It's not working for me

March 29, 2021

How do you know when the time is right? That's the question that keeps me awake at night. I've made decisions, but it's knowing when to implement them that's my problem. 

I thought I had the website issue settled, but no. I have a front page up and running and now it seems one cannot make changes to it. An even bigger issue is when I click my shortcut, I get a 999 message. Say...what? That is something I really don't understand. It takes refreshing the page for the website to appear. 

Is it hubris to desire to have my very own .com? Perhaps.

Is it absolutely necessary to have my very own .com? Perhaps. 

And there it is. The author is dithering again. 

I do like having a .com but what I have right now isn't going to work for very long. Right now, kckendricks.com directs everyone here to Between the Keys and that's fine in the short term. Blogger is where I hang out, be it here or at Holly Tree Manor, or at Deuce's Day (http://deucesday.blogspot.com).

And then there is the issue of all those links to kckendricks.com that have been posted over the years. How in the world does one update all of those? Who has the time? I'd have to do it thousands of times! I don't think that's in the cards. 

I worried that the newer website softwares would be beyond my grasp, but I figured one out so I know I can figure out another. 

It looks like I'll begin again to search for webhosting that works better for me. Hubris is both annoying and frustrating. Maybe it's just plain being hardheaded. 

 _*_*_*_*_*_*_

 KC Kendricks

My home on the web- Between the Keys: 

http://kckendricks.blogspot.com

Visit my bookshelf at: 

https://kckendricks.blogspot.com/p/the-bookshelf-of-kc-kendricks-and-rayne_3.html

Social media links:

twitter.com/kckendricks

pinterest.com/kckendricks/boards

instagram.com/kc_kendricks

facebook.com/kckendricks

Life through the eyes of my black Lab, Greenbrier Smokey Deuce: deucesday.blogspot.com

My country life at Holly Tree Manor: hollytreemanor.blogspot.com

Snips and clips on my YouTube channel: KC Kendricks Between the Key

Caesar, beware the Ides of March - website is updated!

 March 15, 2021

Well, color me relieved! The new website is live. It's not finished, but at least kckendricks.com has a home. 

There is a lot more to do, so stay posted. 

www.kckendricks.com

 _*_*_*_*_*_*_

 KC Kendricks

My home on the web- Between the Keys: 

http://kckendricks.blogspot.com

Visit my bookshelf at: 

https://kckendricks.blogspot.com/p/the-bookshelf-of-kc-kendricks-and-rayne_3.html

Social media links:

twitter.com/kckendricks

pinterest.com/kckendricks/boards

instagram.com/kc_kendricks

facebook.com/kckendricks

Life through the eyes of my black Lab, Greenbrier Smokey Deuce: deucesday.blogspot.com

My country life at Holly Tree Manor: hollytreemanor.blogspot.com

Snips and clips on my YouTube channel: KC Kendricks Between the Key

This is becoming beyond annoying

March 15, 2021

Work on the new .com is progressing. Some decisions have been made and a few of them are already implemented. I have a new home page formatted using new software and it's...acceptable. Many of the pages of the old website have been taken down. 

Why is the old site still up and the new one not? Because Yahoo has hidden the DELETE SITE button somewhere unfathomable. 

Or perhaps it's because I'm of the age I like to think for myself and Yahoo does not like that. They reward herd mentality, not free-thinking (and especially not free speech). 

Here's the thing. I figured out one piece of new site building, so I know I can figure out another. 

Later today I'll see if I can get through to customer service, and you know how annoying THAT is going to be.

KC Kendricks, who feels like she's in cyberspace limbo.

 _*_*_*_*_*_*_

My home on the web- Between the Keys: 

http://kckendricks.blogspot.com

Visit my bookshelf at: 

https://kckendricks.blogspot.com/p/the-bookshelf-of-kc-kendricks-and-rayne_3.html

Social media links:

twitter.com/kckendricks

pinterest.com/kckendricks/boards

instagram.com/kc_kendricks

facebook.com/kckendricks

Life through the eyes of my black Lab, Greenbrier Smokey Deuce: deucesday.blogspot.com

My country life at Holly Tree Manor: hollytreemanor.blogspot.com

Snips and clips on my YouTube channel: KC Kendricks Between the Key

Switching from website to blog

 

March 7, 2021

A few short weeks ago I learned that Yahoo was ending support for the Site Builder software I've used since 2004. To say I'm not pleased about this is an understatement. Site Builder is...was...incredibly easy to use, especially since I was already well-acquainted with MS Publisher. Apparently, though, the powers that be consider the software inappropriate for viewing websites on a cell phone so it had to go bye-bye. 

