Denise Handlon Interviews cardelean
A special mother-daughter HubPages exchange
1. Cara, even though I am your mother I am still surprised by you at times. You kept a well guarded secret from me when you joined Hubpages. It was not until your name kept popping up in my comment box that I realized you were a new member following me. Can you share with us why you decided to join-and why the ‘surprise’?
Well what can I say? My mother raised a very independent woman! Seriously though, I felt like this was something that I wanted to decide to do on my own time without any influence about why it would or wouldn’t be good for me to join. I wanted to be able to test the waters without a non-objective person telling me that I was doing well or not. I really wanted this to be my thing.
I joined Hubpages for several reasons. The first was that it was a “safe” place to test out my writing. Although I have always written, I have rarely or never gotten feedback. This seemed like a great place for me to build my writing skills and confidence. The second was the prospect of earning some extra money. With the budget cuts in schools these days I have had to take a pay cut. I was also looking to potentially earn some money on the side; little did I know that I was joining on the cusp of “Panda”monium!
2. I am so impressed with your ability to balance working full time as an elementary school teacher and raising a preschooler and toddler. Both are very demanding. When do you have time to write?
Finding time to write continues to be a challenge for me for the exact reasons you stated. I now write mostly late in the night after everyone has gone to bed or early in the morning before everyone wakes. There are times on the weekends that I am able to get some writing done while the kids are playing but that is rare. I am looking forward to this summer when I can have a little more time to devote to my craft.
3. I can certainly tell by your Hubs that your students and children inspire you. What are some of your goals for the future regarding topics or types of writing? I have for a long time wanted to write and be a published author of children’s books.
I have attended many conferences that have children’s authors present for book signings. My goal is to one day be on the other side of that table mingling with the parents and teachers while sharing my stories with them. As far as future topics on Hubpages, I will continue to write mostly about children and teaching. I also plan to write more about my great state of Michigan as well as some Hubs on healthy eating. I love sharing the things that I do both with my students in my class and with my own children.
4. One of my favorite Hubs that you wrote was called: A Lesson for the Teacher. In fact, it touched many Hubbers and ended up winning the HubNugget Award, right? Can you tell us what your favorite Hub to date is that you’ve written and why it is special to you?
Yes, A Lesson for the Teacher was nominated and won the HubNugget Award. It was quite an honor and encouraged me to continue writing. It was a special one for me because it was truly a moment that helped shape me into the kind of teacher that I am today. It has definitely helped me to handle many situations in my current role as a teacher in ways that I might not have if I had not had this experience. As far as a favorite Hub to date…that is really hard to say. I really enjoy all of my Hubs as they are being published and with each new one, that one seems to become a favorite.
5. I notice that you have really involved yourself in the community activities. You’ve written Hubs for the Hubmob weekly topics; you’ve joined in the April HubChallenge; I see you in the forums and you’ve thrown questions out there for other Hubbers to answer. What is your favorite part of Hubpages, or do you have one favorite thing, and which forum do you prefer?
There are many things about Hubpages that I like. Of course I really enjoy the writing aspect of Hubpages but I also really enjoy reading and commenting what others have written. I have learned a lot from others. I enjoy playing around in the sandpit although I am not able to play as much as I’d like due to my schedule. I have also recently dabbled a bit in the food and cooking forums. However, I would say that my favorite part of Hubpages is the HubMob. It has really helped me to think about my knowledge of various topics and figure out a way to fit that knowledge into the HubMob Challenge topic. I am sad that there are changes happening to it but excited for the new chapter of HubMob. I also really love the people that I have interacted with. Most of them give great comments, advice, and support.
6. What are some of the changes that you’ve noticed in your short time here and how have they affected someone new to the community like yourself? In other words: what do you like the most about being a member of Hubpages?
First, I must say that I am a writer, not a computer person. I continue to be baffled by the information about keyword searches and SEO. It all really confuses me. Having said that, I know that I joined Hubpages right at the time of the panda take over, so I did not experience a loss of income or dip in views to my Hubs as many others have. However, I do feel that some of the negative comments and rants in the forums are really counter-productive and sort of a turn off for newbies. Some of the really great changes that I’ve seen are the new components to the text capsules, the new editing tools, and the Hubpages Ad program.
Since the Google slap came into play as I was beginning, I never really earned much from adsense. Although I’m not making a lot now through the new ad program, it is more than I had been so I see this as a good change for me. Hopefully it continues to increase.
7. Do you have any suggestions for other new Hubbers to increase their score?
I don’t worry too much about my score. I play around in the forums a bit, read and comment on others’ Hubs, regularly publish my own Hubs and it seems to keep my score somewhere in the 90s. Your score is going to fluctuate unless you spend a lot of your time on Hubpages. Don’t let it worry you too much.
8. As a teacher your Hubs are filled with wonderful ‘lessons’, tables and interesting information. If one of your students decided he wanted to become a writer what advice would you give-what do you think it takes to be a writer?
I would love it if one of my students wanted to become a writer. In fact I tell my students that they all are already writers with an audience waiting to read their work. If someone wanted to pursue a career in writing I would tell them to definitely go for it. However I am a practical person as well so I would also tell them to have a backup plan. Writing does not make you much money in the beginning and you have to be able to live. Some people never are able to support themselves in a writing career so it is important to be able to make money to live. It is the same thing that I tell my students that want to pursue careers in entertainment or sports.I would also share that writing takes hard work and perseverance. Writing your ideas is part of the process but editing and promoting your work is equally as important. Anything worth doing takes work, even if you love it!
9. I know that you have been a member of the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators in the past and have met many children’s authors. Do you have a favorite author?
I have been a member of SCBWI in the past and plan to renew my membership in the near future. It is a great resource for those trying to become and those who already are published authors. I have so many favorite children’s authors that it is hard to choose. Some of my favorite Michigan authors are Patricia Polacco who writes about her experiences growing up and Kelly DiPucchio who writes great fiction. My favorite tween authors include Christopher Paul Curtis and Jerry Spinelli. They both write thought provoking books that teach lessons. They are great reads for upper elementary children.
10. Is there anything further that you would like to share that I haven’t covered? Any final words of advice or other ‘surprise’?
My only other advice would be to do what you do best. Write about the content and topics that you know and are comfortable with. Check out some of the forums and try Hub Mob. Read and comment on other people’s work, it really helps to get yourself known and will encourage others to read and comment on your work. Most of all, enjoy yourself, it really is a great community of writers.
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