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hyaciiintho · 4 years

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Munday Positivity

Repost, don’t reblog!

For some Munday cheer, tag your FIRST and LASTEST mutual and say why you followed them, something you appreciate about them, etc.

❀ || Can I cheat and use all three of my blogs ?? Because I’ve archived for organizational purposes three times... so here we go ♡ Hope this isn’t too long haha~

FIRST:

1) @nublaris ♡ The very first Sheik I have ever interacted with, even back when my muse was a sideblog (yeah, I started off as a sideblog) !! I think honestly they were one of the very big reasons why I wanted to make a seperate solo blog, because our very first interaction was just so good and I was so into it that I went yeah I could definitely dedicate a huge chunk of my efforts into running this blog... so I did ´͈ ᵕ `͈ ♡ They haven’t been active since 2015, which hurts my heart and soul because they were such a wonderful Sheik and a friendly person from what I can remember, so it really sucks to see a treasure go like that. Still, they’re always always always gonna be in my memory as nothing but a fond experience and encounter !!

2) Technically @/twilightiisms but Impy added her Twi to her multimuse so @ironbloodcd ♡ Impy saw I archived and immediately hopped into my followers list, though to be fair, so did a good chunk of the OG crew too haha~ She just happened to be the first (◡‿◡✿) All in all, I always gush about Impy because she’s been one of the long last friendships I’ve had on here (and tbh she’s been more like family for like two years or more now). We even almost moved in together, but Canada said no haha~ But if that doesn’t tell you how much I trust her, then I don’t know what will. Years of writing with her and her stunning collection of muses never get old (๑′ᴗ‵๑) ♥

3) @/badgersrphub aka @quarterheroes ♡ Badger and her boys-- what haven’t I said about them yet ?? They’re wonderful and amazing (both mun and muses~) and writing with her muses has been an absolute pleasure! She has a collection of sideblog muses that are to die for, so even if you’re not a Zelda blog following me (I see y’all) there’s a still a flavor for all to choose from ٩(๑•◡-๑)۶❤ She’s super friendly and a very talented writer !!

LAST:

1) Technically @/cxrrupticn but really that’s @condomglitter ♡ I met Lolly through Impy in the midst of one of our first interactions ever, and let me just say how confused and surprised I was that anyone would leap at the chance to follow me just because they read an interaction I was in haha~ I never thought anyone read anything I wrote, but there Lolly was, showing her excitement for a thread! I’m super glad she did, because then I got the chance to meet her lovely OC’s and see her gorgeous art as well! On top of that, she’s also got one hell of an eye for design and a knack for writing ✿

2) @herxina ♡ I met Rin IRL at a con before she made her lovely Linkel blog !! She’s a huge sweetheart with a great passion for her muse, and truly, she’s made Linny her very own in every way, shape, and form. I mean-- just look at this precious cutie !! It goes without saying after showing off that, her art is wonderful and adorable !! She’s a talented writer and artist, and even though she’s not on often, her and Lin both have a special place in mine and in Link’s hearts (◡‿◡✿)

3) @zoragrace ♡ I don’t know Moon personally, but I have seen them around before! We’ve only just become mutuals recently and so far, I’m really really digging their gorgeous aesthetic for their Mipha !! Everything is so pretty, and their writing is also very pleasing to read through ٩(๑ơ u ơ)۶♡ I hope to see more from them and their love for Mipha!

Tagged by: @lighthearth (Thank you~ (ू′ u ‵ ू) ) Tagging: Everyone I mentioned already, @zestirix, @pinktothepast, @dolcetters, and @the-owlchemist -- and anyone else who’d like to do it, just say I tagged ya~!!

#✿• ᴬ ʷᵉᵃᵛᵉʳ ᵒᶠ ᵗᵃˡᵉˢ; ᴾᵃⁱⁿᵗᵉʳ ᵒᶠ ˢᵗᵃʳˢ (M U N S P E A K S)#✿• ˢᵖʳᵉᵃᵈ ᵗʰᵉ ᴸᵒᵛᵉ (P O S I T I V I T Y)#long post;#just gonna give it a smol tag just in case c': It's not as long as some threads I've done but... idk it could annoy people haha~#But this took me down memory lane while I searched through old blogs wowie ♡#✿• ʸᵒᵘ ᵖˡᵃʸᵉᵈ ᵗʰᵉ ˢᵒⁿᵍ ᵒᶠ ᵀⁱᵐᵉ! (Q U E U E)

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merigreenleaf · 4 years

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Unexpected Inspiration Series Masterpost: About the Secondary Dorks

The Unexpected Inspiration series is lighthearted, lgbt+ high fantasy set in a contemporary world. If you're into magic, found family, and characters who like to cause mischief, I got you covered! The short stories are all available to read and you can learn more about the series here and about the main characters here.

Under the read more is information about each of these secondary characters.

Name: Ametrine Travellarri Age: 12 Gender: nonbinary Birthplace: Galanvoth Occupation: kid Magic: none

Ametrine is a shy and quiet runaway from the neighboring country of Galanvoth. He rarely talks about his past, but from what the others have pieced together, his family replaced him. Galanvoth is a place where passing on a trade is more important than anything else, and it isn't uncommon for a firstborn to be demoted or kicked out of their family entirely if they're deemed not good enough. Ametrine was able to get away and made it to the safety of Concordia's capital city, where he was fostered with Sapphire and her carnival troupe. He meets Dray not long after this. Dray was also a runaway from Galanvoth and takes Ametrine under their wing, introducing him to their friends who immediately treat Ametrine as though he was part of their family. When he's asked if he wants to be adopted, he doesn't really understand why they would want him when his own parents didn't. He agrees without much hesitation, though, because the way he sees it, five people who love him unconditionally is a much better family than two traditional parents who didn't. For a while there's a fear in the back of his mind that he won't be good enough for them, but gradually this starts to fade. (Character tag- UI POV: Ametrine / moodboard / Pinterest board)

Name: Skia (he has no idea what his name is, so Ametrine helped him pick this one) Age: 14 (not that he remembers this) Gender: genderqueer Birthplace: ? (he has no clue) Occupation: haunting people Magic: he's a ghost, he does ghost things

Skia is a mystery, even to himself. He's dead, that much is obvious, but he no longer has any memory of who he was as a human or how he could have died. He's been drifting aimlessly around both the real world and what Etri calls "the place of shadow" for an unknown amount of time, up until Camille summons him mostly by accident. She was aiming for a helpful shadow elemental who could possibly tell her where Rosalie went. What she gets is the ghost of a mischievous, cheeky teenager who she can't seem to banish. Fortunately for her, Skia soon grows bored with her company and decides to haunt Ametrine instead. Ametrine is frightened at first-- it's not every day that you discover a ghost followed you home. But when the fridge magnets and sloppily handwritten notes start to spell out an equal mix of kind words and stupid jokes that make him laugh, he realizes the ghost must be another kid who's also lonely. The longer Skia hangs around Ametrine, the more he's able to retain a memory. He’s never able to remember much about his past, but because of Ametrine, he’s able to gain a present and a future. I'd say you’d never see Ametrine without Skia, but no one can see Skia. (Character Tag- UI POV: Skia / Pinterest board)

Name: Feren Cole Age: 19 Gender/sexuality: male (cis), bisexual Birthplace: Concordia Occupation: barista (when he can be bothered to show up) Magic: none

Feren is a layabout who loves styling himself into a tragic victim. As one of the few unmagical Artisans, he has always felt like he deserved more than life gave him, despite having everything handed to him and multiple opportunities available at every turn. He was once Adair and Nina’s sentinel-intended, but the second things got slightly dangerous, he decided it was too difficult and he wasn't good enough for the role. He’s currently taking graduate classes on the history of magic, with no real career goal in mind. This was simply the easiest choice at the time and he has never had work to be good at scholarly pursuits. It's unfortunate, but also entirely on point for him, that he puts as much real effort into this as he does working at his girlfriend’s restaurant as a barista and delivery boy. It's a one in three chance he'll be bothered to show up on time and he lives there. If an easy road to recognition and leisure presents itself, he’s going to jump on it with no questions asked. He’s always seeking to improve his lot in life with the minimum amount of effort on his part. (Character Tag- UI POV: Feren / Moodboard / Pinterest board)

Name: Sapphire Age: never ask a lady her age (she looks to be in her early-mid 30s) Gender/sexuality: female (cis), panromantic greysexual Birthplace: Concordia Occupation: leader of a carnival troupe Magic: none (technically. She can see/sense magic, though)

Sapphire is Etri's former mentor and thieving partner, as well as one of his closest friends. She’s currently the leader of the carnival troupe in Silveridge, the capital city of Concordia, and coordinates the city's performers. This is about as effective as herding cats. When Sapphire isn't sorting out who's performing at which venue and breaking up arguments about costumes, she can be found in her other organizational role with the troupe. Many of the performers are also thieves who return stolen art back to the artists who created it. It's up to Sapphire to keep track of what each reverse-thief is doing so that they don't cross paths or get caught. Sapphire excels at this administrative role, being calm, competent, and experienced, while at the same time her strong desire to take care of the people she considers family makes them intensely loyal. Keeping her carnies safe always comes before anything else and there's nothing her troupe wouldn't do for her in return. (Character tag- UI POV: Sapphire / moodboard / Pinterest board)

Name: Talan Age: 3. It's complicated. Gender/sexuality: male (cis), demi/grey-romantic pan Birthplace: Montglace Occupation: errand boy Magic: none

Talan is equal parts cheerful and peculiar, with almost a lethal case of curiosity. He’s something of a magpie who collects various bits of everything in a personal quest to discover its purpose. He has a tenuous grasp on the concept of possessions and tends to think of anything that isn’t currently being worn or carried or nailed down as fair game. He’s Dray’s boyfriend, at least for a little while, and Dray’s malfunctioning moral compass hasn’t exactly been the best influence in Talan’s life. Relatively new to Concordia in particular and civilization in general, Talan struggles with things like laws, idioms, and telling people apart. He’s determined to learn these things, though, and wants more than anything to fit in and be helpful. (Moodboard / Pinterest board)

