Writing Skills Game

Great topic.. I will have to think a little about this... but I will be back... ;O)

Yeah!! Glad to hear you're going to go for it.

I'd like to post an image and have someone else write a positive five sentence paragraph that would attract a search engine or a buyer.

Roy... sure.... I don't know if it should be a separate post or not, but I would lean to incorporating your idea in to this post.... but let's ask Nancy ;O)

It's at least a nice try at another image dump thread which we've been told not to do. B for effort.

i'm not sure why we need to include a certain word. that only limits things to images that have red.

---Mike Savad
MikeSavad.com

"It's at least a nice try at another image dump thread which we've been told not to do. B for effort."

I totally agree, Joe. If this goes as described, it is essentially "post your images with their descriptions" which is a blind, one-sided promotional broadcast (AKA spam) instead of a discussion.

Discussions are much more meaningful.


Dan Turner
Dan Turner's Seven Keys to Selling Art Online

Glad to see some discussion.

Roy--I'd like to see you post one of your images and write about it. That's the challenge. Think of it like a puzzle. There are pieces that need to fit together. If people are allowed to post and expect someone else to do the writing, I fear it will turn into another image dump. If it makes it easier, don't make a list of the adjectives or indicate which sentence is the compound. That isn't really important. I know you can write five sentences. "Red" is an adjectives, so there's one right away.. If you don't have five adjectives, that's alright. At least write five sentences.

Joseph--What should I do to get an A?

Mike--Here's my logic, which may be incorrect, but I'll try to explain. My thought is that if everyone is using the word "red" the search engines will eventually find this the go to place for red images. Not being a techy person, I could be completely wrong, but that is my logic. If we are all over the place with our paragraphs, it may not attract as much attention. Theoretically, it could be any color or any other noun. I just happened to choose red. I'm sure you have an image that has a smidge of red somewhere.

google works when someone wants something in red. but not many will just type in red. its a red something... a red owl, a red car, usually something specific. it probably won't pick it up in the search like that.

chances are if you are all over the place, but there is content, google would rather have that. i'd rather have a buffet of many foods, than just chicken.

someone looking for red art - will want everything red, not just a tiny bit. we are trying to attract buyers, not google.

you would be better off making a dump thread with a theme, and descriptions. if everyone is talking about christmas designs, google would home in on that. but we can't do that due to rules...


---Mike Savad
MikeSavad.com

Abbie... help us here... what are your thoughts about this???

Mike--You may be correct. I'm certainly no expert, but I am a language puzzle nerd and have a lot of fun trying to put words and sentences together. I don't usually start or participate in threads, but this seemed like a fun little challenge. I'd love to see someone else come out and play. Anyone up for the challenge?

Dan and Joseph--How do I get an A?

i think people don't want to post it just to have the thread closed, you'll have to write to abbie. but you would have to free up the rules a bit. many find it hard enough to write something, put too many rules in and people will see it as homework.


---Mike Savad
MikeSavad.com

"Dan and Joseph--How do I get an A?"

Speaking only for myself, Nancy, put people first. This is a discussion forum. Is your writing actually interesting to other people, or are you trying to attract a computer algorithm? Is there interaction? Are you making connections, or trying to sanitize your message for bots and avoid people altogether?


Dan Turner
Dan Turner's Seven Keys to Selling Art Online

Dan... the challenge may be to do both. People use Google to find things they want.. so we need to have things in our descriptions that will get our image indexed higher in Google's search results.. then sure once we get someone to click on our Google result link.. we need to also have our descriptions speak to the human and get them to click on BUY NOW... ;O)

This challenge is pretty basic. The rules are simple and if people mess up and don't have a compound sentence or don't know what an adjective is, that's alright. The idea is not to make this into a writing contest, it is to practice writing skills. Writing about one of your own images is a logical starting point. If people struggle with basic grammar, it is a good place to start. All you really need to do is write five sentences about your image, an image with a smidge of red in it. It would be nice to see people supporting one another in their writing practice.

I thought my picture would be worth a thousand words!

Most of my talent lies in artistic images... not artistic language.

Wait a second, while I check to see if I'm in the 'write' website!
Well yes! According to what I 'red'.

I have images, with text in them. Does that count?

Wasn't it decided, and stated, that posting images but having a discussion about them and using the "alt" tags, was sufficient for search engines?
I can't control it if no one cares to discuss a posted image.

this one doesn't mention red, but i do believe a color is involved. i usually don't go this far, but a poem was needed for it.




