance towards the royal family, I still found myself fascinated by Olivia’s analysis of fashion, controversy, and press releases that I would not have otherwise seeked out. I’m glad to have been paired up with this website, as I don’t often think about the royal family and was surprised at what kind of news was prevalent in the community.
Each of Olivia’s mini assignments fit perfectly within her blog subject, and range from the playful teasing of Prince Harry’s memoir to a thoughtful critique of wealth disparity in the UK. I enjoy the headings found in each post, as they help break up longer pieces of writing with proper context and make it easier to skim posts if needed. Overall, Olivia’s content is deliberate and appropriately matched to the website’s design, which I will cover next.
Olivia immediately showcases the subject of her blog through a well-organized collage of photos placed front and centre on the website’s homepage. Together with the site’s name, Spilling the Royaltea’s subject matter is easily discernable to most people on a first visit.
If I was creating this blog from scratch, I would probably take inspiration from magazines articles, which Travis Gertz (2015) points to as a prime example of more visually interesting design. Gertz posits this in his article Design Machines, with the question “how do magazines achieve rich reactions and connections, and how do we translate those approaches to the screen?”
News about the royal family has usually been relegated to these methods of communication, and I admit that I have a certain nostalgia for these publications as well. However, despite Gertz’s caution towards pre-built and uniform blog themes, I believe that Theme Fourteen Blog is very fitting for Olivia’s content.
The minimalistic and clean layout pairs well with the aesthetics of the royal family, and the typography lends itself well to both serious and more playful topics. Olivia uses Josefin Sans for titles, Lora for accents, and the popular Open Sans for paragraphs.
Oliva’s blog is a delightful read, with blog posts that a wide variety of people can enjoy. I especially like her posts ranking different fashion styles, as that is another interest of mine. Spilling the Royaltea has certainly grown on me as I’ve explored the website, and I’ll definitely be returning to see what Olivia posts next!
Renninger, B. J. (2015). “Where I can be myself…where I can speak my mind”: Networkedcounterpublics in a polymedia environment. New Media & Society, 17(9), 1513–1529. https://doi.org/10.1177/1461444814530095
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
I was at a social event for a club and we were put into teams of 4 for a game show. Out of the 3 people I was teamed with, I had only met 1 before during another event. As some of you know, I post on my Instagram stories whenever I have a new blog post up. I post a cute little picture and link my website, show the location of the restaurant, and add a little caption saying “check this out!” or something along those lines. It hadn’t been long since I posted, but the funniest thing was when the 1 girl I had met previously once before said “Oh Tara, I saw your blog on Icy Bar”. I’m not going to lie, it made me feel good. People actually saw what I posted and READ it. I wasn’t just posting and hoping people would view it, but I posted something and people READ it.
As I said, I post my newest blog posts on my Instagram stories (@tara.jacksonnn btw), and for the past month whenever I post, I get people liking my stories. Again, not lying, this makes me feel good. It makes me feel like people are supporting what I’m doing and actually like my work. THIS IS NOT BRAGGING AT ALL, BUT I have had so many people respond to my stories about how impressed they are with my website and how much work I put into it. They like my design, my comments, and even said they’ll check out the places I went to and that THEY would give me recommendations.
“Transmedia storytelling is a process. Elements of a fiction get dispersed across multiple media for the purpose of creating a coordinated entertainment experience” (Kevinbrittenylauren.wordpress.com, 2013). As I am able to post pictures and link my website to my stories, it allows me to disperse my blog across different medias (Instagram and Facebook). This allows for access to an audience I never had before. Without these medias, I would be a singular blog with maybe around a total of 50 people who viewed my website and 40 of them being me.
I am grateful for the experience I have had with this website. Being able to legitimately create my own platform that I haven’t been afraid of. I can post whatever I want, whenever I want, and most of all, I don’t have to care what people think. Although I may get some unwanted comments (not yours mom!), I am able to filter out what I want and don’t want to create my own food-loving platform.
