Troy

http://chrisdburns.com/

Well considering that there are far fewer Black Lit sites today than 10 years ago, and many of the ones that remain are undiscoverable; you may not be over reacting. On the whole jumping through Google's hoops has helped make AALBC.com a better website. A few years ago Google made SSL a ranking signal for their search engine. I'm going to make AALBC.com secure as a result. Google are also behind making the while web secure, which is not a bad idea.

Mickey, I can't find any evidence that Hamilton Book Store And Art Gallery store is open. Facebook, Yelp, Yellowpages, all copy the same stale information. I've called the number listed and it is no longer valid. If you or anyone has different information that I can verify please post it here.

Here is a another notice from Google I got this morning (I don't post all of them). Google claims this page: http://aalbc.com/books/bookinfo.php?isbn13=9780446179980 violates one or more of the policies described below. I disagree and will try to fight this one. Google ads may not be placed on adult or mature content. This includes fetish content as well as sites that promote, sell or discuss sexual aids. Examples include, but are not limited to: sexual fixations or practices that may be considered unconventional sexual aids or enhancement tools such as vibrators, dildos, lubes, sex games, inflatable toys penis and breast enlargement tools sexual fixations or practices that may be considered unconventional sexual aids or enhancement tools such as vibrators, dildos, lubes, sex games, inflatable toys penis and breast enlargement tools For more information about keeping your content family-safe, please review our program guidelines and these tips from the policy team. Additionally, you can watch our short animated video & policy refreshers on this topic.

Classic Cynique...Thanks for that.

...so says the New York Times. I guess there is nothing we can do about it, huh? The article mentions as if it is some form of consolation; "The emergence of Black Twitter has also given African-Americans a powerful voice on social media." Black Twitter?! Please it is just Twitter; we don't own it, we don't control it, and it damn sure ain't benefiting Black people.

Missy B. Salick is an author and a blogger I met a few years ago and she really epitomizes the ideal of “Bloggers Helping Bloggers.” Recently she launched a Meet 50 Bloggers Tour #Meet50Bloggers and interview me as part of her effort. My interview may be found here.

Your book will appear on the AALBC.com Homepage and the Book’s Main Page for the entire summer. If you take advantage of placement now that is less than $1 per day. Click here to get started right now; there are only 5 positions left.

Sara you are the only one saying you said something that is not true. The only thing I was interested in doing was finding the source of the image to determine if I could trust that it is indeed what you say it is. I asked your your assistance, by providing the source but rather than helping you went on a paranoia fueled rant. But I downloaded the image, ran a googloe image search, and found an unaltered version on Getty: http://www.gettyimages.com/pictures/civil-rights-leader-dr-martin-luther-king-jr-sitting-with-news-photo-50397246 But only MLK is named as being in the photo. The image is all over social media, but I don't use unattributed information from social media as a source of information. I could find known images of Bernie from the period and compare them--and still I could be wrong, but it is not important enough for me to go through that effort. I dunno I guess I can't engage with Sara on any level, without drama, so I won't bother anymore.

Sara, you are being way too sensitive. I asked a simple question, no hostility, just curiosity. I was actually interested in sharing your post, but I wanted to make sure the photo came from a trusted source. The white guy in the photo could be anyone. I can't tell that is Bernie with any certainly by looking at the photo. I never wrote that you drew the circle. Again your hyper-sensitivity makes you see things that are simply not there. Most sites are fact not checked or vetted in anyway, they are just people, like you, sharing unattributed stuff they found. Of course you all may have positive intent, but because you don't check or cite sources you often spread things that are simply not true. The only link in you post was this one: http://pdafund.com/component/k2/item/70-25-things-you-may-not-know-about-bernie-sanders and the photo is not on that page. Sara think about it for a second; why one Earth would I have any hostility against you? You are not a threat. If I wanted, with a press of a button, I could delete everything you ever posted here. What you confuse with hostility is only an attempt to check a source, nothing more If you were not so sensitive, you'd probably observe that I treat everyone who posts here with love and respect. That does not mean that I will agree with everything they post, or that I will hold my tongue when I disagree. If you really want post where you will never be challenged, or exposed to perceived hostility, you would probably enjoy Facebook more. Facebook prides itself on helping members only see the things that conform their world view. and if Facebook ever slips up members can unfriend the offender-- a sensitive person's paradise.

