Tag Archives: General

I need to tell you about my friend Rachael Herron’s new book, Splinters of Light. (And yes, full disclosure, I do consider her a friend, even though I’ve only met her in person once.)

Anyway–I’m digressing.

She’s got a new book coming out, Splinters of Light, and in an effort to promote it, she’s offering all kinds of incentive for pre-ordering it. I haven’t read this specific book yet, but I’ve been reading her books since her first (How to Knit a Love Song) came out in 2010 and her writing keeps getting better and better. Her most recent, Pack Up The Moon was one I loved.

Anyway, Splinters of Light. Here’s the blurb from Amazon.com:

Ten years ago, Nora Glass started writing essays about being a single mother of a six-year-old daughter. Her weekly column made her a household name, and over the years, her fans have watched Ellie grow from a toddler to a teenager.

But now Nora is facing a problem that can’t be overcome. Diagnosed with a devastating disease that will eventually take away who she is, she is scared for herself, but even more frightened about what this will mean for her sixteen-year-old daughter.

Now Nora has no choice but to let go of her hard-won image as a competent, self-assured woman, and turn to the one person who has always relied on her: her twin sister, Mariana. Nora and Mariana couldn’t be more different from one another, and they’ve always had a complicated relationship. But now the two sisters will have to summon the strength to help them all get through a future none of them could have ever imagined, while uncovering the joy and beauty that was always underneath.

So … go pre-order this. And then go tell Rachael you did so to get entered to win one of her prizes. (You get a bonus offer if you get it from her local bookstore, Diesel Books, in Oakland CA–a special touch on a book promotion that I love, even if it’s 3000 miles away from my house.)

I know I can’t wait to read this one.

Okay, raise your hands if you ..

… Wish you had more time to write.

… Wish you were a better writer.

… Wish you could get other people to read your writing.

… Wish writing came more easily.

… Wish you had more ideas.

… Wish you had time to blog about solutions to these problems.

… Wish you had solutions to these problems.

And … isn’t this what freelancers are FOR? To help out with problems like these?

If you didn’t see it, I’ve got a guest post up at The Whine Seller.

The Importance of Saying What You Mean: aka The Difference a Writer Can Make.

If you didn’t see it, I’ve got a guest post up at The Whine Seller.

The Importance of Saying What You Mean: aka The Difference a Writer Can Make.

Let’s talk about business cards, shall we?

It’s true that a lot of business is done electronically, these days, and it’s not like we pay polite visits that require calling cards anymore. (Though, let’s pause a moment and reflect on a society that used to have time to ramble from house to house on any given morning, leaving a bread crumb trail of finely printed cardboard behind to mark each stop.)

No, these days, we’re busy. Time is of the essence and some days, we’re lucky to send a text message. And besides … business cards? Isn’t there an app for that? Just a swipe on your smart phone’s screen and, poof, your information is beamed across the airwaves to a new colleague or friend? Nobody carries paper anymore!

Except, that’s not true.

Business cards can provide lots of services for the 21st century.

• They’re solid. As much as “digital” is all the rage, there’s a lot to be said for a solid, three-dimensional reminder that you, your website, your company exist. A digital connection might be handy, but it’s easier to forget, once it’s saved to the hard-drive or the cloud.
• They’re informative. All that information you want people to have is right there.
• They’re suggestive. A person’s business card can say a lot about them. Depending on the colors, graphics and fonts, you choose, I should be able to get an immediate “feel” for the kind of person you are (or that you want me to think you are). Is your card “all business” or is it more playful? Does it show your creative side? Is it colorful? Are the fonts serious or whimsical?
• They’re unique. Just like you are, nobody is going to have a card exactly like yours. Or, well, this may not be strictly true for corporate cards where they are exactly the same for everyone from the CEO downward except for the names and titles, but if there’s any personal choice involved at all, your card will be as one-of-a-kind as you are.

Now, obviously, if you’re a serious person with a serious company or agenda and you’re going about your serious business, you’re not going to pick a business card design that has clowns doing the can-can across the top. A lawyer probably won’t pick the comedy/tragedy masks as an icon (unless they happen to be a lawyer with a macabre sense of humor). A 20-year old artist is unlikely to have a card that looks anything like their investment banker father, ever.

