2013 Canadian Weblog Awards - Ninjamatics Writing, Design, and Consulting

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CWA winners

Saturday

Sep222012

EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW: Kraig Furtado of Troops of Doom

Saturday, September 22, 2012

Kraig Furtado authors the Ninjamatics' 2011 Canadian Weblog Awards winner Troops of Doom, which placed 1st in Best Comics Weblog.

Why blogging? Why did you start blogging, and what drives you now?

I've always wanted to create a comic since the first time I picked up a newspaper. The silly cartoons and jokes appealed to me right away. They're just fun. Garfield was the first to catch my interest. That's embarrassing to say now, but it was funny a long, long time ago. With newspapers dying out and comic strip syndication along with it, creating a webcomic was the natural route to take. It's change for the better. With a webcomic, I'm completely independent, no limits on format and content. I can do whatever I want and reach a worldwide audience. I'm having a lot of fun with Troops of Doom, and that's what keeps me going.

How did you come to the live photo style of web comic that you use in Troops of Doom?

Laziness. Photos were also a way to stand out from the millions of other webcomics, but mostly I was motivated by laziness. I thought photographing action figures would be simple compared to drawing a comic. Turns out I was horribly, horribly wrong. It's so much more work, not to mention time consuming and expensive. Whenever I want something new in the comic I have to buy or build it. Have you ever tried to build a Death Star? Even the Empire at the height of its power couldn't complete the second one, but for some reason I thought I could do it all myself.

If you could have it all, what are your dreams for Troops of Doom?

As I mentioned before, I've always wanted to be a comic creator. I started Troops of Doom in hopes that some day it could generate a large enough readership that could support turning it professional. There's nothing I'd like more than to make comics for a living and deliver a laugh to the audience on a daily basis.

If you are feeling less than inspired, where do you look for inspiration?

Troops of Doom itself provides a lot of inspiration. When I'm stuck creatively I'll go back and read previous chapters which often sparks new ideas for stories and jokes. It's not foolproof though, writer's block can be brutal. When in doubt, resort to violence. Can't go wrong with a good kick to the crotch.

Are you open about being a blogger? How do people offline react to your online writing?

Somewhat open? I know the comic isn't for everyone, so if I don't think someone would be interested, I don't waste their time. On the other hand, I've passed complete strangers a card with the web address because they were wearing a Star Wars shirt.

When Troops of Doom comes up in conversation with people that don't know about it, I get weird looks. What's an adult doing playing with toys? Once they check it out, they either love it or think I'm even more weird than they could have possibly imagined. It's hard to argue.

Which weblogs are your current favourites? Which weblogs have been most influential in the shaping of your own blogging?

My current and long time favourite is Sinfest by Tatsuya Ishida. The best comic strip since Calvin and Hobbes. I imagine it's kind of what Calvin's world would be like when he got older. Ishida has an endless imagination and the artwork is fantastic.

I generally avoid sites that are similar to my own, because I don't want to be influenced. I try to keep Troops of Doom original as possible. Since starting Troops of Doom, I discovered lots of super talented toy photographers, diorama makers, and Lego builders on JoeDios and Flickr that I look up to. It's amazing how they can suspend belief and give you a look into another universe with their creations. I've learned a lot from them and am constantly inspired to try new things and raise my own standards.

What advice do you have for new bloggers?

I have no idea what I'm doing, I'm the one that needs advice. I guess the obvious thing is always try to improve. Even if it's only in minute steps, it adds up over time. You want to be able to look back at your early work and say "Damn, that sucks."

CHEAT SHEET

Name:
Location:
Weblog:
Social Media:

2011 CWA Winner:

Kraig Furtado
Nova Scotia
Troops of Doom
Facebook
Flickr
JoeDios
1st in Best Comics Weblog

5 Comments

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Wednesday

May022012

EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW: Alana Parsons of Dream, Create

Wednesday, May 2, 2012

Alana Parsons authors the Ninjamatics' 2011 Canadian Weblog Awards winner Dream, Create, which placed 1st in Art & Photography and 1st in Fashion, Style & Design.

Why blogging? Why did you start blogging, and what drives you now?