Name: Nina Pare Age: 20 Gender/sexuality: female (cis), bi? hetero? (she’s only dated guys and I don’t know her well enough yet to guess which it is) Birthplace: Concordia Occupation: chef, cafe owner Magic: Savorweaving (culinary)

Nina is a chef with culinary magic who owns her own cafe. As much of an honor as it was to have it passed to her when the previous owner retired, she'll be the first to admit that it probably wasn't the best time for it. This isn't to say that she's not a capable chef and businesswoman, more that Feren keeps messing things up for her and it would have been better if she'd had the chance to break up with him first. Every time she plans to do this, some disaster happens, and her personal life gets pushed to her back burner. She dreams of the day that she can take a break and travel, to gather new recipes and ideas, to visit the beaches she loves so much, to have five minutes to breathe. Someone give this poor, overworked woman a vacation. (Pinterest board)

Name: Wysta Larkspur Age: 39 Gender/sexuality: female (trans), bisexual Birthplace: Concordia Occupation: healer Magic: healing/telepathy

Wysta is the lead healer of Blythe, Etri, and Sol's carnival troupe. She was Blythe's first instructor in arcane healing and remained her mentor and friend after Blythe moved on to further study. Wysta is a former Protectorate and her shaved head is a sign of giving up the life of a guard. Specific braids designate status as a Protectorate and it’s a ritual to cut off the braid when you pick a different path in life. Usually a former Protectorate will let their hair grow back, but Wysta keeps her head shaved as a personal-- and practical, considering her profession-- style choice. While Wysta is efficient and sensible, contrasting with the flightier personalities of the carnies she calls family, she possesses both a great sense of humor and a friendly bedside manner. There are very few people Blythe admires and respects, so it says a lot that she holds Wysta in the highest regard and trusts her with information she doesn't give anyone else.

(Mobile-friendly) Unexpected Inspiration Series Tags & Links:

About the Series: Series & WIP Info / Short Stories / Moodboard Posts (Tag: unexpected inspiration aesthetic) / World Building Posts (Tag: about my world) / Series Tag: Unexpected Inspiration series

About the Characters: Main Character Info / Secondary Character Info (you’re here!)

Character Specific Tags: UI POV: Adair / UI POV: Blythe / UI POV: Dray / UI POV: Etri / UI POV: Sol / UI POV: Rosalie / UI POV: Camille / UI POV: Sapphire / UI POV: Ametrine / UI POV: Skia / UI POV: Feren / UI POV:All (Group/Multiple) / UI POV: Other (Non-Main Characters) / UI POV:Trio (Adair/Blythe/Etri OT3) / UI POV: Firelight (Dray/Sol)

#writing #writeblr #cast of characters #about my characters #unexpected inspiration series #masterpost #UI POV: All #UI POV: Sapphire #UI POV: Ametrine #UI POV: Feren #UI POV: Skia

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bigskydreaming · 5 years

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I know what you like from Dick (your post are really extensive and detailed, which is great because I love seeing people talk about what they’re passionate about) but is there any type of arc, friend expansion or themes you’d like to see with other robins like Damian or Jason?

Jason, definitely. I actually talk a lot about possibilities for him unrelated to things involving Dick - I’ve got lots of thoughts and feelings about what if he’d had a bigger support system when he was a teen, and how that could have led away from his inevitable death. Like how there was always that age group of YJ and Titans members who were just a couple of years older than Tim so never quite meshed with his YJ crew, but not as old as Dick and his friends....the Ray, Damage, Anima, etc. Like there’s more than enough there for Jason’s own Titans lineup of in-betweeners. I also have a lot of thoughts about Jason and Damage being potential BFFs, and also the idea of Jason dating Tom Bronson aka Tomcat, the werepanther son of Wildcat, Ted Grant.

And post death and return, I think Jason, Obsidian and Damage could make a great trio of misunderstood (and horrifically misused by DC) friends who’ve been through hell and back and toe the line between hero and anti-hero, but often not even so much because of their own choices but because of how they’re inevitably perceived due to things outside their own actions (like Obsidian often assumed the worst of because people are afraid of his shadow powers, and Damage has a long history of being demonized for the destructive nature of his powers by people in universe, etc).

So like, I definitely have those posts, I just suck at tagging....like search my blog on mobile for those characters’ names and posts with them should come up fairly easily.

My thoughts on expansion for Damian at the moment are currently consumed by GIVE HIM BACK HIS FRIENDS DC, WTF, FIRST COLIN, THEN MAYA, NOW JON, WHY WON’T YOU LET HIM KEEP ANY OF HIS FRIENDS EVER.

And with Tim they’re mostly like.....give Young Justice to anyone but Bendis, who I can’t stand, lol, but otherwise I’d be interested. Like, I know ppl don’t believe me lol but I genuinely don’t inherently dislike Tim, as long as he’s not being written as what I perceive to be at Dick’s expense, like, people getting pissed at Dick on Tim’s behalf for something that I will always maintain was not as cut and dried as people make it. But like, separate of stuff like that....I loved the YJ book from the nineties and was a big fan and so I’m actually really glad to have all of those characters back and reunited, its basically what I would have wanted and done with them myself all along, its just....Bendis. Why. Stop.

Also, Tim’s new superhero name will never not be the dumbest thing ever, there are SO MANY CHOICES you could go with instead and you have him like...Fail at Secret Identities AND Striking Fear Into The Heart Of His Enemies all at the same time. Good plan.

Like, when you need your hero to stop and explain to the bad guys that no, actually, his namesake is actually a pretty bad-ass bird in real life, honest, like...that’s not good. I don’t know who said that was good but like. They lied.

Cass and Duke, I just need more of together. Them in Batman & The Outsiders is again, actually a canon thing I really enjoy, even though the insistence on Cass’ broken English can go die in a fire any day now, seriously. But I love the two of them together and think they’re such an underrated dynamic and they play off each other well, and I would love to see them explore the hidden aspects of both their backgrounds together....like there’s still so much Cass doesn’t know about Lady Shiva and her intentions for Cass like what she even wants from her, and literally everything Duke learned about/from Gnomon in Batman & The Signal needs following up on STAT, even if its just to say Gnomon was full of shit and Duke should not listen to him about anything.

I also have some older posts about the possibilities of tying Duke’s powers and his family tree into the emotional entity of hope that empowers the Blue Lantern Corps, like the same way Jade - Alan Scott’s daughter - is connected to the green lantern energy and powers without actually needing to be one herself. Like, some of that meta needs tweaking because later stories I read with Duke made certain things about that not work, but like...there’s stuff there that I still would love to see played with even if just in fic, because I love the Lantern CONCEPT as a whole, and also I’m really really in love with the idea of one of Duke’s direct ancestors having maybe been an avatar of hope at some point like Kyle was for Ion, and Duke’s powers were derived from that....like we know his mom Elaine had some kind of powers as well, with the implication IMO being that they were light connected, and that’s why Gnomon was fixated on her in the first place, even if he’s lying about being Duke’s biological father....anyway, like I said, there’s definitely stuff about that lurking around my blog, I just....desperately need to get better about tagging, but also I say that a lot and then it never happens. LOL. Like I’m great at remembering to tag for trigger warnings, but tagging for organizational purposes? My brain’s like lol why would we ever do that.

But yeah, I for sure have lots of thoughts and ideas for all the family members at various times, but there’s not a whole lot of rhyme or reason to when they pop into my head or when I shift to one in specific....just that inevitably, I always shift back to being Dick Grayson hour, lol. I even have some broader Batfam/franchise posts like.....there’s one I wrote about how I’d give other Rogues than the Joker a derivative character or sidekick, like Mister Freeze, the Riddler and Poison Ivy (I think I named them Kid Chill/Tundra, the Memetic and Hemlock).

And there’s one I keep meaning to revisit about how I’d love to see the Batfamily go up against...a whole rival family, like if a branch of the Falcones returned to Gotham to try and retake power in secret, and they had a matriarch kinda like how Bruce is the patriarch of the Batfam, and then various kids and cousins to act as foils for the Batkids. Like a hacker named Smokescreen to work on hiding their activities from Oracle’s eyes, or a rival to Jason called Red Herring who like, pits the family against each other by framing crimes on various members of the family and testing their trust in each other.

Stuff like that. So I’m not a totally one track mind. Just 90%! LOLOL.

I occasionally remember to take longer meta or ficbits and put them in this sorta catch-all fic posting I have here:

https://archiveofourown.org/works/18557212/chapters/43986025

But like, by occasionally I mean I’ve remembered a grand total of four times, but hey, whatever. I’m a WIP. The first one is an old magic AU I’m pretty fond of....it was mostly focused on how Dick, Jason and Tim might grow up if they’d been adopted by Zatanna instead of Bruce....though Bruce ends up adopting Cass, Steph and still has Damian. Unfortunately it was written before I got caught up on DC stuff so it doesn’t have Duke in that one....though he’s in two of the others which are more just general Batfam shenanigans.

*Shrugs* Basically I’m random as fuck and hop around a lot, but I’m definitely interested in all the various Batkids, so can happily ramble about any of them with the right prompt, whether a reblog or an ask - just assuming I have the time or energy or am not being a cranky asshole at a particular character because I’m overprotective of my personal chosen fave and not above admitting it. LOL. Quelle problematique.

Like, this is a bit broader of a question then I typically know what to do with, other than just like...point to other things I’ve written that are related, lol, because like....there’s SO MANY thoughts I have or ways I could answer that, I generally don’t know where else to start haha. The more specific you are with an ask or a debate point, the better your chances of getting something definitive from me, lmao.

