StoryMoja Hay Festival 2014
You will notice a badge on the right sidebar of this blog saying that this blog is a Storymoja Festival 2014 participant this is basically a confirmation that I have been selected as one of the writers/bloggers for the Storymoja Hay Festival Blog. StoryMoja Hay Festival is a 5-day celebration of stories, ideas, writing and contemporary culture through storytelling, books, live discussion forums, workshops, debates, live performances, competitions, mchongoano and music.
This year the StoryMoja Hay Festival will take place from the 17th to 21st September at Nairobi National Museum in Nairobi, Celebrating the Theme Imagine the World! Waza Dunia!. As a participant in the festival, I am required to submit two post articles every month and publish it on their blog. I already posted my first post and it is related to what we post here, find the LINK HERE. I mus say that the mere fact that I am involved in the festival is such a great honor for me and count it as a blessing, furthermore I have met fellow bloggers and during the festival I will have a chance to meet great writers around Africa. What more can I wish for in this year?
I have copied a snippet of my first post on the Storymoja Hay Festival Blog for you but to get the complete post you must visit the link provided to read the complete post.
Writing for the Online Community
Did I just call them “the online community”? Well I don’t know anyone from that community and I have never met them on the streets before, but yes I did call them “the online community” and I am not the first one to do so. You and I are part of the online community. A community just like any other shares some characteristics that give them a definition, a look or an identity. If you want to reach out to this community you have to know those characteristics and that will help you a lot as a writer and blogger.
Some traditional writers will not agree with me but it is a fact that in these digital times people are substituting books for the internet. Some have given away or even – God-forbid – burned the books. You go to a friend’s house and find a big computer in the place where a bookshelf used to stand. Well, guys this is the digital age; welcome to it. Some writers have embraced this new change and now they call themselves bloggers. It’s pretty name but deep down in our veins we are writers.
Making that change is alright and congratulations to those who now blog as writers. However, don’t celebrate just yet, we have to learn some rules of engagement with this online community. We are now writing for readers with different characteristics that is why I have written this simple guide to help you write for the online community.
Here we go:
1. Design your writing platform:
I have a blog, which is my platform. These guys from the online community like trends, they want the latest and flashy things online. Just like your books or any other writing media you need to make your blog attractive and appealing to your readers for them to read to the bottom of your post……….. Read More on the Storymoja Hay Festival 2014 Blog.
Imagine The World!
Waza Dunia!