“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
n the article called “Where I can be myself … where I can speak my mind”: Networked counter-publics in a polymedia environment” by Bryce J Renninger. It goes on about how the public can be formed by social media. Publics are a group of people who are interested in a specific topic or idea, and on social networking sites (SNSs) publics and counter-publics could be formed very easily. The article goes on about how the public has been forming on SNSs, and one example of a public is the Asexual community. The Asexual community has been online for a while, and “…it was not until then that an asexual identity, named as such, came to be defined and codified.” (Renninger, 2014). The internet is a great place to grow, expand, and jumpstart ideas and communities since it can be accessed from most devices in the modern world. Since the internet, there have been many social sites and chatting sites, one site that has grown greatly is a site called “Discord”. “Discord is a voice, video, and text chat app that’s used by tens of millions of people ages 13+ to talk and hang out with their communities and friends.” (Citron, 2015). Discord is a chatting platform, much like WhatsApp and telegram. Though notice how it is marketed towards a younger audience, which means the trends and topics which will be more popular will be different from other popular platforms. In the “discover” tab where people can join public open server chatrooms, Gaming servers such as Minecraft, and Roblox is one of the most joined. Offline vs online communities have very different properties, online is more accessible and anonymous, while in-person can be more engaging. Though everyone has their own opinion of which is a more effective one for engagement or accessibility
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
Citron, J. (2015). What is discord: A guide for parents and educators. What is Discord | A Guide for Parents and Educators. Retrieved March 29, 2023, from https://discord.com/safety/360044149331-what-is-discord
For this peer review, I was delighted to find out I would be looking at Antalya’s blog, cleverly called Jellylift, for a couple reasons: 1) I’ve worked with Antalya in previous courses– she’s lovely!, and 2) I am also a hardcore Jellycat fanatic. I mean, what better way to spend (way too much of) your adult money on stuffed animals? (See my prized possession on the Indigo website.) So, when prompted about how Jellylift markets to their intended audience, I immediately think “well… that’s me!” Before getting into the marketability portion of this peer review, I’m first going to dig further into Antalya’s intended audience.
Who (else) Is the Intended Audience?
From the name “Jellylift” and also the About page, it is very clear that this blog is dedicated to two things and two things only: weightlifting and Jellycats. Side note: I have to add to the pre-existing compliment pile for this super awesome juxtaposition– it’s super awesome. Individually, both weightlifting and Jellycats have their own passionate counterpublics, a term discussed by Michael Warner. So, it seems that these groups make up Antalya’s intended audience.
I know that the gym community, both online and in real life spheres, is quite a tight-knit and supportive counterpublic, usually circulating discourse around tips on form, advice on the best pre-workouts, flexing their personal bests, etc. (Is it painfully obvious that I’m absolutely NOT a member of this counterpublic?) On the other hand, the Jellycat counterpublic is bonded through obsessing over and collecting the cutest, softest plushes on the planet. Check out the Jellycat website to see for yourself.
So, Jellylift is clearly a hub for members of both of these counterpublics to enjoy. However, by combining the two comically different interests, Antalya may be single-handedly creating a whole third counterpublic through Jellylift– a counterpublic consisting of those who love to sweat and pump major iron AND embrace their inner child with cuddly toys.
I’ve talked a lot about these people who surely would love Jellylift, but how exactly does Jellylift market to them to solidify this love?
Marketability Through Content and Design
I have determined that both the weightlifting and Jellycat counterpublics are part of Antalya’s intended audience, but this is not to say that you have to be a part of both / Antalya’s up-and-coming third counterpublic to be a Jellylift enjoyer. Take me, for example, who a) would rather die than step into a public gym, but b) has no problem dropping $40 on a hand-sized stuffed cauliflower with legs, and c) loves Jellylift. Antalya does a great job of balancing content about both interests– check out her content categories for Lifting and Jellycats– while keeping them separate enough for pure lifters and Jellycat lovers to enjoy one and not the other. This is important as it opens the door for more (regular) site visitors– I’m not sure the same effect would be achieved if Antalya’s content posts each featured an integration of both interests.