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peachywise · 7 years

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basement confessions

stanley uris x reader

-- one-shot

-- synopsis: You hated Stanley Uris. Stanley Uris hated you. Why the Losers’ Club thought a sleepover and a game of truth or dare would fix that was beyond you, but anything’s worth a try. (aged up au: 18)

-- notes: requested by @katherinewhat ; “heyheyhey i would like to see a imagine/fanfic whatever u want to call it, where (y/n) and stan hate each other ever since they were kids. But then the losers club is just sick of them fighting so they have a sleepover and play truth or dare or something; then lock them in bill’s basement and are forced to make out *cough* sorry make up ;) anddd (y/n) is terrified of bill’s basement so stan try’s to calm her down??” okay so I love this fic, i hope you do too!! as always, let me know if you want an add to the tag list. It’s a little on the long side (3k+) so i put a keep reading tab on it. (this also has a splash of reddie thrown in there)

click here to read the unofficially official part two: ailing confessions

“Truth or dare, Y/N?” Stan asked you, as he tried to hide the small ghost of a smirk that slowly inched its way on to his face.

And at that moment, you knew you were fucked.

“Jesus Christ,” Bev muttered under her breath in reply before you could voice your own irritation. Jesus Christ, indeed. Currently, all the Losers were sat around in a circle in the living room of Bill’s house playing this stupid game Richie had suggested. Truth or dare. Though you fought against it, asking in a sarcastic tone, “what are we, twelve?” you were easily ignored. It wasn’t that you were scared to play the game or do the dares. You just knew one person in particular would try to make you do the most miserable, horrible stuff he could think of. That person was Stanley Uris.

It was the first sleepover that you and Stan had attended together, and you hoped it would be the last. You had known the boy for years, and he’d always been just as high-strung as his coiled, golden locks. You’d never once gotten along with him. It mostly started in fourth grade when he chastised your organizational skills. In an attempt to prove him wrong, you ended up running against him for class president. It was the most intense election to date, and even your teacher was stunned into a quiet submission at some of your well-thought out, yet fierce rebuttals. In the end, Richie won by a landslide, but the animosity had already blossomed between you two. Afterwards he would go out of his way to put you down and correct you at any chance, and in return, you would draw dead birds and leave them in his locker to torment him. Looking back on it now, you agreed that maybe that course of action was a little mean and far too morbid, but you couldn’t feel remorse for it when he hated you just as much.

It was like he wanted to argue with you on everything! Anything you ever suggested the Losers’ Club did, he would be right there telling you it was a stupid, reckless idea and that you should just be ignored. Ben and Mike often tried to mediate your fights, boiling it down to the fact you two where allegedly similar (ha!), but nothing could ever mend the poisonous hostility that dripped between you two.

You had no idea why they thought a sleepover would be the cure.

That’s what this night was about, after all. You weren’t stupid. Well. You were stupid enough that you hadn’t expected this to be the plan when you showed up tonight, but c’est la vie. The only solace you took in your embarrassment of having fell for the trap was the fact Stan fell for it too. Sucker. You’d both have to suffer in each other’s company.

Turning your head in emphasized boredom towards Stan, you rolled your eyes. Don’t let him see the panic that washed through you and made your finger tips numb. You could handle whatever came your way. “Let’s go with truth, bird fucker,” you yawned, meeting his gaze in a look you hoped met his challenge. You swore you saw his eye twitch, most likely in response to the nickname you had given him. He’d never liked it. You weren’t exactly sure why.

“Fine,” he quipped, leaning back slightly as if all too relaxed. You could see the fake contemplation on his face. He already knew what he was going to ask you, he just wanted to drag it on for a little while. What a sadist.

“Do you guys remember in ninth grade when someone was leaving love letters in Bill’s locker?” Ah, fuck. Slowly, everyone in the circle gave a perplexed nod. “I think I remember Y/N telling me they know who did it.” You were going to ring Stan’s scrawny, little neck and feed him to the freaking pigeons. Wait, scratch that. You would feed him to the fish. He liked pigeons too much to even deserve that. “Care to share?”

As much as you hated to admit it, this was a smart tactic. He knew you were the one who had left the love letters. He wasn’t giving you the opportunity to lie about the truth he had giving you. What a bitch. The day he caught you trying to cram one through the little metal slots was the day you lost about 5 years of your life. You’d always wondered why he never said anything. Now you knew. He had waited for the right opportunity.

Taking in a deep, calming breath, you flopped back so you were laying down on the floor. No way in hell did you want to see their reactions. “It was me,” you gritted out, folding your arms over your chest like a pouty child. “The crush barley lasted three months, okay? It was a moment of weakness,” you explained, before Bill stuttered out a slightly offended, “hey.” Sitting back up, you faced him and gave him an apologetic smile. “Let me rephrase that. Not weakness. You were being especially nice to me during a time when someone,” you muttered, giving a pointed look towards Stan, “was making it his life’s purpose to hate me.” Stan’s face dropped the slightest bit, before he covered it up and put back on his face of indifference. Weird.

“It’s fine,” Bill smiled a little awkwardly, flashing a look towards Stan who had now averted his gaze up towards the ceiling. Richie, however, gave you an accusatory glare. “You told everyone you thought it was me doing that!” He whined, before you cleared your throat and loudly asked, “Hey Stan! Truth or dare?” You had to cover your tracks somehow.

“Dare.” He stated definitively, without so much of a waver in his tone. Giving a little smirk, you simply said, “I dare you to let Eddie spit in your mouth.”

Havoc ensued.

“WHAT?” Eddie shot out, immediately standing up and letting the blanket drop that had previously been draped over his and Richie’s lap. Crossing his arms out in front of him, he shook his head erratically. “No. No way. Do you know how unsanitary that is? I am not spitting in his mouth!” Richie gave a little snicker as he casually added, “I’ll spit in his mouth.” Eddie looked down at him utterly horrified. In reality, it wasn’t even that big of a deal. Eddie had swapped spit with Richie before, even if the two wouldn’t admit it to the rest of you. Those idiots didn’t know how obvious they really were.

Stan shook his head. “Nobody is spitting in my mouth,” he groaned, as if he couldn’t believe he actually had to say that sentence. Big baby. “A dare is a dare, Stan,” Bev conceded, the small tell-tale crinkles at the corner of her eyes appearing as a sign of her amusement. Ben just murmured a small, “I don’t want to watch.”

Standing up, you snapped your fingers in Richie’s direction before pointing at Stan. “The sooner you do it, the sooner it’ll be over,” you huffed out, planting your hands on your hips. Stan stood up in response and stalked over to you, glaring you down in an attempt to thwart your persistence as he repeated a simple, “no.” Pay back’s a real bitch, Uris.

Preparing to fight Stan until inevitably someone’s spit ended up sliding down his throat, Mike’s voice rung out before you could even get a single word out. “How about as consolation we have to come up with a group dare? We come up with something else, and you have to do whatever it is no matter what?” What a buzz kill. Stanley didn’t even take a second to process what was offered to him before he said, “I’ll do whatever else.”

“Billy? Can you read me a story?” came a small voice from the corridor of the hallway, breaking the pervious tension that had radiated between you and Stan. Bill stood up before walking over to his little brother, Georgie. “Yeah, of c-course,” he smiled down at him, before turning to look back at the rest of you. “Pick something good, okay?” he added brightly, before leading Georgie back down the hallway, arm slung around him.

By the time you looked back over, Mike, Ben, Eddie, Bev, and Richie were already crowded around each other, mumbling ideas about what new dare they were going to give Stan. How come you weren’t allowed to be apart of the deliberation? Way to rip off your turn.

Giving one last glaring side eye to Stan, you plopped yourself on the couch, preparing to enjoy the oncoming show, albeit how boring it was bound to be without the involvement of spit.

“Okay,” Mike grinned, as the rest of your friends turned back to face you two. “Both of you have to be locked in the basement and makeup—“ Richie butted in saying “make out,” before Beverly clapped her hand over his mouth. Mike gave him a knowing look, before continuing with, “like I was saying, you’ll be locked down there until you guys work out whatever deep seeded issues you have with one other.” Ben added in a quick and chirpy, “even if it takes all night.”

Well, that just wasn’t going to work.

“This is his dare, not mine!” you groaned, “why am I being wrapped up into this? I never agreed.” Eddie shot you a disbelieving look, shooting back with, “but you were fine having me spit in his mouth?” Touché. But you still weren’t taking a single step into that basement. No. You had refused to go down into Bill’s basement for years. Not since the last time. You weren’t going to start now on some silly little dare.

“Deal,” Stan stated simply, as he turned and began walking down the hallway. What the fuck?

Racing to catch up to him, you shot your arm out to grip his forearm. “Hey, no deal! I’m not going into the basement. Not with you, not with anyone,” you grated out, trying the squash the panicked feeling that had begun to onset. You were terrified of being down there. You couldn’t go.

Stan turned to stare at you for a second, his face shifting into something unreadable as he took a tiny step towards you. Getting more desperate by the second, you whispered a small, “please,” quiet enough for only him to hear it. The last thing you wanted to do was beg him for anything, but just the thought of stepping foot down in that cement hell hole was causing you to be irrational.

“It’ll be fun!” Richie’s voice called from behind you, as you felt hands go to your hips and lift you in the air, as you were tossed right on over the trashmouth’s shoulder. Suddenly, you weren’t sure if you hated him more or Stan. “Put me down, you shit head!” you bit out, hitting his back as he effortlessly used his free hand to swing the basement door open before beginning his descent down the steps. Stan followed slowly after him, giving a hesitant look all the way down while you still struggled and yelled out a slew of curse words aimed at no one in particular. “Maybe this isn’t such a good idea,” Stan stated hesitantly, as he seemed to be the only one noticing the frightened look in your eyes. If your rational brain had been functioning at the moment, you would have yelled at him for the pity. Right now you really didn’t care all that much.

