Flaws vs. Handicaps

Differences/Definitions

• A flaw is internal, a handicap is external.
• A flaw typically has to do with personality or internal problems that make it hard to solve a problem, a handicap is something like lack of time, or physical things that make it hard to solve a problem.
• A flaw is the hero’s fault (temper), a handicap is not (ex: Mary Jane in Spiderman).
• A flaw you overcome and it leads to a character arc, a handicap you do not overcome and it leads to more conflict.

Why Conflict is Needed

• Flaws/handicaps allow for the reader to relate and connect with the story.
• We can see ourselves in the characters of a story when they are not perfect.
• Flaws allow for growth and development in characters.
• People identify with change; watching characters go through change inspires us.
• Example: Spiderman allowed for people to relate because he was a teenage boy with problems of his own, however, Spiderman was not able to grow with his readers. People who started with Spiderman are now parents, while Spiderman is still fresh out of college.

Difficulties with Adding Flaws

• How can you make challenges that are interesting and continually more difficult and different than the previous flaw?
• How often do you create new flaws and how much can readers handle?
• How can you constantly come up with new, innovating ideas to develop your characters?
• How do you match flaws to heroes and not give them the wrong challenges?

How to Write Flaws Well

• Create conflicts that allow your characters to grow how you want them to. The flaws will allow them to grow and develop in a certain way, so find out what point you want your character to be at, and create a challenge to get them to that point.
• Create problems that allow readers to see the deeper side of your characters.
• Make sure your flaws are actual challenges and not just quirks.
• Make them likeable! (ex: Luke Skywalker was a whiny boy…typically unappealing, but they wrote it in a way that worked)
• Make your flaws realistic and relatable.
• Make them competent, give them strengths to balance out their weaknesses.

Involvement in Communities

One of the biggest involvements in a community is the involvement in a personal education. While education is widely variable and dependent upon each person and circumstance, it's typically known in our society that a higher education will lead to a better paying job. Careers that pay higher salaries often require years and years of schooling to make sure only the top notch people get those jobs. When you have a higher education, people are more likely to listen to you and trust in what you have to say. Just having a college degree will increase your chances of getting a job exponentially. 

When someone has a higher education, their involvement in society will increase. They are more likely to be taken more seriously and have more opportunities to get involved in their communities. In my opinion, civil life and the level of education you have are directly correlated and influence each other greatly.

Going along with this, another question asked was talking about organizations. There are many different organizations and different types of ways to get involved, but for me personally, I think education and work organizations are the most important. I believe that you will find success through your connections, and so I always am working to put my name out there and to get connected with as many people as I can. These types of organizations are the most important to me because I feel like they impact my future the most.

One example of this took place last year. I am in the broadcast journalism major and I am working to become a sports reported. I currently work for BYUtv and I am planning on interning with ESPN this next year. I always try to get involved with my boss because I know he has many connections that could be potentially valuable to me. I've always been really involved and invested in college basketball and football, and last year I had the opportunity to do a lot of work with new recruits. Because of my work organization and connections through my boss, I was able to work directly with a highly recruited basketball player who was considering BYU - Jabari Parker. It is because I put myself out there and decided to get involved that I was able to have more coverage and greater experiences. Without being involved in my education, schooling, and work, I would've never had the opportunity to do something that was so defining for my career.

Another classic, maybe cliche, example that I was to include is involvement in church organizations. Going to BYU, the high involvement in all of our church activities seems normal and unimpressive. However, compared to everyone else in the world, our involvement is insanely high. As members of this church, we put so much time and effort into being truly involved. Personally, I decided to give up time and education to serve a mission. While that's normal at BYU, it's often unheard of at other places. Our involvement in the church and dedication to the Gospel is what makes it such a success and why it is spreading so wide and far so quickly. It just goes to show how true dedication can go a long way. (aaaaaaand cue cheesy mission picture now)

Top Ten Influences - Online Writers

My group had the task of finding out how to advertise to podcasters. We eventually decided that the work that needed to be taken to advertise to them was not worth what the final outcome would be. We then switched over to online writers and how we can reach out to them.