“If you haven’t posted anything personal on Facebook in awhile, you’re not alone. A damning report published by The Information on Thursday revealed that Facebook has been struggling to reverse a 21% decline in “original sharing,” or personal updates, from its 1.6 billion monthly active users.”—Fortune.com This is on top of additional reports to that Facebook is further diminishing the reach of brands in users news feeds to ensure that used see more posts from friends and family. Maybe the pendulum is beginning to swing back toward the World Wide Web proper and away from "walled garden" corporate sites. This would of course be a great thing for the web, because people are starting to believe Facebook is the web; and don't consume any content outside of the platform.

Where did this photo of Bernie Saunders come from? It is not on the page linked; I'd like to check the source. Funny someone took the time to circle the white guy, as if anyone would have difficulty finding him :-) I have a great deal of respect for the white folks that protested in the deep south, risking and even giving their lives, to support Black people.

Well Cynique in hindsight I don't believe Obama's goal was radical change. Nor do I think if should have been. Universal health care was a lofty enough goal, but that turned out to be a windfall for insurance companies without the public option. Indeed the Obama presidency has been a tremendous windfall for corporate America. The idea that any of the large financial institutions responsible for the mortgage tragedy are doing great today is a travesty of justice. So while Obama, and the likes of Bill Maher go on about how great America is doing, Bernie is at least articulating the anger many of us feel. Whether Bernie could have done something went Obama could not is a moot question, but I do think Bernie intentions would have been to actually do something. I try to ignore all the personality assessments, personal motivations the media talking heads try to apply to candidates. Because these and either objective or unknowable. Even reporting on what a candidate says is not as important outside of the context of what they have done. I wish the media would report more on what candidates have actually accomplished....

@Cynique, do you think the reduction in hypocrisy was worth the increase in irresponsibility?

Sounds like you started as friends which explains the longevity

Hummm... Sure Obama is "1/2 Black," but he like Bernie was raised by a white woman far from other large groups of Black people. So he chose to marry a Black woman, but plenty of white people do that. And do I surmise from the statement that you question that character of Black men who chose to marry white women--including many Black activists? Yeah, I'll give you the 3rd point, but Hyde Park, where Obama lived is not exactly the "Wild 100s," and it was not like he socialized among the people, he was part if the Chicago elite. Indeed that elitism was evident by the people he hired. It is not clear to me what you mean when you say that Bernie is not sensitive to "certain issues." He is the only candidate talking about "certain issues" that should matter to all working class people, which includes most Black folks. Yeah Hillary picked up these talking points in reaction to Bernie's popularity, but for her the rhetoric is more political not part of an ideology. Hillary is much more like Obama, than Bernie is--don't you think? Besides how are the Black people in Chicago fairing after 7 years of an Obama presidency? As far as I know, Obama has not even bothered to give any of the Black owned newspaper so much as an interview.

Agreed, whether it is for a business or a family, pooling resources, money, energy, time, and tasks will be key moving forward. It is likely my children's generation will never collect social security; shoot, I'm on the bubble. So, I believe these new family structure will come to pass. It would be nice if the government provided legislation to facilitate or at least ignore these alternative family structures. Right now everything is aligned to facilitate permanent, heterosexual marriage. But few people can achieve this goal, and many don't even want to try. The ideal of the home with the white picket fence is almost anachronistic--but no other alternatives are presented as favorable. Still we make getting married easy, while divorce is hard and often expensive. Married people have a higher tax liability, especially if one spouse makes less than the other. Few talk about the government's hand in discouraging marriage. So while the country is mostly Christian, the influence of the Christianity has continued to wane over time. I think this is also a factor in the increase of out of wedlock births not just in the Black community, but in America in general. A single 18 year old having a baby will likely be embraced, while a single 40 year old woman, who never had kids, is pitied... The number of sperm banks are increasing, with single women being the biggest users, dwarfing even the LGBT community. Also we always talk about the lack of fathers in the home. But many of these homes have men in them, they just don't happen to be the biological father of the children. Many men are indeed raising the children of other men, I just don't recall ever seeing statistics reflecting this reality.