As Richie set you down on the ground, you quickly tried following his steps back up the rickety wooden stairs, but you didn’t make it. The door was shut unceremoniously in your face. “This is for the greater good!” his annoying voice called from behind the door, before you heard all your friend’s steps lead back down the hall. Banging on the door frantically, you cried for them to let you out. It was too dark. You couldn’t breath. You couldn’t think, you couldn’t focus, you—

“Are you okay?”

Resting your head on the wooden door, you tried to take calm, reassuring breaths. “Just leave me alone, Stanley,” you murmured, already embarrassed enough at your fear. You don’t think you’d ever been alone with Stan in your life. Figures it be during a time like this.

“Look at me,” Stan stated, a certain edge to his voice. Taking in another sharp breath to calm the shaking of your hands, you turned around on the small step to face him. You immediately regretted that decision. Suddenly a flashback of the incident that made you hate this basement so much flooded though your thoughts and your bones, and you weren’t so sure you could stand anymore. Covering your face with your hands, you bent down a little as if to contain yourself. “I can’t be in here,” you whispered, as two arms wrapped around your shoulders. You flinched, but he didn’t let go.

“Let’s go down the stairs,” he calmly stated, as he slung one arm slightly awkwardly around your tense shoulders as you began the walk down. As soon as your bare feet hit cold pavement, a shaky sigh of relief escaped you. Turned out you felt better on ground level than on the stairs. Duly noted.

Sitting down on the floor as he let go, you brought your knees up to your chest and wrapped your arms around your legs. At this very moment you didn’t give half a shit of what Stan thought. You just needed to calm down and get out of here. If that meant you had to play nice with golden boy, you would do it.

“You want to tell me what’s going on?” he questioned a little cautiously, as you breathed out a small, “not really,” bending your head down to rest on your knees. It was a stupid story. The only one who knew was Bill, and you had sworn him to secrecy right after it happened. Mostly because you didn’t want Stan finding out and making fun of you for it.

It was quiet for a beat, before you finally heard him say, “good, because I don’t want to hear it.” Irritation quickly shot through your veins, replacing the previous numbness brought upon from your little panicked moment. Lifting up your head, you yelled, “you don’t have to be such a jackass!” Then you noticed the small smile plastered on his face. “Do you feel better now?” he asked knowingly, and you grumbled a short, “shut up,” in return before putting your head back down on your knees.

It was quiet again. A little longer this time, and the silence made you feel cold all over. You felt tears start to prickle at the side of your eyes as you remembered laying down here in the cold that one night, all alone and in so much fucking pain that—

“I’m terrified of mascots.”

“What?” you blurted out, your head snapping up as if a puppeteer had lifted the string. “Mascots. You know, the people in the big, often furry suits,” he explained a little more thoroughly.

Well this was new information.

“When I was seven years old, I went to a ball game with my dad,” he continued, much to your surprise. You focused on his smooth voice. “There was this tiger mascot, and for some reason he kept following me around. It was annoying, but I managed to hide. When he found me, my dad thought it was amusing and shoved him towards me as some sort of joke. The mascot fell and knocked me down, and his head just fell off as I was crushed below him. The guy was clearly drunk and man, he smelled so gross,” Stan groaned, giving a bit of a shiver at the memory. “Ever since then, I run the other way as soon as I see them. They terrify me.”

You stared at him for a second, before a small snort escaped you. Stan’s face quickly dropped.

"It’s not funny,” he grumbled, as he began to pace away from you. Standing up a little shakily still, you gave a bit of a breathless laugh. “No, no I’m sorry, it’s not.” You agreed, trying your hardest to keep a straight face. The second his hesitant eyes met yours again, however, you busted into uncontainable laughter.

“If you tell anyone, no one’s going to believe you!” He shot out, as you wiped the small tears from the corner of your eye. Wow. Just the image of Stan running away from some guy in a giant bird costume had you in a fit of giggles once more.

“I was just trying to make you feel better,” he retorted once more, as you took deep breaths to stop the laughter in its tracks. He was right. You were being kind of rude. “I’m sorry, okay? Look. No more laughing,” you pleaded, reaching out to grab his wrist while giving him the best serious look you could. You knew a small smile still lit your face, but you hoped he’d take the effort to not laugh as a white flag.

“Fine,” he mumbled, as he sat down on the floor once more, you sitting directly across from him. You began to feel a little awkward at his confession. He trusted you with that, so what harm could come from you telling him why you were so afraid of the basement? Maybe bringing it up would make you feel a little better.

“Do you remember when I was ten and I broke my leg?” Stan nodded. “Well,” you breathed, as you looked down towards your fiddling hands, “that weekend I had slept over at Bill’s because my parents were out of town. I got up in the middle of the night to get some water, and I,” stopping briefly to calm the small race in your heart, you continued quickly. “I thought I heard a noise in the basement. I assumed it was Bill trying to freak me out, I never did like basements very much, but as soon as I got to the second step, I tripped and fell down the stairs,” you whispered, a phantom pain shooting through your right leg at the memory. “That’s not so bad in itself, but no one heard me. I was left down here all night until Bill’s dad found me in the morning, crying in pain, and—“

The slightest touch against your cheek jarred you from your thoughts as Stan swiped a small tear from your face with his thumb. His eyes were intense on yours as he softly said, “you’re not alone down here, Y/N,” his hand resting lightly on your cheek, and you were unsure if he knew what he was doing.

Shock went through you at the tender moment, and before you knew it, you were clearing your throat and leaning away from his touch, uncertain of what it all meant. “Yeah, well, as much as I appreciate the sentiment, it’s not like we enjoy each other’s company all that much.”

That seemingly broke the mood.

“Why do you insist on hating me?” he bit out, his earlier soft stare turning hard and bitter. You scoffed out loud, standing up instinctively to tower over him. “Why do I hate you?” you questioned disbelieving, “why do you hate me?” Stan soon stood up after you, using his own taller stature to one-up you as he loomed over you instead. “God, it’s like you think I’m stupid or something! You’re such a control freak, you know that?” you yelled.

“I’m the control freak?” he reiterated, in a tone much more dubious than yours. There he goes! Trying to one-up you again! “Take a look in the mirror! You fight me on everything, and what does it get us? Useless arguments? You’re the one who always wants to be in control, you’re the one who always tests my patience!” he gritted out, poking you in the chest. Oh, hell no. Taking another step forward so you were as close as you could get to his face, you ground out, “if you touch me one more time Stanley Uris, I swear I will—“

“You’ll do what?” he shot back before you finished, his eyes becoming slightly hooded, your chests nearly meeting as your irritated, heady breaths became almost synchronized.

And then he kissed you.

Actually, he more or less crashed into you, his hands roughly gripping each side of your face as you met him with just as much exhilaration and passion. At first your hands rested on his chest, but one soon slinked up to his neck, as the other roughly gripped his hair. A small moan escaped him as you did, and you returned it with your own.

Moving his hands slowly, and painfully exhilarating down your body, he gripped your sides before you hopped up and easily wrapped your legs around his waist, unable to get enough. The kiss was a little messy, but the need was too great. It was like it had been built up over years, and maybe it had. Now that you had gotten a taste of just how sweet he could be, you couldn’t get enough. You weren’t sure he could get enough either.

Soon enough you were pressed rather urgently against a wall, as Stan finally moved his kiss from your lips, down to your jaw, and to your neck where he hit a particularly sensitive spot. Breathing his name rather heavily in return, you unravelled your hand from his hair to bring his lips back up to your again, but a new voice in the enclosed space had you both stopping like two kids caught with their hands in the cookie jar.

“I guess you’re n-not so scared of the b-basement anymore,” Bill called with a small snicker in his tone from the top of the steps.

Bending your head down to rest on Stan’s shoulder, your cheeks flared a rather familiar heat that also passed through your whole body. The boy just simply chuckled into your hair and called back, “we’re all made up.”

Now, you weren’t positively sure about that, but what you were sure of? This wasn’t going to be the last sleepover you had with Stanley Uris if you had anything to do with it.

-- general tags: @multi-parker @stan-the-losers-club-man @this-cute-shit-xo @hummingstan @babylovereddie @ubertrashmouth @derrysdenbrough @socially-awkward-nerd

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theuiucollegian · 5 years

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From student to dean, passion for education guides Whitesell to UIU

Photo courtesy Upper Iowa University OCM Betty “B.J.” Whitesell

By Jeff Hughes/Collegian Staff

Room 207 on the second floor of the Andres Center for Business and Education building is a modestly furnished office. It contained an office desk, a small two shelf bookshelf, a small round meeting table sufficiently sized for two people to sit at and a few items on the wall.

Sitting at the desk is Dr. Betty J. “B.J...” Whitesell, dean for the School of Business and Professional Studies. She is quiet and reserved, unassuming and non-pretentious in her demeanor. As she stands to greet this reporter with a warm smile and extended hand she says softly, “Hello! How are you!” in such a way as to set one immediately at ease.

Whitesell apologized for the difficulty in getting the interview scheduled. She explained that just that week she had been busy with meetings and consulta- tions with representatives from the Higher Learning Commission. HLC provides accreditation to UIU.

This is needed for the school to partici- pate in federal financial aid programs as well as allowing students to have courses recognized when they transfer for gradu- ate degree programs elsewhere. To lose that accreditation would put these impor- tant matters in jeopardy. Navigating such a process is a complex one. But it is one that Whitesell’s past work experiences has prepared her for.

Whitesell has been dean since 2014. The dean carries a heavy load of re- sponsibilities. These would include both academic and administrative functions. Overseeing and supervising faculty — both full time and adjunct part time, as well as associated support staff.

Submission of budget requests and overseeing the use of funds. Monitoring the quality of course content and recom- mending revisions thereto.

Interacting with university adminis- tration and support services. Actively participating in the effort to raise funds for the university.