Additionally, the overall ironic and casual tone used across Jellylift makes the content clearly suitable for Antalya’s audience, or at least a subsection of them. She talks about how Jellycat lovers and weightlifters could be generalized into a “youth” demographic in her process post Knock Knock… Who’s There? Antalya’s style of writing definitely sells to this demographic perfectly, as the language she uses is very Gen-Z-friendly, with dry humour, lowercase titles, and expletives used (tastefully and quirkily) in every post.
Jellylift’s blog design also contributes to supporting its marketability to these intended audiences. At first glance, the pastel text against the rich chocolate brown background is definitely not a conventional website colour palette, but it is undeniably aesthetically pleasing to the youthful eye. Jellylift is also very easy to navigate with the clearly-labelled menu, systematically organized and categorized posts, and use of tags. Although Antalya loves to use a fun title for her posts– such as “What the F**k is Content?”– all her posts can easily be located, and are additionally very readable and scannable due to her use of headers and links. All of these elements, according to our PUB 101 Week 10 lecture material, are ingredients for good SEO. And, according to Sam Hollingsworth, having a good SEO is extremely beneficial for marketability. He further explains how site performance suffers if these elements are missing, but Antalya’s got it covered.
Summing Up
Overall, Antalya’s content and design of Jellylift is all noticeably intentional and carefully executed, which evidently pays off in its marketability as well as user-satisfaction (cite: me). I can’t wait to keep up with Jellylift and see what Antalya has up her sleeve for the rest of the semester!
Bonus Content: A Short Response to Antalya’s Peer Review
If you aren’t Antalya, this peer review post ends here. Thanks for reading! If you ARE Antalya, keep scrolling.
Hi Antalya! I enjoyed your peer review for my blog so much I just had to respond to it here. Thank you for the kind words, I truly am so flattered that someone I admire so much academically and personally likes melatonin gone missing! I am obsessed with the justgirlythings posts you pulled for me, truly thank you so much. melatonin gone missing feels so seen. Keep your eyes peeled for when those make their appearance on the blog.
Hollingsworth, S. (2021, August 9). 15 reasons why your business absolutely needs seo. Search Engine Journal. Retrieved March 29, 2023, from https://www.searchenginejournal.com/why-seo-is-important-for-business/248101/#close
Norman, S. (2023). Data and SEO [PowerPoint Slides]. Department of Publishing, Simon Fraser University.
Warner, M. (2002). Publics and Counterpublics (abbreviated version). Quarterly Journal of Speech, 88(4), 413-425.
This week in PUB 101, we got to revisit Google Analytics. I installed this plugin for my blog in the first or second week of this course, but had yet to look at the data, so I was intrigued to see what kind of activity had been tracked on melatonin gone missing so I know what’s working and what could be improved in regards to my site’s SEO.
Google Analytics
The first thing I looked at, purely out of my own curiosity, is my audience overview. I wanted to see exactly how many people have checked out my blog.
From this graphic, I can see that melatonin gone missing has been visited by 151 new users and accumulated 640 total page views. Seeing this data and knowing that my blog has only existed for a few months is honestly quite amazing… I feel like a real website owner! The number of users on my site regularly fluctuate, and I could guess this is because I usually only post once a week, attracting the most traffic which then decreases until my next posts are up the following week.
I also was curious about user acquisition, because after all, this is only a blog for an SFU course… who’s finding it besides my TA, professor, and classmates? And how are they finding it?
It’s interesting to see how users have come from social media sites like Facebook and Instagram, considering I have personally not linked my blog to either of those sites. The direct and google channels are probably mostly me, and the Posiel channel appears because my posts are connected to the Posiel feed, so these are unsurprising. Users have come from Jellylift as well, thanks to Antalya’s links in her peer review of melatonin gone missing (go check it out!).
