@ProjectRooftop Going All Project Runway on Batman

Project:Rooftop is pretty friggin' neat. The site is a superhero fashion site that promotes superhero costume redesigning as a skill. (And anyone who still wishes she had gotten to be She-Ra for Halloween and may do it this year totally understands.)
 
Project:Rooftop pays tribute to the superheroes and villains we know and love while giving up-and-coming creators a forum to show their work ... and costume whores like myself something to lust after.
 
There's a call for submissions for their upcoming Batman Fan-Art Friday. The deadline for submissions is Tuesday, September 25 at 8am Eastern time. Email your images to projectrooftop@gmail.com.  

Just so you know the kind of pimping out Batman's in for, here's Anjin Anhut‘s  winning design for their 2009 Batman: Dynamic Do-Over contest.

If anyone out there ever needs some PR & Marketing for a superhero design gallery show or museum installation, you got to give me a call. By the power of Greyskull-knowing is half the battle-there can be only one!!!! (I think the Highlander is a superhero and I won't take no guff for it.)

NYC Non-Profit $200k Grant Challenge Deadline on Aug. 15th!

This is a great opportunity for non-profits in the NYC area and if you have an organization you must take advantage of it!!

21st Century Solutions is a local grant challenge for nonprofit organizations that are working towards improving their community with new and innovative programs. Local nonprofit organizations have a unique opportunity to win up to $200,000 in grant money.

The deadline for the grant is August 15. The winner will receive a $100,000 grant and two runners-up will each receive $50,000.

Offered through NBCUniversal, the grant challenge is open to eligible 501(c)(3) organizations around the tri-state that are less than three years old. These organizations can work in a variety of areas, including arts and media, civic engagement, community development, education and the environment. Any group with a fresh way of addressing problems is encouraged to apply.

For more information, please visit the 21st Century Solutions page.

National Book Lovers Day is Today! Aug. 9

Always a special place in my heart for this book and this cover

There are days for so many things I simply have no interest in - like National Polka Day, Play in the Sand Day, Spumoni Day, etc. I'm not making these up, someone actually went through the trouble of making days for these things. To be clear, I have no problem with these things, I just don't really see why they need whole days devoted to them.

This is why I'm happy to know about August 9th - National Book Lovers Day!

I will not lie. When Kindles first came out, I was all sorts of against them. I was determined not to loose the joy I get from smelling old pages, getting lost for hours in book stores, and turning back covers of tacky books so no one on the subway could see what I was reading.

However, I quickly learned that Kindles didn't mean I had to loose what I loved, it just meant that I could be sure that I was NEVER without a book. I could do both printed books and digital books. Be all bi-readual... or something.

Anyhooo, back to National Book Lovers Day. Celebrate your love of books tomorrow by hustling to your local bookstore and snapping up something you've always wanted to read OR checking out some of the great sites offering free eBooks like the fabulous ManyBooks.net and Project Gutenberg!

Happy Reading Everyone!!

Twitter Tips for Authors

Twitter Tips & Guidelines for Authors

1. Make a permanent About page. Your Twitter bio can only include 160 characters. It’s not much room to tell your story or introduce people to all you offer so be sure you include the link to your About page in order to supplement your Twitter bio.

2. Display your Twitter handle in as many places as possible. Display links to your Twitter handle in your email signature, on your website/blog, your FB group page—everywhere. If you bring a sign-up sheet to events, be sure to add a column specifically for people to include their Twitter handles - if you don’t tell people to give it to you, they most likely won’t remember to do so!

3. Content ideas:

• Most important. Don’t just tweet about what you do - share news that is helpful to the type of people your book is trying to reach! So if you're a horror writer, blog about an upcoming horror convention.
• If there are groups/organization you are affiliated with and that you think would be of interest to your type of reader then tweet about their news!
• Be sure to follow groups and orgs with whom you are affiliated if they are on Twitter so that they know you’re giving them support and so that they can return the favor. It’s also good that people on Twitter can see that you are associated with organizations related to their interests.
• Try using RSS feeds (these are like news wires) to automatically post industry related tweets. You can find appropriate RSS feeds by going to places like New York Times’ site and seeing their RSS feed directory.

4. Participate in trending topics. Look for appropriate weekly chats/trending topics in the publishing community. If they’re a fit for you then join in on those chats using #_____. This way you have a chance of showing up when people are searching this particular topic.

5. Leave room for replies. Keep posts short if possible. This way you give people enough room to retweet you with a comment. (Your posts should leave enough room for RT @yourtwittername).

6. Choose the right people to follow. When you first start, you want to choose a handful of big organizations to start off with so that people can easily tell where your interests lie - and others copying that organization can easily find you as well. Then try following individuals with a lower number of followers because they will be more likely to follow you back.

7. Monitor New Follows. Make sure you are monitoring new followers. You may not want to reciprocally follow everyone who follows you, for example some people who follow you are just trolls like spammers. Either way it’s good to check out who’s following you so that you can follow back and in some cases send back custom thank-you messages for followers who are important like press. You could also look into using an auto responder that says thanks to everyone if you start getting too many followers to monitor.

