Screenshots is a regular feature by Simon Groth, highlighting a project, app, or other resource of interest.

Beemgee
An online authoring tool

Beemgee is a web-based tool designed demystify complex narrative, breaking it down into its components, and step its users through the minutiae of storytelling, one concept at a time. Essentially, it is a storyboarding tool, using a card-based interface to provide a broad overview of a project. It guides its users through the often mechanical processes writers undertake—character profiles, switching between chronology and narrative order—cleverly integrating them into an engaging visual design. Beemgee’s bet is that these tasks can be approached step by step, like baking. Maybe they’re right. But storytelling is an idiosyncratic process and the inevitable assumptions all tools such as Beemgee must make are unlikely to suit all writers. Having said that, this tool’s real value may yet lie not so much in the creation of new stories, but in the breakdown and analysis of existing ones.

As a web- based tool, it also comes with built-in caveats. Using an app within a browser window is not for everyone. Even widely adopted apps like Google Docs have always felt to me like swimming fully clothed. It also raises concerns about the long-term storage and accessibility of its data. But Beemgee does bring a fresh and well-thought-out approach to the tricky business of story planning.

Beemgee is available to try for free online with the option of a subscription for additional features.

Following the success of the MIX DIGITAL Conference 2012, The Writing Platform is partnering with Bath Spa University to co-host a second MIX Conference this July. The three-day series of events will take place at Bath Spa University’s Corsham Court campus, a Grade One-listed Jacobean mansion in the bucolic Wiltshire landscape.

Day Three of the conference should be of particular interest to The Writing Platform readers, providing a series of hands on workshops. At ‘The Making Day’ on Wed 17 July attendees will have the opportunity to partake in workshops and introductory sessions run by practitioners, technologists, web designers and digital publishers, giving them the chance to develop their web presence and digital know-how on the spot.

The first two days of the conference will mix academic papers and artist presentations, with keynotes from Naomi Alderman on her prize-winning blockbuster independent game Zombies! Run. and the Literary Platform’s Sophie Rochester on the intersection between writing and technology.

Text on Screens: Making Discovering, Teaching will continue the conversation started at the first MIX Conference in 2012; through a series of high quality papers and presentations of creative works we’ll be talking about text on screen in the many forms it takes including fiction, video, poetry, mobile, locative, and site specific works, non-fiction, games, text-based digital art, and other electronic, hybrid forms. We will discuss classic texts as they are re-imagined for digital platforms and will look at how these works are taught and what they mean for the future of literature.

Mix Digital Conference 2013: Text on Screens; Making/Discovering/Teaching

Date: 15 -17 July 2013

Location: Corsham, England

BOOKING NOW here.

This glossary of key digital terms has been pulled together by The Curved House based on frequently asked questions from authors they’ve worked with in recent years. Our aim is to grow this glossary over the coming months and keep it updated following developments and changes. If you have a suggestion for a term you’d like to see added to this list please do email hello(at)thewritingplatform(dot)com. Our aim is to try and serve as wide a group of authors so any ideas welcome.

Access
The right or ability to log onto a computer system or use a computer programme.

Alt tag
A text description of an image that will display with or without the image. Important for web accessibility.

Audio conversion programme
A computer programme that converts audio files (see Audio file below) into different formats. A recorded talk does not need as much depth as a musical score, so compressing (see below) into low-capacity audio format is useful to maintain usability of your site.

Audio file
A sound recording that can be listened to on a computer or mobile device.

Blog
Short for weblog, a diary on the web. Usually populated by an individual with text and/or multimedia. Entries are generally displayed in reverse chronological order (most recent at the top).

Bookmark
To bookmark a website is to save its URL electronically into a registry in your browser for easy access. Usually done with favourite or useful sites.

Broadband
A signalling method capable of transferring large amounts of data at high speed. The preferable access type and speed for web use; current industry standard in industrialised countries.

Chat room
A facility for participants, generally on the Internet, to exchange typed comments or information in real time.

Compression
The reduction in size of a data file, usually desirable with multimedia files on the Internet in order for them to load and become visible/audible as quickly as possible.

