When I started my first blog in late 2005, I was a loner in the blogosphere. Back then, I was in the sixth grade, had a lowly dial-up connection (“screech screech neenok-neenok, blippity bloppity — you are now connected to the Internet”, in case you’ve already forgotten), and didn’t know much about blog promotion. All I did was pour my thoughts into my little corner of the Interwebs and hope people would take notice (which they didn’t, LOL).

After creating countless blogs in WordPress.com, Blogger, i.ph, and a bunch of other blog hosts, I eventually stopped writing online when my parents decided to cut off our telephone subscription (along with our Internet connection). However, when in the summer of 2008 we finally got an Internet connection again, I decided to restart my blogging life. This time, with the explosion of such tools as Twitter, Facebook, Plurk and other social networking sites, it didn’t take me very long to connect with other bloggers from across the country and across the world.

I stumbled across an online community of Filipino bloggers—aptly called the Pinoy Blogosphere—and quickly subscribed to its mailing list. I found it an easy way to seek advise and help from other Pinoys who were much more experienced in blogging than me. Much more than that, many members of PBS became my online friends. We networked and socialized online (if spending hours on end in front of a computer screen can be called socialization).

This kind of camaraderie is also being shared among members of other blogging networks. Take, for example, the Mindanao Bloggers, who I would argue are the most voracious bloggers in the country. They organized WordCamp Philippines 2008, the first ever WordCamp in Southeast Asia, and they’re getting ready to organize WordCamp Pinas 2009. Mindanao Bloggers also has several “satellite communities”—groups of bloggers in different cities who are active in the blogosphere and enjoy one another’s company IRL too. Off the top of my head, I can name a few satellite communities of MB: General Santos (the General of the generals is Avel Manansala of Bariles Republic), Davao (with Blogie Robillo leading the pack) and Cagayan de Oro (led by Chiq Montes, WordPress theme designer).

Which brings me to the main point of this blog post: it would be great if my fellow Butuanons got together and created an online community of sorts of our own. It would be, as Kuya Blogie put it, an additional satellite community of Mindanao Bloggers. We could offer help, advise and support to one another, both on- and offline. We could organize meetups (Margie’s Kitchen! Pan de Pugon! True Brew!) so we can get together IRL. And who knows, the Mindanao Blogging Summit, iBlog, or even WordCamp, might one day grace the Timber City of the South.

So, here’s the deal: if you are or know a Butuanon blogger, please get in touch with me through my contact page. Include your blog’s URL and links to your accounts on social media sites. For easy sorting, please make the first line of your message “BUTUANON BLOGGER”. Let’s begin networking online—add me up on Twitter, Plurk, Multiply, LinkedIn and FriendFeed. I’m also on Facebook—just search for Dean Lozarie, and should you decide to add me up, please include a personal message indicating that you are a Butuanon blogger and would like to friend up.

Meanwhile, I will be spending much of my Internet time looking up and hunting down my fellow Butuanon bloggers. Wish me luck!

[Photo credits: Anne Jimenez on Flickr]

The 2008 Philippine Blog Awards season is in full swing, and I’m here to make my voice heard. I’ve chosen to cast my vote for the Bloggers’ Choice Award, just because it’s fun. (The prospect of owning an N82 doesn’t hurt, either.)

The list of nominees for the award is here. It’s a lengthy list, and I’m sure all those who were nominated deserved it. Still, there can only be one victor, and my choice (and hopefully yours, too) is Filipino Voices.

A collaborative opinion blog written by such legendary personalities as the Jester-in-Exile, warrior lawyer Butch Dado, newspaper columnist Manuel Buencamino, and the mysterious Nick of Tingog.com fame, Filipino Voices is truly the clear, loud voice of the Filipino, and a living testament to the fact that bloggers can compete with, and even defeat, the Jurassic giants of traditional media. Their unbiased and fearless opinion strengthens my trust in the Philippines, and proves that democracy still does abound in the Pearl of the Orient.

On behalf of the people behind the PBA, I’d also like to thank this year’s sponsors for making the event possible:

SPONSORS:

• Level Up! Games
• Nokia
• Blog Bank
• Smart Communications
• Josiah’s Catering
• Rsun Technology Store
• Yahoo
• XFM 92.3
• Buddy Gancencia Reality TV
• Ultravision Photo and Video
• Clique Booth
• Aloha Board Sports
• Sheero Media Solutions
• YourPinoyBroker.com
• Belo Medical Group
• Inquirer.Net
• Toshiba
• ROAM Magazine
• PLDT
• Red Box
• Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf
• 2go
• Havaianas
• PLDT
• California Pizza Kitchen

Daniel Scocco, the genius behind the Daily network (Daily Blog Tips, Daily Writing Tips, and Daily Bits) has concocted a brilliant plan: an international bloggers network.

Daniel says that a bunch of bloggers had thought about a bloggers union a few years back, but in a totally different way: they were concerned about healthcare, insurance, etc.—you know, like writers or labor unions. Of course, it would be difficult to form, much more manage, such a union which is heavily Web-based.

