Stephanie Faris's Blog, page 44
July 20, 2015
That Moment When...I Slapped You
Sometimes I carefully research things before posting, hoping to provide useful information.
Sometimes I just like to vent.
This is one of the latter situations. Mostly because, despite my research, I've failed to find why this trend has become so popular. But it's annoying the you-know-what out of me.
Please tell me when it became a requirement that people begin every single social media posts with "That moment when." And am I the only one who is annoyed by it?
In small doses, it's cute. But I'm in a particular Facebook group for writers where every post starts that way. "That moment when you have a deadline and you're munching on Cheetos." "That moment when you were supposed to have a call, only the person doesn't pick up, so you end up realizing you've worked your day around something that isn't going to happen." Sometimes the "That moment whens" kick off a three-paragraph-long post, which is just ridiculous.
I just have to say that it's freakin' annoying when every post seems to start that way.
The best I can tell, the trend started as "That awkward moment" in 2009 and at some point 'awkward' became negotiable. It has now become a standard way for some people to start a status update. Kind of like the way we followed the unwritten rule that we start our Facebook posts with the word "is" in the early days of the site. ("Stephanie Faris is eating an ice cream sundae.") People obviously missed having rules and decided "That moment" was a great way to kick off every. Single. Status update.
Is there anything you find annoying on social media?
Sometimes I just like to vent.
This is one of the latter situations. Mostly because, despite my research, I've failed to find why this trend has become so popular. But it's annoying the you-know-what out of me.
Please tell me when it became a requirement that people begin every single social media posts with "That moment when." And am I the only one who is annoyed by it?
In small doses, it's cute. But I'm in a particular Facebook group for writers where every post starts that way. "That moment when you have a deadline and you're munching on Cheetos." "That moment when you were supposed to have a call, only the person doesn't pick up, so you end up realizing you've worked your day around something that isn't going to happen." Sometimes the "That moment whens" kick off a three-paragraph-long post, which is just ridiculous.
I just have to say that it's freakin' annoying when every post seems to start that way.
The best I can tell, the trend started as "That awkward moment" in 2009 and at some point 'awkward' became negotiable. It has now become a standard way for some people to start a status update. Kind of like the way we followed the unwritten rule that we start our Facebook posts with the word "is" in the early days of the site. ("Stephanie Faris is eating an ice cream sundae.") People obviously missed having rules and decided "That moment" was a great way to kick off every. Single. Status update.
Is there anything you find annoying on social media?
July 17, 2015
Do You Need a Wikipedia Page?
When I was a kid, if you wanted to know something about a person, you looked here:
Then the Internet came along, wiping out the need to research using a book. Everything you ever wanted to know could be found by simply typing a question into a search box.
But it wasn't enough to search for the information we needed. In 1993, someone came up with the idea for an online version of the encyclopedia. After that idea fizzled and another project, the Free Software Foundation's (FSF) GNUPedia, failed to gain traction, Wikipedia came along in 2001 and stole the market.
The problem is that much of Wikipedia's content is crowdsourced. It's written and edited by people like you and me.
The site does require citations, but you could technically post an article with few citations and get it past the system.
But what many people don't realize is that Wikipedia pages do go through a filtering process. I've written Wikipedia pages for clients and I can tell you, it's a pain in the you-know-what. Mostly because the number (and required quality) of citations requires a great deal of work that has nothing to do with the actual writing.
For published authors, it can be tempting to create a Wikipedia page for yourself. It boosts your Google rankings and provides a level of credibility. But should you create one yourself?
The answer to that question is probably "No." Even Wikipedia strongly recommends against it. There are two major problems with creating your own Wikipedia entry. The first is that unless the powers-that-be deem you to be a public figure, it's going to be deleted. And guess what?
Say you are more famous than the rest of us. Say your page squeaks past the person who controls the delete button. Then comes the second problem...and it's one Wikipedia even points out. Once a page is out there, anyone can add to it. So if someone adds something negative about you, you'll have little recourse.
Would you ever set up a Wikipedia page about yourself?
Then the Internet came along, wiping out the need to research using a book. Everything you ever wanted to know could be found by simply typing a question into a search box.
But it wasn't enough to search for the information we needed. In 1993, someone came up with the idea for an online version of the encyclopedia. After that idea fizzled and another project, the Free Software Foundation's (FSF) GNUPedia, failed to gain traction, Wikipedia came along in 2001 and stole the market.
