As you click through the valley of the Internet, fear not the humble blog. Three local authors say they have a solution to help new bloggers safely find their way into the multimedia world.
Brandie Kajino and Noland Hoshino of Vancouver and Mary Rarick of Portland have just finished a new passport-sized handbook called “Blog Log.” The book, which retails for $5.95 from http://smobooks.com and is published by Scout Books in Portland, provides tips on how to pick a title, how to structure a post and how to measure readership and other statistics when starting up your own blog.
“It’s for people, especially in business, who get told by their boss, ‘Hey, we’re going to have a blogger, and oh, by the way, it’s you,’” Kajino said with a laugh.
The three computer networking experts said a growing number of businesses are asking employees to start blogging, so they created the book to help people without much of a computer background get started.
“We say it’s an offline tool for an online problem,” Kajino said.
VSAA grad gains competition experience
For Zach Lapidus, competing in the American Pianists Association’s Jazz Fellowship Awards was more about walking away with experience rather than the monetary prize. Although he didn’t win, the former Vancouver resident said he is grateful to have been among the five finalists that competed for the Cole Porter Fellowship.
The competition lasted for nearly eight months, culminating with final judging from April 15-16 in Indiana, where Lapidus currently lives. The two-year fellowship is billed as the largest award in the world for young jazz pianists, giving its winner $50,000 in cash, plus career assistance, publicity and other boons.
Lapidus said he got a different, and invaluable, prize as a result of competing for the award: an opportunity to learn from other accomplished performers and to learn more about his own qualities as a musician.
“I’ve played in many different situations but not with this kind of pressure,” the 24-year-old said. “I learned a lot about myself, what makes me happy in music and how to handle situations under pressure.”
His musical career has been greatly influenced by mentors and former teachers. From his Clark County days, Lapidus cites piano teachers Jon McLaughlin and Joanna Hodges, as well as Vancouver School of Arts and Academics’ Ann Medellin and Steve Riihikoski.
“I’m just very thankful to have had all the support from my teachers over the years,” Lapidus said.
Lapidus graduated from Indiana University’s Jacobs School of Music, in 2008 with a bachelor’s degree in jazz studies.
Videos of the competition, including one of Lapidus’ performances at the finals, are online at http://bit.ly/mnOgEa.
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