CONTRIBUTING WRITERS WINDOW ON BOOMERPDX

Contributing writers on this blog start in comments.

I invite people to leave comments.

If you have an opinion on a post, leave a comment.

When you have more feelings than a comment can hold, think about being a contributing writer.

Here’s the deal:

Contributing writers should know the ‘Iceberg Theory’ of writing.

“If a writer of prose knows enough of what he is writing about, he may omit things that he knows and the reader, if the writer is writing truly enough, will have a feeling of those things as strongly as though the writer had stated them.”

For instance, a slow gangrene death might be hidden in a story about mountain snow.

An abortion discussion might be hidden in hills like white elephants.

A blog post might be about body image, but it’s also about illness.

Or it might be about perseverance masquerading as a thank you note.

The Audience For Contributing Writers

Standard blog writing advice is, “Focus on one reader.”

Another takes this track: “If you can’t find a good blog post to read, then you need to write one.”

The post with the most hits is a good audience measure.

One of the most intriguing, if least openly discussed, mysteries in art has been resolved.

Michelangelo’s David is meant to be a representation in marble of the perfect male form. So why did his creator not make him – how would one say – a little better endowed?

Speaking for all Davids on earth, stop staring at the junk.

It’s a sculpture in marble. That ought to be enough. Stone. Rock. The guy has better gear than any other named statue.

Is there a statue of Joe? Frank? Jimmy?

There’s a statue of Rocky in Philadelphia wearing shorts and no one questions the Italian Stallion.

David gets all the grief.

Look, he was spooked. He had a lot of pressure in the moment.

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The second ‘Most Read Post’ cleans up in gym.

‘NEW NAKED GYM GUY BOUNDARIES UPDATE, 2022’ is about manners and how to navigate new environments.

Never look at a naked gym guy’s tattoo.

Chances are good it comes with a history, lots of history. Do you want to spend the next half hour listening to it? But, since you asked, you’re obligated to stand around while a naked guy maps it all out.

And they explain with lots of gestures swinging around. Take a step back.

One guy had his entire life tattooed all over after he got out of prison. Said he did it to balance things out, then went into detail about why he was in prison to begin with.

He even had media references to check. To check or not to check?

For a quick review, the top two posts for readers on boomerpdx deal with male nudity.

Make of that what you will.

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Filling out the podium for bronze is a post about drugs:

BOOK REVIEW: BLACK TAR HEROIN, SAM QUINONES, AND DREAMLAND

The movie Traffic isn’t about black tar heroin.

It’s heroin, though, and shows a group of affluent young people dealing with a friend’s drug overdose.

They drop him on the sidewalk outside an Emergency Room and drive away.

As if to say, “Why let a downer ruin the party.”

Early death comes for a reason: disease, accident, violent crime.

And heroin.

The difference is a black tar heroin overdose crosses the line.

It’s an accident. A disease. It’s a crime.

Black tar heroin is the group of friends and more than a few are dropping off.

This post is about drug trafficking, but more about education.

I believe every post is about education, but since this isn’t a teacher blog, I use that Iceberg Theory to make it fit.

BoomerPdx Reader Origins For Contributing Writers

If you’ve written and published before, you know about disappointment.

It comes with the territory.

Most people get disappointed and act like they don’t care. But they stop doing the thing that disappointed them.

When is the best time to quit blogging? After one post is ignored?

Quit after ten posts are ignored? One hundred? One thousand? Two thousand?

Since I’m coming up on three thousand posts, that’s my answer.

Why keep going?

Besides Hemingway’s Iceberg Theory, I’m also a fan of the Michael Jordan Theory:

“You miss every shot you don’t take.”

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This web site has been seen in every nation on earth, every state in America.

Which means it’s been clicked on everywhere.

Getting clicked shows reader potential, so does the number of sessions from a particular place.

The kicker, at least or me, is the average time someone spends here. Longer times mean engagement.

I’m thrilled to say Los Angeles and Seattle readers are picking up. Not so thrilled that Portland lags behind, but that’s the story.

If you contribute a post to boomerpdx you will have a link in the address bar to copy and paste to others.

If you’re new to this, keep in mind that your friends will still be your friends if they ignore your post.

Your hometown is still your hometown if you post a link on Facebook and no one clicks.

That’s the beauty of the blog challenge: How much can you put out with confidence of finding readers?

One day it’s ten readers, the next it’s 100. Everyone, every reader matters, when they click here.

Keep that in mind while you compose.

Who are you writing for?

Do they know you’re writing for them?

Check your iceberg.