The problem is that much of Wikipedia's content is crowdsourced. It's written and edited by people like you and me.
The site does require citations, but you could technically post an article with few citations and get it past the system.
But what many people don't realize is that Wikipedia pages do go through a filtering process. I've written Wikipedia pages for clients and I can tell you, it's a pain in the you-know-what. Mostly because the number (and required quality) of citations requires a great deal of work that has nothing to do with the actual writing.
For published authors, it can be tempting to create a Wikipedia page for yourself. It boosts your Google rankings and provides a level of credibility. But should you create one yourself?
The answer to that question is probably "No." Even Wikipedia strongly recommends against it. There are two major problems with creating your own Wikipedia entry. The first is that unless the powers-that-be deem you to be a public figure, it's going to be deleted. And guess what?
Say you are more famous than the rest of us. Say your page squeaks past the person who controls the delete button. Then comes the second problem...and it's one Wikipedia even points out. Once a page is out there, anyone can add to it. So if someone adds something negative about you, you'll have little recourse.
Would you ever set up a Wikipedia page about yourself?
July 15, 2015
The Trouble with Supporting Small Businesses
I'm guilty of shopping at chain stores, even though I know I should support local. This has become especially noticeable now that we live in a small town. We have a charming town square...
And plenty of small businesses, both in our town and the much larger neighboring city. When we first moved here, we ordered pizza from a mom-and-pop pizza shop. It went about like this...
They told me when I called they normally don't deliver on Mondays, but they'd make an exception because they weren't busy. When the pizza guy showed up, he realized he'd forgotten the credit card slip. He handed me the pizza and drove all the way back to the store to get the slip and bring it back. It was just...a mess. The store closed a few weeks later.
Last weekend, we tried again. This time it was barbecue. We called the most popular restaurant in town and got the message that they'd be closed until July 18th.
So we tried another local barbecue place that specializes in to-go orders. I Googled them, sure I'd find their website. Nope. All I found was a Facebook page that didn't even have a menu. How does a to-go place not have information online?
That's okay. We'd just call. I searched for the phone number and then found a picture of the business's front window. Once you get past the bad grammar, you see that they have their phone number posted in bold letters on the window:
We called the number. It had been disconnected. I looked at the business's Facebook page and saw a post from someone mentioning it. The business owner said he'd lost his cell phone and offered an alternative number. My husband called it. It went to voicemail, where a barely coherent voice told him to leave a message.
We decided to go with a chain restaurant.
I try to support local businesses, but they don't make it easy. As someone who regularly writes articles geared toward small businesses, it bothers me to see so many business owners fouling it up. For the record--if you're going to run a restaurant:
1) Have a website.
2) Have your menu on your website.
3) Have a working phone number.
4) Have a proofreader check your sign before you open your doors.
Do you ever get frustrated with poorly-run businesses?
And plenty of small businesses, both in our town and the much larger neighboring city. When we first moved here, we ordered pizza from a mom-and-pop pizza shop. It went about like this...
They told me when I called they normally don't deliver on Mondays, but they'd make an exception because they weren't busy. When the pizza guy showed up, he realized he'd forgotten the credit card slip. He handed me the pizza and drove all the way back to the store to get the slip and bring it back. It was just...a mess. The store closed a few weeks later.
Last weekend, we tried again. This time it was barbecue. We called the most popular restaurant in town and got the message that they'd be closed until July 18th.
So we tried another local barbecue place that specializes in to-go orders. I Googled them, sure I'd find their website. Nope. All I found was a Facebook page that didn't even have a menu. How does a to-go place not have information online?
That's okay. We'd just call. I searched for the phone number and then found a picture of the business's front window. Once you get past the bad grammar, you see that they have their phone number posted in bold letters on the window:
We called the number. It had been disconnected. I looked at the business's Facebook page and saw a post from someone mentioning it. The business owner said he'd lost his cell phone and offered an alternative number. My husband called it. It went to voicemail, where a barely coherent voice told him to leave a message.
We decided to go with a chain restaurant.
I try to support local businesses, but they don't make it easy. As someone who regularly writes articles geared toward small businesses, it bothers me to see so many business owners fouling it up. For the record--if you're going to run a restaurant:
1) Have a website.
2) Have your menu on your website.
3) Have a working phone number.