Original poem by Mike Savad

I remember, One December, A terrible event that happened one night;
I can remember it like it was yesterday, and I knew it wasn't right.
Recalling the sounds of a truck, and an opening door.
The unusual giggles, and something sliding on the floor.
I tip-toed downstairs, and what did i see?
Santa and his henchmen, knocking over my tree.
With a grunt and a shove, they took my gifts;
He looked back in the house and said, this one was mine, take this instead.
I was curious and wondered what it could be, I opened the box and what did I see?

It was filled with old socks! What a gyp!
Maybe I should fill them with rocks, and use them on him like a whip.

So now every year I hope he comes back, So I can trap him in very large sack;
Beat him until he's black and blue, and tell him, never steal my gifts and F*** You.



---Mike Savad
MikeSavad.com

I'll give it a go...It's just an exercise....No need to be negative.

Yeah for Mike Savad! Way more than five sentences in a poetic format, too. I like the way you bend the rules. Works for me. Thanks for playing.

Cool! Sharon is playing, too. Anyone else care to play?

Mike... you forgot the "with" that should go after the "fill them" ;O) see we helped fix your description LOL

Maybe I should fill them rocks, and use them on him like a whip.

Where's yours Bob? I know you're working on it.

Yes I did say that didn't I? LOL

Sentence #2 is not a compound sentence!

Your descriptive paragraph above is choppy and poorly written. There is no transitional cohesion.

Why not test the above descriptive paragraph by using it as the description of the image on your AW site, replacing what is there now?

Sarah--Can you write about one of your images? Show everyone how it is done?

ok all fixed, thanks. yeah i must have said it out loud, but fingers did not.


---Mike Savad
MikeSavad.com

Brian--Give it a try. Post one of your images with some red in it and write five sentences about it. You already wrote more than five sentences about not writing about your images, I bet you can write five about one of your images, too. "Alt" and "Title" tags are good, but paragraphs are better.

I do that all the time. ;O)

most of these are simply factual. google likes facts


Colorized photo from 1910-1924
Original Title: Roy O Woodruff Dentist
Location: Michigan

This is Roy O Woodruff, presently he is a dentist. Roy had a long life, starting out in the infantry, fighting in the Spanish War. Later he became a dentist and did this for about 9 years or so. After he got married, he became mayor of his town, then later governor, he kept that position for 15 terms.

This is an action shot of him, quite possibly convincing people to vote for him.



others have humor or word play


You have to be coy if your a fish. But if your a Koi, then you have no other choice. Hiding in the water is what fish do, they have to, or they die. Hiding underneath each other. Or hiding in reflections so they aren't seen as easily. The only time you see them is when they think your going to feed them, and suddenly they aren't so shy.


and others are simply stories i totally made up.

I remember when I was young and I would visit my grandmothers house. She always insisted having tea with me. Proper tea, she would call it, with an odd little snicker, as if that was the funniest thing she said in a while.

She would force me to dress up, the tea was bitter, and there were no cookies, but I drank it anyway just to be polite.

Her husband died years ago, and never honestly liked the tea time, so he always sat outside of the table. Still though in her her memories, she always sets him out a glass and places his favorite chair near by.



edit - oh that's right.


Red Red Red Red Red Red Red Red Red Red Red RED reD READ fed bed ned.

---Mike Savad
MikeSavad.com

Wonderful! Keep on playing. I'll be back to check on the game again as soon as I get some other work done. Have to create something to write about.

As a youngster I was owned by a very boisterous yellow Labrador puppy. He liked to rush into mischief, with me dragging behind grasping on for dear life to his red lead. I still have the scars on my knees.

Thanks Nancy, but I'd rather create art than socialize.

and here is what "I" wrote: "An unexpected turn in the Flow of Gold and Blue - do you see the Maitre d ? A fascinating fine art digital abstract that would look smashing as a canvas, metal, or acrylic print."

Debra--love your story about the dog! Hope your knees are healed.

Roy, I see the Maitre d! Writing about abstract is the hardest. Colors and shapes are a good approach. If you can tell a story, it works even better.

Thanks for playing!

Who's next?

Red City on the planet Kepler-186f. A small city by Earth standards. Nothing like the main cities on old Earth but our image was taken in the early hours of the morning so we see only a few people on the street. Most of its denizens are sound asleep not surprisingly.
After many generations, the “locals” have adapted to the low-oxygen atmosphere but for visitors, in recent years, it has become quite trendy to wear these cumbersome, old-style, glass bubble helmets with their oxygen-boosters. Enabling visitors to this almost Earth-like planet to breath normally. Even replicants, like the one seen here in the foreground, despite having some bio-electronically enhanced tissue still have, ironically, normal human lungs.
A warning though. Don’t go swimming in the canals. Just don’t.

