Ludington Daily News Column- August 2011

Here's a hint. It's not a great idea to completely change your mind as to what you are going to write about twelve hours before it's due. Never fear... I lay awake re-writing it in my head and then finished this morning.

A couple of phone calls to check some facts, a fast hunt through the pictures on my SD card, and, whew! another column turned in on time.

This one is much more factual than some columns are, so don't be anticipating humor this time.

The title is "Aspiring to be Dayton?" Here's an excerpt:

Now, Dayton boasts an interconnected network of multi-use trails. In fact, Dayton was declared a bike-friendly city by the League of American Bicyclists in 2010, the only Ohio city to be so honored. This past week, I saw why this honor is deserved. A group of us biked, leisurely, from Eastside Park to Wegerzyn Gardens in about 30 minutes. A bus ride later between those locations took considerably longer.

These columns are not available on-line, unless you subscribe to the Ludington Daily News. One collection of columns is currently available as an e-book, called Get Off the Couch with Joan, at Smashwords. Use coupon code JX87H until December 30 to buy it for only 99 cents!

Writing for Shared Reviews

I have written two new reviews and revised one older one.

My most recent new review is about a kind of cookie that I picked up at a markdown price, but OH, it was good. Grisbi Lemon and Ginseng Cookies- Exquisite

I also wrote about a pair of Dolfino Swim Goggles- You Get What You Pay For

The revision was more complicated. The required length of a review has changed off and on over the life of the site. For a while, it was a meager 200 words. Now, any reviews that short are being flagged as "thin," and opened for revision or they may be rolled into some kind of group review/article. I am struggling with how to fix these two reviews. (Note that most people had a lot more than that to fix.) But I managed to re-do one of them. It was a review of a unique art glass suncatcher... not a good choice of item to review anyway. I turned it into an article about tips for choosing art objects as gifts for people. It's now called Giving Art and Handcrafted Art Objects as Gifts

Use this link if you would like to sign up at Shared Reviews. There is a whole new structure and format coming to the site on Sept 1.

Product Review at Shared Reviews

I managed to get two new reviews written for Shared Reviews this week. They are:
Detroit Electric Scheme- Mystery, History, Action which is a book review of a really good new mystery, and
Your Best Look Modest Swimsuit Fits Well, Looks Nice, reviewing a swim suit I snagged on an end-of-season closeout.

Shared Reviews has now pushed their site overhaul off by another month to September 1, but there is a sneak preview on one of those corner peel tabs anywhere on their site. There is more detail presented in their blog, at The Official-Official, Really Official, Absolutely Official New SR Launch Date.

Use this link if you would like to sign up at Shared Reviews. I made $42 last month. Admittedly, I am one of the highest earners due to having a lot of content, and achieving a high rank. Nevertheless it is a legitimate place to write online. Almost all kinds of content are welcome.

I Make Publisher-Editor at Shared Reviews

I knew I was getting close, but I awoke to find this posted on the Shared Reviews blog this morning:

Joan Young has just earned the first Publishing Editor badge on SharedReviews. The bar was set high, and through the difficulties we’ve had over the last few months, an amazing feat. She has proven herself as our TOP author in the system based on the criteria of effort, perseverance, and achievement.

Congratulations Joan, everyone here at the company is very proud of you, and we hope you enjoy this moment for the amazing feat that it represents! We’re going to award you a special prize of $50 for this great achievement.

This is partly due to persistence, striving to make top levels during any phase of growth that the web site has experienced. Yes, I can write decent reviews, and now articles since general content has been added, but like any writing site, one needs a body of work to do well. I've tried to keep adding content regularly. Some months I mangage to write more than others.

Shared Reviews has gone through several phases in an effort to remain viable and serve its authors. They are currently working toward a complete overhaul of the site. All regular authors are waiting rather impatiently and some are choosing to participate less until these changes are made. I'm looking forward to the "new" site, whenever it is complete.

Owner, Peter Ejtel, admits that he didn't expect anyone to reach this level so "soon." The current levels of accomplishment were unveiled last September. Those of us who had been there a long time and had completed a certain number of tasks were set at levels which matched with those achievements. At that time I began as a Publisher-Rater, level 1. So I had to build to level 10, completing more challenges along the way.

In the end, the thing which I needed was more high ratings of my own writing, and the author has no control over when these will happen. But last night, someone gave me the final push I needed to go over the top.

Now, in addition to earning money from readers, I will have some administrative rights and responsibilities, and will earn $25 residual income a month in addition to earnings from readers. It's been a lot of work, but I think it's worth it!

Use this link if you would like to join Shared Reviews.

Product Review at Shared Reviews

Wrote up one more review for Shared Reviews. This brings my content count there to 558, and I'm solidly in first place for now!

This time I reviewed the Digital Concepts 51-in-1 Card Reader

Product Review at Shared Reviews

Today was a very busy day, but I managed to get one more review done for Shared Reviews, and it put me back into first place.

I reviewed the toddler book No T. Rex in the Library.

I don't anticipate having any time to write tomorrow. It's National Trails Day!

A New Month at Shared Reviews

I hope to step up my participation at Shared Reviews again this month. I'm back up to #2 in rank.

I wrote a new review today: Altec Lansing Speakers- Powerful but Awkward to Move

Product Review at Shared Reviews

I've really fallen off in my participation at Shared Reviews. Nevertheless, I worked my way back up to third place (heavily weighted to favor those with new content). I've been dragging my feet because they are working on a makeover for the mechanics of the site, and until that is complete there are no higher levels for me to attain. (It looks like there are, but the architecture to support them isn't in place.) That affects my motivation.

Even so, I got my act together and wrote a new product review this morning for Purina Active Senior 7+ Dog Chow.

And I see that addition has moved me into second! Things are looking up.

Shared Reviews

Articles at Shared Reviews

I moved one more article today to Shared Reviews from AC, and also finished writing and posting one brand new article.

Ever since the most recent changes to Shared Reviews, until April, I was in the number one spot. But I let things slip during that month. Since the rankings are heavily weighted toward adding content I fell way down because I didn't write more than a couple of items.

But now I'm back up to third! Today I added When My Mnemonic Device Failed Me, and Tips for Using All My Books Home Library Software, a follow-up to my review of the software.

Shared Reviews

Articles at Shared Reviews

I wasn't very active at Shared Reviews in April, for the first month in a long time. I worked really hard there in March and got a bit burned out.

Since Yahoo bought Associated Content, and Google has made serious changes to showing search results from "content farms," the amount I've been making from that source has been negligible. I posted quite a few articles on AC for page views only, which means that I have the right to remove them. I'm doing just that and moving them over to Shared Reviews.

So far this month, I've moved:
Reduce the Chances of Losing Food to Animals While Camping
Red Tamarillo- Fruit, but Not So Fruity
Fleas on Your Dog- Facts and Control

Shared Reviews requires unique content, so I can't put them both places. I think, in the long run that SR is the better place for me to earn.

Review of All My Books Software

One of the types of writing I do is content for Shared Reviews. They accept product reviews and also articles of almost any type. I've been writing for them for over two years, and am happier with them than any other online content site. I've got enough content, and high enough rank, that I'm making over $50 a month there.

Today, I added a review of software that will help you catalog your home library. It would also work for any small organization that wanted to track a small library of materials.

You can see my review at Use All My Books to Catalog a Home Library with Ease

Use this link to be a writer for Shared Reviews