Emily posted what our keywords are, which are:
- Writing workshop
- Creative writing exercises
- Writing prompts
- Creative writing exercises daily

These terms seemed to be searched often and have a high result rate. Along with those ones, some terms that I've found to be successful are:
-Creative writing ideas
-Writing tips
-Tips for creative writing
-Creative writing help
-Writing practice


As far as leveraging out to other people, I found these Twitter accounts that could be useful.
@writing_tips (30.6K followers)
@WritingCraft (17.4K followers)
@writingproject (19.9k followers)
@365Things2Write (1,000 followers)


Websites online we could use are:
http://www.writerscafe.org
http://www.scribophile.com/

Interacting Online

The amount of online interaction has increased drastically over the past few years. When the internet started, I know I used it dial-up connection to play flash games online, which I could only do for 10 minutes at a time because when I was on the internet, our phone didn't work. Now, I have everything I've ever needed in the form of my iPhone. I use my Facebook to connect with family, I use my Twitter to say random thoughts to my friends, I use my Instagram to post pictures of how awesome my life is, and I use SnapChat to try and be funny. One app that I think has really exploded just over the past year is Tinder.

People used to poke fun at the idea of match.com or any other related website, but now almost every single young adult has this Tinder app. Almost all of my friends have been on a "Tinder date" and I've heard of instances where people even get married from meeting on the app. 10 years ago, this is something that never would have happened.

I think that people have become so reliant on their phones that it can take away from actual experiences. A couple of weeks ago, I went to a party where my friend left the dance floor to go to the side and spent 30 minutes editing a photo and posting it on Instagram rather than enjoying the night. Another time, I was with my friends in my living room and we all spent an entire hour playing Flappy Bird trying to beat our high scores.

With smart phones, it's become practically normal to always be staring at a screen. While we're typically on social media, the fact that everyone else is on it gives us a sense of belonging. 

A couple of weeks ago, I was with my friend and we were literally sitting next to each other when he started texting me. Although I thought it was a little weird at first, I quickly dismissed it because we were still communicating, even though it was through our phones rather than just opening our mouths.

Online interaction has become so normal that I think it can replace in-person interaction. Even now, I'm able to attend class even though I have mono because of Skype. The online world allows possibilities that would've been nonexistent before. 

The Online Community

Anyone who says that the world hasn't changed in the past 20 years is lying. Obviously, the technological advances that have occurred and continue to occur as time passes by in incredible and almost mind-blowing. I look at the differences just between a generation gap of me and my mom, and the challenges she faces are problems I could easily solve by doing a quick Google search. We rely on the internet not only to solve our problems, but to interact and to communicate. The communities we create online are extensions of our real-life communities, and they provide ways for us to easily ask and answer questions.

These are the groups I'm a member of on Facebook. Most of them have to deal with BYU - including my ward, my major, my minor, and clubs I've joined. There's also groups for my friends getting married and groups from my mission. These are all extended resources for groups I've made in real life. This allows us to be a community from the easiness of opening up our laptop or pulling up the pages on our smart phone. 

I just moved into my ward this winter, so I don't personally know everyone yet. However, because I am a part of the Facebook page, I can still have my voice be heard to everyone in our ward. We're able to make plans and give announcements that would be extremely difficult to get out if we didn't have to Facebook page. 

Here is the screenshot of the homepage of my ward page.  Our community started out as a group of people who share the same beliefs and are religious, and it transferred to an online community where we can make plans together for the weekend or ask each other for favors. Without Facebook, I don't think either of these people would have gone around to each house in my ward and asked people if they have a mouse pad or want to go on a hike. But because of the simpleness of the online community, it was made possible. 

While we still have the in-person community, the online group is just a further extension of our already-established community that allows for easy communication to everyone in the group. Online communities are almost essential now, and it's hard to function without being able to have a group online. I don't think one limits each other, but rather they build off of each other.

Advertising Westercon 67 through Podcasters

Podcasts...does anyone actually use them? After looking into the podcast audience, the participation is very low and it doesn't seem like podcasters are someone we want to spend time and money advertising on. Podcasts do exist, but I feel like people would be much more responsive to advertisements over the radio or through booths set up at related events. The podcast following is so small that it just doesn’t seem like it’s worth the work that would need to be put into it, and I don’t think the results we would get from advertising through podcasts would be as successful as we’re hoping.

