Ready for Giant Squidom...I hope.

Today I had a free day and spent it playing Rock Band and working on updating my lenses. It was more like work on lenses, play some Rock Band, lenses, Rock Band, lenses, Rock Band. Actually, I took breaks from Rock Band to work on my lenses, hahaha. My hands started hurting. *nurses blisters* I actually have been playing Rock Band since 3PM yesterday, so it was about 24 hours I was playing. I didn't sleep. At all. 0_o It was the fear of my 51 lenses being bad quality and getting rejected. GAH.

I'm so completely and utterly impatient, this week is going to be killer waiting to see if I made Giant Squid. If I didn't, I'll be very disappointed, of course. But I'll just have to try again in June. I currently stand at 51 lenses, and I think they're all quality lenses, but who knows. *chews nails nervously*. I don't take rejection very well, LOL, its happened too many times for me to accept it willingly.

Now I'm just crossing my fingers and hoping for a good message from Bonnie from Squidoo. Excited and nervous too. *taps fingers on desk* ladeedadeeda......

I finished my 50 lenses!

But somehow, I still can't be slowed down. I still have 18 WIP lenses (it was 16, but I thought of a few more lens ideas, haha), and I'm trying to update all my current lenses while working on some new ones. And yet, I can finally take a deep breath because I finished my 50 lenses. Is it strange that during my midterms I was worrying about finishing my lenses? Because that's exactly what I was doing, but now I feel as if a big burden has been lifted off my shoulders.

For my 50th lens, I published my lensography! Do you guys have lensographies out there? I'd love to see them, comment with a link! :)

I'd also like to present Sharing Hearts, a great idea by MysticMama. It's a way to share your inspirational Squidoo lenses with others, and I love it. So go check it out.

49 lenses done...one to go!

I've been a busy little bee today...I've published three lenses today, and I'm working on my 50th lens. Hopefully I'll get it done today and I can take a nice breather for the rest of the weekend, haha.

Tonight is Earth Hour, which I'll be celebrating with my family. I really like this lens, 10 things to do during Earth Hour. Don't know what Earth Hour is? I suggest the website, I think Earth Hour is great. :)

So here are my 3 lenses that I published today:
Maximum Ride Movie
27 Reasons Why Squidoo Rocks
Geek Tees and Gifts

I'd love for you all to participate in my 27 reasons Why Squidoo Rocks Twttrstrm! :)

That's all for now, I'm going to keep working on my FINAL 50TH LENS.

Working on a few more lenses...

So I spent the day out of the house, which was fun, but it detracted from my lensmaking. I went to the beach and had lots of fun, and then later I went to my friend's show, which was great. I wish I'd gotten a chance to take some pictures, but I completely forgot until I was soaking wet (at the beach) and then my hands were too sandy to be able to use my camera. I forgot my towels, heh. I had one, but it was tiny and I was sitting on it, so it too was covered in sand.

Anyyyyywayyyyys, all this adventuring means that I have 4, yes, that is 4 lenses to make tomorrow. TOMORROW. ONE DAY! *scream* I know I can do it though, because I have nothing to do all day and I have plenty of topics. I still have 18 WIP lenses sitting around, I just am having problems with them, but I know I have to do it, because I need my lenses to be featured by the 31st!

How are the rest of you guys doing with your Giant Squid goals? Only a few days left! Good luck everyone!

Almost there!

I'm in the middle of finishing up my 47th lens, and I already published my 45th lens, How to Build A Care Package for College Students, and my 46th lens, Maximum Ride Gear, both of which I love. :) I did remember one thing in the midst of my editing, and I thought I should share it with all of you guys, because I always forget to do this. TAGS. They are important in finding your lens on Squidoo searches. It's true that they don't help out with being found in Google or other search sites, but add your lenses makes it possible to have links in other related lenses, and helps you get traffic from Squidoo.

Another thing? Awesome new module! You can now add a Photo Gallery to your lens with up to 10 photos and a 5-25 second interval! It's really useful for lenses like this one, my Photography Tips lens. Just click the "Add Modules" button, click "See All" and click "P", and there you go. Or you can just search for it, haha.

Watching Supernatural at the moment, it's a very intriguing episode. Only 5 days left until the deadline! *scream* That's all for now, have fun with the new module!

Write what you know...

While searching on Squidoo the other day, I came across a lens that bugged me a lot. It wasn't on a controversial topic; it wasn't anything offensive or at all. It was one of those cookie cutter lenses with information from Wikipedia, a few pictures, and nothing at all valuable to me. The writer obviously didn't know anything about the subject, and the lens screamed "COPY/PASTE". I doubt there was an original thought on the page, and it made me sad.

I just felt like reminding all lensmasters: write what you know. Don't go making a lens just because and put all copy and pasted information. Make the lens feel more real: write original content and people will like your lens.

So remember UUU. Unique, useful, updated content! That way you'll know you have some quality lenses!

Speaking of quality lenses (I hope), I've published my 42nd and 43rd lenses! I've made a lens on Using Your Lensmaster Profile to the Fullest, but I could use some more tips to write about, so drop a comment if you have any! My other lens is about a book I recently read, Midnighters. I still feel the lens needs some more, but it is complete for now. I only have 9 days left until the Giant Squid deadline, and still 7 lenses to go! *cue panic* But I think I can do it. I'm better at making quality lenses in less time. It used to take me days to spew out a decent lens, haha.

I've also lowered my WIP count to 21! *cheers* I wonder if I'll ever fully get rid of it? LOL

So, how are the rest of you Giant Squid potentials doing on your 50 lenses? Let me know!

Lens 41! And only 12 days left!

