Perspective on Attending Blog Paws

Where to begin?

From the moment I entered the lobby of the Sheraton
Premiere, on Thursday morning, to the time I finally left to catch my flight home on Sunday afternoon, I had one of the best times of my life.

As a newbie to Blog Paws conferences I admit to being a little nervous but, standing there in the lobby my nervousness soon disappeared as I heard my name called, turned around, & saw Caren Gittleman (Cat Chat); arms open wide, a smile on her face, charging forward to embrace me in a welcoming hug.

Soon I was walking the halls, attending my first speaker
session in the afternoon, and the welcome speech and get together in the
evening, like I’d been coming to the conference since forever.

I started my first day with a wonderful, informative, 2 hour
visit with my friend  the Creative Idea Gal, Amanda Socci
(Her adorable little daughter wasn’t exactly sure about me,
though).

The people who attended this conference are bloggers, freelancers, published authors, writers all! They are rescue volunteers, shelter workers, veterinarians, blog readers, major names in our niche of social media, pet related retailers and food manufacturers, and more.

They are male and female, representing all age groups, social/economic status, races and many nations.

Unlike a comic book, or Star Trek convention people were not
the only ones playing dress up; from cats and kittens, chicks, dogs and
ferrets, to cute, but humongous wabbits, many animals were strutting their
stuff, dressed up and not.

 During the day I would wear either my shirt with Nikita and Elvira on the front, or the one with the blog header design, as a way to make it easy for people to find me and learn about the Opinionated Pussycat..

For anyone who writes online as a pet blogger this event is the best hands on introduction to how social media involvement is important.

You will get an ego boost in the most amusing way; imagine a 53-year-old, balding, dude finding himself being approached by a pair of women old enough to be his mother, all smiles as they breathlessly tell him they
are big fans of his blog!

You will get an education on many subjects, at as many as 9 presentations that will help you be better at what you do. You will make new friends, meet old ones only known via online interaction, and connect with various industry types in many ways. Inspiration to be the best will come from attending the awards dinner recognizing some of the best in the world of pet blogging.

You will take a ton of photos and pass out 100 of your blog cards, collecting just as many from others; buy a few things, including books you will get autographed, and maybe get pep talks about your writing efforts from the most unexpected people. You will gain 3 lbs. eating fabulous free breakfasts, lunches and dinners, and leave your room key in your room at least twice….but, um, let’s not get too much into all of that, hee, hee!

The Blogs of Kiril Kundurazieff:

1. Mad Macedonian

2. The Opinionated Pussycat

3. SMFCB: A 365 Day Project

Day 72 : Blog Paws Conference Preview

BlogPaws was founded in 2009 by three pet lovers and bloggers – Caroline Golon of Romeothecat.com and Yvonne DiVita and Tom Collins of Scratchings and Sniffings and Windsor Media Enterprises.

The conferences are a great way for pet bloggers to connect with other pet bloggers  They gather to share expertise, tell stories and support one another. The sessions offer educational training and insight from industry experts in all sorts of topics such as SEO, Branding, Publishing, Video, Email Marketing, Photography, Writing, Blog Platforms, and a lot more.

This year I finally get to attend!

There are just a few days before the BlogPaws 2013 Pet Blogging and Social Media Conference and I want to share with you what’s on my agenda for those 3 days and a few other thoughts from discussions, today,  with fellow members of the Blog Paws Community Conference Newbies Group.

On day one there will be a Be the Change presentation on animal rescue at Sandy Hook and a Bloggers vs Vets discussion on how the 2 sides can work together and network.

There will be an evening welcome reception as well.

On day 2 the opening keynote speech is by Steve Dale then I plan to attend these presentations:

1. Facebook: Building fans to your page.

2. WordPress for beginners and converts.

3. Purina will be hosting a pair of presentations and I chose to attend the 2nd one:

A. The Link Between Diet and Domestication: 10,000 Years of Dietary Influences on the Canine Genome presented by Arleigh Reynolds.

B. Pet Welfare in America presented by Brenda Bax and David Meyer (of Adopt A Pet).

4. Using social media to be an effective advocate,

 On day 3 the opening keynote speech is by Clara Shih, author The Facebook Era.

The presentations I want to attend are:

1. Foundations of reporting for pet bloggers.

2. How to write and print on demand your book in 90 days.

3. Taking Twitter beyond a Tweet.

4.  Standing out in the popular niche of pet blogging.

The evening will be centered on events connected with the BlogPaws 2013 Nose-to-Nose Pet Blogging and Social Media Awards and the “Pawty” afterwards.