It is a daunting task, for those with the resources I usually suggest hiring a good publicist. But continuing to spread the word and networking as you are already doing will help. I'm actually about a 1/4 of the way through a book about book promotion. I plan to review it. If I do I'll be sure to post a link on the home page. So far there are no real revelations, but it is a good high level overview of the main aspects of getting the word about your book out there. I think advertising can help build a brand, but here to some insight is required to do this effectively. Interestingly, I don't know any professionals one can hire to deal with the advertising side of marketing for authors. I've had publicists buy ads on this site on behalf of authors they were working for, but one can really benefit from a pro that can evaluate the effectiveness of ad placement, and even work deals with media (websites, magazines, newspapers) to secure the best pricing for a several authors.

Yeah, I hear you. While the separate their trash they have outsized carbon footprints driving luxury cars everywhere and having unnecessarily large homes. They even fight to maintain lawns during a water crisis. They destroy public education while their children go to private schools, and on and on.... it is all for show, to make themselves feel good while the rest of the nation struggles. Your critique of Bernie @Pioneer1, could be readily applied to Obama. Would you make the same critique of him?

In order for your new family structure to become more common place folks have to be much less self-centered than they are today. Nothing in our collective behavior or culture leads me to believe that this will change anything soon. Perhaps a cultural shock like a massive depression would move us in the direction of communal families, out of necessity.... and maybe we'd all be better off.

Yeah, I think you got it right Cynique. How did you two love birds meet?

This was an interesting introduction to your work Ray. It is unfortunate to think that labeling your book as African American would narrow it's appeal. Black folks read white writers, in fact a good percentage, if not the majority, of books I read are written by white writers. Writers like Morrison, Walker, Mosley, Coates, Adiche, etc are successful largely because white folks read their work. Categorize the book as best as you can based upon your target reader. The Book Industries Study Group maintain a list of book categories, but books can fall into many categories and with search capabilities I think maintaining these lists and attempting shove books into categories is not as useful anyway. I think your description far more useful than than a category and a decent query will now pull this book up.

Pioneer you come across as somewhat religious calling children born out of wedlock "illegitimate." How long in the annals of history have we been calling children born outside the Christian construct of marriage; disparaging terms like this? Isn't it enough for kids to be cared for and guided by a loving adult? Can children only be raised by a man and woman, who were virgins when married, and committed to never having sex with anyone else for life? Why is this so detrimental? I agree with Welsing, I think we all should wait until we are 30 before having our first child. I was 30, and probably should have waited a bit longer. Many of the people having children younger than 30 are still children themselves; dependent upon their parents, unskilled, uneducated, and unmotivated. Sure many of these people pull it together later, but they would have fared much better without a child, and the child would have too. I'm still astonished that our society condones kids in high school having children--even providing on site day care in some instances. I don't think children should have the freedom to procreate. We make it illegal for a 17 year old to sit up in a bar and have drinks, but they can make babies all day long... I'm sure I did not watch the Maury show enough to dispute what you are saying, but every time I watched it was always some obese white girl trying to figure out who fathered her child...and more often than not there was a physical altercation for kicks.

White supremacists are grossly out numbered, but they and their sympathizers are seemingly armed to the teeth. And if push comes to shove they have the governments backing--especially if the Donald Trumps begin to proliferate, and continue to gain even more success and attention. I watch Bill Maher's program pretty regularly; I find his show entertaining. But he is constantly describing everyone who does not agree with his ideas as living in a bubble. In reality he is living in a bubble too. He does not truly appreciate just how bad off many Americans and as a result can't seem to wrap his head around why anyone would follow Donald Trump, become a Nazi, or join the Klan. Educated, happy, confident people with options and prospects can't be bothered with Donald Trump. I guess rich celebrities don't really see this...