4) Have a proofreader check your sign before you open your doors.
Do you ever get frustrated with poorly-run businesses?
July 13, 2015
I Should Be a Hipster
When I hear the word "hipster," I think of young guys who dress like lumberjacks and wear strange hats.
They hang out at independent coffeehouses because they're "too hipster" for Starbucks.
They thumb their noses at pop culture and attend poetry readings, where they proudly announce they don't even own a TV.
But hipsters are really, in essence, people who can't be defined. They're hipsters because they don't follow rules of fashion. They could look like this:
Or this:
Or this:
Or however else they want to set themselves apart.
I can't think of a better place to be than an independent coffeehouse or bookstore. The very hangouts of hipsters are the same hangouts I want to frequent.
How do you define "hipster?"
They hang out at independent coffeehouses because they're "too hipster" for Starbucks.
They thumb their noses at pop culture and attend poetry readings, where they proudly announce they don't even own a TV.
But hipsters are really, in essence, people who can't be defined. They're hipsters because they don't follow rules of fashion. They could look like this:
Or this:
Or this:
Or however else they want to set themselves apart.
I can't think of a better place to be than an independent coffeehouse or bookstore. The very hangouts of hipsters are the same hangouts I want to frequent.
How do you define "hipster?"
July 10, 2015
My Super-Fun Vacation!
After the stress of buying a house, moving, and selling a house, I needed a getaway. So, as most full-time freelance writers do, I spent the last part of June working 12-hour days so that I could have a getaway...
Here I am with my sister and her husband on our first day in Savannah:
We visited Madison Square, which is surrounded by historic homes.
We also stopped by The Mercer Williams House, known as the location of the true events that inspired Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil.
We found the bench from Forrest Gump. That part of the movie was filmed in Savannah. The bench has been moved to the Savannah History Museum to prevent theft.
We did a ghost tour, as well...it was amazing. I highly recommend the Sixth Sense World tour if you're ever in Savannah. The last location, which is reportedly haunted by four girls who were murdered there, was the scariest. There was a guy in the window looking out at us...scary until he waved and our tour guide said he was the security guard.
We then moved on to the second leg of our trip: Charleston. When I think of Charleston, I always think of the Battery Park/Rainbow Row area. The houses are so colorful.
Plus there's the pier at Waterfront Park, which you must see if you ever visit Charleston.
Downtown Charleston is just as beautiful, though. This street corner was particularly scenic.
We also took the boat to Fort Sumter...
...and visited a beautiful plantation.
We ended the vacation with a tour of the USS Yorktown battleship.
We missed out on the ghost tour of the battleship, though. We'll have to do that the next time we're in town!
What are your vacation plans for this summer?
Here I am with my sister and her husband on our first day in Savannah:
We visited Madison Square, which is surrounded by historic homes.
We also stopped by The Mercer Williams House, known as the location of the true events that inspired Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil.
We found the bench from Forrest Gump. That part of the movie was filmed in Savannah. The bench has been moved to the Savannah History Museum to prevent theft.
We did a ghost tour, as well...it was amazing. I highly recommend the Sixth Sense World tour if you're ever in Savannah. The last location, which is reportedly haunted by four girls who were murdered there, was the scariest. There was a guy in the window looking out at us...scary until he waved and our tour guide said he was the security guard.
We then moved on to the second leg of our trip: Charleston. When I think of Charleston, I always think of the Battery Park/Rainbow Row area. The houses are so colorful.
Plus there's the pier at Waterfront Park, which you must see if you ever visit Charleston.
Downtown Charleston is just as beautiful, though. This street corner was particularly scenic.
We also took the boat to Fort Sumter...
...and visited a beautiful plantation.
We ended the vacation with a tour of the USS Yorktown battleship.
We missed out on the ghost tour of the battleship, though. We'll have to do that the next time we're in town!
What are your vacation plans for this summer?
July 8, 2015
Introducing The Miracle Girl by T.B. Markinson
Today I'm excited to join in on the blog tour for T.B. Markinson's The Miracle Girl. T.B. is a regular around here, so you'll probably recognize her by her profile picture:
Scroll down to read more about T.B.'s book, which you can buy here. Here's her amazing cover!
Tagline:
To secure a loving future, she must shed an addicting past.