Scocco is thinking of a totally different bloggers union—one that would protect its members from such problems as content-scraping, online scams, and threats to their safety (and even their life) because of what they blog about. Moreover, Scocco suggests that the union could have a fund from bloggers’ contributions, and that this fund could be used to help bloggers who are facing legal issues (related to their blogging, or what they’ved blogged about, I presume). “Ideally, we would have some attorneys on board,” Daniel writes, “counseling the members on what action to take on the different situations.”

Scocco goes on to explain how a massive amount of bloggers—he puts the population of the hypothetical group at ~2,000—could become a huge impact. He gives the example of a blogger who has been scammed by an online company. That blogger would report the incident to the union, and the group, after verifying the validity of the problem, would then ask its members to write blog posts revealing the scamming company’s deeds. That’s around 2,000 posts condemning a company (which could have a healthy reputation!). That’s a lot of influence.

I love this prospect, and I hope it comes to fruition. I’ve contacted Daniel to show my support for the initiative, and I’m inviting you to do the same. You can read the article here, and if you wish to be included in the mailing list for the prospective organization, you can tell Daniel.

(Finally, a blog post. I was getting uncomfortable with the eerie silence of the site. I’m cooking up a quite lengthy post, and with any luck, it’ll go live on the site within the week. School has started, of course, and while I had previously planned on writing about the re-opening of classes, I forewent with it. Stay tuned, and thank you for reading the blog!)

I don’t know if you guys have heard of IndieBloggers. It’s a blog run by Anastacia Campbell (who also has a photoblog) where creative writers can submit their works—fictional or otherwise—and get them published, offering free visibility for you and your blog (if you have one).

I first sent a submission to IB in the last week of March 2008, and my work, “The Novelist Path“, was published on March 31. I think I received a little traffic from that, and it was thrilling to have my post read by many, many people. It was a great way to receive visibility for both me and my blog.

I’ve submitted two or three more works to IB, and Stacy has decided to publish one of my submissions, “Vanity Fair“. It’s gone live on the IB site, and that fact makes my eyes water with joy.

In any case, please visit the IndieBloggers blog. Here’s my post’s permalink. Oh, and the original post! I’m also encouraging you to submit your work to IndieBloggers.

More power to Stacy Campbell, and I’m loving her IndieBloggers blog.

I was checking my measly Technorati rank today and found out that Ratified.org had listed my blog in Batch Nine of their ratified list. I sadly have a 626 ratified rank, but I am confident that I will rise through the ranks. Sooner or later.

If you haven’t been ratified yet, submit your blog for ratification now! Ratified.org is a project by Andrew Dela Serna which combines Technorati, Alexa, FeedBurner, and Google stats, takes all of those factors into consideration, and then coughs up a Ratified Rank for you. Only Filipino bloggers are eligible for ratification, although the website says that international versions of the project are coming soon. In addition, your blog must be indexed on Technorati. And, yes, it’s free.

If you are eligible for ratification and have not submitted your blog yet, do so now at http://www.ratified.org/contact.

Recently, I wrote a short post about using numerals in blog posts properly. Today, I decided to write a related post showing you how to use abbreviations properly in not only your blog posts, but all forms of writing (such as articles and even letters). These rules are taken from page 31 of the book “Basic Journalism” by Eufemia C. Estrada and Rosario P. Nem Singh, a must-have book for every campus journalist like me. The rules after the jump.

Continue Reading »

Being a campus journalist, I have many rules to follow in writing. Today, I want to focus on one particular rule: using numerals in blog posts. I’ll keep this entry short, but I hope you’ll be able to follow these rules in your write-ups. These are the rules on using numerals, as written in the book “Basic Journalism” by Eufemia C. Estrada and Rosario P. Nem Singh. The book is regarded as a must-have in every campus journalist’s library, or at least in every school publication office in the country.

Spelling out numbers

Numbers up to ten must be spelled out. Don’t say “Julia has 8 cell phones”, but instead “Julia has eight cell phones.” Numbers 11 and above must be written as numerals. It is improper to write “He was guarded by twenty-seven body guards”. The correct form of that sentence would be “He was guarded by 27 body guards.” However, “Basic Journalism” says:

Figures are more readily comprehended  by the reader in scientific, technical and tabular matter but for special reasons, numerals may be spelled out.

Another rule is to spell out numbers at the start of the sentence, regardless of the number of digits. However, both numerals and spelled-out figures are acceptable in headlines. In newspaper layout, journalists decide what to use depending on how the headline would look and how long it would be. Today’s headline on the Philippine Daily Inquirer, “9 shot dead in the head”, is an example.

Statistics

“Basic Journalism” advises to use figures for ages, prices, scores, etc. Of course, figures should also be used for numbers above ten.

Roman numerals

Roman numerals should be used for wars, sequences, and names of popes and royalty. “Pope John Paul II,” “World War II”, “Henry VIII”.

For sports

Finally, write: “200-meter dash; with a score of 195-123.”

I hope this post helps my fellow bloggers out there!