Have you ever shared a link from a page on your website to Facebook, and have you wondered how Facebook chose the image used? You can control the image used when anyone shares a link from your site onto Facebook. You can even use an image specifically designed for Facebook—even one not used on the web page itself. The links I share on Facebook are selected with thought or are crafted in such in a way to increase the likelihood a reader will click the link and visit our web site. In order to help accomplish this I take advantage of Facebook’s Open Graph Debugger Tool. Facebook's debugger allows you to confirm that the web pages your visitors share on Facebook, displays the image and text you choose in advance. The default text and image are defined on the web page. WordPress makes it easy to select the default images and text for social sharing. Custom built websites, like AALBC.com, must ensure meta tags are used properly. Facebook's debugger tool makes it easy to check that your web pages will share your web page's information exactly the way you want. Facebook's debugger interface is easy to use and the information provided is quite detailed. You are also provided with documentation to help make any necessary adjustments. Below is a screen shot of my List of Authors on AALBC.com page. Facebook's social sharing preview allows you to review what the post will look like before anyone shares the page. The screenshot below is actually a snapshot 19 hours after the page was originally shared. As you can see from the preview, this Facebook post was liked, shared, or commented on 2,570 times, in 19 hours. In this case, the image I'm using does not even appear on the web page. I created this image specifically for social sharing, optimizing the dimensions, and even considering the authors used in the preview. If you do not specify an image, Facebook and other social platforms will just pick any image on the page. Why take this chance when it is so easy to control. In Facebook's case, they look for images that are a minimum of 200px by 200px. So even if you do specify a specific image, Facebook may choose not to use it. The optimal image size is 1,200px by 630px. An image with those dimensions will ensure that will be as large as possible on Facebook's feed. Again, you can may use this tool to as an analytical tool to review your Facebook posts over time. Below is a screen from a Facebook post made in February, which links to our Top 100+ Recommended African-American Children’s Books page. This page was liked, shared, or commented on over 35,000 times, since it was originally posted in February 2016. Of course it is nice to get this much engagement on Facebook, but my primary metric for success of a post is how many readers click the link and visit my site as a result. If you'd like to check it out I have published an analysis of the traffic generated as a result of this post. Another benefit of this tool is that it can be used to check the URL's of other websites for comparison purposes. I've observed most indie websites pay little attention to the details revealed by the Facebook debugger tool. This is unfortunate, because this decreases the likelihood readers will click on your link and leave Facebook to visit your web site. It also hurts a web site's search engine rankings, which is even more important than Facebook engagement for content creators, like bloggers. Final Notes: I'm strongly against using Facebook as one's primary platform or the web, or even publishing content there. The only thing I publish on Facebook are links back to this site, with tweet length text and an image to accompany it. This articles describes my process for posting links on Facebook. The social sharing capability of the software running this discussion forum is limited in capability, so one does not have the ability to set a default image for social sharing. Normally I would have created a webpage, or blog post, for an article like this, but I want to collect this type of information in the Bloggers Helping Blogger Forum. I did not go into the specific details of how to actually set the default images and text. But it is pretty simple: in WordPress one simply utilizes the "SEO Settings" at the bottom of the page. For custom sites, one uses the Open Graph meta tags. Here are some Open Graph meta tag examples I use with my Web Design course. I just took a look at the number of visitors from Facebook to the link for the Author List Page. As of 6:30 p.m. June 27th there were 1,675 visitors from Facebook based upon 2,576 comments, shared, and likes. This is a very high ratio of engagement to visitors for my Facebook posts. Facebook changes rapidly. Their debugger tool can change, or even go away tomorrow. However the strategies still hold and should still be used, even without Facebook's debugger. If you are a webmaster proper use of meta tags is crucial for a site's ability to be discovered. As always the mantra remains unchanged; “Use Facebook, Don't Let Facebook Use You.”