contributor weekly (week 1)

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Post on 10-Mar-2016

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A weekly newsletter for contributors, keeping you up-to-date on the latest trends and tips for writing, publishing, and sharing your contributions.

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Because Contributors Need Advice, TooWe work with contributors and contribute frequently ourselves. We are always looking for tips to help us become more thoughtful and technically sound writers. This is what weve learned this week.Articles: Read to make yourself a better contributor.When sharing your articles, take this advice from Kevin Purdy first anduse Pocket to avoid alienating your co-workers.Bonus: Easily organize folders of articles that inspire you byusing the Pocket Chrome extension.When you run out of article ideas, it can be creative hell.In this article, Ian Humphreys describes six steps to escaping that purgatory.

You should have your Google Authorship set up. If youre not sure why (or how),read this definitive guideby Rick DeJarnette.Bonus:Once youre convinced, you can go straight to the source to learnhow to set it up.Transform your online connections into offline conversations by following thesegreat tipsby Erica Nicole.Trending:Pay attentionto what people are discussing to inspire new article ideas.Twitter has made a big move against spambots byofficially killing the auto follow. Contributors can comment on the effects this has on the companies that attempt to game the system.Bonus: If youre not sure how to spot a bot,read this.Googlemissed its Q2 revenue projections, and many are pointing to the decline of CPC (cost-per-click) ad revenue. Contributors should chime in about the future of search advertising.Netflixs original series, House of Cards,is nominated for a few Emmys. We would love a contributors take on what this means for the TV industry as a whole.A new surgical knife,the iKnife, can detect cancerous tissue in real time. Contributors with health expertise should elaborate on the implications of this new technology.Resources:Use these tools to improve contributing efficiency.Twtrlandis a free service that analyzes your engagement on Twitter, your top tweets, and the demographics of your followers.Fuel conversation around your articles by participating in relevant Twitter chats. Find a chat usingthis schedule, and search the chats hashtag at the scheduled time usingTwubs.TryBrandYourself, a service that helps you control the search results for your own name to make sure your column shows up before your high school photos.Standout contribution:Learnfrom your fellow contributors.Adam Tanners article about aninfamous mafia hitman rebuilding his identityis a standout because he utilizedone of our tips from last weekon using your contributor status to interview people. He related the niche topic to the masses at the end, which isnt always easy to do. Bravo, Adam.Voices: 3 Questions for Josh Moss, Editor at Upstart Business Journal1. What makes a good contributor?A good contributor is one who can write clearly and with some style. He or she is open to suggestions and edits, and the contributor isnt too rigid in how he views his writing. And, perhaps most importantly, he has an eye for telling a story.

2. What is your biggest pet peeve when it comes to contributions?My biggest pet peeve is when a contributor goes out of his way to blatantly pitch his own business.3. What type of content do you value most?The best content contains honest and compelling stories, those where an entrepreneur looks deep into himself or his business and reveals a truth. This can have the biggest impact on others who want to follow suit.Grammar:Improveyour technical side to win editors hearts.2 Words You're Probably Misusing1. Fewer vs. LessUse "fewer" when you're referring to things you can count (e.g., people), rather than things measured by mass.Fewerthan two hundred people showed up for the concert.I should drinklesscoffee.2. Further vs. Farther"Farther" should be used in instances referring to physical distance. You can remember that because the word "far" is in "farther."Chipotle isfartherfrom the office than I would like.I would like to explore the matterfurther.It's fine to use either further or farther in cases where it's ambiguous whether you're referring to physical distance (e.g.,Mary is farther along in her book...).Contributor Weekly byInfluence & Co.would love yourfeedback here.