There will be an exhibition hall, and plenty of free swag,

I am looking forward to meeting many of my fellow pet blogging friends and also meeting my friend, the creative idea gal, Amanda Socci.

It was announced today that BlogPaws Sold Out and there would be Livestreaming (Details about the livestreaming included).

I went onto the Blog Paws Community website for the first time since before my eye surgeries to catch-up and hopefully learn a few things to help this newbie survive the experience.

The hotel will have free internet for conference attendees, and many attendees will be bringing their laptops and even using them to take notes during presentations.

Me? I’ll bring my laptop, but will be using good old fashioned notepads and pen for note taking.

While the evening events will require business casual, or fancier, attire, many people will be wearing casual during the day, including t-shirts with their pets on them.

I will be bringing mine and will see about wearing it. It would definitely help people familiar with Nikita and Elvira to pick me out of the crowd.

I will be bringing all my Opinionated Pussycat business cards (around 200) and expect to be exchanging cards with many people.

I expect to learn a lot, make some useful connections and who knows what else. Most important I expect to have fun, loosen up, and relax among friends, people who understand me and my love of this particular niche of the blogosphere.

The Blogs of Kiril Kundurazieff:

1. Mad Macedonian

2. The Opinionated Pussycat

3. SMFCB: A 365 Day Project

Day 71: A Long Week Ahead

As readers know I will be attending the Blog Paws Pet Bloggers Social Media Conference, in VA., this week.

A long, busy, week began for me today (well, actually Saturday) and as part of it I am writing and scheduling blog posts for every day, Wednesday through Sunday, on this blog and The Opinionated Pussycat.

I will be taking my laptop and also plan to blog daily on the cat blog and on Mad Macedonian, as well, as time permits.

I will be attending a lot of  presentations, taking pictures and notes, meeting many people I only have known online, and expect to learn a lot.

Day 47: What Do I Hope to Gain by Using Social Media Every Day?

Reaching out through social media

In the second post on this blog I defined the term “social media” and what I hoped to do with this daily project.

https://smfcba365dayproject.wordpress.com/2013/03/04/day-2-so-why-am-i-doing-this-3/

So, what do I hope to gain by using social media every day?   From blogs, business cards, and simple neighborhood chalkboard to community bulletin boards in restaurants, pet stores, bookstores and libraries, and social media web tools from Amazon to Yelp, I believe I can attract an audience, build a platform, make friends and connections.

I believe I can learn new skills to improve my creativity and writing and find opportunities for speaking engagements such as the open mics and presentations I have done in the past, and to attend more events such as the upcoming Blog Paws.

I believe I can find opportunities to freelance, guest post, submit poetry and stories for publication, and eventually even learn how to publish my writing in any book format that will take me, from chapbooks and eBooks, to traditional printed books.

I believe that my experiences could help me find a job after 2 ½ years unemployment.

As Joel Osteen encourages in his new book, I Declare, wake up each morning, think about what you want to accomplish, encourage yourself, use your energy to believe in yourself, and you can do many things you never thought you could.

I have done a lot over the last 14 years and believe I can do more.

What do YOU hope to gain by using social media? Share your thoughts in the comments.

Day 37: Preparing Posts for 2 Extended Periods Away from This Blog

As regular readers of my other blogs know, I’ve got a small to medium cancerous tumor (malignant melanoma) in my right eye and had to wait until I’d lived in Texas 6 months before I could qualify for the financial assistance needed to get treated by MD Anderson Cancer Center for this condition.

All the tests are done and the time has come to get this show on the road.

http://www.madmacedonian.com/2013/04/medical-update-bring-it-on-baby-surgery-in-2-weeks.html

From April 18th thru the 24th, maybe the 25th, due to 2 surgeries, I will not be able to blog as I usually do, or be online much, if at all.

To ensure that this blog keeps up its daily pace I will be preparing and scheduling, posts for each day.

In mid-May I have been sponsored to attend the Blog Paws Social Media Conference in Tyson’s Corner VA, and will be there from May 16th thru the 19th.

http://www.madmacedonian.com/2013/03/attending-blog-paws-social-media-conference-for-the-1st-time.html

I plan on taking my laptop and any blogging I do while at the conference will be for my other blogs, Musings of a Mad Macedonian and The Opinionated Pussycat.

http://www.madmacedonian.com

http://www.opinionatedpussycat.com

Anyone who has a related topic, or question, relevant to the purpose of this blog, that you think I might be interested in researching and writing about here, e-mail me at opinionated.feline (at) gmail.com

Your suggestions will give me food for thought as I prepare posts for the days mentioned above.

