Review Me Today!

I don’t usually like to be negative, but today I am going to start with what is wrong with Men with Pens. If you have been reading my blog at all, you know there is only one color of text I like, black, and it should be on a white background. This blog has white text on black background. In other words, they have it backwards. What is worse is that the links are in a darkish blue on a black background, which makes them almost unreadable to me.

Then the blog is hosted on a .ca domain. What is that? It is not a .com or a .net or any common top level domain. But then I start to think, does the domain really matter? And as I start reading through the blog I find out that the awful white type on black text is only on the home page. Once you find a link to a post and click on it you are taken to a page with black text on a dusky blue background which is actually quite easy on the eyes.

On a side note, some day I will have to write about why I am so picky about the text on a blog. It might have something to do with getting older and finally admitting that I need reading glasses.

Back to Men with Pens. It turns out, men with pens is actually three men and a rogue woman. According to the about page, Tei Lindstrom was such a good copywriter they had to let her into the all boys club. So Tei joins James, Harrison, and Charlie in creating a blog that is full of good advice.

I spend a lot of time reading blogs about writing. Mostly because I still consider myself a wannabe writer. It is one of those things. I know good writing when I read it. I just haven’t quite learned to master it myself. Hopefully I am learning something. I really enjoyed reading Men with Pens. It is the type of blog that talks about freelance writing, and blogging, and business in gereral, and makes me believe that I might be able to do it. Maybe someday I will be a great writer with a blog with thousands of subscribers who lap up my every word and comment on how wonderful I am.

The lead post today is What a Rotten Roof Can Teach You About Your Business and I can tell you it hit home on a number of counts. First because I know I need to get my roof replaced and I am not looking forward to the cost, or trying to find a contractor. Second, because James uses his experience with finding a contractor, and the contractor turning down the job, to illustrate some important lessons about running a business…or a blog. Lessons like “never opt for cheap, even if you are on a budget”, and “your reputation is all you have”.

Harry wrote a whole series on the 7 Deadly Fears of Writing, looking into how fear of exposing yourself, inadequacy, and success can hinder your writing.

I tried to find some posts by Tei or Charlie but I didn’t have any luck. I am sure they are there, I just need to get this post done before I spend the next few hours reading Men With Pens and hopefully becoming a better writer. (I am sure you all would appreciate that!)

So good going guys, and Tei. Just do something about the home page for old eyes like mine. Thanks!

Oh, one more thing. They have a forum that looks to be pretty new. If you have questions for the guys and Tei you could probably get them answered pretty quick over there!

And another thing, I take back what I said about the .ca domain. Apparently that is Canada. I want to be nice to people in Canada. I might need to move there someday. I love the .ca domain, I might just get one for myself!

I could go on and on about how crazy my life is lately, and bore you to death with why I am not posting more often. But instead, I think I’ll just write another blog review. You can thank me in the comments!

This blog is a tough blog to review. Most blogs, including mine, tend to be pretty light reading. Nothing here to challenge the brain! You can skim over it pretty quick and get a good idea of what I am talking about.

Not so with Exchange of Realities. This is a blog you need to take your time with. I have stopped by this blog many times, intending to review it, and then decide to review something a little easier. But today is the day. As the blog’s author, Ravyn, pointed out. She requested a review months ago, she has a great blog, and she deserves a review.

Exchange of Realities is a blog that talks about character development. Not as in “hard work develops character”, but as in how an author, or a game master in a role playing game, develops the characters in their stories. Focusing mostly on character development in role playing games, Ravyn’s character building tips are valuable to fiction writers as well. rReading Ravyn’s blog you will learn how to create characters with depth and create a story line that is consistent and makes sense. As she says on her about page:

These tips are designed to cultivate immersion, minimize interference with suspension of disbelief, and make the worlds we create more real, colorful and engaging.

What I think she means is that these tips will help you create characters that your readers and players can believe in.

The writing on the blog is excellent, and so are the tips. The topics are covered in depth and you will learn something. But don’t expect to pop on over to her blog and give it a quick skim. You will need to take your time and actually slow down and read the posts.

The look of the blog could use a little work. I really like the header. It is different and creative. I like that the posts are black type on a white background. I don’t like that the sidebars are dark blue with yellow type. They are very hard to read.

It is always a little difficult for me to review a writer’s blog.  I consider myself a novice writer at best, and a wannabe writer at worst, but I do know that reading a blog like Exchange of Realities will make me a better writer in the long run.

I loved Winnie the Pooh as a kid. In fact, I still love Winnie the Pooh. So when I was browsing one of my long time favorite blogs and saw Winnie the Pooh, I just had to share it with you.
The Blog is copyblogger and the post that caught my eye is The Winnie The Pooh Guide to Blogging. At first this post doesn’t make much sense. I mean, really, Winnie the Pooh lives in the forest with no internet. I have never even seen him with a computer. But still I read the post, just because it had something to do with Winnie the Pooh! The post is 6 lessons on blogging covering topics such as going out to find readers (social networking), being persistent (keep working to improve your writing), and rolling with the punches.
My favorite is lesson #3.

“You can’t help respecting anybody who can spell TUESDAY, even if he doesn’t spell it right; but spelling isn’t everything. There are days when spelling Tuesday simply doesn’t count.”

The message here is that while good spelling and grammar is important, don’t let a typo or two keep you from writing.

I really liked the Winnie the Pooh post, but copybogger is a great resource for anyone who wants to be a better writer. There are posts on the things you would expect, “10 Steps to Becoming a Better Writer”, “How to Write an eBook That Sells”, and “How To Increase Your Blog Subscription Rate”. Then there are the not so typical posts. Posts such as “Avoid Copy That Makes You Look Like an Ass” and “5 Grammatical Errors That Make You Look Dumb”.

The one problem with reading copyblogger is that it really points out how much I still need to work on my writing. I think I will spend some time with the Copywriting 101 Course and make myself a better writer. I know you will thank me for it!