CMS (Content Management System)
A web content management system is designed to simplify the publication of web content to websites, in particular, allowing content creators to submit content without requiring technical knowledge of HTML or the uploading of files (see FTP below). A CMS provides the user with an understandable user surface that has entry masks for different media, allowing ease of access and quick edits.

CSS (cascading style sheets)
A type of web language that determines the formatting, style and design of web pages through programming code. Normally a web developer expert would be needed to develop
CSS that is custom-made to your needs.

Dial-up
A slow, low data-rate form of access to the Internet using telephone lines. Current data amounts online have made dial-up an extremely time consuming method of access to the internet.

Discussion forum
An online discussion site, usually focusing on a particular topic or group of topics. Participants usually post content that is longer in form than chat conversations. Once posted, replies remain visible to all participants and retain their position on the discussion time-line. Forum archives can go back years.

Domain name
The name (words, phrases or characters) by which a website is known and which serves as its address – usually preceded by www. and ending in a suffix (see below).

DPI
Dots per inch, a measurement of image density. DPI describes how many image dots are used within an inch-long line to make up an image. The standard pixel (see below) resolution used on the web is 72 DPI, whereas the standard resolution for print is 300DPI.

E-newsletter
A regularly distributed publication about a particular topic of interest to its subscribers and sent electronically in an email. Usually includes links to websites for further information.

FTP
File Transfer Protocol, the means by which information is uploaded onto (published on) the web. FTPs can be accessed via management programmes, “FTP clients”.

GIF
An image file format, up to now, the most commonly used graphic file type on the web. It limits the number of colors in an image so the file can download faster. Particularly good for text, art, cartoons, and line drawings. Vastly popular as a means to loop short animations.

Hardware
Computers, printers, computer screens etc. The equipment and devices used in computing (rather than the programmes used on it – see Software below).

Homepage
The main page of a website, often used as a welcome and/or introduction. Sometimes indicated by a URL (see below) ending in /index.

Host/Hosting
Holding a website on a web server (see Server below) in such a way that it can be seen by other computers. Hosting providers are service providing companies who do this in exchange for payment and are also known as ISPs.

HTML
The coding language used to build websites.

ISPs
Internet Service Providers (see Hosting above)

JPEG/JPG
An image file format, generally used on the web for photos and complex full colour images.

Link
A piece of text on a webpage which, when clicked on, leads to another webpage on either the same or a different website. An internal link leads to a piece of information on the same page.

Mac
One of the two main computer platforms (types, the other is PC, see below), created by Apple. Traditionally popular with designers and web developers.

Mailing list
A list of names and email addresses held for sending the same piece of information in one go to all those included in it. Vital for e-newsletters.

Moderation
Reading the contributions to a discussion forum with the power and responsibility for responding/dealing with/commenting on contributions when necessary.

Mouse-click
The method by which a web user moves from one web page to another.

Multimedia
This includes images, video, audio and podcasts, used to provide an engaging content experience on a website.

Navigation
The process created to help a user move around a website. Well-designed websites have consistent main navigation, found in the same position on every page. This makes movement around the site as easy as possible for the user.

Open source
Usually used to describe software (see below) developed for sharing and without charging. Often developed over time through collaboration.

PC
Personal computer. The other main computer model apart from the Mac (see above).

PDF
Portable Document Format. A document format that is light on data and capable of maintaining a document’s design and layout on different computers, therefore used extensively on the web.

Pixel
An individual dot of light, the basic unit from which images on a computer or television screen are made. Used as a measurement of screen dimensions for the computer (eg 800 x 600, which means 800 pixels wide by 600 pixels high) and to measure the size of web content such as images. Important for image preparation for the web.

PNG
An image file format, developed as an open source (see above) alternative to GIF. Considered an improvement on GIF.

Podcast
A series of digital media (audio or video) files offered for download by web syndication.

Proprietary
Created by or owned by an individual or company and sold for money. For example, a proprietary CMS is a Content Management System (see above) sold for money. The alternative is open source (see above).

Registrar (Domain name registrar)
A company that will register a domain name on your behalf for a fee.

Resolution
The level of reproduction of detail offered by a computer screen or an image.

Search Engine Optimization (SEO)
Carrying out the necessary work to ensure that a website ranks as highly as possible in search engines (e.g. Google, Yahoo).