Yeah, Peter! Way to go. Cool image, lots of imagination, and wonderful detail in your little story. I promise not to swim in the canals. I don't know if I want to think about the reasons why I shouldn't.

How about this...



Norman works for the Royal Bahamas Police. He takes his job very seriously. So do the drivers when they're waiting at the red traffic lights on Bay Street, Nassau. Officer Norman stands proudly in the center of the road as an island of calm and gives you the eye. You had better do as he tells you or there will be consequences...

- Richard Reeve
ReevePhotos.com

Richard -- I like the way you slipped the word "red" into your paragraph. The description really adds to the image. It feels personal, like I know Norman, like he's really someone to pay attention to. It makes me want to look at your image beyond a cursory glance. Well done!

Brian--I'm glad you slipped an image into your earlier post. Nice shot with lots of red, too!

Yes, Brian that was very creative writing... and no alt= and title= are not the end all for Search Engine Optimization. Just an additional boost. Depending on the content of our descriptions... descriptions are more likely to gain you a higher rating in the Google search algorithm. Mostly because Google has gotten much more "intelligent" when it come to "reading" text and extracting real content.

And yes the "discussion" about your images does add weight as well. It all counts and it all adds weight. That is why FAA does not like image dumps... it does nothing [ in terms of search ranking ] for the artist or FAA sales.

I had the immense honor and pleasure of meeting this beautiful lady. Living by a coffee plantation in the mountains of Guatemala, all of her family had died. She lived by herself in a straw hut and cleaned her neighbor's house to try and make a living. She hardly had any food, and all of her teeth were gone. With so many hardships and so much sorrow in this lady's life, you would think she would be heartbroken and devastated. However, her face and personality radiated joy. Her eyes twinkled and even though she had no teeth, it seemed as if a hidden smile was always there. I was in awe at her joy and happiness in life even when she had nothing. When I asked to take her picture, she looked up at me and made a smile in her own special way. It was a beautiful moment that I will remember for a long time!

An interesting experiment and I just happened to upload 'Red Landscape' tonight!



I love the color red and how it is used to portray such conflicting and different emotions. The red of love on valentines day or seeing red when we are angry. it is used as a color of celebration, a color of power and luck.

I also love how art can bring people together, how it crosses barriers of language and beliefs. I would love to hear how red is used in all the different cultures throughout the world. Please feel free to share here what the color red means in your part of the world.

This cat is looking into a mouse hole at a family of mice gathered around a wedge of cheese. The red candles light the scene with a warm glow. The cat has big beautiful eyes but he is clearly not happy that he can't fit in.

@Bob Galka - I understand the alt tag thing is only a little help but now that Abbie has recently advised us of the importance of "words" associated with the image, I now include the description of the image as well. There are others however that apparently didn't get the message or it's still too much of a hassle for them. BTW, if you run your mouse pointer over the images in this thread, you'll find the vast majority have not used the "Alt-tag" feature!

I really work on my descriptions now - I try to always have at least two sentences though I tend to cram a lot into a single sentence so sometimes I ought to actually have three or four. But when I first started uploading, I was usually much briefer. So . . . for this exercise I decided to go back to one of my first uploads and write a revision of the description that's on it. Here's what I wrote originally: "This pretty red barn was captured in late afternoon light on a mid-winter day." It does, at least, have the word red in it.

Here's the image:


And here's the new description:
The owners of this old barn have come and gone and come again, leaving their tire tracks in the snow that fell the night before. This particular scene is located in Sarpy County, Nebraska, but is typical of December anywhere in the Midwest. The late afternoon sun casts a warm glow on the weathered, red siding. It reduces the brightness of the blanket of snow which stretches across the fields into the distance. Another beautiful winter day on the farm is drawing to a close.

I could easily have squeezed all this information into three sentences - and would have been happier doing so - but I didn't want to disappoint Nancy :)

And I would seriously love to have suggestions for my alt and title tags. It's the title tag that's showing when you run your cursor over the image. Here's what I wrote for the alt tag: old Nebraska barn in snow photo by Nikolyn McDonald

Ordinarily I would write something like I did in the first one (alt) and then copy and paste it into the other. That already takes quite a bit of time, so if I don't have to think of two different kinds of things to write, that would be great. And I would love to be told that just putting the title and my name in was adequate, but I think I read that the SO's already pick up the title so you want something additional and a little different but still very relevant.

I'm loving everyone's efforts. Keep on writing!