 

 

Day 27: Where You Can Find Me on Social Media

Having, proudly, made it this far, I figured it might behoove me to share links to my various locations on the web.

My Blog 1 = Musings of a Mad Macedonian

http://www.madmacedonian.com/

My Blog 2 = The Opinionated Pussycat

http://www.opinionatedpussycat.com/

Facebook Writer’s Page

https://www.facebook.com/KiriltheMadMacedonian

Twitter

http://twitter.com/kgkundurazieff

Blog Paws Community

http://community.blogpaws.com/profile/KirilKundurazieff585

Google +

https://plus.google.com/100961543962198879533/

Pinterest

http://www.pinterest.com/KGKundurazieff

Youtube

http://www.youtube.com/user/TheMadMacedonian

LinkedIn

http://www.linkedin.com/in/kirilkundurazieff

Day 26: Be Your Own Cheerleader

I am exhausted. It has been a very long day and tomorrow will be longer.

I went on a 22 mile bike ride, my first long ride in Houston since I moved here, in Sept.

It will lead me to write the first of a series of piecse on one of my other blogs, related to cycling in the city. I wanted to have more material about my new home on my blogs as I reach out to local media to see about being a Stringer or Freelance Writer. Doesn’t hurt to ask, and see what I can learn.

I began the week by making a major change on my cat blog as part of branding and building a platform and end it in a biker bar, this evening, buying something that fits so perfectly with the new look that I had to have been meant to make this journey today.

In a comment, today, on yesterday’s post, my friend Amanda Socci reminded me that I sometimes am too hard on myself: “I think you are doing a great job learning what to do and what not to do in social media, Kiril. Try to give yourself a little more credit for everything you’ve managed to accomplish.”

I want to share a poem I wrote, last June, where I did just that, for maybe the first time in a while:

BEING MY OWN CHEERLEADER

I believe in myself,
I have accomplished a lot, personally, and creatively,
As I’ve developed my writing talent for 14 years.
Leading me to do things
I once would never have considered.

God gave me talents
That He meant for no other,
I must find the strength, & determination, to utilize
My gifts or the world loses
Much the Great Creator meant for its enrichment.

My talent is an asset
Which should not be squandered in
A meaningless way.
Through my writing I have opportunity
To make a lasting impact on the world around me, and beyond.

I will let no one tell me
That I lack any merit,
For they cannot judge
What great contributions I
Present to humanity.

I will continue to
Be my own Cheerleader,
Letting my heart engage
Totally in all of life,
With as much creativity as I can muster.

Back then the new things I’ve recently done, in the social media realm, were the furthest things from my mind; Guest blogging, submitting a speaker proposal to a conference (not accepted), creating my own Facebook writer’s page, collaborating on a Facebook Group, making plans to attend a social media conference for pet bloggers, joining a pet blogger community, learning about chapbooks and eBooks, attending online presentations, changing the appearance and name of, my cat blog, and getting a new business card made in the bargain.

Look at all that. If I can find this much that I “managed to accomplish” in social media related ways, in less than a year, how about yourself?

If you don’t think your efforts make a difference, or are touching someone, someplace, consider this…

Meow Mingle Meeting of the Feline Bloggers Humans Purrfectly Delightful!

http://www.opinionatedpussycat.com/2011/07/meow-mingle-meeting-of-the-feline-bloggers-humans-purrfectly-delightful.html

A while back I read and reviewed a pair of books by a cat blogging friend and in 2011 we met at a “Meow Mingle” at a popular LA pet store. Janiss Garza and her cat, Sparkle the Designer Cat, are well known and extremely popular bloggers and I discovered further proof of that this evening.

I was on a bus, on the way home from my bike ride, when I found myself chatting with the lady driving the bus. She not only was familiar with cat blogs, but asked me if I had heard of Sparkle. When I told her she was a friend and we had once met, it made her day. She was very interested in my own blog, and I gave her a card, inviting her to pay it a visit. I also invited her to email me and I’d send her the link to my story about meeting Sparkle’s human.

Take pride in what you have done and do your best to expand your knowledge, experiences, and accomplishments.