As a graphic designer I had a million non-work related projects that I did on the side, which had no place in my portfolio, but I wanted to share with people. I had a previous blog called "the Functional Geek", but I soon realized that, while I like technology and sci-fi, I wasn't passionate about what I was writing. When I started "Dream, Create", I made it my creative outlet focusing on art, photography, style, random acts of creation, and I've been obsessed with it ever since! I'm driven by sharing creative, beautiful ideas, and by growing everyday in my knowledge, skill, and purpose. I want to make the world a more beautiful place!

Being that you are a primarily a professional digital creative, how has blogging impacted your creativity and professional choices?

Blogging has really made my life and career more inspiring than ever. My profession is relatively new to me, as I graduated from university a year and a half ago. In job interviews employers liked my passion and portfolio, but told me that I was lacking in experience. It's a real catch-22 when you need experience on the job, but do not have the opportunity to gain it. My blog has really drawn attention to my skills, and I currently have more projects than I can manage! Even when a project is sucking the life out of me, my blog revitalizes and inspires me to keep going. Now I have a million ideas at a time and an actual platform to showcase them!

As someone whose work ends up tying them closely to social media, how do you manage your online life to keep it balanced and constructive?

I have a love/hate relationship with social media. On one hand, it is the strongest traffic driver, specifically for my own site. It allows people to follow me through different platforms, and it can really connect and create a dialogue between people. On the other hand, it can devour time and allow people to know too much about you, which makes me a little uncomfortable. I think the balance comes from monitoring what you share with people. I like to share funny stories, pictures, sweet life moments, and updates on my work/blog, but I keep my personal life off the table. I can share enough to let my personality shine through, but to keep it balanced and constructive I don't put anything out there that would embarrass me, complicate my life, or compromise my work.

If you are feeling less than inspired, where do you look for inspiration?

I feel like inspiration comes and goes like the tide. When I really need a boost I usually get dressed up, go out with my camera, and start taking photos. A regular occurrence for me is thinking "I will never be able to top that last post, it's all downhill for me now," and then I will take a few photos that will change my whole perspective! I find inspiration from colours, people, photographs, light reflected in beautiful ways, the flow of fabric, really anything that evokes a sense of beauty. I'm also inspired by looking at old posts from my own blog, it inspires me to grow, push myself, and always be better than I was last week!

Are you open about being a blogger? How do people offline react to your online writing?

For the first month or so, the only person I told about my blog was my sister, simply because I was posting photos of her and needed her consent! I'm always very shy about my work, because I truly want people to love it and connect to it, so I usually wait until I feel 100% proud of something before showing it off. I let my friends find it naturally, through facebook or my website, and was overwhelmed with the positive feedback to my blog, which was a real confidence booster! Now, when I introduce myself to people I say I'm a graphic designer and I have a blog. I think that stating my profession before blogger gives me a little more credibility with those who don't know the true potential of bloggers! I still get excellent feedback from unlikely people (friends of my parents, team mates, co-workers), and the support really makes me feel like I'm doing something worthwhile.

Which weblogs are your current favourites? Which weblogs have been most influential in the shaping of your own blogging?

Favorites: 5 Inch and Up, The Glamourai, Cheyenne Meets Chanel, Fashiontoast, and Cupcakes and Cashmere.

All of my top blogs are fashion related, but they are helmed by these creative, beautiful, intelligent women who are out there making a name for themselves, traveling, and working on creative projects with amazing people. As for my own blog, I really tried to create a unique space, not based or influenced by anyone else. I do look to these women in terms of career aspirations, though, and blogging is their main avenue for opportunities. I hope I can be an inspiration to people, and I feel like a blog can be a pathway to success if executed well.

What advice do you have for new bloggers?

Create compelling and original content. Be genuine, don't try to be someone else. People will respond to your individuality! Post as often as possible, without sacrificing quality. And lastly, remember that success and readership doesn't happen overnight, and don't get discouraged. It takes hard work and time, but people will notice!

CHEAT SHEET

Name:
Location:
Weblog:
Other websites:
Social Media:
2011 CWA Winner:

Alana Parsons
Victoria, British Columbia
Dream, Create
Alana Parsons
Facebook
1st in Art & Photography
2nd in Fashion, Style & Design

1 Comment

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Monday

Apr092012

EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW: Seabrooke Leckie of The Marvelous in Nature

Monday, April 9, 2012

Seabrooke Leckie authors the Ninjamatics' 2011 Canadian Weblog Awards winner The Marvelous in Nature, which placed 1st in Best Written and 2nd in Nature.

