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Fall Greetings From
Shannon Ethridge Ministries!
Happy Endings & New Beginnings
It’s been so interesting to see what kind of ideas have developed thus far in the BLAST community, and how the whole BLAST experience continues to evolve into something incredibly positive for so many aspiring writers and speakers from all over the world. I am truly humbled... and grateful... and pumped about what the future holds for so many of you!
As the Fall 2009 BLAST class prepared to graduate recently, many great ideas surfaced – this quarterly e-newsletter for ALL BLAST participants being one of them!
Our plan is to regularly highlight:
- various accomplishments from within the BLAST community
(So let us know if you have a BIG announcement you’d like us to make, such as a published magazine article, landed publishing contract, a long-awaited book release & media campaign, or if you’re speaking at a large conference somewhere that others could attend, etc.)
- nuggets to keep you inspired and encouraged (like the one below in our “Hidden Treasure” section)
- special announcements that all classes would benefit from knowing
Which leads me to the second great idea that surfaced – thanks to my brainstorming session with Kathy Floyd!
(drum roll please...)
MARK YOUR CALENDARS for...
THE 1ST ANNUAL BLAST REUNION
August 12 - 14, 2011
Garden Valley, Texas
More information will come in the next BLAST e-newsletter (scheduled for January), but we wanted to go ahead and give you a head’s up so that you could hopefully plan in that direction if at all possible. We’d love to see you there, introduce you around to other BLAST class participants, and receive updates as to what God is doing in you, through you, and in spite of you when necessary!
And if you’d like to serve on a “Reunion Planning Committee” let Kathy know at kathy@kathyfloyd.com.
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 Facebook. Some love it, some hate it and others just don't get it.
Facebook and other social networking websites can be very confusing for those who have never used it. Facebook is a social networking website intended to connect friends, family, and business associates. It "helps you connect and share with the people in your life."
A Facebook Page, sometimes referred to as a Fan Page, is a single
page that you can create for anything you want: a particular subject you like, a
celebrity, a business profile, whatever your heart desires (as long as you have
the legal rights to do so). Think of it as a one-page meeting place, with
information, links, a message forum box, RSS and anything else you want. All you
need is a
Facebook account.
Once you have a Facebook account here are 3 easy steps to create a page:
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Step #1 Register the Page
To register the page visit click here and pick
a category and a name for your group. |
Step #2 Customize the Page
Once you have your page up you need to add a photo and a description etc. |
Step #3 Suggest the Page to Friends
Once you get your page ready to go click the “suggest to friends” link
underneath your page’s image. |
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For a
detailed explanation on
how to create and customize your page
click here.
Also, be sure to pick the right title for your page.
Ok Skyla, I have a Facebook page but how do I:
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Add My
Blog to Facebook?
Connecting your blog to Facebook is a great way to boost traffic to your
blog. An easy way is to sign up for NetworkedBlogs
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Get a
Facebook Shortname
Facebook usernames make it much easier for people to find you on
Facebook. It also makes it easier to link to your Facebook profile or page. For
instance our shortname is www.facebook.com/shannonethridgefan
simple, easy to remember. You want to get a short name for both you and
your page. To get a shortname visit www.facebook.com/username
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Add a Link to Your Facebook Page to Your Website
You want to add links to your
Facebook pages/profile to your sites around the web.
Here is how to do it:
1. Grab a Facebook icon or
share this.
2. Add that icon to your website or share this button.
3. Turn that icon into a link to your Facebook Shortname
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Sync Twitter & Facebook’s Status Updates
Connecting Twitter to Facebook can be a big time saver. It will allow
you to either post to Facebook or Twitter and your update will automatically go
to the other site. This can double your platform with little extra work for you.
Check out this guide for how to connect Twitter to Facebook.
(more to come about Twitter in
future tech tips)
Speaking of future tech
tips, what would you like to know? I don't claim to be an expert but I'm more
than happy to share some highlights of what I have learned. If you have tech
questions for me to add to my "tech tips" fodder feel free to reply to this
email. |
Hidden Treasures
Every once in a while something gets buried in my email box, and when I finally get around to excavating it, it’s like discovering hidden treasure – something that I think would benefit my BLAST students greatly! So we thought there should definitely be a “Hidden Treasure” section of the quarterly e-newsletter where these tidbits are featured.
Here’s an example from the Accurance Group. This particular “podcast with a purpose” highlights the value of media etiquette – invaluable stuff for any new author looking to promote their book through media channels.
Terrica Smith forwarded these great articles (from Tim Ferriss’ blog & Donald Miller’s blogs respectively):
How Authors Really Make Money: The Rebirth of Seth Godin and Death of Traditional Publishing
Following God and Farming
Also, one of the most phenomenal speeches I’ve heard lately is by Gianna Jessen. Gianna is not a BLAST participant, but the link was sent to me by Jessica Dugand from BLAST Class #2. Gianna is an amazing example of a speaker who has (1) examined her life closely (2) discerned her life’s purpose, and (3) boldly proclaimed the message that she believes God has entrusted to her without hesitation or apology. Regardless of your views on abortion, this speech will inspire you to carry whatever banner God gives you HIGH!
Small Group Question & Answer
Joy Pederson’s small group from BLAST Class #2 asks:
How do we figure out the one topic we are going to speak or write about when God has allowed so much to happen in our life? How do we “narrow down” our message for an audience?
