Category: Social Media platform

Pinterest, Pinterest for writers, Social Media platform, storyboards, using social media, vision boards

Back to the Future with Pinterest

Mona Alvarado Frazier

Are we going back to the future with Pinterest? 


It was in the early 2000’s when I first heard of vision boards and the ‘law of attraction.’ This was popularized in The Secret and then on Oprah.  A vision board is a visual representation of things you want to have, be or do in your life. People assembled photos, torn magazine pictures, drawings, and wrote inspirational words that represented their wishes or intentions. By selecting, pasting, and posting the vision board the creator would charge their emotions with feelings of passion and begin to manifest those things into their life. At least that was the theory behind it. 

I must confess, I created two vision boards. One on journal pages in 2004 and another on my bulletin board in 2008 when I decided to stop bullshitting around and write. My laptop sits on the desk beneath the board. 

This is what you’d see on my bulletin board:

An orange sticker: “I am a Writer” and a green one “Keep Going.”
A fortune cookie reading: “Your talents will be suitably recognized and rewarded.”
The Costa Rican Blue Morpho Butterfly. To the Costa Ricans it represents peace and love.

There are also postcards from Barcelona, depicting the distinctive architecture of  Guadi, the Manhattan skyline, Napa vineyards, the arch of Los Cabos, and a rainbow of hot air balloons in flight. Photos of my 19 year old as a 6 year old, my daughter at her prom, and an article on my oldest for a DJ magazine are also up there. 



A museum brochure with the blue figure of a woman titled “Puberty,” by Nicaraguan painter Omar d’ Leon graces the board along with a blue bodied mermaid with an iridescent green tail and cascading black wavy hair. 



Several index cards with my 2012 intention ‘Create,’ is smack in the middle with various cards titled “What does the character think, feel, need, discover, fear, presume? Show it.” And “Scene” cards on the four corners. 


To round out the pinned menagerie are scripture cards: “I can do all things…(Phil.4:13),” “Cast all your anxieties…(1 Peter 5:7),” and “Trust in the Lord with all your heart…(Proverbs 3:5-6). 


There are many things you can decipher from my board besides a love of the color blue.  


But back to the original question: Are we going back to the future with Pinterest?


For those who don’t know what I’m talking about, Pinterest launched in 2010 and has recently rocket boosted and propelled itself into the social media scene.In December 2011 it rose into the realm of the top 10 social networks with 11 million visits per week. This article describes why it will be the leading social network. 


Users create theme based boards with images they ‘pin’ to their virtual board. For example, the fashionistas create ‘Spring 12’ boards or ‘Trending Accessories,” boards. 

Yes, the board lover that I am dipped a toe into Pinterest. My boards center around my love of books, writing, arts, and travel. They provide a way to have beautiful and inspirational photos all in one place. 

Besides the esoteric, the boards are becoming a way to track one’s writing: i.e. Storyboards. They can give a visual about your work in progress, brand your author name, and illustrate who you are through the things you love. And you’re able to see other gorgeous boards and ‘repin’ their photos on to your own. 

So yes, it is a ‘back to the future’ for vision boards. And that is not a bad thing. Saves paper and space. 
Have you joined Pinterest yet? If so share your link to your board if you’re so inclined. You can see mine by following the red link at the top.
2011 Best of Writing, E-books, Elements of Style, Future of Reading, Social Media platform, Strunk and White, Writing

2011 Best of Writing Articles and a Rap on Writing

Mona Alvarado Frazier

The year is coming to a close and with it another chapter in the book of my writing life. The generosity of writer’s, agents, and publisher’s who blog have helped me shorten my learning curve and fuel my desire to continue writing into 2012.
  
To help prepare one in the endeavor of becoming a writer I’ve done a little research on the best articles on writing and publishing. In the writing world the ongoing debate of e-books versus traditional publishing, the future of reading, and building social media platforms seemed to dominate the writer’s landscape. With all of that information it’s easy to get overwhelmed. 


To quickly get a ‘lay of the land’ here are two links to the best of 2011 articles on writing. And for those who need tough love and ongoing assistance follow The Evil Editor. This site focuses on queries, synopses, and the beginning pages of a story. If you are a non-techie but want to learn and improve in social media, podcasting, and other tech advice for authors, go to Author Media.


Writer’s Digest assembled The 18 Most Popular Articles on Writing. They culled through 1,300 articles and found the most widely read articles on fiction and non-fiction writing tips, agenting, publishing, and writing query letters.


From Jane Friedman we have the 12 Must Read Articles of 2011.


For those who are visual and auditory learners, this post ends with a refresher on Strunk and White’s Elements of Style. In rap. (Turn off the juke box at the bottom unless you want a real music experience).

I hope you feel prepared to march forward and give your computer chair a twirl, hover your fingers over the keyboard, and begin writing on January 1, 2012. (Even if it’s at 11:00 p.m.).