Interview With Camy Tang...

FAITH + PASSION FOR WRITING = CAMY TANG...

Camy Tang enjoys blogging and sharing her faith, and it shows in both her blog, CAMY'S LOFT and in her work at WRITER...INTERRUPTED. Drawing heavily on her Asian American culture, Camy's first book, "Sushi for One" was released in September. The book is the first in her "Sushi Series", which she says falls in the 'Christian chick lit' genre.

"Nosy relatives, sibling rivalry, and parental angst are the same whatever your ethnic background, and I hope my stories give people a fun taste of Asian American culture." she says.

Here are a few of her thoughts on the subject of blogging:

The Writing Geek: What is the best part of blogging for you?

Camy Tang: Well, I like to talk! LOL Seriously, I enjoy the comments. I like theinteraction with my blog readers and hearing what they have to say.It's also fun to have somewhere to post those weird, "Have you evernoticed ...?" kind of things I see in everyday life.

TWG: If you had the chance to go back in time a year, what would you do differently/the same with your blog?

CT: This is something I'm still working on--I would make more of an effort to be consistent with my Sunday prayer post. I feel like that's one of the most important posts of the week for me, because it lets me pray for friends, family, and my blog readers.

TWG: What is the best piece of advice you can offer a blogger?

CT: This is something I got from Exploring Adoption blogger Laura Christianson (http://adoptionblogs.typepad.com/). I take one day a week and do all my blog posts for the week that afternoon. I can usually write all my blog posts in an hour or two, which is a more efficient use of my time.

I have to do this because I have several blogs--Camy's Loft, where I post 5 or 6 days a week, Story Sensei, where I post 3 times a week, Writer Interrupted, where I post 2 or 3 times a month, Girls God and the Good Life blog and Faithchicks blog, where I post twice a month, and The Seekers, where I post once a month.

As you can tell, I love blogging! But if I didn't streamline my time writing blogs, I'd never have time to do anything else.

During the week, I write down things I think I'll blog about for the following week, and when I sit down to write all my blog posts, I have a list of topics to blog about.

TWG: What are your top three favorite blogs?

CT: I have WAY too many blogs to pick just three. Sorry.

TWG: You've been elected president of the blogosphere. What is your first move?

CT: I wish there was a central database of ALL the blogs out there, labeled with the categories they fall under. There are some websites that do this, but unless the web gets completely hijacked by somebody, I doubt there would be one central place to list everybody.

TWG: What is/are your predictions for blogging over the next ten years?

CT: I think bloggers are getting smarter and starting to focus their blogs more. Rather than somebody's random weblog journal, blogs are now becoming targeted toward specific audiences, or with specific themes, or with unique tones/voices that set different blogs apart. I think the next few years will see hundreds of very targeted blogs becoming popular, just like a New York Times Bestseller list, but for blogs instead of books.

My thanks to Camy for taking the time to respond to the interview. Here's to hoping your blog lands at the top of that bestseller list!

SMALL BUSINESS GRANTS FOR WOMEN...

In my last post, I mentioned that I was going to make an attempt at selling an article or three in the Helium.com 'Marketplace'. Yesterday, I posted my first article for that attempt, "A Guide to Small Business Grants for Women". The article debuted at #1 of 2 articles, so we'll see what happens with it.

In the meantime, I would strongly urge any women freelance writers out there to check it out. Freelance writing certainly falls under the category of small business, and there are a number of ways that women writers can take advantage of various grant, loan and other information programs offered by the federal government, state governments and even private organizations.

Guys, don't feel left out. As I continue to grow this blog, I intend on exploring the many options for all segments of the population. The fact is that there is literally millions of dollars in grants waiting to be had by 'starving artists', including us writers. If you want to find out more, you'll just have to stay tuned!

THE BLOGGER'S 411...

As we speak, I am currently hard at work finishing up a new e-book I plan on offering right here at The Writing Geek. It's called "The Blogger's Handbook: Essays & Articles on the Art of Blogging", and should be available sometime around the end of October/beginning of November. "The Blogger's Handbook" will be an extensive guide to the world of blogging, with articles covering topics from getting started to promoting your blog and yes, even blogging for cash.

The e-book will be available for purchase for just $4.95, but I am also offering you a way to get your copy free of charge. To get your free copy, simply include a brief mention of The Writing Geek, with a link, in your blog. When your blurb is up, just let me know and include your email address with notification. When the e-book is released, I will send you a completely free copy, right to your email inbox. Easy enough? If you have any questions, feel free to drop me a line at wvfreelancer@gmail.com

That's going to do it for this post. I have a TON of writing to do, as well as some grocery shopping to do while my girlfriend is at work. On top of that, my engine light came on in the truck the other day. I think I need to get an oil change sometime in the near future.

Until next time...