Seeing that visitors really do come from social media and external links demonstrates how important a good and continuously improving SEO is for site traffic. Sam Hollingsworth explains this further, saying how having a good SEO is “the most viable and cost-effective way to both understand and reach customers in key moments that matter”. For melatonin gone missing, this means being accessible and easily usable for my target audiences, which I identify in my Imaginary Audiences post. I want my audience to find my blog in a pinch!
Growing my SEO
To improve my site’s SEO, as it is evidently quite important, I will aim to do things that Dr. Norman calls “ingredients for a good SEO”. Some of these things include effective use of keywords, including strong headers in your posts, and having outbound links to reliable sources. Although I strive to include all of these elements in my weekly posts, there are always ways to aim higher and ensure my SEO is being considered in every aspect of my blog design/content.
Stay tuned to see melatonin gone missing skyrocket in SEO success!
References:
Hollingsworth, S. (2021, August 9). 15 reasons why your business absolutely needs seo. Search Engine Journal. Retrieved April 10, 2023, from https://www.searchenginejournal.com/why-seo-is-important-for-business/248101/#close
Norman, N. (2023). Data and SEO [PowerPoint Slides]. Department of Publishing, Simon Fraser University.
Photo:
Joyce, J. (2021, February 20). 10 great google analytics alternatives. Search Engine Journal. Retrieved April 10, 2023, from https://www.searchenginejournal.com/google-analytics-alternatives/347638/
The Fashion Daily is run by Megan, who passionately creates content about finding her personal style, curating a wardrobe, and being inspired by recent events in the fashion industry. On her About page, she expresses hope that The Fashion Daily becomes a place where readers might be interested or find out new things in fashion.
Assumed Audience
After combing through her content and About page, I made the assumption that Megan’s intended audience members include both fashion newbies who might be interested in finding their personal style and fashion hobbyists who enjoy staying up-to-date on the world of fashion. This assumption is founded on the type of content she has put out, as well as what I have found that she hopes her blog space will serve as.
Content & Design
The Fashion Daily has 4 main content categories: Weekly Inspiration, Exploring Style, What’s New?, and Just For Fun. The first three categories are centred around a mix of personal style inspiration and tips, while the last category allows Megan to express other interests in her life.
Through her blog posts, I find a sense of care and enthusiasm in the tone of voice. For example, in the post “Enhancing Your Eye Color Through Clothing Choices,” Megan is both encouraging and informative by providing a personal anecdote surrounding her curiosity of which colours wear well on her, before outlining the conventionally best-suited colours by eye colour. By starting with a personal experience, she is also able to transition to informative content by framing eye colour as a fun way to experiment, instead of making it seem like necessary rules to follow.
In “How to Survive the Digital Apocalypse,” it is mentioned that blogs are maintained by businesses to sell ads instead of providing real, genuine value to consumers (Gertz, 2015). I think that the written content reflected on the blog, as well as Megan’s Just For Fun category, bring her personality into The Fashion Daily, which makes the content she publishes feel genuine. As well, she only links out to other websites to provide further reading on the topic she is focused on, rather than trying to sell particular products or services.
In terms of the website’s visual design choices, the colourful images used throughout add pops of colour to what otherwise would be a bland website. Additionally, I like how the serif typeface used for headings and the website title make me think of newspapers, which might be why the blog is named as is: The Fashion Daily might come across as a source of fashion news and information by name alone. To juxtapose this, I think the rounded sans-serif typeface matches the tone Megan chooses to write in, which overall creates a welcoming feeling across the blog for her audience.
I think the tone of voice used, as well as style experimentation tips, are the strongest variables in capturing the attention of Megan’s assumed audience. I believe these factors, in combination with the website’s visual design choices, are what can build trust with her audience and make her blog a safe, encouraging space to go to when one’s spark is set off to experiment with style.