Being available to interact with and lis- ten to concerns expressed by students. All these duties require someone with strong managerial, interpersonal and communica- tion skills to successfully accomplish them.

Dr.. Richard Patrick, who has worked with Dr. Whitesell for most of her time at UIU, has observed her performance from several dif- ferent professional perspectives. He has worked with her as her boss and now as a subordinate of hers in the business school. He credits her with having the breadth of experience needed to handle it all.

He points out that she is at the intersection “of everything” as a dean. He went on to point out that with regards to students she is constantly, “Making sure they have a good academic experience here at Upper Iowa.”

The concern for the quality of educational instruction was evident in her doctoral dissertation. In that work she dealt with the quality of adjunct faculty development and skill in educational training. In the abstract for her dissertation she writes, “The purpose of this study was to determine development needs specific to graduate adjunct faculty.”

Dr. Whitesell’s growth and preparation both personally and academically for this position can be traced back to a point well before her actual hiring at UIU in 2011.

In 1987, with a four-year degree in business administration already in hand, the desire to take on increased responsibility influenced her decision to pursue a master’s degree in operations management. She pointed out that during that time frame having women strive for higher degrees “was an oddity.”

The master’s degree came with a price tag. It required her to miss important events in the life of her young son. On many occasions she would have a class at the same time as events that her son was involved in at school.

Family and friends would step in and attend the events on her behalf. The help and support received from family helped her press on. Her grandmother encouraged her to keep at it saying “They can never take your education away from you. They can take everything else, but they can never take your edu- cation away from you.”

She set short-term goals for herself, just focusing on getting through classes a couple of weeks at a time. She remembered some wise words she heard, “Will this matter in five years?” That ability to step back and see what was and was not truly important helped her maintain balance while pursuing her goals.

In 2000 Whitesell went on to enroll in a doctoral program offered at Cappella University in Minneapolis. She made a career change into academic work with a decision to take a job at her alma mater, Regis University, as a distance learning associate professor.

While working at Regis she was still pursuing her Ph.D. It was a heavy load. She expressed a deep appreciation for the support of two colleagues who would become lifelong friends: Mike Goess and Peter Bemski.Goess proved to be a strong mentor during the effort to earn the MBA degree. Bemski was a fellow student also working on his master’s degree at the time. The Ph.D. was awarded in December 2006 with the publication of her dissertation.

Her career continued with her acceptance of the program director, Leadership and Organizational Studies, position at Colorado State University.Possessing skills in managing and overseeing faculty development and assessment as well as navigating the effort to gain accreditation from the Higher Learning Com- mission led to her accepting a position as assistant dean for the school of business job at Westwood College within its online program.

In this position she worked once again with helping the school prepare for its upcom- ing accreditation with HLC.In March 2011 she left Colorado to accept the positionof MBA director here at UIU. She served in that capacity un- til September 2012 when she was appointed interim dean of faculty. In January 2014 she was selected as dean for the School of Business where she has served until now.

In January 2011 she visited the campus at UIU in the process of applying for an opening there. “When I walked on campus, it felt like home. The campus is very similar to one where I started my academic career. The people on campus were very friendly and I liked the job,” she shared.

Her commitment to both in the faculty and students has continued during her time at UIU. Patrick shared that she was instrumental in creating a $250,000 dean’s endowment fund at the school about three years ago. This funding is used for special projects and helping students go on overseas trips.

She closed out the interview with a voice tinged with anticipation as she states, “I hope to retire in a couple of years.” It will be a well-deserved rest.

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leftovercakecrumbs · 7 years

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Okay so I’ve been wanted to draw out my own YJ dream team, but the drawing process takes forever so I’ll just write it out for now. YJ pics thus far can be seen here. Feel free to look through this post, but it’s mostly for organizational purposes so everything’s in one place…

The team’s initially started by Damian (who acts as leader…for now) and a few others, but later the League takes over and puts in some regulations so not every super powered kid the team comes across can join (”It’s for safety reasons” says Batman). Members are a mix of kid characters who’ve existed pre and post reboot, alive and dead characters, developed and having little to no development. A definite mixed bag. Also some personal interpretations of characters which is a given.

A lot more info about the team under the read more [13 members in total+7 allies]:

Note: sidekick and protege are similar, though for the sake of this list sidekick means that they work alongside the person stated, while protege means that they are being trained by said person

Requirements for joining

Have to be under a hero’s mentorship or recommended by a League member

Minimum 3 years experience in the field

Has to agree to go through further evaluation and background checks to join because the last thing the team needs is a potential mole or double agent.

The official roster of members [in order of initiation]:

Damian Wayne [15] | Robin | Leader of YJ and a Founding Member | Son and sidekick of Batman

Powers/Abilities: He’s pretty much Batman, but smaller.

Strengths: Very intelligent, determined, ambitious | Weaknesses: Loves to gloat, stubborn, argumentative

Likes: Proving people wrong, his pets, spending time with Dick | Dislikes: Being wrong, people questioning his authority

Lian Harper [16] | Speedy | Second in Command [becomes leader after Damian later hands over the position] and Founding Member | Daughter and sidekick to Arsenal

Powers/Abilities: Expert marksman and weapons expert, advanced deductive reasoning

Strengths: Compassionate, resourceful, works well under pressure | Weaknesses: Altruistic, has a guilt complex

Likes: Sparring, spending time with her dad, cooking | Dislikes: Failing others, being alone, rats

Milagro Reyes [14] | Green Lantern | Founding Member | Sister of Blue Beetle [Jaime Reyes] and sidekick protege of Guy Gardner

Powers/Abilities: Green Lantern Ring: Allows her to create constructs from her imagination.

Strengths: Courageous, strong morale, empathetic | Weaknesses: Runs on emotion, tends to be impulsive, confrontational

Likes: Hanging out with friends, writing music, playing pranks | Dislikes: Loud mouths [Guy’s an exception], cowards, the color yellow

Iris “Irey” West II [15] | Impulse | Founding Member | Daughter and sidekick to Flash

Powers/Abilities: Speed force [superhuman speed, agility, durability, etc.]

Strengths: Quick to react, fast learner, works well under pressure | Weaknesses: Somewhat scatterbrained, lacks patience

Likes: Candy, adventure, teasing her friends | Dislikes: Being underestimated, being seen as stupid, bugs [ALL bugs]

Jai West [15] | Velocity | Founding Member | Son and sidekick to Flash

Powers/Abilities: Superhuman strength, speed force conduit

Strengths: Cool headed, analytical, team player | Weaknesses: Workaholic, can’t relax to save his life, overthinks

Likes: Video games, fighting crime, hard candies | Dislikes: Being useless, being bored, tea

Jon Samuel Kent [12] | Superboy | Son and sidekick to Superman

Powers/Abilities: Kryptonian Physiology [superhuman strength, speed, durability, flight, etc.]

Strengths: Intelligent, team player, compassionate | Weaknesses: Impulsive at times, sensitive

Likes: Having down time, hanging out with his family | Dislikes: Bad attitudes, being the butt of the joke

Cynthia “Sin” Lance [16] | White Dove | Daughter and sidekick of Black Canary, protege of Huntress

Powers/Abilities: Expert level martial artist; marksman

Strengths: Works well under pressure, cool headed, resourceful | Weaknesses: Aloof, lacks social skills, only works with others if she’s absolutely needed

Likes: Spending time with her mom, tea, shopping | Dislikes: Confrontation, working with others, people forcing friendships on her

Maxine “Max” Baker [15] | Little Wing | Daughter and sidekick to Animal Man, tag-along kid to Vixen

Powers/Abilities: Avatar of The Red, allows her to use raw red power and can gain animal abilities/turn into any animal

Strengths: Powerful, thinks outside of the box, always honest | Weaknesses: doesn’t always take things seriously, tends to run off and do her own thing, risk taker

Likes: Goofing off, girls, trying new things | Dislikes: Playing it safe, things not going as she planned

Arthur Curry III [16] | Ocean Prince | Son and protege of Aquaman and Queen Mera

Powers/Abilities: Atlantean physiology [ enhanced abilities, superhuman strength]

Strengths: Confident, charismatic, skilled fighter | Weaknesses: Somewhat easy to fool [with flattery], short tempered, bratty

Likes: Being the center of attention, showing off, kicking ass | Dislikes: Being made a fool off, having his patience tested, anyone who bothers Cerdian

Cerdian [15] | Son of Tempest, protege of Queen Mera

Powers/Abilities: Atlantean physiology and magic

Strengths: Observant, very skilled and powerful,always follows orders | Weaknesses: hesitant, lack of agency

Likes: morning swims, Arthur, human foods | Dislikes: Deep sea creatures, having to lead, being teased

Amistad Ervin [16] | Soaren | Son and protege of Rocket, godson and unofficial sidekick of Icon

Powers/Abilities: Inertia belt which gives him power over kinetic energy [just like his mom’s!]

Strengths: Courageous, practically fearless, intelligent | Weaknesses: Judgmental [pretty black and white view of the world], needlessly brutal, prefers to work alone

Likes: Looking good, beating up bad guys, cute girls | Dislikes: “Idiots,” back talk, being seen as a bad guy

Colin Wilkes [15] | Abuse | Under the supervision of Batman, no official mentor

Powers/Abilities: Bane-esque venom that allows him to transform into a more superhuman form.

Strengths: Mediator, observant, open-minded | Weaknesses: not knowledgeable about the world around him, paranoid

Likes: his bear Rory, going on adventures, making friends | Dislikes: being taken advantage of, being abandoned

Nell Little [15] | Spoiler | Sidekick to Batgirl

Powers/Abilities: An elite athlete and acrobat, competent detective skills

Strengths: Charismatic, resourceful, creative | Weaknesses: Doesn’t work well under pressure, lacks experience compared to the rest of the team

Likes: Gymnastics, dancing, a mission going well | Dislikes: Stress, not performing well, the dark

Allies of YJ [were unable to become official members for one reason or another, but are allowed called on for additional help]:

Maya Ducard [16] | Nobody

Reason for Rejection: Given the chance to join by Damian but refused to be a member due to her dislike over the idea of being watched over and investigated by the League. She took the offer to be an ally however due to her loyalty to him.