8. Finding people to Follow. You can find people to follow by using one of the many free Twitter directory and Twitter management sites. Some will allow you to look up individual Twitter users by both interest and city. You can also find an organization which you believe is similar to yours, for example Random House, and then follow the people who follow them based on the thought their followers would be the type of people who might like to follow you.

9. Get help. If you find you don't have time to keep up with all of this take a look at services offered by SEO freelancers. The right freelancer can get you set up, launch your campaign, and educate you on how to maintain it going forward. Even if you're not a tech whiz it's great to understand the basics about this stuff and with all of the tools out there to help manage your Twitter account it's easy to take care of once you've had someone tackle the set up process!

Arts: Calls for Submissions in Portland

A couple of great ongoing calls for submissions coming out of Portland so if you or an artist you know is in the area, check these out:

SPACE Gallery is seeking proposals for visual installations for its 538 storefront window exhibition space.  It's a unique three dimensional space which gives an artist plenty of room to trick out with an unconventional installation. There are large street facing glass panels (85″ high x 110″wide), a window platform (179″ long, 26″ deep, 17″ tall) and the back wall (centered on the platform, 96″ tall x 122″ wide). Also, this location gets lots of foot traffic so you're work WILL be seen. No deadline listed. For more information visit http://space538.org/blog/2012/05/16/call-for-submissions/.

 

Disjecta Interdisciplinary Art Center in Portland has an ongoing call for submissions. The nonprofit arts organization highlights the work of local and regional, American and international artists focusing on challenging and emerging ideas in contemporary art. Disjecta's Curatorial Committee reviews proposals from artists and organizations, choosing programs for their artistic strength and cultural and/or social relevance. For complete information visit http://www.disjecta.org/getinvolved/artists.php.

Beer Reception & Classy Music @MetMuseum (June 8)

I love chichi contemporary classical paired with  find suds courtesy of Brooklyn Brewery. That's just a good thing. If you're in NYC on June 8th you may want to check this out. (Kiddies welcome!)

Friday, June 8, 2012, at 7:00 p.m. 
New York Philharmonic CONTACT!
David Robertson Leads Elliott Carter World Premiere 

The New York Philharmonic’s acclaimed new music series, CONTACT!—called “…must-hear adventures with provocative, enticing contemporary music” by The New York Times—returns for a third season.  In this season’s second program hosted by WNYC’s John Schaefer, David Robertson conducts the world premiere performance of Elliott Carter’sTwo Controversies and a Conversation, a double concerto with piano and percussion, with featured players Colin Currie, percussion, and Eric Huebner, piano; as well as the U.S. premiere of NACHLESE Vb: Liederzyklus, a musical meditation on the nature of linguistic translation, by Michael Jarrell, featuring soprano Charlotte Dobbs. Also on the program is the contemporary classic...explosante/fixe... by Pierre Boulez, with Principal Flute soloist Robert Langevin on MIDI flute, Philharmonic flutist Mindy Kaufman, and flutist Alexandra Sopp.


A reception with free beer provided by Brooklyn Brewery will follow the concert. 


This series is made possible by the Xerox Foundation. 
Tickets: $20 


Bring the Kids! $1 tickets available for children (ages 7-16) when accompanied by an adult with a full-price ticket. Available by phone 212-570-3949 or at the box office. 

NYFA MARK'12 Bootcamp - CALL FOR APPLICATIONS

Performing, Literary and Visual Artists of the Central, Western and Southern Regions of New York State
 
Application Deadline: MONDAY, MAY 14, 2012

New York Foundation for the Arts (NYFA) is pleased to announce the NYFA MARK Bootcamp program for the Central/Western/Southern regions of New York State. NYFA is working in partnership with our host organization Light Work, Syracuse NY, and outreach partners Cultural Resources Council, Syracuse, NY and Community Arts Partnership of Tompkins County to host the program which will take place over one intensive weekend, June 8-10 and a one-day follow up event on July 7 at Golden Artist Colors in New Berlin, NY. In 2012, modeled on NYFA’s Artist as Entrepreneur Boot Camp, MARK’12 Bootcamp is now open to artists working in the performing and literary arts. NYFA is excited to be able to support the wide variety of creative activities in the region.

MARK is the New York Foundation for the Arts’ (NYFA) program for artists based in New York State, (outside of the five boroughs of New York City) who want a unique opportunity for individualized focus on the professional and business side of their creative practice. MARK is designed to address the concerns of artists living outside of New York City while providing them with a new network statewide.

Presented over one intensive weekend with a follow up event, MARK’12 Bootcamp is a rigorous blend of formal classes, individualized training, networking and group interaction. Participating artists can expect MARK to spark goals and help to define concrete steps while providing individual and group feedback. Up to 40 artists will be selected for this location, encouraging and fostering a community network of cross-disciplinary artists.

Click Here for List of eligible Counties, Guidelines and Online Application

Click Here for schedule, location and for more information

Click Here for FAQ

Applications should be received by MIDNIGHT on the day of the deadline, MONDAY MAY 14th.

Questions: FHogan@nyfa.org

Felicity Hogan, Program Officer, NYFA Learning/NYFA Consults