Some day, when everyone goes blind from staring at itty-bitty screens, I'll still be chugging along on my big screen. No eye strain here. But I digress...

Years ago, yes YEARS, I began a project to mirror all the book pages of my .com here at Between the Keys. I never really got the project off the ground but now seemed like the time to get caught up. Last night I loaded the final book page and now I can start the work of looking for new website software and a new web host. Yahoo has made moves over the last few years that make me wonder at its leadership and stability. It's time to move on. 

I kinda like having the pages here at Between the Keys. I've found Blogger to be a good platform, but again, who knows how long it will remain so I need to have a .com somewhere else. Blogger did undergo an update last year that made it more difficult to use. Its next update will probably take another step toward Small Screenville. 

It's a lot of work to get done when I could, and should, be working on the latest manuscript. At what point will it become more than I want to undertake? I don't know. I'm not yet at that point, so website shopping I will go now that Blogger "has my back."

I do know one thing. Just like I printed all my .com pages to .pdf, I'll copy all the book pages here at Between the Keys in html and save them for posterity. It may be a waste of time, or it may save my bacon somewhere down the line. It's better to be prepared. 

Words to live by. It's better to be prepared. 

 _*_*_*_*_*_*_

 KC Kendricks

My home on the web- Between the Keys: 

http://kckendricks.blogspot.com

Visit my bookshelf at: 

https://kckendricks.blogspot.com/p/the-bookshelf-of-kc-kendricks-and-rayne_3.html

Social media links:

twitter.com/kckendricks

pinterest.com/kckendricks/boards

instagram.com/kc_kendricks

facebook.com/kckendricks

Life through the eyes of my black Lab, Greenbrier Smokey Deuce: deucesday.blogspot.com

My country life at Holly Tree Manor: hollytreemanor.blogspot.com

Snips and clips on my YouTube channel: KC Kendricks Between the Key

What is #pitmad?

March 5, 2021                                                                                                                                              

Recently my Twitter feed blew up with the #pidmad tag. What fresh hell is this, I asked myself. As with all things, Google knows too freaking much. Here's what I learned from Google.

Pitmad is a quarterly event, on Twitter, where writers with unpublished manuscripts attempt to catch the notice of an agent or editor. You only get 280 characters so you need to be concise and leave room for hashtags. Once you've tweeted with the appropriate hashtags, you pin the tweet to your profile to make it easier for others to find. If you're lucky, your peeps will give you a lot of retweets, but remember they've got their own tweets out there so do your due diligence and do some retweeting for them. 

And do not like or click on the heart of anyone's pitch, either. On Pitmad day, that's reserved for the agents and editors so you know who to query. 

There seems to be a set of hashtags to use, but this poor writer is out of the loop. That's what happens when a writer allows real-life to intrude on the muse. But since we writers have our own language, here are a few I think should work.

#F for fiction
#SF for science fiction or speculative fiction
#M for mystery or #CM for cozy mystery
#S for suspense or #T for thriller
#P for paranormal
#YA for young adult
#LGBT and #BSDM need no explanation

It can be a bit daunting to jump into the fray, but in reality, you've got an equal shot with the other thousands of writers going #pitmad crazy. Just remember that catching the notice of an agent or editor, while exciting, may not mean a thing to your career. It may or may not get your published. BE CAREFUL. 

Before you give out any personal information to someone on Twitter, be sure to check them out. Make Google find you an agency phone number and make that call. Take your conversations off the Internet and make notes. Do your due diligence to protect yourself. 

I don't write this to discourage anyone. We need your voice. You deserve your shot. Just be cognizant of those who are waiting to take advantage of inexperience. You deserve fair treatment above all else.

So sayeth this writing elder. 

 _*_*_*_*_*_*_

 KC Kendricks

My home on the web- Between the Keys: 

http://kckendricks.blogspot.com

Visit my bookshelf at: 

https://kckendricks.blogspot.com/p/the-bookshelf-of-kc-kendricks-and-rayne_3.html

Social media links:

twitter.com/kckendricks

pinterest.com/kckendricks/boards

instagram.com/kc_kendricks

facebook.com/kckendricks

Life through the eyes of my black Lab, Greenbrier Smokey Deuce: deucesday.blogspot.com

My country life at Holly Tree Manor: hollytreemanor.blogspot.com

Snips and clips on my YouTube channel: KC Kendricks Between the Key