Day 24: Don’t be Afraid to Try Something Different

Considering my mixed record, on this social media front, I’m one to talk, but slowly and surely I AM trying new things.

The latest is the decision to change the header of my cat blog, and to change its name, both 2 months ahead of my attending the Blog Paws Social Media Conference in May.

I paid a fellow cat blogger, who is a web designer, to help me create a new look, something than can be used on business cards, as well as in other changes to the look of my blog. It is something that has been on my mind since another friend suggested the header change several months ago.

As the reality of the change set in, last week, something dawned on me; Why not go the distance and change the name of the blog, too? The change I had in mind would, at last, bring the title of the blog in line with the website URL. All that was needed was the addition of one simple word.

With my twice having become a guest blogger, submitted a speaker proposal to Blog Paws (not accepted), had my first poetry submission not accepted, and being encouraged to think about chapbooks and eBooks, I have been learning to move my writing beyond being just that of  a longtime hobbyist and toward looking at myself in a more professional manner.

The new look incorporates a monocle and mustached cat alongside literary elements, in a colorful, and whimsical manner, with one element reflecting the opinionated personas I personify my 2 cats as having in their writing, in a unique and unexpected way. The new look is a way not just to attract readers, but to inspire me in new ways as a writer going forward.

I invite you to read all about this, from the perspective of my cats, who are the writers of the blog and comment on the new look as well.

FNN SPECIAL REPURRT: R.I.P. Meowsings…Please Welcome The Opinionated Pussycat!

http://www.opinionatedpussycat.com/2013/03/fnn-special-repurrt-rip-meowsingsplease-welcome-the-opinionated-pussycat.html

O is for Opinionated! We Take Aim at All Things Cat, Taking No Prisoners

http://www.opinionatedpussycat.com/2013/03/o-is-for-opinionated-we-take-aim-at-all-things-cat-taking-no-prisoners.html

Day 21: Social Media Success Requires Building a Platform

A year ago, April fool’s Day, was day 1 of a month long “Building a Platform” challenge by Robert Lee Brewer, author, writer, editor at Writer’s Digest, Poet Laureate of the Blogosphere, and blogger extraordinaire.

At the time, he wrote: “One of the most important tools for a writer trying to find success in today’s media environment is a strong platform.” I believe what he wrote applies to critter bloggers and writers as much as it does to those writing and creating in other genres. That’s why I was determined to take the challenge.

Describing myself and my accomplishments,, defining short term and long term goals, fine tuning things on what social media sites I was on, reaching out to comment on other blogs that interest me more frequently than I’d done in the past, and more, were all things I did that month.

In the past year I have made new friends, moved to a new city and state to start fresh, tackled new creative challenges, written a lot of new material, for both my blogs, whimsical, thoughtful, informative and inspirational in nature, faced challenging medical issues, and made new choices regarding my creative journey, including guest blogging,  failed efforts at poetry, and speaker, submissions, and successfully setting up a Facebook writer’s page, and a group as well as this related blog, and deciding to attend the Blog Paws Social Media Conference in May.

In just 3 days (3/26/12) another step in my creative and social media journey will take place over on my cat blog.

Deciding to take this step and all that has gone into making it possible, took some thinking, a willingness to stretch myself in new ways, and trust in the person who encouraged me to take this step, and the one who helped make it possible.

800 is Coming: An FNN Special Repurrt….March 26th…You are Invited

http://www.opinionatedpussycat.com/2013/03/800-is-coming-an-fnn-special-repurrtmarch-26thyou-are-invited.html

Day 20: Change is in the Wind – Starting with a Blog Paws Follow-up

A few days ago I announced I was attending the Blog Paws Social Media Conference, in May.

http://tinyurl.com/d5d7lok

As part of my attending, and getting more involved, social media -wise, I joined the Blog Paws Community today.

Well, re-joined, actually. When the community was born, in spring 2011, I was the 54th member to join….

Then I broke my ankle, and so much more happened in the following months and participation went by the wayside. Last October I ended my membership. I little realized that all that has been happening with me creatively, since, would lead me to decide to sign on again.

http://community.blogpaws.com/profile/KirilKundurazieff585

The community has over 2000 members. Discussions and sharing of news and information are wide-ranging as critter bloggers make new friends and network, and learn ways to become better at what they do.

As for other changes…I am about to take a huge step platform-wise, and brand-wise, with my cat blog, How these changes will help me as I get more involved in various social media, is yet to be seen, but I have great hopes. Stay tuned!