Ok I don't really know anything about writing, or sentence structure so not sure if I am following the rules or not!!!


"Safe Harbor" by TL Mair.
As the sun began to set over Port Townsend, the boats were safely docked in the marina at Point Hudson.
The late afternoon storm began to dissipate, and a rainbow formed with it's beautiful colors. The setting sun's red and pink colors on the dark clouds reflected in the calm waters of the bay.
This view shows the jetties, and the wooden pylons that protect the marina from the choppy waters of the Pacific ocean when these storms come up.
The boats resting quietly in the harbor seamed so peaceful, and safe, protected from the stormy waters beyond the marina.

TL Mair
http://tlmair.com

TL--Actually, you have a wonderful innate sense of the language. All sentences are complete, grammatically correct and provide some vivid imagery that compliments your actual image very effectively. Thanks for playing the game.

Okay, I'll play!



A dedicated car owner is polishing his red, flame-covered car at a vintage car show. Many car owners are devoted to their cars, showing lots of love and attention. But how many do you know have their beloved car tattooed on their leg? That's a sight that isn't frequently seen! This is just one of the many interesting sights one can see at vintage car shows.

Great write up, Lindley! The story and your image are wonderful. Have to say I don't know anyone who has tattooed their car on their leg.

How about this: I'll write the five sentences, and then YOU click on my profile to arrive at my galleries, to locate and then to tell me which gallery cover the five sentences describe?

(1) Consisting largely of red, this abstract image has been compared to a cathedral. (2) With its complex, pleasing array of curves and colors shading into one another, ... as if melting, the image can evoke a sense of grandeur, passion, and elegance. (3) Although reminiscent of flowing paint, the edges of the various forms remain clearly defined, and, on closer examination, they reveal a faux raised texture that exudes a greater sense of depth than if these were left merely flattened. (4) Given the broad sense of appeal that this image is likely to garner, it is well suited for a variety of products, ranging from traditional wall hangings to more mundane home decor items. (5) All in all, the image serves as a reminder that colors, forms, patterns, and textures do not have to represent anything in particular, but rather they alone can constitute the very meaning of the image itself.

Now figure out which gallery cover this paragraph describes. (^_^)

How about an entry from UK ?


This is the iconic British red telephone box. The one in this picture is conveniently placed next to a wall-mounted red post box, and autumn red Virginia creeper completes the red theme of the picture. Once seen on virtually every street corner, the red phone boxes have gradually dwindled in number over the last decade. Mobile phones and modern technology has gradually reduced the requirement for public telephones.

This disappearing British icon has been put to many quirky uses by private owners who have bought them. They have been used for coffee kiosks in our towns, people have installed them in gardens fitted with lights, I have even seen one in a garden converted into an outside lavatory. Thankfully the glass windows had been replaced by none see-through materials!

David--Love the information about the iconic British telephone box. Effectively structured with well-developed sentences. Would love to own one. I'm sure people grab them up whenever they can. Thanks for playing!

Robert--I like your twist on this game. Good tactic to get me into your portfolio! Is this the intended image?



If so, I'd really love to see you put the paragraph above in the description box of your image. Very well developed. Did I guess right? It definitely reminds me of a cathedral.

This old photohound is based on a statue in Indoorpilly Mall in Brisbane, Australia, where he's involved in a photoshoot with a Kangaroo Marylin Monroe. He's a handsome devil who has always drawn my attention when I passed by. As a photohound myself, I really admire this old dog. By artist Susan Vineyard




It's interesting that I went back through some of my earlier work and added more description/keywords to some images and updated customization/pricing for products/ect. and today I had comments on two of them. Not sure how doing that triggered views.....

Once going through my image I was able to find a whole collection of predominately red images. Red is the color of blood and predators such as humans are wired to respond to it.



This red Vermont barn is located along Rt. 5 in Vermont which meanders along following the Connecticut River. The family and I were heading back home from the Littleton, NH area of the White Mountains and decided to take the scenic route home. I spotted this barn up ahead and pulled into a corn field, crossed the road and then hopped over the guard rail and down a slope of assorted roadside underbrush to get down close to the water so I could get the reflection. I'm sure my family had their fingers crossed that I would return.

I've sold this image a few times.

Wow! Looks like we've got the hang of this. Great images with wonderfully full descriptions. Way to go.

ump

She said "where are we going?"

"You'll see" he replied swinging a bright red and white checked picnic basket in to the back of the low slung red convertible. The drive along the coast in the warm early morning salt filled air was exhilarating. They reached a seduced spot in the dunes and Dan shut down the purring engine. From this spot the real world seemed to far away...