Mia “Maps” Mizugochi [15]

Reason for Rejection: Recommended by Damian but due to her lack of hero experience and mentor, she was rejected but was more than eager to accept the offer to help YJ whenever she can.

Cliff Baker [18]

Reason for Rejection: He’s technically dead [but his “spirit” lives on through The Red]. Somewhat acts as Maxine’s spiritual support and keeps her powers in check.

Rani Carter [16]

Reason for Rejection: Was given consideration to join from a recommendation from Booster Gold but he later retracted it after she ended up causing trouble.

Ramsey Robinson [17] | Manhunter Jr.

Reason for rejection: Lacks actual experience and his mother didn’t approve of him going into a hero team where she couldn’t regularly watch over him.

Traya Sutton [15]

Reason for Rejection: Lacks hero experience and isn’t under any kind of mentorship. However her intelligence and computer smarts make her valuable to YJ [Also Jai has a big ‘ol crush on her].

Klarion [???]

Reason for Rejection: Aside from the obvious, he’s only an ally because he’s somewhat “loyal” to Batgirl [Stephanie Brown] and in turn Nell and Damian…on a good day.

Mar’i Grayson [16]

Reason for Rejection: She’s currently displaced in time so there isn’t much legitimate and provable info on her at the moment. For now she can only be an ally until further notice.

Overseers/”Den Mothers” [watch over the kids, regularly check on them, gives them mission reports and evaluations, etc. etc.]:

Dick Grayson | Nightwing: Directs and plans training sessions, gives mission reports, gives out evaluations, embarrasses Damian, etc.

Chris Kent | Nightwing: “Den Mother”; lives in the base with the team, attempts to keep the peace, big-brother figure

Dinah Lance | Black Canary: Everything Dick does, acts as the main trainer, is the counselor, the only reason Sin is still involved with the team

#do i really wanna tag all of this...#damian wayne #lian harper #iris west #milagro reyes #sin lance #colin wilkes #cerdian #mar'i grayson #Chris kent #Maxine baker #Nell little #maya ducard #mmmmm #das it

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malonepolitics · 6 years

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What the heck are we doing?

September 30 - October 5, 2018 Suburbs of Detroit, Michigan

Maybe we have lost our minds, but it seems in many ways the US has also.

Not being very active in politics in the past (voting, of course, and making some contributions to some past campaigns) we suddenly are in the thick of it joining a group of like-minded folks to campaign for two issues and a US House candidate in Michigan. This recent activism is not a very long story, since it only started a little over a month ago when we attended a series of lectures by David Domke on the history of voting rights in the US. About the middle of the second lecture Linda leaned over to me and said, “Oh-oh, we are not going to finish this series without getting involved”. Indeed she was right. Within a couple of weeks we had attended organizational meetings and signed up with the group called “Common Purpose” to go to Michigan for a week. We have just finished up this interesting, a little scary and very satisfying trip. Here I recount a few highlights and thoughts on the experience. If you think this might be a typical “L & S Malone trips” blog, sorry, this is serious stuff.

The preparation

We attended the first organizational meeting of Common Purpose on Sep. 15 where we realized it was only OUR first meeting. There have been many more in the past including previous campaign trips all over the country. There were a lot of rah-rah “team building” and motivational talks at this meeting, but looking at the group of people who are seriously involved is indeed motivational. While not really into this sort of thing, I felt the vibe. Toward the end of the meeting the group, maybe 200 strong, split up into groups associated with about 10 different states to which a trip was planned to help with particular campaigns. Before we knew it we were talking with Ron, the Michigan trip leader (the only trip for which the timing would work for us). Linda and I looked at each other, shrugged our shoulders and signed up. Within a few days we had our plane tickets, motel and car reservations, so we were committed.

I must say that Linda is the main instigator. I am not so much of a joiner for this sort of thing. I detest being called on the phone by robots even if a real person is on the other end, and I am not much for knocking on strangers’ doors. It seems that almost everyone in the group agrees to some extent with these sentiments, but all assured me that I could get over my phobias and would feel good about doing this no matter what. We attended one additional meeting two weeks later for “training”, etc., and there was again lots of rah-rah and kumbaya stuff but also a very interesting small group discussion. I ended up in a group of four; one union member/organizer, one previous politician and an older (my age), African-American guy who had been invited to this meeting by his son who is part of the leadership team. It turned out that this guy and I had something in common. We had both grown up in the South in segregated schools. OK, not the same experience, but in discussions we realized that there were more similarities than one might think. As kids we both accepted school segregation as just the way was even if it didn’t seem right. Neither of us, at the the time, realized how destructive it was. We made plans to try and get together again some time later to compare our growing-up experiences in the deep South from our very different backgrounds.

The only other preparation we did for the Michigan trip was to read some campaign material handed out and go online to get a feeling for the issues from newspapers and web pages, both pro and con. There are three state initiative proposals on the ballot two of which we were needed to campaign for. “Proposal 1″ regarded marijuana legalization, which we were not involved with - but maybe could have used. “Proposal 2” is a redistricting plan to try to do away with gerrymandering. Michigan has some of the most bizarrely shaped congressional districts designed solely by the the party in power behind closed doors to make sure they stay in power. This gerrymandering also has the effect of keeping minority party members in power even if they do little for their constituents. Consequently, not many actual politicians from either party are strongly supportive. The initiative campaign is totally grassroots and non-partisan. The name for this initiative is “Voters not Politicians” with a tag-line of “Lets get the people to choose the politicians rather than the other way around”. “Proposal 3” is the “Promote the Vote” initiative, which seems not to have a lot of opposition. It is a fairly complicated initiative of seven items to remove many obstacles to registering and/or voting that currently are relatively subtle but effective voter suppression provisions. Michigan’s laws are nowhere near as egregious as in many southern states but still could benefit from improvements to just get more people to vote. Perhaps our most important and interesting campaign was for a challenger to the current US House member in the fairly Republican 8th congressional district. Elissa Slotkin jumped into this race fairly recently easily winning the Democratic Party’s nomination. With a very strong background in international relations and national security she has recently taken on health care and environmental issues as ones that Michiganders have increasing concerns about. The poles currently have the candidates almost tied, so a win for her would be a real coup. Somehow we would be doing something in an area near Detroit, MI to help with these three campaigns. We were told to be prepared for phone banking (ugh) and door belling (scary). What the heck are we doing joining such activities?

The Trip

Our flight to Detroit left last Monday at 7am. Yuk. Fortunately for us our lovely daughter Erika was on a slightly later flight to Pittsburgh where she was leading a national training workshop on affordable housing issues for municipal departments. She picked us up at 5am in a car-to-go (clever girl) in plenty of time for our uneventful flight. Fourteen of our sixteen member, Team Michigan (motto: “pedal to the metal” facebook: #commonpurposemichigan) folks were on the same flight. We rented a car and took two others to our Red Roof Inn motel; very basic (no pool, no spa, no exercise room, no breakfast, no mints on our pillows but clean with a comfortable bed). Our first activity was a training session that evening at a local tavern where, it turned out, we did not have a separate room as planned but rather were in the main, very loud area at a long table. Two local campaign staffers came to brief us who were, unfortunately, nearly impossible to hear. A happy result was that when the pub’s owner heard who we were and what we were doing comp-ed us the dinner and drinks (should have ordered the lobster dinner and top-shelf bourbon).

The following morning we all met at a breakfast place where we had a separate, quiet room and got trained on “Proposal 3”, our first cause, and also on how to use the smartphone app called “MiniVan” (nothing to do with multi-passenger vehicles). This app provides the names, addresses, ages and a map of our canvassing area and also a way to record our results for each “door”. Each of our three campaigns provided us with “lit” (literature) and “turfs” (down-loadable lists of 30 - 50 addresses). One could work from a hard-copy and clipboard form, which the old hands swore by. However, even a few of them switched to MiniVan when they realized how simple and convenient it was. Training for Proposal 2 and the Slotkin campaign took place either after the first lunch or the second morning.

Each morning and afternoon groups of 2 or 3 people would head out in a car to do one or two (or for the hot-shots three) turfs in a session. Most turfs were in the mega-suburbia of Rochester Hills (white-flight area 25 miles north of Detroit). I have never seen such expanses of green lawns lined up as far as the eye could see; actually, not so far in the twisty, cull-de-sacky developed subdivisions of 1980s-90s vintage. Typically we would pull up and leave our car in the middle of a turf and spread out in three different directions walking between addresses listed in our app. They were rarely every house since they were targeted to voters who were either unknown or undecided. Those known to be either strongly for or against the issue/candidate were not canvassed since it would be a waste of time in either case. At first we were under the impression that mostly we were to sample preferences, but it soon became clear that it was OK…. actually expected, that we would do persuasion on those contacts who were undecided.

I was very nervous at first…. and never got totally comfortable, with ringing a door bell and if someone answered (only about 1/4 to 1/3 of the time), introducing myself and why I was there and then trying to sell them on the issue/candidate. Most people were at least minimally polite, some very gracious, even if they were on the other side politically. A few were down right rude and one who came up to me on the street was aggressively nasty; asking if I had a permit to be in the neighborhood, threatening to call the police if I didn’t leave and he would be watching me. We skipped a few houses right around his. It left a bad taste in my mouth but provided an interesting story to tell at dinner that night. Our sub-group of 9 people staying at the Red Roof Inn would compare notes each night over dinner. We all seemed to be having similar experiences of generally interested, polite people with the rare unpleasant one. The positive experiences far outweighed the few bad ones. Here are a few Linda and I remember:

An older couple (90 and 91) both come to the door. I ask if they know about Elissa Slotkin. They say, “not much”. I give a long-winded shpeal about who and how great she is and why they should vote for her. They say, “OK, we will”. I say, “what about signing a reminder pledge card that will be sent back to you shortly before the election”. OK, they sign it and then thank me for the good information. Then, as I am leaving they tell me that now they remember Elissa and were going to vote for her in the first place.