Because this is where business cards — especially “personal” business cards — really shine. They give you a chance to follow up a really good first impression with something that reflects that sparkling personality of yours. Even better, it gives them all the information they need to get back in touch with you.

What kind of information should be on your business cards? That depends.

• Your name
• Your phone number (cell, home, or business — or any combination of the three)
• Your email

These three things are the bare minimum. If you want people to be able to contact you, you need to at least give them your name, your number, and your email.

What else? Well, this is where things start coming down to choice

• Your Title. It’s good to remind people of who and what you are. If you’re just one of dozens of people who handed them a card today, you want them to remember that you’re the person who walks dogs on pogo sticks or that writes the great ad copy. And, of course, if you’ve got a title, you should use it. (If you’ve got it, flaunt it.)
• Your Skill/Talent. Slightly different than a Title. A title is usually something formal inside a company (e.g., Founder, Marketing Director, V.P.), but if you’re self-employed or simply marketing yourself, you might not have anything so formal. But that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t be proud to put “Writer” or “Designer” … or even “Tight-Rope Walker.” Again, you want people to remember who you are when they see the card
• …Or Not. Or maybe you don’t want to limit yourself to one thing. If your card says “Writer” and you’re handing it to someone you’ve just been telling about your graphic design skills, they might be confused. It’s your call, but you may not want to label yourself.
• Your Website. If you’ve got it, you’ll probably want to people to see it. This includes company websites, relevant blogs, digital portfolios … anything online that you want people to know about.
• Your Address. Only if it’s your business address and you want people to come to your office. As a rule, you usually want to discourage near-strangers from showing up at your home
• Your Fax Number. If you still have one, feel free to provide it, but … these days? Not really that necessary
• Your Social Media ID. Depending on how you plan on using your cards, you might want to provide your Twitter or Facebook IDs, or how you can be found on LinkedIn or any other social network site of your choice. (If you’re a knitter, for example, provide your Ravelry ID.) Be prepared, though. If you spend all of your Facebook time talking about your cat, you might want to thnk twice before deliberately sending potential business associates there.
• Your tagline.. Do you have a slogan or quote you like? Something you use to promote yourself or your business? Feel free to add it to your card

Okay, so you’ve got the details set. What other considerations are there?

• Your Space. One thing people often forget — people like to write on business cards. They might jot down where they met you, or a reminder about the meeting you just set up. You might want to provide your personal number, or another contact for them to call — in which case they’ll need to use your name when they make that call. If you’ve covered every square centimeter of your card with text and graphics, there won’t be any room for notes.
• Your Personality. Like I said earlier, a business card is a great place to let some of you to shine through. Don’t go overboard, but choose colors, fonts, and graphics that hint at who you are, and what you can do for them. Would a building contractor put pink flowers on his card? Probably not, but an interior designer specializing in children’s rooms might.
• Your Details. Don’t forget — the whole point of the card is to let people find you. If they can’t read the text, you’ve wasted your opportunity. Make sure the text is big enough and/or in a clear enough font to read, that the background isn’t too busy, that the layout makes it easy to find things. Keep it simple.
• Your Details II. Also, DO make sure that the information you provide is correct. Don’t send people to old cell phone numbers or to websites that aren’t set up! If their email bounces back, you’ve lost all credibility right off the bat.



• Your Creativity. How can you make your card stand out from the pack? Can you can make it useful, say, by putting a ruler along one edge? Can you make it beautiful with a great photograph? How about something clever? My current set has my contact information on one side, but the back has Duane Michals’ quote: “Trust that little voice in your head that says, ‘Wouldn’t it be interesting if…’ and then do it.”. I know at least one person who has one of my cards stuck to her computer monitor … which means my information is right at her fingertips if she ever needs me. She might not flip it over often (or ever), but still … MY card didn’t get thrown away the day I gave it to her.

Ultimately, I think business cards can be incredibly useful — and fun.

And why not? When passing out business cards, you take your victories where you can.

So, tell me … what else do you need for a good business card?

Fall and Winter are coming, and so are some great new books! (Note that this list is in no way meant to be complete. There are LOTS of great, new books out there!)

3 Skeins or Less

Aran and Nordic Knits for Kids

Brioche Chic

Color Knitting with Confidence

Chunky Knits

Entrelac2

Faux Taxidermy Knits

First Frost

A Good Yarn

Graphic Knits

Knit It!

