The Write Spot, LLC

The latest July/August 2008: BlogHer 08, BlogTalkRadio interview, upcoming workshop, MOM CENTRAL CONSULTING, and The Big Tent at the DNC

BlogHer08

I was quoted on the CNET, Blogging and bringing home the bacon about BlogHer. They took a picture of the podium during my session, which was lived blogged very thoroughly at Free and Flawed by Jenn: Live Blogging from BlogHer ‘08 - DIY Content Syndication & Promotion and at happykatie: Blogher 2008 - DIY Content Syndication and Promotion. It was also followed up with a much better picture at our moderator, Krista’s blog, Kribaby: 5 Tips from BlogHer08 DIY Content Syndication. (That’s me seated in the middle, talking with my hands as usual.) Here's another picture of me from the Web Teacher.

I’ve been reading the other posts in the blogosphere about the session and either it was too advanced, too easy or full of good stuff. This leads me to believe that BlogHer needs better session descriptions. Since many people came up to me with compliments or questions, I believe I did a good job at least introducing people to the concept of social bookmarking.

I meant to write up a BlogHer post, but it’s been done by dozens of other bloggers who were there. All I can say was that seeing old friends was terrific, the sessions were fantastic, the networking was awesome, the keynote speakers amazing, and I am still learning so much at the sessions I attended. The only complaint? We need eggs and yogurt in the mornings at breakfast, not just pastry and fruit.

blogtalkradio: Motherhood Uncensored

I was recently on the Motherhood Uncensored BlogTalkRadio podcast, Back to Preschool: Getting Our Super Little Ones Prepared for Their Big Day. You can listen to the archived show here or click on the badge to the right. We talked about book you could read and activities you could do to prepare your child for that first day of school.

Workshops

I will also be teaching another blogging workshop, Beyond Blogging Basics, through the Northern Colorado Writers on Saturday August 23 at the Windsor Rec Center.

Mom Central Consulting

I’m now officially the Social Media Manager at Mom Central Consulting. I got to meet several of the women from Mom Central at BlogHer, which was fun because I’ve only worked with them on the phone. I hope to go out to their offices in Newton, MA soon.

The Big Tent

I will be representing the National Association of Mothers' Centers and MOTHERS at The Big Tent, the media tent for bloggers covering the Democratic National Convention. I’m the MOTHERS E-newsletter Author and Coordinator and blog at their book blog, MOTHERS Book Bag, and probably will be blogging there, having dispatches posted on the MOTHERS website, or both.

What’s up next month? For start, BlogWorldExpo 2008 in Las Vegas!

It's all About Me - Part II

An update on the latest with me.

Blogging Workshops

First, I'm partnering with the Northern Colorado Writers and teaching two blogging courses - Blogging Basics Saturday, June 21 and Beyond Blogging Basics Saturday, August 23. Both workshops will be at the Windsor (CO) Recreation Center. (Windsor is about 1 hour north of Denver.) If you live in Northern Colorado or Southern Wyoming and are interested in learning about how to blog or do more with your blog, sign up!

New Partnerships

(Drum roll please...) I've signed on with Mom Central Consulting as a social networking consultant. I am thrilled to be working with Stacy DeBroff and her awesome team of mom bloggers at Mom Central and Mother Talk.

Publicity

On July 30, I'll be a guest on the Motherhood Uncensored podcast. I'm a big fan of Kristen Chase and her Motherhood Uncensored blog. In fact, her podcast is one of the few I listen to regularly. (I also work with Kristen doing reviews for The Parent Bloggers Network.)  I'll be speaking as the My Readable Feast blogger on books to get kids ready for school as well as how to combine reading books with family activities like cooking and going to the zoo.

The May 2008 issue of Bloghology is out. You can download the PDF of the report at Search for Blogging. Not only does it feature an interview with yours truly, but a terrific article by my blogging mentor, Yaro Starak.

Finally, I will be appearing in my local paper, the Daily Times-Call - Carbon Valley edition's "Spotlight on Business" this week. (Here's the link: ‘Mommy blogger’ has found outlet for her writing.)

It's a busy summer so far!

Anne-Marie Nichols joins Parents Behaving Badly

I've joined Jay Allen, The Zero Boss at Parents Behaving Badly. The blog is part of b5media's blog network, and is about all the horrible things adults do to kids.

My first two posts at Parents Behaving Badly deal with Michael Barber, the lowlife who beat up his former girlfriend's two-year-old. At his recent parole hearing, Barber took responsibility then blamed the boy's mother for the beating.

Blogging at Parents Behaving Badly should be a depressing gig. Except by the time the news hits the papers, the kids are in protective custody and the adults are in jail. Thank goodness for the small glimmer of hope in these stories.

But what about the cases that don't make the news, and the parents who haven't been caught yet? That's the real tragedy, folks.

A Mama's Rant syndicated by the Austin-American Statesman

A Mama's Rant has been syndicated by the Austin-American Statesman. I've been listed under the BlogHer: A Collection of Blogs By Women, For Women thanks to signing up with BlogBurst.

BlogBurst is a syndication service that places your blog content on top-tier online destinations. Bloggers get visibility, audience reach and increased traffic, while publishers get a wide range of new coverage to broaden their reach and increase page views.

Carbon Valley Chamber of Commerce

I'm now a member of the Carbon Valley Chamber of Commerce, both for my freelance writing and Usborne Books businesses.

I attended my first luncheon this week and was very impressed with the great turnout of local businesses people as well as members of the various governmental agencies in the area.

The Carbon Valley Academy was very well represented as our principal, myself (I'm the VP now), our president, and one of our new members all attended.

I've made several good contacts for both my businesses as well as the school, and look forward to attending more chamber functions in the future.

Partner up!

I've had the great fortune to offer my freelance writing services via three terrific businesses:

Bloggers for Hire - If you need bloggers for your business's website, contact Jim Turner. Jim also runs One by One Media, LLC a blog about the business of blogging.

I'm also partnering with bkmedia group out of Longmont, Colorado. bkmedia specializes in web, print, video and exhibit design. They can be reached at 303-651-2203, 866-525- 9387, or via email at info@bkmediagroup.com.

A partner of bkmedia group, I've worked on one of my on-going newsletter projects with Dynamic Designs Printing for over a year now. They're scaling up their offerings to become a "one-stop shop" and have asked me to help out on any freelance copywriting work they need for their clients. You can reach them at 303-772-4844 or info@ddprints.com.