I ring a slightly down-at-the-dumps looking house. A man comes to the door and the name I have is for a woman. I ask if she is there. He yells to the other room and the woman comes out, sees my Elissa Slotkin button, comes out of the house and closes the door. I ask her about Elissa, and she quickly says she knows all about her. I start to say more and she whispers over her shoulder to me as she goes back in the house that she is a strong supporter and will vote for sure. I put her down as a supporter and note that her “roommate” is not.

A refreshing interlude occurred on our last day. A young man is zooming down the street on roller-blades being pulled by his dog. As he sees our Slotkin buttons he gives a big wave and yells that he is voting for her.

Some of our most interesting, but semi-scary work was in an area another 30 miles north in a very rural area near the town of Holly, MI where Elissa lives on her family’s farm. Our turf houses were either along a busy rural highway or off a muddy back road. There were NO lawns here; though one woman was out on a riding mower in what could have been a pasture. In a few cases as one headed into the woods to find an “address” one imagined the banjo theme from Deliverance playing in the distance. All had long drives and many had big, barking dogs.

I head down the drive toward one, and here comes rover barking like mad to scare me off. I give him a good glare and then a nice voice and he starts wagging like mad as the owner comes hoofing down the drive to call off the dog. The name I have is for a woman whom I ask for. He leads me around back of his house and onto his porch. As soon as I say ask about Elissa he and the woman both start talking a mile a minute about how great she is and how bad the Republican in office now is and how the ranker in DC is just terrible and how Elissa has the right attitude and on and on and would I like a glass of lemonade and I should be careful turning my car around that I don’t get stuck. What? You are walking? You better sit for a while and rest up and be careful walking on the highway. No one does that. Oh, and don’t go to the guy who lives next door. Old whoever is a nasty old Trumpest who will shoot you if you come on his property. “OK”, I say, “so I can put you down is a supporter and old whoever next door as a no”? The lady then says, “Yep and put down our son, who is in town now, as a yes and our daughter, who is in New Jersey right now, as a yes. Oh, we better call her to make sure she gets her absentee ballot in”.

In the same area Linda found a couple of old dudes sitting on a back porch looking over the local lake smoking cigars. They looked to be Bubba and Bubba but were quite friendly. However, the one not on the turf list says something like, “She’s the one John McCain hates. She looks a little slimy to me”. But the other guy pipes up, “Naw, she’s OK. I’ll probably vote for her”. After a bit more chit chat they indicate that they are just out here in the woods doing “man stuff”. Linda, says “Ok, good luck. Have a nice evening” and heads quickly for the next address. Nobody wants to know what Bubba and Bubba’s man stuff is.

One address I had was down a long drive with a few run-down, out-buildings on either side, and the house on my list is not much better. It looks as if someone lives there, but it is just a tar paper, tin roof shack itself. I think it has electricity but hard to tell the front door from the side one. After knocking both and getting no answer I look through to the back yard where drying on the line are two large and one smaller pair of full sleeved long-johns, complete with drop bottom. I guess they had just done the family laundry getting ready for winter. Really sorry I didn’t get to meet the family or get a photo of the place.

This rural turf was certainly the most spread out and took the longest to do, but the reward at the end was great. We were all invited to Elissa Slotkin’s farm to meet the candidate. She was running behind filming an ad for TV, so we waited in a screened-in porch drinking beer and snacking on chips. After a bit she joined us. Some pizza arrived, and we sat around eating and chatting about all sorts of issues….. actually, just politics. She is a very impressive lady with energy and stamina that is hard to believe. What a treat for us. She took the time for us foreigners after a very long day. Even posing with us for a group photo (Elissa is the lady in a blue top, front row, left of center). We didn’t get back to the motel until after 11pm.

After four very full and satisfying days of pounding the pavement my feet were toast. Our step counters indicate somewhere around 13 - 18,000 steps a day (5.5 -7 miles). As many know, I am a cyclist. Walking is for losers. Oops, I signed on for the wrong activity. But still I (and all of Team Michigan) would rather this than phone-banking. Linda and I left on Friday afternoon but could have done another turf in the morning. I feel guilty that we wimped out and slept in a bit. With the help of another team member, Richard, who was leaving on the same flight we did a quick pilgrimage to the graves of Rosa Parks and Aretha Franklin and then did a drive-through, tourist visit of downtown Detroit before heading to the airport. We got back to Seattle, and because of the gracious lift Richard’s wife provided, we were in time to attend a fund raiser for “Rebuilding Together - Seattle” at MOHAI. Yikes, too much civic duty stuff in one week.

After I have had some time to recover and cogitate on the past week I may fill in another post with erudite missives covering a newbies reactions to getting out of ones comfort zone in politics. I also may add some statistics about how many doors knocked, people talked to, dogs kicked, votes secured (from our leader’s calculations). In the mean time thanks to the the whole Team Michigan for your companionship and encouragement to us newbies. A particular big thanks to Ron, our leader whose low-key, but totally organized plans kept us busy in an efficient way but never pressured us to take on more than we could comfortably do.

Also see: facebook: #commonpurposemichigan

Now, it’s time to take a break, kick back and watch some soccer with a beer this weekend.

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lucyariablog · 7 years

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Content Syndication: More Than a Traffic Boost

I learned content distribution, syndication, and SEO very much by accident.

Here’s the backstory: In 2005 I was firmly rooted in the world of documentaries. I worked on projects for ABC News, HBO, The New York Times and Frontline – always as a freelancer. I worked on films about terrorism in Europe, Abu Ghraib, Americans preparing for the apocalypse, and more. One of the Frontline programs, however, proved to be prophetic. I didn’t know it then, but The Secret History of the Credit Card would change the course of my career.

Toward the end of my time in documentaries and TV, the work got a little weird. At one point, within the space of a month, I’d gone from producing episodes of Frontline for The New York Times to producing an episode of Wife Swap. I was getting married and needed a change. I also needed health insurance.

Eventually, I saw an opening at the financial news site TheStreet.com and, based on my experience with the credit-card documentary, I landed a job there as managing editor of MainStreet.com, a new site focused on personal finance. The MainStreet editorial team was a fun, scrappy group, which was good because we were functioning as a startup within the company. We needed traffic and we were new, so generating awareness in a crowded personal finance beat was not easy. Over the years I’ve worked in personal finance for a variety of media organizations, big and small, established and startup. Now I’ve started my own company helping businesses of all types develop editorial and content strategies that make sense. It should come as no surprise that generating awareness is just about everyone’s top goal.

One of the most important tools in creating that kind of awareness, I’ve learned over the years, is content distribution. I’m not talking about paid, cost-per-click-oriented content discovery channels like Outbrain (though these tools can be highly effective in a few ways). I’m talking about syndication where sites like MSN, Yahoo, AOL/The Huffington Post, USA Today, and many others run your articles, and often those articles include links to related editorial content on your site. There are variations of this arrangement. For example, in some cases there may be a revenue share of the ads sold by the media outlet against your content hosted on its site, but the vast majority of the syndication deals I’ve put together involved no money. (See key content distribution terms near end of this post.)

Google eyes syndicated content

When I first encountered this strategy, it seemed like it was all about eyeballs and traffic. Getting one of your articles featured on a big news portal’s home page carousel meant that millions of people would be exposed to your story and learn about your brand. More importantly, getting an article featured on the home page of a big web portal could lead to what is often referred to as a “fire hose” of traffic, with tens or even hundreds of thousands of people hitting your site over the course of hours or days.

Scoring that fire hose of traffic was often considered the big win in the world of content syndication, but over time as I moved into different editorial roles, I learned that direct traffic was just the tip of the iceberg. Traffic from syndication partners is inherently spiky – there’s often no way to predict when your article will get prime placement on a site you don’t control – and prime placement (like the home page carousel, for example) is the key to getting that fire hose of traffic. One day an editor at one of those portals may like one of your stories and share it with the world, and the next day they don’t and it ends up buried in a vertical that sees relatively little traffic.

Direct traffic from syndicated content is only the tip of the iceberg, says @schreibot. Click To Tweet

Regardless of whether those syndicated articles find the eyeballs or languish on pages unseen, one segment of the audience sees everything: search engines.

Google, the dominant search engine, along with Bing and others, sees these syndicated articles on news sites with powerful domain authority, and, more importantly, sees the links in the articles pointing to articles on the syndicators’ home websites. Inbound links from authoritative news sites can signal that the target sites have strong content, and the articles are solid, trustworthy pieces about the subjects in question.

Search engines may be more likely to rank these sites and those articles higher in their results, which in turn means more organic (aka free) traffic over time. While syndicated articles may be hit or miss when it comes to that fire hose of traffic, they are also potentially helpful when it comes to growing organic traffic to your website. That organic traffic, when managed well, can grow considerably over time and usually isn’t spiky at all.

Syndicated articles can be helpful when it comes to growing organic traffic to your website, says @schreibot. Click To Tweet

Now, there are some caveats. First, not all syndication partners give credit for the links to your website. They may code those links as “no-follow,” which essentially communicates to search engines that the links should be ignored. Secondly, Google and other search engines change their algorithms regularly, and the way they view syndicated content will likely evolve. In fact, earlier this year Google suggested that syndicating articles solely for the purposes of link building was inadvisable and provided a variety of best practices to avoid a penalty, including adding those “no-follow” tags to links.