Knitting Fresh Brioche

Knitting Scandinavian Style

The Knowledgeable Knitter

Magpies, Homebodies and Nomads

The Manly Art of Knitting

Modern Country Knits: 30 Designs from Juniper Moon Farm

My Favorite Cardigans to Knit

Norwegian Knits with a Twist

One + One

Rustic Modern Knits

Twigg Stitch

Vintage Knits for Him and Her

Weave Knit Wear

Yarn Yarn Yarn

(And, please, if you’re thinking of buying any of these books, please consider using the links here at Knitting Scholar–I’ll get a couple dollars from Amazon.com to go toward the cost of this site. My grateful thanks go with every order!)

I can’t believe how long it’s been since I did one of these posts! But since summer is just about over and Fall and Winter are coming … now seems a good time to point out some great recent books that I haven’t had a chance to review (Note that this list is in no way meant to be complete. There are LOTS of great, new books out there!)

60 Quick Luxury Knits

Annetarsia Knits

Botanical Knits 2

Cutest Ever Baby Toys to Knit

Dutch Traditional Ganseys

Knit In New Directions

Knit Noro 1 2 3 Skeins

Knitbook

Knitters Curiosity Cabinet Vol III

Knitting Around the World

Knitting Rugs

Knitting Wizardry

Mystic Shawls

Nicky Epstein’s Knitting on Top of the World (Paperback edition)

Pretty Funny Tea Cosies

Sockupied

Up, Down All-Around Stitch Dictionary

(And, please, if you’re thinking of buying any of these books, please consider using the links here at Knitting Scholar–I’ll get a couple dollars from Amazon.com to go toward the cost of this site. My grateful thanks go with every order!)

Here’s a question I’ve been asking myself a lot lately.

If I were doing something else, what would it be?

Or, how about:

If I could do anything I wanted, what would it be?

Sometimes life imposes changes that you have to make, and this can be hard and frustrating. Heart-breaking. Terrifying.

Life changes are scary, people.

But, here’s the thing. Change can be scary, but it also opens up the door to so many possibilities you might not even be aware of.

I’ve been told by many people who lost their jobs or otherwise had unforeseen Life Changes forced upon them that, after they’ve gotten through the accompanying trauma, it was the best thing that ever happened to them. The big, scary change made them stop and take stock about what was important, what they wanted, where they wanted to be in ten years, or twenty.

There are things we all need in life. Things like food on the table, a roof overhead, clothing, transportation. Things like security for the family, healthcare. I think we can all agree that, if you can’t buy food, you’ve got some serious problems. Very urgent, serious problems, in fact, which that might not give you the luxury of a nice, find-yourself self-exploration.

But … even at subsistence-level, survival time, isn’t it better if you can find a direction that will lead you someplace happy? Sure, if a job at McDonalds is all that’s between you and starvation, head to the golden arches and don’t dawdle. You have to do what you have to do.

Just remember that there’s more to a job than the paycheck. You’ve got interactions with co-workers, chats on the phone with clients. There’s the work environment which can be inspiring or stifling. Your commute can give you time to decompress from your day–or it might drive you up the wall. The work could be stultifying or it could be the kind of creative endeavor that has you jumping out of bed in the morning.

Goals change, of course. There were a few minutes when I was six when I desperately wanted to grow up to be a ballerina–before I realized I not only had no skill, nowhere near enough flexibility, and would never grow past 5’3″. I toyed with the idea of being a doctor once, briefly, before accepting the fact that I really don’t like sick people. (Honestly, you do not want me taking care of you if you’re sick. I’ll cook, clean, and run errands, but you’re on your own in your sickbed.)

My current job, even … I sort of fell into it a couple decades ago and have been there ever since. In some ways, that sounds dreadful–it was never a choice, never a decision, but in many ways it’s been a blessing. The small company I work for ended up creating a job position perfectly designed just for me and my skills. It’s nice. It’s comfortable.

But sometimes you have to make a change.

So–what kind of job would you pick, if you could pick anything? What measuring stick would you use to determine what makes one choice better than another?

And, if you’ve got a dream job out there … why haven’t you taken it yet?