Jan. 2, 2013 (ShapeShiftas.com) -- The second day of the New Year got off to a good start -- Restorative Iyengar yoga in the morning, recommitment to the diet that has been successful in 2012, (no gluten, no dairy, no sugar except sometimes wine) and then to one of my resolutions -- resuming my blog.
I hope, kind readers, that you haven't missed me too much! Blogging is something like exercise, in that you need a routine and you have to keep it up. Otherwise you get off schedule and then it's hard to get back on track. While I have managed to maintain my exercise regime these past months, I've neglected my writing duties. No More! I am resolved, 2013!
From my new collection of totes and bags - the Gym Bag and the Yoga Mat Sack.
I began Pillow Talk in September 2011, after Irene had flooded the state of Vermont and our sweet Stony Brook Road. Mostly because I couldn't get to my house and studio to do any other work, I began doing some writing and started this blog. (My wonderful husband provided the techno-savvy and the name Pillow Talk, probably the best part of the whole endeavor, thanks, honey.) I'd heard that blogging helps drive traffic to your website (www.ShapeShiftas.com -- oh wait, you're already here!), and I tried to post first every week, then every 10 days, then 2 weeks. My last post was this past July, not as long ago as I had feared, almost 10 months to the day after conception, just like pregnancy.
It was a post that I didn't really like much, and it made me question my whole purpose for Pillow Talk. Why am I blogging, anyway? Not so I could rant about my pet peeves, or preach any holier-than-thou sermons, or provide snarky insider commentary, entertaining though that may be. Not to wade into the already-overheated opinion world, where everyone has one. Not for personal therapy, either, although it's great for that.
My primary goal with a blog is to increase my presence on the internet and drive traffic to my website (www.ShapeShiftas.com). The more frequently you update a website with new articles, the higher it rises in the search rankings, or so I'm told. Currently, if you search for "pillows", there are about 96,800,000 results; somewhere in there is my site. (If you search for ShapeShiftas, we are #1, which is great as long as everyone knows how to properly mis-spell the name.) So, a blog, to help get my name out there -- but what to write about (while inserting lots of on-target key words)?
I find it fun to write about life in Vermont vs. life in the city. I enjoy writing about art and artists, like my posts about Mike Kelley and Mark DiSuvero. I want Pillow Talk to convey something about, well, me, about what I like and where I get ideas from. Why I make what I make and choose the materials that I choose. What I see in the world around me, and how that makes me feel and think. And, (another resolution, btw) it should be about only positive things, good things (thanks, Martha), while trying to do all the back-links and SEO and cross-channel marketing stuff that one person whose not particularly interested in all that can and still get any other work done. So that eventually lots of people on the internet will find my site (which is, btw, www.ShapeShiftas.com) and my work. (if you might like to maybe forward this to anyone, a friend or your entire mailing list, ha,ha -- please, feel free! )
I hope that Pillow Talk will somehow answer the question I am often asked, "Where did you get the idea for that?" Every artist gets that question, as well as "What are your inspirations?" and "Who are you wearing?" (well, I haven't exactly gotten that last one yet.) I'm going to write more about other artists I admire, books I'm reading, maybe movies and music, (even though far too many do that far better than I), fashion, (ok maybe there's room for a little snarky insider commentary) inspiring design, ingenious products, sustainable living, uplifting news.
And I'll try to avoid the rants, political or otherwise, that just naturally occur to this NYTimes-reading, VPR-listening, married-to-a-journalist, 21st-century schizoid girl. I'll put the positive energy out there and hope that it comes back. Happy New Year!
peace, Deborah