If I’m reading the Google tea leaves right, I get where it is coming from. Content syndication shouldn’t be all about link building. You need to be committed to investing in the creation of a strong editorial team, because you believe that, in the long run, search algorithms and fire hoses aside, great content – on your site or others – represents a powerful way to attract and interact with your audience.

HANDPICKED RELATED CONTENT: Shares Are Not Enough: How to Amplify Your Content and Build Links

Experts talk big value of syndicated content

I spoke to Hajnen Payson, head of Trihon Media (an SEO consultancy), a former colleague and a friend who I consider a genius at all things search. We talk about this a lot, and despite recent or future search engine algorithm changes, he believes that syndication has real value.

“In my heart I feel that there will always be value because in order to syndicate to a real news site, your content has to be really good,” says Payson. “Even if authoritative news and media sites were targeted by the search engines, I still think it’d be valuable. It’s all about getting your site out there and, through syndication, you’re exposing yourself to more people and sites that might share. It’s like getting great press on TV. Even though they are on TV and there’s no link that can be shared, those big hits often cause organic lift just by creating awareness.

Syndication remains valuable, despite potential search penalties, says @hajnen. #SEO Click To Tweet

This type of syndication strategy was a tool used for a time almost exclusively by traditional news organizations. Small news sites in need of a bigger audience would syndicate to larger news organizations in need of more content. The larger sites would get solid, free content, against which they could sell ads, and the smaller sites would create more awareness of their existence, grow traffic which they should be able to monetize, and sometimes get the fire hose. Over the past several years, however, others have been getting into the game. One group is independent journalists and bloggers looking to build an audience for their own personal sites.

Independent journalists & bloggers look at syndicated content as a way to build audiences. @schreibot Click To Tweet

Until a few years ago, Trae Bodge was the spokesperson for the couponing site RetailMeNot.com.

When she struck out on her own, both as a freelancer and creator of her own website with original content, syndication was part of her strategy. (Full disclosure: Trae is a friend and I’ve hired her for freelance work.)

“The fact that my articles have been picked up by these major news sites has made a significant impact,” she says. “As I’ve invested in content and SEO it’s been particularly impressive to see my own little site’s domain authority grow along with organic traffic.”

Content syndication is part of my strategy and has made an impact. @truetrae Click To Tweet

E-commerce companies are learning the same lessons, though their challenge from an organizational perspective is more significant. It’s considerably easier for journalists to pivot from large media organizations, establish themselves as independent journalists, and convince news portals to syndicate them than it is for, say, an insurance company to do the same thing. But it absolutely can be done.

HANDPICKED RELATED CONTENT: The Only 10 Ways to Make Money From Content Marketing

Key things to consider for content syndication

In fact, many companies are pursuing this strategy, particularly in the financial news space. There are, however, some important things to consider if you’re working to establish a real editorial operation.

First, news content must be original and editorially sound – especially when it’s syndicated. That means you need to hire real writers and editors with journalistic skills. Articles must be well researched, well sourced with real quotes, well edited and fact-checked.

Second, generally you can’t sell your wares directly in these articles, and usually you can’t link to product pages at all. The goal is to establish your site as an objective authority about a subject. If you can’t write about something objectively because it may conflict with your business interests, then don’t write about it. The sales team can’t tell the editorial team what to write. This is a real no-spin zone and all conflicts of interest, whether real or perceived, must be declared. (The big news organizations do it, and so must you.)

Third, be honest and up-front with your editorial audience about how you make money. It’s not enough to stay away from areas of conflict. You should incorporate an editorial disclosure into your site that explains how your business works. Don’t hide it. If you’re honest about how your company profits, readers are more likely to trust and share your content.

Content syndication goal: Establish your site as an objective authority about a subject, says @schreibot. Click To Tweet

Finally, be smart about what you link to. This is how you tell your audience and, potentially, search engines which pages on your site are most important. It’s also how you ultimately measure the effectiveness of this exercise. This doesn’t mean you should cram your articles full of links for which you want to rank, but if you have articles that are informative, useful, representative of your site, and, most importantly, truly relevant in the context of the syndicated article, then link to them when appropriate. Remember, ultimately you want some portion of your reading audience to engage with you in one way or another, and properly monitoring and optimizing this conversion funnel is paramount, regardless of whether the source of the traffic is referral, direct, or organic.

There is no reason why commercial entities cannot support news organizations. There’s a long history of it in America. CBS News is owned by National Amusements. ABC News is owned by Disney. NBC News is owned by Comcast, and was once owned by GE. They all may have perceived conflicts, but they all adhere to editorial standards and practices. The strength of these standards and practices is what makes these real news sites and keeps their audiences coming back (though these days, in the era of supposed “fake news,” that’s getting harder).

The irony here is that traditional news organizations have just as much if not more to learn from e-commerce companies. The existing model for digital news is based largely on CPMs or ad impressions: News organizations get paid, say, $2 for every 1,000 impressions of an ad on their site. These CPMs have steadily fallen over the years, which means that news organizations have had to diversify. They are exploring new revenue streams like e-commerce. In other words, instead of getting paid a small amount when someone maybe sees an ad, some news sites are getting paid much more when readers click on and buy a product from links on the sites. The New York Times recently bought TheWirecutter.com, which features editorially independent product reviews, for this very reason. (Check out its editorial disclosure if you want to see how to do it right.) E-commerce could very well be the key to saving the news business. It may be why Jeff Bezos bought The Washington Post … but that’s another story.

HANDPICKED RELATED CONTENT: An Easy-to-Apply Framework to Build Your (New or Mature) Content Marketing Team

Definitions of content discovery, syndication and licensing

Before we conclude, content syndication terms often are used interchangeably to describe different ways of paying or bartering to get your content seen by a wider audience. CCO Chief Consulting Editor Clare McDermott sums up how to differentiate them.

Content discovery engines

Platforms like Outbrain, Sharethrough, and Taboola disseminate your content using recommendation engines – which are essentially small widgets placed at the bottom or right margin of an article that recommend further reading. A content creator pays a company like Outbrain to include its content in the widget, and in return gets a boost of traffic to its site. These recommendation boxes are labeled as sponsored, though the transparency of that labeling varies widely. Pricing is based on cost per click.

Use platforms like @outbrain, @sharethrough & @taboola to disseminate content, says @soloportfolio. Click To Tweet

HANDPICKED RELATED CONTENT: 19 Favorite Tools for Content Promotion in 2017

Content syndication

In a syndication relationship, a content creator provides content to a media site, and the media site offers backlinks in return for the content. Some cases may involve a revenue share of the ads sold by the media outlet against the content hosted on its site, but most syndication deals involve no money. Syndication is an increasingly popular way for digital media companies to beef up their content without paying directly for its creation, and content creators like syndication for the traffic it drives to their websites. Sites like MSN and Yahoo are well known for using syndication arrangements, but even non-media companies like LinkedIn use syndication strategies that are built on a barter relationship rather than a paid relationship.

Content licensing

In a licensing deal, a content creator agrees to provide content in exchange for payment – whether in a one-time arrangement or a sustained relationship. Different types of intermediaries help brands with licensing deals. A company like NewsCred acts as a clearinghouse for companies that need to access more content and are willing to pay for it. And content creators can use a licensing agency to monetize the content they develop.

Use a company like @newscred when you need to access more content & willing to pay for it. @soloportfolio Click To Tweet

A version of this article originally appeared in the November issue of CCO magazine. Subscribe for your free print copy today.

Cover image by Joseph Kalinowski/Content Marketing Institute

Please note: All tools included in our blog posts are suggested by authors, not the CMI editorial team. No one post can provide all relevant tools in the space. Feel free to include additional tools in the comments (from your company or ones that you have used).

The post Content Syndication: More Than a Traffic Boost appeared first on Content Marketing Institute.

from http://contentmarketinginstitute.com/2017/12/content-syndication-traffic/

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gabrielcollignon · 7 years

Text

Content Syndication: More Than a Traffic Boost

I learned content distribution, syndication, and SEO very much by accident.

Google eyes syndicated content

Direct traffic from syndicated content is only the tip of the iceberg, says @schreibot. Click To Tweet

Regardless of whether those syndicated articles find the eyeballs or languish on pages unseen, one segment of the audience sees everything: search engines.

Syndicated articles can be helpful when it comes to growing organic traffic to your website, says @schreibot. Click To Tweet

HANDPICKED RELATED CONTENT: Shares Are Not Enough: How to Amplify Your Content and Build Links

Experts talk big value of syndicated content

Syndication remains valuable, despite potential search penalties, says @hajnen. #SEO Click To Tweet

Independent journalists & bloggers look at syndicated content as a way to build audiences. @schreibot Click To Tweet

Until a few years ago, Trae Bodge was the spokesperson for the couponing site RetailMeNot.com.

Content syndication is part of my strategy and has made an impact. @truetrae Click To Tweet

HANDPICKED RELATED CONTENT: The Only 10 Ways to Make Money From Content Marketing

Key things to consider for content syndication

Content syndication goal: Establish your site as an objective authority about a subject, says @schreibot. Click To Tweet

HANDPICKED RELATED CONTENT: An Easy-to-Apply Framework to Build Your (New or Mature) Content Marketing Team

Definitions of content discovery, syndication and licensing

Content discovery engines

Use platforms like @outbrain, @sharethrough & @taboola to disseminate content, says @soloportfolio. Click To Tweet

HANDPICKED RELATED CONTENT: 19 Favorite Tools for Content Promotion in 2017

Content syndication

Content licensing

Use a company like @newscred when you need to access more content & willing to pay for it. @soloportfolio Click To Tweet

A version of this article originally appeared in the November issue of CCO magazine. Subscribe for your free print copy today.

Cover image by Joseph Kalinowski/Content Marketing Institute

The post Content Syndication: More Than a Traffic Boost appeared first on Content Marketing Institute.

#Business

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