So I still have nine lenses to go, and only twelve days left! But my 41st lens is about something very important to me: adopting dogs from the shelter. I've made a list of 9 really good reasons to adopt a dog, and turned it into a lens! I think adopting dogs is important, and I'm proud of my lens, yet I still feel I can do more with it. It donates to the ASPCA as well, so check it out!

Happy St. Patrick's Day readers!

Celebrate by reading these St. Patty's Day lenses!
St. Patrick's Day - St. Patrick's Day Party Ideas and Games
Saint Patrick, Patron of Ireland

Tips for updating your Squidoo lenses...

If you don't already know, updating your Squidoo lenses on a more frequent basis helps bring up its lens rank. However, if you just update without making any changes, it's pretty pointless. If you really want to spice up your lens and bring in some new visitors, you have to make a few changes. So, here are a few tips on updating an out-of-date lens!

1. Check for typos
Make sure your grammar and spelling is correct in your lens! If you see mistakes, be sure to fix them! And you can also tweak sentences around to make them sound better.
2. Change out your intro picture
Make your lens feel more fresh with a bigger more interesting intro picture!
3. Try out a few new modules
Go into the Module Adder and click to see all modules. You might find a few you didn't know existed!
4. Play around with the HTML...
...And maybe you'll find a new style you like that you can reformat your lens in! Happens to me all the time. ;)
5. Take it to the forums at SquidU.
If you haven't asked already, ask other lensmasters for critique on your lens! I've gotten some great feedback, and hopefully given some as well. It's really helpful!

Also, I FINALLY published my 40th lens. I don't think I can make this Giant Squid deadline however. Only 15 days left and I still need 10 lenses. Maybe I'll try for the June deadline. That way I can make sure my lenses are all high quality. *sigh* We'll see. I know I'm going to be very busy in June, what with the moving and all. But 40 is a happy number as well! :)

So here is my 40th lens! What new features do you want to see in the new iPhone OS 3.0? With the firmware coming out this summer, everyone is buzzing about the rumors, so I decided to go ahead and make a Twtterstrm for it. Tell me what y'all think!

Campfire Chats are great!

Every once in a while, Squidoo holds Campfire Chats for those who want to become Giant Squids, for the upcoming deadline or the next one. I participated in my first Campfire Chat, and it was great! There were a few Giant Squids and then a few lensmasters who were looking to become Giant Squids. We all talked and critiqued each others lenses and it was really fun. I got some great tips on two of my lenses, as well as some compliments, so I'm happy!

The next Campfire Chat is on Thursday, March 19 at 1PM! I wish I could go on, but I'm busy that day, so all of you potential Giants be sure to go on and get critiqued!

Using Amazon to it's fullest on your lenses

There's more to Amazon then books and DVDs! There's clothing, food, cooking utensils, and more! And it's important to add some of these things to your lenses!

In my lens, Hugs: The Emotional Heimlich, I didn't only focus on books and DVDs...I added some of the actual Hershey Hugs to my lens! Ok, it's not a huge money maker, but maybe some people might get a little hungry for chocolate? And it's not all about literature books either: JaguarJulie's lens, Stuffed Cabbage, puts stuffed cabbage from Amazon!

Think of the other things you can put instead of books or DVDs! Cookbooks, clothing, food, toys, etc! Think outside the box!

Looking for more tips? Bookmark this blog for weekly tips!

Lens 38, and only 27 days left until the deadline!

With only 27 days left until the deadline, I've published my 38th lens! I'm getting a bit nervous now that I won't finish, because I want to try and have at least 52 lenses by then, just in case. I really have to pick up the pace while still shooting out my quality lenses. At least if I can't apply this time, I still have June 2009.

My 38th lens is about the new Nickelodeon movie, Spectacular! It's sort of like the Nick version of High School Musical and Camp Rock. I'm a fan of musical movies, so I decided to check it out, and I really liked it. So, I decided to build a lens about it! Check it out for the review, links, pictures, and to buy the DVD and more! Tell me what you think of the lens!

How's everyone else doing on the Giant Squid challenge? Have 50 lenses yet? Are they all up to par? Drop a comment, tell me how you're doing!

Looking for lens ideas?

With the start of March, there are so many lens ideas around...here are a few topics if you're looking to make some lenses!

-St. Patrick's Day Tees and more!
-The Origins of St. Patrick's Day
-Pi Day! (03/14/09)
-St. Patrick's day recipes (cupcakes, cookies, whatever)
-Planning a St. Patrick's Day Party
-Staying safe on St. Patrick's day
-What is the Ides of March? (seriously, what is it? I'm not even sure)
-International Women's Day (March 8!)

And don't forget to start preparing some lenses for:

-Spring break!
-Easter
-Ash Wednesday

How great would it be to start off the summer with some lovely payouts from Squidoo? Get to working on those lenses and make them awesome so you can put some extra cash in your pocket this summer!

A Review of the Two New Modules

"About Me"
The new "About Me" module puts a little gray block of your bio into your lens, wherever you choose. You can also choose to display your top five lenses that you feature in your bio.
This module is a very useful one, in my opinion. Not only can you just put in the default bio, but you can also customize it. It's better for giving the readers a little slice of information, and maybe they'll want to check out your full profile as well. I'm working on integrating it into my lenses, mostly at the bottom and out of the way so as not to distract the reader from the important content.
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"Pandora.com"
While I truly love the new "About Me" module, I am not as amazed by the "Pandora.com" module. The new module seems to be nothing more than a glorified link module. It asks you for your Pandora username, and then to select one of your playlists. Then, it simply just links to the playlist. This easily could have been done with a link list, or even HTML in a text module. I was hoping for something a bit more like the Amazon MP3 module, with the ability to see the cover art as well as listen to the song right from the lens. I am definitely disappointed by this one Squidoo...
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