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Jan 22

How Discourse Needs a Course of Action

by Chris Billows in Republic of Bloggers 0 comments tags: Blogging, Introduction, Virtuous Discourse
Dear Chris Bateman, I am replying further to your reply, The Virtue of Discourse: A Clarification Thank you for informing me that the Republic of Bloggers is not a concept that you personally founded. While I do not intend to embarrass you with an undeserved title, I do believe that any good idea needs its champions and it appears I projected this onto you. Not only do good ideas need champions, they also need a good story. Perhaps this is what is missing from the Republic of Bloggers? While the Republic itself may be a valuable concept, it is only made meaningful when it becomes something we can relate to, which is best done through the form of a story. Given your extensive experience in game design, narrative, and authorship, I think that you are uniquely qualified to help author the story of the Republic of Bloggers. Yet, this does not need to be a restrictive, one-way narrative. Perhaps some of us could engage in a roleplaying game that recreates the virtual founding and beginnings of the Republic. Not only would this serve to create a imaginary and fictional history for the Republic, I anticipate it would be a source […]

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Jan 15

Rooting for a Republic of Bloggers

by Chris Billows in Republic of Bloggers 0 comments tags: Blogging, Introduction, Virtuous Discourse
Dear Chris Bateman, I am reaching out to you about your post “A Republic of Bloggers“, which I found to be a refreshing take on a medium that has become far too associated with content marketing and search engine optimization. I am putting forward my intention to join you in your venture. What I found so appealing in your concept is the invitation to engage in a exchange of ideas, thoughts, and perspectives in a format that requires a greater effort and thus the possibility of greater reward. To exchange letters via our blogs is to engage in a practice that is becoming less and less attractive in a time where people prefer to be entertained by the latest tweet or feed. But we do not need to be popular to be meaningful, and perhaps it shall become the mantle for the Republic to do that which need not be popular. It only takes two to have a conversation, so perhaps with enough examples from a few of us, we can gather others to our Republic to expand our company. So I would like to engage with you to discuss some parameters for such an experiment. You mention that the […]

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Jan 14

Trapped in the Social Media Realm

by Chris Billows in Republic of Bloggers 0 comments tags: Blogging, Introduction, Personal Resolve
So I have been very remiss to update my Doc Surge blog for the past year mostly because of Twitter. I have been engaging in discussions and the odd argument with others. I have found this both invigorating and discouraging. There is some really excellent people to follow and interact with, but there is also lots of anti-social behavior that is very off-putting. It has all been very distracting and while I will continue to use Twitter to be exposed to new ideas, I am going to go back to blogging and working on my websites and games. Twitter and other social media realms (they all have their own distinct culture) can be a wonderful method to connect with others. I also believe that it can used to help promote your business interests. But the fact is that it creates the illusion of working. You can social network but you still need to work on your own stuff. Which is why I am going to shift back to blogging on my various sites and start revving up for a soft launch of Promaginy’s latest offering – Heropath.

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Dec 19

Social Network Marketing for IP

by Chris Billows in Business Beller 0 comments tags: Blogging, Boot-Strapping, Branding
Where We Are At I am sure I am not alone with the struggle about when does an IP (intellectual property) or product you are going to release need its own Twitter account? Its own Facebook Page? Google+ Page? The reality is that the internet has become more complicated. It used to be that all you needed to do is throw up a website and submit your domain address to the Search Engines. Now the internet is starting to carve itself into silos. No longer is your web browser the only way to use content now that the world wide web is being carved up by iOS Apps, Android Apps and now by closed networks in the form of Facebook and various other services. Each of the social networks appears to have a niche to appeal to. Facebook is by its initial nature is a place to share personal stories, profiles, and pictures. Twitter is really about following the news makers. Its one-way communication is vibrant though where it really shines is the moments of punctuated dynamic conversations with the hashtag (#) aligning diverse interests. Because of immense volume of tweets, it is really easy for your message to get […]

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Aug 07

How To Prepare To Blog

by Chris Billows in Republic of Bloggers 0 comments tags: Blogging, Self Analysis
Technology can be a wonderful thing. The ready availability and ease of setting up one’s own website is very easy because of services like WiredTree.com and blogging platforms like WordPress. But ease of publishing on the net is a gilded dream. It looks good but is insubstantial. You still need to do the hard work of coming up with good content which requires substantial perspiration and inspiration. And the only way to find inspiration is to know thyself enough to know what interests you and triggers a response. Otherwise, you are just rehashing what others are saying which is simply boring and lazy. Developing an online presence has never been easier, but this ease of entry into the market means that portraying a unique message is even more important. And this can only be done by developing enough self-insight to know what things trigger in you an emotional and intellectual response so you have material to work with. Its what separates the leaders from the followers. It is hard work because it requires so much self-analysis and self-editing. Thankfully, just like any skill set, it becomes easier with practice and repetition.
Feb 08

Restarting With WordPress

by Chris Billows in Business Beller, Hobby Heedings 0 comments tags: Blogging, Introduction
I’ve finally arrived to WordPress, an amazing free platform to do self-journal-ling online or what is called blogging (shortened from weblogging). I thought it would be neat to share a little bit of how I got here.     In 1995 a family member setup an Internet Service Provider and I was one of his first customers. I developed my first website back in 1995 called The Digital Tree. It was an eclectic mix of interests combining interest in politics, spirituality, video games, etc. I expanded this website to allow for some political action ventures including the Green Party of Manitoba and Canadians for Proportional Representation. In 2000 I became more involved with politics and created a book that made the striking case that Canada’s First Past the Post elections are twisting voting intentions. I wrote and self-published an ebook called Polls, Parties, and Power that measured elections across the Canadian federation. This was captured in Beacon Publishing, a personal venture that attempted to also do some affiliate marketing as a sideline. My interest in politics waned as my idealistic notions ran up against stark realities. My lack of patience ushered me out of the political arena. This lead to […]
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