Blurb:
Newspaper publisher and world traveler JJ Cavendish continually feels pressured to live up to her Miracle Girl nickname. Not many people know she’s living a carefully crafted lie. She may not hide ties to the LGBT community, but she does hide past struggles with addiction.
When the Colorado native is handpicked to take the helm at a dying Denver newspaper, she ends up reconnecting with her long lost love in this contemporary lesbian romance. Only there’s a catch. If JJ fires the most belligerent editor at the paper, she risks losing the love of her life.
Mid-afternoon office romps abound in this romantic comedy while also focusing on what it takes for a newspaper to remain relevant in this age of social media.
Must JJ lose everything in order to gain a life more fully her own?
Bio:
T. B. Markinson is an American writer, living in England. When she isn’t writing, she’s traveling the world, watching sports on the telly, visiting pubs, or taking the dog for a walk. Not necessarily in that order.
Mailing List:
To sign up to TB’s New Release Mailing List here. Your email will never be shared and you will only be contacted when a new book is out.
Contact info:
Buy Amazon US | Buy Amazon UK | Buy Amazon Canada | Twitter | Facebook | Blog | Goodreads | Amazon Author Page
Scroll down to read more about T.B.'s book, which you can buy here. Here's her amazing cover!
Tagline:
To secure a loving future, she must shed an addicting past.
Blurb:
Newspaper publisher and world traveler JJ Cavendish continually feels pressured to live up to her Miracle Girl nickname. Not many people know she’s living a carefully crafted lie. She may not hide ties to the LGBT community, but she does hide past struggles with addiction.
When the Colorado native is handpicked to take the helm at a dying Denver newspaper, she ends up reconnecting with her long lost love in this contemporary lesbian romance. Only there’s a catch. If JJ fires the most belligerent editor at the paper, she risks losing the love of her life.
Mid-afternoon office romps abound in this romantic comedy while also focusing on what it takes for a newspaper to remain relevant in this age of social media.
Must JJ lose everything in order to gain a life more fully her own?
Bio:
T. B. Markinson is an American writer, living in England. When she isn’t writing, she’s traveling the world, watching sports on the telly, visiting pubs, or taking the dog for a walk. Not necessarily in that order.Mailing List:
To sign up to TB’s New Release Mailing List here. Your email will never be shared and you will only be contacted when a new book is out.
Contact info:
Buy Amazon US | Buy Amazon UK | Buy Amazon Canada | Twitter | Facebook | Blog | Goodreads | Amazon Author Page
July 6, 2015
Paul Reiser Can't Be Old
I was recently watching a show called Married on Hulu. Good show, but something really bugged me about it. We're introduced to a character named Jess. She's in her early 30s.
When we first meet her, she's hanging out in a bar with her friends. She constantly complains about her "old" husband, who never likes to go out, goes to bed at some ridiculously early hour every night, and has to have his pills laid out for him. I'm picturing this:
Do you know what this "old guy" looks like? This:
After I got over my excitement that Paul Reiser was in something again, I thought...
Paul Reiser isn't some old geezer who has to have his medicine laid out for him. Is he?
Is he?
I looked it up. He's 58. So not even a candidate for retirement, let alone "old geezer" status. I spent so much of my 20s watching this show...
...that it's hard for me to see the guy from that 90s show as some old geezer. Ever. Same with Community trying to sell Chevy Chase as the senile, tech-challenged old guy in your college classes.
My generation will always see him like this:
It's all about perspective. A teenager watching Married or Community would have no problem seeing the above-mentioned stars as "old geezers." A senior citizen would laugh at the idea of calling 58-year-old Paul Reiser "old." And of course, aging in Hollywood is even worse for women. Do you know Maggie Gyllenhaal was recently told she was too old to play the love interest of a 55-year-old man in a movie? She's 37.
Have you ever been shocked by seeing a favorite movie star has gotten older?
When we first meet her, she's hanging out in a bar with her friends. She constantly complains about her "old" husband, who never likes to go out, goes to bed at some ridiculously early hour every night, and has to have his pills laid out for him. I'm picturing this:
Do you know what this "old guy" looks like? This:
After I got over my excitement that Paul Reiser was in something again, I thought...
Paul Reiser isn't some old geezer who has to have his medicine laid out for him. Is he?
Is he?
I looked it up. He's 58. So not even a candidate for retirement, let alone "old geezer" status. I spent so much of my 20s watching this show...