However, although the following isn't as big as some other outlets, there is still a way to advertise to them without going out of our way too much. Here are my ideas:

Tweets:

-Creating your own story isn't as hard as you think! Come to @Westercon67 to learn tips and tricks to improve your skills!

-Do you have great ideas but don't know how to get them down on paper? @Westercon67 is here to help! Come learn how to be a better writer!

-Your fantasy story can be a reality...@Westercon67 will improve your writing skills one workshop at a time!

-Podcasts don't have to be strictly online! Come to @Westercon67 to meet fellow podcasters and gain tips to improve your writing!

-You've heard the podcasts...now it's time to start your own! @Westercon67 will teach you how to write your very own podcasts!

-Don't just be a listener, be a creator! @Westercon67 is here to improve your writing skills!

-You've talked the talk, now it's time to walk the walk. Come to @Westercon67 to learn how to create your own stories!

-That brilliant idea of yours doesn't have to stay cooped up in your brain any longer...come to @Westercon67 to become a better writer!

-Are you up to date on the latest podcasts? Come interact with other podcasters at @Westercon67!

-It's time to act on your instincts and produce your own podcasts! Come to @Westercon67 to learn how.

FB Posts:

-Now that you've heard the different podcasts, it's time to create your own! Westercon 67 will teach you writing skills and give you the motivation to become a creator! 

-Love interacting with podcasters online? Why not make those online friendships a reality? Come to Westercon 67 this July and meet other podcasters just like you!

-Being a writer isn't as hard as you think. Come get started and learn new skills at Westercon 67 this July!

-Do you have a prize-winning story idea stuck inside your head? It's time to get those creative juices flowing! Visit Westercon 67 and sign up to attend this July!

-You've been a fan long enough...it's time to be the creator! Come to Westercon 67 to learn tips and tricks to become a better writer.

EDIT:

Here's my spreadsheet (finally!)

Keyword	Total Pages	Avg. Monthly Searches	Pages per Search	Competition
writing workshop	62,000,000	1,600	38,750	Medium
creative writing exercises	11,500,000	3,600	3,194	Medium
writing prompts	16,100,000	40,500	397	Low
creative writing ideas	101,000,000	1,300	77,692	Low
writing tips	352,000,000	3,600	97,777	Low
writing practice	649,000,000	1,000	649,000	Medium
creative writing workshops	14,900,000	210	70,952	High

Marketing Through Social Media

Social media has changed the way all businesses advertise. While you can buy a commercial for thousands of dollars, you can also just create a Facebook page and advertise there for free. A big part of advertising through social media is how many likes you get, so companies will also come up with ways to get other people to like their pages. A popular way to get people to like your page is by starting giveaways or contests.
                                             

In both of these examples, the company made the customer "like" and "share" the picture. By doing this, it will pop up on the feed of the friends of the participator, and hopefully lure in others to like the page. Before social media, giveaways like this didn't exist. There's no way that a company could get to so many people in such a short amount of time before Facebook, Twitter, and other social media outlets. 

As far as the entertainment industry goes, I feel like it's harder to keep fan engagement, especially for movies that have a certain time of being popular and then blow over. One Facebook page I've liked for years now is for the movie 500 Days of Summer. I still enjoy their posts, even though the movie is old now. They take things from the movie and find ways to make them modern.

In this example, the page takes the main actor and uses other movies he was in to interact with the fans. This allows fans to remember their movie while also being modern and relevant, rather than using the same quotes and pictures from the movie over and over again.

This picture was a success because it admits that it's an old movie, but it brings in a question to make fans interact and be engaged, even though it's something of the past.

Another company of entertainment that advertises through social media really well is ESPN. I hope to be a sports reporter, so I follow ESPN's social media accounts very closely, and I've noticed how successful they are at interacting with their fans and allowed them to get involved.

This simple post has almost 5,000 comments. By creating a "fill-in-the-blank" status, it allowed fans to comment and interact with the company. 

Overall, social media has had a huge impact on advertising, marketing, and creating valuable relationships with fans and consumers. It has allowed those who are interesting in a product of piece of entertainment to truly immerse themselves and get involved with the companies.