Server
A computer that stores application programmes and data files accessed by other computers. A web server is used to store the data accessed on a website.

Social network
Or social network service. Builds online communities of people who share interests and/or activities. Usually web based and provide a variety of ways for users to interact, such as email, forums, and instant messaging. Has become a very popular method of communication in recent years, used by millions of people all over the world.

Software
A computer programme or application.

Spamming (spam)
Sending an unsolicited message or spam (email) over the Internet as a mass mailing to a large number of recipients.

Suffix
The final part of a domain name (see above) that indicates either the country where a website is based (e.g. .uk, .ca, .us) or the type of company or organisation that has created the site (e.g. .com for commercial companies, .org for non-profits, .edu or .ac.uk for higher education).

Unique visitor
One individual who visits a website and an important gauge of web activity. The number of unique visitors in a given period is used as a key measure of a site’s success.

URL
Uniform Resource Locator, another name for a web address (similar to a Domain name, see above). Generally starts http:// (or https:// for a secure site).

Web stats
Web statistics, metrics used to gauge the success of a website.

Wizard
An automatic tool for guiding a user through a web programme or application.

You may also be interested in:

A Quick Guide To Facebook

A Writer’s Guide To Online Discussion Forums

Website Or Social Media: The Modern Writer’s Conundrum

Your online presence is everything you say online: on your website if any, on your publisher’s website if any, on your blog if any, on Facebook or Twitter or any other social media site, and also – unfortunately – in your private emails, which can so easily be hacked and copied. It’s also everything anyone says about you: in newspaper or magazine reviews, if in digital form or accessible online; on blogs; on social media.

A word of warning: publishing online is publishing, and is subject to libel law. Book reviews are “fair comment,” but vicious attacks on other people’s personalities and behaviour are not.

But what about you, the writer? Publishers are always telling authors to get online, take up social media, run a blog, and so forth. Should you do it? Not if you don’t feel comfortable with it. Some writers feel that engaging online would be a distraction; others find it trivial and embarrassing, even demeaning. Yet others feel it’s another form of writing. Some genuinely want to hear from their readers. Each online platform is different. Twitter is truly social: it’s like a party. You meet strangers, some of whom will indeed be strange. You have short conversations about any subject at all. But if all you do is promote your own work, other people will think you’re vain and egotistical. They’ll be very happy to get recommendations from you about books by other writers, however. Twitter is a great way to pass along the news, including news about things you like and causes you support.

A blog is like a column in a newspaper: you can use it to write about things that interest you. Some of these may be your own work, but if that’s all you write about, your readers may lose interest. A website – which may host, for instance, a blog and a Twitter window – can be many things, but on a writer’s website visitors expect to find out about the books you’ve written, to read reviews, and even to be shown how they can buy your books online. Pictures of the covers are not out of place here, nor a biography.

A Goodreads author session allows readers to ask questions that writers then answer. It’s like a Q and A after a reading. Those attending it will be fans of your work. These sessions are generally pleasant.

Facebook is like a moving billboard on which items are posted, most of which concern the subject. Many authors have a Facebook page administered by the publisher. Some have Facebook “shrine” pages put up by fans.

Pinterest is for pictures; some of these can be covers of your books, should you so desire. Flickr and Instagram are also mainly visual. I suppose you could use Instagram to post pictures on your own website and Facebook. I haven’t tried it yet. Glossi allows you to create something that looks like a glossy magazine (you can turn the pages). It would be a good place for an illustrated excerpt, with perhaps a background piece about the book. Byliner fills the niche left by a dearth of magazine fiction and longform investigative journalism. It commissions paid-for pieces, shares royalties, allows authors to post “updates” to stories, and cross-promotes via (for instance) Twitter. It curates collections of authors work, and allows users to search by various categories. Your agent should be aware of it.

Wattpad is a site on which members generate the free content that other members can read and comment on. It exists in 25 languages; its members (both readers and writers) tend to be young, but increasingly publishers are looking at it both for potential writers and as a way to help launch a book. There are a great many book bloggers and library sites and book clubs, and some will advise you to leave “calling cards” on them. I have no opinion about this, not having tried it. Book Riot and Rumpus are two well-known book information sites, but there are many more.