...that it's hard for me to see the guy from that 90s show as some old geezer. Ever. Same with Community trying to sell Chevy Chase as the senile, tech-challenged old guy in your college classes.
My generation will always see him like this:
It's all about perspective. A teenager watching Married or Community would have no problem seeing the above-mentioned stars as "old geezers." A senior citizen would laugh at the idea of calling 58-year-old Paul Reiser "old." And of course, aging in Hollywood is even worse for women. Do you know Maggie Gyllenhaal was recently told she was too old to play the love interest of a 55-year-old man in a movie? She's 37.
Have you ever been shocked by seeing a favorite movie star has gotten older?
July 3, 2015
Happy 4th of July!!!
I'm on vacation until Wednesday, but my blogs will continue to post as scheduled.
Just wanted to stop in and say...
Just wanted to stop in and say...
July 1, 2015
IWSG: Some Will, Some Won’t, So What?
It's the first Wednesday of the month, which means hundreds of us will be posting about our insecurities. Add your name to the list to join in!
There are people who love my writing. There are people who don’t.
A few months ago, I received this glowing email from a client: “You are hands-down the best writer (with the quickest turnaround), I've found in over 2 years of outsourcing.”
A week later, I received a nasty critique from a new client who apparently liked everything else she’d ever read but my work. Guess which one made the most lasting impact?
There’s an old saying my husband taught me. (He works in sales.)
Some will love our work. Some won’t. We have to face that. One person’s dislike of our work doesn’t mean anything, even if that person is an editor or agent. Because it’s all a matter of personal taste.
So the next time you get a rejection or scathing review, remember these words: "Some will, some won't, so what?" And go find someone who will.
What are you insecure about this month?
There are people who love my writing. There are people who don’t.
A few months ago, I received this glowing email from a client: “You are hands-down the best writer (with the quickest turnaround), I've found in over 2 years of outsourcing.”
A week later, I received a nasty critique from a new client who apparently liked everything else she’d ever read but my work. Guess which one made the most lasting impact?
There’s an old saying my husband taught me. (He works in sales.)
Some will love our work. Some won’t. We have to face that. One person’s dislike of our work doesn’t mean anything, even if that person is an editor or agent. Because it’s all a matter of personal taste.
So the next time you get a rejection or scathing review, remember these words: "Some will, some won't, so what?" And go find someone who will.
What are you insecure about this month?
June 29, 2015
Cool Things are Happening…Just Not Where You Live
I live 30 minutes outside of Nashville. Nashville is known as the home of country music.
But we also have a thriving downtown area...
A national TV show set in our city...
And a population of more than 650,000.
Yet none of that is enough.
My job is writing about the latest cool things happening in tech. Things like InstaCart, which has everyday people delivering groceries from local stores to your door for a small fee.
And TaskRabbit, which allows local people to charge to do chores for you, such as hanging your blinds or picking up your dry cleaning.
Every day, it seems some new service debuts that lets you order things using your phone. Those things are provided by locals. They all sound so exciting, until you research it.
They start in California, because that's where they're almost always founded.
After they finish testing it out around where they live, entrepreneurs head to the obvious cities: New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Washington D.C., etc. Nashville's never, ever on the list. Nor is Atlanta. Nor, I'm guessing is your town.
Most people don't live in big cities. They live in the suburbs surrounding a big city or further out, in the country. That means for the majority of us, even services like Uber and Lyft aren't an option.
Do you ever get frustrated that cool services aren't available where you live?
But we also have a thriving downtown area...
A national TV show set in our city...
And a population of more than 650,000.
Yet none of that is enough.
My job is writing about the latest cool things happening in tech. Things like InstaCart, which has everyday people delivering groceries from local stores to your door for a small fee.
And TaskRabbit, which allows local people to charge to do chores for you, such as hanging your blinds or picking up your dry cleaning.
Every day, it seems some new service debuts that lets you order things using your phone. Those things are provided by locals. They all sound so exciting, until you research it.
They start in California, because that's where they're almost always founded.
After they finish testing it out around where they live, entrepreneurs head to the obvious cities: New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Washington D.C., etc. Nashville's never, ever on the list. Nor is Atlanta. Nor, I'm guessing is your town.
Most people don't live in big cities. They live in the suburbs surrounding a big city or further out, in the country. That means for the majority of us, even services like Uber and Lyft aren't an option.
Do you ever get frustrated that cool services aren't available where you live?
