I haven’t blogged all week, so you must be wondering what I’ve been up to. It’s been a productive week I must say!
I have worked on my next big article entitled: “how to get the media to pick up your news release.” Still not done yet. I think I’m writing a book on it! I want to polish it up a little more before I send it out. It might end up being a multi-part story.
I don’t like to rattle off poorly thought out blog posts and would rather have a better quality article instead of a shoot-from-the-lip piece.
That being said, I’ve been doing some search engine optimization work on some of my sites, client sites and have had a couple meetings with potential SEO clients. I’ve also met with some potential public relations clients, mainly doing press releases and media outreach.
I love this kind of work. It really gets my creative juices flowing. It’s been four weeks since I was laid off from my last job (now I’ve started my own Edmonton SEO company). I’m not seeing it as a bad thing necessarily. I’ve been writing a lot more and felt more creative in the last few weeks than I have in a long time. It’s been great!
I have rattled off a half-dozen articles this week and plan on publishing those in the near future, so make sure you keep checking back.
While the fruits of my labour might not be out there for all to see (yet), they will be soon.
Will write for food!
On that note, I might as well see if there’s anyone who needs any writing done. I am capable of writing just about anything, but if it’s a sequel to War and Peace, that’s going to cost you!
I was thinking more along the lines of blogging, articles (I’m a former newspaper reporter), press releases, website copy, ad copy, ebooks, etc. I might even do an obituary if you really want. Maybe you’d like yours done in advance? Don’t leave it to the last minute!
I believe in writing well-researched, quality copy. I think that there’s a sad lack of quality writing out there these days and people know it. I believe that readers appreciate well-written articles and web content. If you’re looking for something like that, let me know.
Just go over to my new Contact page to get in touch with me.
Cruising around Edmonton
I was out on my scooter the other day in one of Edmonton’s many beautiful old neighbourhoods. I found the La Boheme building down 111 Ave. This city has many architectural gems. I love these old buildings. It’s nice to see a city that preserves its heritage.
I’ve lived in places where heritage doesn’t mean much and the cheapest construction is preferred. I’m not sure if I can take cinder blocks and metal siding anymore. Not making much of a statement with that kind of construction.
I am happy to be living in Edmonton. We made a good choice coming here. The people are friendly and it really is a beautiful city.
Comments:
1. Adam Snider Says: October 24th, 2008 at 2:26 pm
I’m not sure I’d say that Edmonton preserves it’s heritage. I mean, we’ve been doing better lately, but in the ’70s and ’80s (the last oil boom) a lot of old building were destroyed in the name of progress, and cheap, ugly, concrete rectangles were erected everywhere because they were the easiest and fastest things that could be built.
While there are a lot of gems in Edmonton, the city is unfortunately pretty ugly compared to most major Canadian cities (especially older, eastern cities).
Don’t get me wrong, I love Edmonton and I think there are a lot of beautiful areas in the city. But, taken as a whole, I’d have to say that Edmonton is pretty ugly because, for so long, no one cared about history and no one cared about erecting buildings that actually had some architectural merit.
2. Iris Says: October 24th, 2008 at 2:38 pm
Alain – I am a PR girl, and if you have some sure-fire ways of getting the media to pick up one of my releases, PLEASE fill me in! My clients would appreciate it.
Adam – I have to reluctantly agree. The fact that Edmonton’s history is so short and the fact that for so long, we didn’t care about preserving that history, has turned my beloved city into a bit of a eyesore, save for a few lovely neighborhoods (Old Glenora, Ada Boulevard etc)
3. Mack D. Male Says: October 24th, 2008 at 3:11 pm
I’d say on the whole, you’re right Adam, Edmonton is not as nice to look at as other major cities. But that’s what makes the gems, such as the one Alain found, all that much better
4. Alain Saffel Says:October 24th, 2008 at 3:49 pm
Thanks for your comments!
Adam/Mack: I can’t speak for the past, but I do see a lot of nice old buildings here. At least they’re doing the work to preserve them now. You can never preserve all of them, but there are some that definitely should be.
I will quarrel with you about being an attractive city. There are a lot of attractive areas here. The new shopping areas, I’d agree, aren’t attractive. Some of the old, run down areas, I’d agree, but look at cities everywhere. They all have run down areas. They all have these clone malls.
It’s impossible to compete with the history of cities back east, but I think Edmonton is doing a good job generally. If you want to see an ugly city, try my hometown of Prince George, B.C. It’s better now, but has a long way to go. Kamloops has a nice downtown.
And how could you possibly hope to compete with the natural beauty of Vancouver?
I think Edmonton’s bigger issue is the rate at which we’re consuming productive farmland for what amounts to ugly sprawl. To me, row upon row of condos is not attractive. More non-descript shopping malls are ugly.
Iris: I’ll have my article out next week so you can check it out. I wouldn’t say they’re sure-fire ways, but will improve your odds. Let me know what you think once you’ve read it.
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