And who knows what wonders may soon appear? Siren songs, all of them, you may feel, leading those who heed them to destruction: your real job is to finish your book. Or you may not feel that. It’s up to you. And there’s no rule that says you can’t try one of these out and then decide it’s not for you. On the Internet, one size does not fit all.

If you’re considering developing your web presence you are probably wondering whether it’s better to build a website, start a blog, or join Twitter, Facebook and the many other social media platforms available today. If you are lucky enough to have the golden trifecta: time, ability and money, then by all means, do it all! But if you’re like most people and have limited resources in at least one or two of those areas, you need to think about the kind of web presence that you can manage on an ongoing basis.

For many writers, social media is an awkward fit. It takes time and tenacity so a low-maintenance website can be a really good way to secure an online presence without the pressure of daily, weekly or even monthly updating. Before we go on, I want to emphasise that this article is not about scaring you off social media. There are counter arguments for everything listed below, and if you can utilise social media then by all means do. But if you can’t use it then – for authors especially – a website remains a very valid alternative. Here’s why:

Maintain your comfort Zone
A website allows you stay within your comfort zone. You decide what goes up there, approve it before it goes live to the public, and then update it as and when you need to. Engagement with social media is much more active and immediate and it can be difficult for a variety of reasons: lack of knowledge or ability, lack of time, or most crucially a general lack of interest. Many of us are not, by nature, sociable creatures so the idea of joining Twitter is akin to being forced to attend every networking event on the publishing calendar, completely alone, and to emerge surrounded by a bunch of new friends. Online activity may be cyber, but it’s still real life and you are perfectly within your rights to maintain the same comfort you would in the physical world. A simple website allows you to be present, while only attending the parties you want to attend.

Control the content
When you use social media you are engaging with a network of other users and this effects your own profile. You can’t always control how other people behave and interact with you on a social media site but you can control the content of a website. And it’s easier than ever to do that. Nowadays websites are much more accessible and affordable. Almost all developers will build your site using a CMS (Content Management System) and this allows you to quickly and easily edit your site yourself, at no cost. If you can use Microsoft Word then you will be able to use a CMS and you will therefore be able to maintain control over the content.

Keep it low maintenance
Not everyone is tech savvy, just like not everyone can cook, or garden, or fix things. Creating a low maintenance website let’s you have a web presence that you can maintain as often or as little as you like. The more you can update your site and be present online, the more search engines will favour you, but this favouritism isn’t always so necessary for authors. Having a website that functions as a simple calling card can be enough.

Consolidation
The most effective way to present a complete picture of yourself is on a website. Unlike social media sites, a website gives people a single portal into your online world, rather than them having to sift through your tweets, posts and mentions to build a picture for themselves. Your homepage should carry all the key information people might need (and a link to where they can buy your books) and also give the reader a sense, within a split second of seeing it, of who you are.

Validation
Anyone can create a Twitter account and invent a persona for themselves, but a website is a bigger investment and it therefore gives validity to yourself and your work. It shows that you have made a commitment to your writing and that you are serious. If you have a well-designed and well-presented website it will also demonstrate to agents, publishers and readers that you know what you’re doing when it comes to your online presence.

Copyright and Intellectual Property
Most social media sites are free but they need to monetize themselves somehow. Often they do this by assuming ownership of the content (data) that you upload to their sites and using any social media site comes with the implicit understanding that this is how things work. When you build a website you retain the copyright of the content (be sure to make sure your web designer agrees this in writing) while your web designer will keep the copyright of the design and code base (assuming they produced both). You can ask for a backup of the data at any time to ensure your content is safe.

Statistics
Finally, with a website you can track your web statistics and see, among other things, the number of visitors to your site, how long they stayed on the site, their geographic location and how they found your website. This can be invaluable data for understanding who your readership is and what you can do to engage them further. For example, if you find that 40% of visitors are coming from Germany it might be time to discuss a German language edition with your publisher!

It’s not nearly as costly or intimidating to get a website as it used to be and it can be a great way to start building your online self. Who knows, maybe you’ll get hooked and will want to join Twitter after all!

A Writer’s Guide to Online Discussion Forums

A Glossary Of Key Terms

A Quick Guide To Facebook