Shannon's Response:
Great question, Joy! As you can probably guess, this was an issue for me as well. I'd ask, "Do I write about A) my teenage promiscuity, or B) my marital struggles, or C) my car accident, or D) my pursuit of being a sexually confident wife, or E) all of the above?
The simple truth is that you may have MORE than ONE book and ONE lecture in you! Don't try to cram every single thing that's ever happened to you into one book (or talk) and make it the "story of your life." Life stories are like belly buttons -- everyone's got one. Unless you're enormously famous (I'm talking Sarah Palin, Donald Trump, or Michael Jordan kind-of-famous) not many will be inspired to learn all about your life story.
So my suggestion is to focus on ONE main issue per book or talk, and use the "principlizing" method (yes, I made up that word, but it totally works!) -- what PRINCIPLES can the reader glean from your book/life story and incorporate into their own life to resolve their own issues or discover the encouragement they need to keep on keeping on? Remember that people pick up a book asking the sole question, “What’s in this for ME?” You’d better be able to answer that question – in the title, subtitle, back cover copy, and table of contents, which is most likely the ONLY places they are going to look before deciding whether to dive in or not.
Then perhaps you can write another book or talk focusing on another major life event, also using the principlizing method. I did this with the Every Woman's Battle series (about sexual integrity), The Sexually Confident Wife (about sexual intimacy), and the Completely His series (about spiritual intimacy with Christ).
As far as speaking for an event and choosing which topic to cover, have a discussion with the person inviting you to speak, and make sure you have a clear understanding of their expectations. Also, KNOW your audience. Ask what the demographics are -- what percentage of male vs. female, married vs. single, churched vs. unchurched, etc. will be represented? Sometimes a church wants me to go in ONE specific direction (i.e. sexual integrity, or intimacy with Christ, etc.), so I do, leaving all the rest unsaid until perhaps the next time they invite me back. Other times the church wants me to give them a "sampling" of my three main passions, perhaps in 3 sessions over a weekend conference like I just did in Louisville, Kentucky last month. Be willing to custom-tailor as much as you need to in order to feel like this is just the right message for this particular audience.
Remember, people don't need (or want) to know EVERYTHING you know, all in one fell swoop. That would be like shoving the whole steak in their mouth at once, when all they really crave is just one little scrumptious bite at a time. Leave them wanting more, and most likely you'll be invited back to share more in the future.
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Need a
BLAST refresher moment?
All your class pages and files are still active. Click the link below to view
your class page:
Fall 2009
~ Spring 2010
~ Fall 2010 |
Don’t Keep It To Yourself!
Do you know someone who has an amazing life story? Or a burning passion to speak a message that God has laid on their hearts? Or such a clever way with words that it would be a shame for them NOT to write a book?
Tell them about BLAST! Our Spring 2011 class information packet is now online.
For every registered participant that you send our way, you’ll receive a $50 referral fee.
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Mark Your Calendars - Shannon Is Coming To...
PLEASE NOTE:
If you see a city on our speaking calendar that’s anywhere near you, and you’re
interested in having Shannon speak at your venue while she’s in town, please
contact us at
speaking@shannonethridge.com. We’d also be honored if you’d like to attend the event and help operate the book table – a valuable learning experience – just ask BLAST participant Julie Howell who helped last month in Louisville! (Thanks, Julie!)
Miami, FL - November 5 - 7, 2010
Shannon will be speaking at Ekklesia Global, hosted by Mujer de Destino. For more information please contact Julia Yanes at julissa.yanes@gmail.com.
Promo Poster 
Guanajuato, Mexico - December 3 - 4, 2010
Shannon will be speaking at the Women of the Millennium Conference. More info. to follow soon, or email Judith Almanza Martinez at u_jud@hotmail.com for additional details.
Cincinnati, OH - March 19, 2011
Join Shannon at Women of Virtue, a women’s conference focusing on Biblical sexuality. Hosted by the National Coalition for the Protection of Children and Families. For more information please contact Joanne Samad at joanne@nationalcoalition.org.
Colorado Springs, CO - March 31 - April 3, 2011
Shannon will be speaking alongside Fred Stoeker at Maximizing Intimacy: A Sex & Oneness Retreat at the Glen Eyrie Retreat Center. For more info please contact Melissa Schuerer at Melissa.Schuerer@navigators.org.
Miami, FL - May 21, 2011
Shannon will be one of the main platform speakers at Expolit 2011, the Hispanic version of the International Christian Retail Show, hosted by Editorial Unilit Publishing House. More info. to come.
Laguna Hills, CA - May 13 - 14, 2011
Join Shannon at a Completely His event, hosted by Crossline Community Church. For more info please contact Lori Marshall at lmarshall@crosslinechurch.com or visit www.crosslinechurch.com.
Christchurch, New Zealand - June 17 - 18, 2011
Shannon will be speaking at Elim Catherdral’s Women’s Conference, as well as Sunday services on the 19th. More info to come.
Auckland, New Zealand - June 24 - 25, 2011
Join Shannon at Elim Cathedral’s Women’s Conference in Auckland, as well as Sunday services on the 26th. More info to come.
Auckland, New Zealand - July 1 - 2, 2011
Shannon will be speaking at C3 Auckland’s Women’s Conference and Sunday services on the 3rd. More info to come.
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