Why blogging? Why did you start blogging, and what drives you now?

I've been blogging since 2002, but only started a blog intended for public consumption in 2008. At that time I felt some of my friends/family were getting a bit tired of reading my nature posts, and I wanted to reach out and share what I was discovering with a broader audience. It's definitely been my readers that have kept me going the last four years; there have been periods where I've flagged and it's been knowing there are people looking forward to my posts that have kept me going through the slow spots. But like with anything, there has to be passion for it, too — if you aren't enjoying what you're doing, it's going to feel like work, and your readers will notice.

You live on 130 acres at the edge of the Canadian Shield, which fills this urban dweller with envy. Tell me about what it's like to live in such a large, beautiful landscape.

Living with so much wild space around you gives your mind and soul room to breathe. Both my husband and I are creative types — he's an artist, I'm a writer — and we draw our inspiration and our energy from the landscape. Things speak to you on a more emotional level in natural landscapes like this: the beauty of a sunset, the purity of freshly-fallen snow, the serenity of a forest; they touch you more deeply here than in an urban setting.

I grew up in a rural landscape, and after eight years of mostly suburban living I really wanted to return to my roots. I think most people can appreciate the beauty of a rural setting, but many people wouldn't want to actually live there. There are certainly inconveniences that come with country living, but they're a trade-off I'm happy to make.

What is the relationship between your non-fiction writing and blogging? Do they help or hinder each other?

A little bit of both, I'd say. On the one hand, the blogging can definitely provide inspiration for the other writing I do. Also, all writing, no matter what form it takes, is practice. The more you write, the better you get, and I do feel that in four years of blogging the roughly 500,000 words I've written have helped me improve. But on the flip side, blogging is time-consuming, and time spent blogging is time not spent working on my other projects. So it's a balance, and one that I'm constantly reevaluating as my situations change.

If you are feeling less than inspired, where do you look for inspiration?

I can usually draw a fair bit of inspiration from nature itself — take my camera and go on the hunt for something different, unusual, new to me. But there are days where even an hour-long hike outdoors fails to turn anything inspiring up (this tends to happen more often in the winter). In such situations I often turn to my photo archives. I've got some 25,000 photos taken since I started writing the blog, and many interesting things remain un-posted.

Are you open about being a blogger? How do people offline react to your online writing?

It depends on who I'm talking to. If the other person is also a nature-lover or outdoors enthusiast I'm pretty open about my blog. But outside of that segment of the population I don't talk about it much — less because I'm embarrassed about it as because I expect they probably won't be that interested. Of the people I do tell most everyone is pretty enthusiastic; I suspect this is because, as I say, I tend to avoid mentioning it to people who I don't think will be interested.

Which weblogs are your current favourites? Which weblogs have been most influential in the shaping of your own blogging?

One of the blogs that was most influential in shaping my own, and which continues to be a favourite, is Julie Zickefoose's. She's an artist/writer in Ohio who I've long admired, and I always enjoyed the investigative style of her nature posts. Hers was the blog that gave me the creative inspiration to start one of my own.

I have a lot of blogs in my feed reader, but a few other Canadian nature ones that I really enjoy reading are The Bug Geek, The House and Other Arctic Musings, and Wanderin' Weeta.

What advice do you have for new bloggers?

1) Pick a subject you're passionate about. Blogging is a lot of work, both to think of new ideas constantly, and to create the posts; if you're not passionate about the subject, it will be hard to keep up your pace. Which brings me to

2) Try to post on a schedule. It doesn't need to be a strict schedule (eg. specific days of the week) but does need to have enough regularity that your readers know when to check back for new posts. Infrequently is fine, even, as long as it's predictable. And

3) Be yourself. You have your own strengths — whether your humour, your eye for detail, your easy way of writing, your mad photography skillz, whatever — that will set you apart from all the other blogs out there. People want to read you because it's you. You'll find it easier to blog if you're yourself, too.

CHEAT SHEET

Name:
Location:
Weblog:
Social Media:
2011 CWA Winner:

Seabrooke Leckie
Perth, Ontario
The Marvelous in Nature
Twitter
1st in Best Written Weblog
2nd in Nature

1 Comment

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Wednesday

Mar142012

EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW: Jeannette Ordas of Everybody Likes Sandwiches

Wednesday, March 14, 2012

Jeannette Ordas authors the Ninjamatics' 2011 Canadian Weblog Awards winner Everybody Likes Sandwiches, which placed 1st in Best Designed Weblog.

Why blogging? Why did you start blogging, and what drives you now?

I started Everybody Likes Sandwiches back in 2005 just to get back into the practice of writing again. Way back in the late 90s, I used to self-publish a zine called "Queen of the Universe", and while it was mainly a personal/music/movie zine, I also wrote a column about food. I also had a couple of online journals where I poured out my heart about stupid boyfriends and dumb jobs, and I liked the idea of making online connections. So, after stumbling upon the food blog, Chocolate and Zucchini, I thought it was a great idea to start a blog just focusing on food. I jumped in despite not having a camera or any kind of audience, but I didn't care. I loved the process of documenting my recipes and all the activity that was going on in my kitchen. I needed a creative outlet, and this blog gave me so much of what I was looking for!

Despite seven years of blogging, there's still so much to learn and try that I'm not getting bored in the kitchen. I hate to rely on the same old basket of tricks, so having a food blog keeps meals interesting, as I'm always trying to find a new way to cook up lentils (or whatever is hiding in my fridge). Plus, I also have gotten to know and meet other bloggers and readers, and many of them have become genuinely amazing friends. My small little world has grown tremendously, and I have my blog, in part, to thank.

What are your favourite recipes to share? What makes some recipes more fun to share than others?

If I make a recipe that is awesome, it's going on the blog — well, as long as I've also got a decent photo for it. Sharing the love is easy, and I think that's why people visit my blog. My recipes are usually simple without a lot of complicated ingredients or complex instructions, and I think they taste great. But I also think a good story is also worth sharing, and I like when the two are intertwined. My blog isn't just a collection of recipes, but there're stories and memories and stuff I need to get off my chest. Those are the posts that are the ones I like to share best.

Food is only one of your many talents, it turns out. Tell us about your other creative work.

My husband and I run our own web design business, Matchbox Creative. He does the web programming, and I do the design work. I also have a small greeting card company that I started back in 2005 on Etsy, and I now sell wholesale to shops around North America. While being a web designer, a greeting card maker, and a food blogger all seem so different from one another, they actually all tie in pretty well together. Having a popular blog has given me web design clients and all kinds of food writing opportunities, and it's I think how many of my etsy shop customers have come from my food blog. It's a big web of awesome, and I'm happy to have carved out my own little space for myself.

If you are feeling less than inspired, where do you look for inspiration?

It's pretty easy to feel less than inspired or burnt out from blogging. Often times, I've got so much other work and responsibilities that the blog gets put on the back burner. Or I've felt like I've got nothing left to give. I don't ever want to feel like I'm writing a post just so I can tick off an item on my "to do" list. I don't want blogging or the process of making food to feel like a chore, because when it does, it means your heart isn't into it.

I've felt that way before and I've just taken a break — order in some take out, make a few old standbys, or just give myself some time away from posting. It's okay to take a break! Everyone needs a vacation, and I don't really feel guilty when that happens. Taking time away from the computer or the kitchen is perfectly fine... you'll find your way back when you're ready.

As for inspiration, I get it from so many places — farmers' markets, cool little shops in my Chinatown neighbourhood, restaurants, blogs and magazines. I also get a lot of inspiration from my memories and my childhood. I've culled so much from thinking back to how my mom or grandmother would cook certain dishes. And I think some of my best posts and recipes have come from those remembrances.

Are you open about being a blogger? How do people offline react to your online writing?

I don't hide the fact that I blog, and it would probably come up in conversation pretty quickly. It's a hobby of mine, and most of my friends and family know about it. But the funny thing is, my husband and my family don't read my blog. And neither do most of my close friends, or at least not regularly. But I love it when my good friends have told me that they've made one of my recipes and that it's become one of their favourites. Accolades from the people you love are always good!

What advice do you have for new bloggers?

Write from your heart and use your own voice. Be honest and open and willing to share. And don't worry about your photos not being perfect or your stats — just jump in and do it!

CHEAT SHEET

Name:
Location:
Weblog:
Social Media:
2011 CWA Winner:

Jeannette Ordas
Vancouver, British Columbia
Everybody Likes Sandwiches
Twitter
1st in Best Designed Weblog

1 Comment

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