Advocacy Made Easy: Writing a Blog Post

You may have seen my past posts in my Advocacy Made Easy series. (If you want to see them, type "Advocacy Made Easy" into the search bar of this blog) I'll admit up front that this particular action - writing a blog post - isn't as ready-made for step-by-step instructions as other advocacy actions. It requires creativity, introspection, and a willingness to put your views out into the public that many other actions don't.

I'm still stumbling along in this journey to create compelling posts, but here are a few lessons I've learned that I can share with you about creating blog content.

EPIC Format Still Works
I use the EPIC writing format for writing letters to Congress and letters to the editor. There's nothing wrong with using this tried and true method for a blog post. A blog tends to be more free flowing than a formal letter, so it's okay if you just want to write 6 or 7 haikus about your topic. Nevertheless, for informing readers and asking them to take an action, nothing beats a good EPIC piece of writing. "EPIC" is a handy mnemonic for remembering an order of statements to build your case for an action and engage your reader. Here it is:

Engage: Grab the reader's attention with a question or a startling statement. You could use a surprising statistic or a question. 

Problem: State the problem that you want the reader to address. 

Inform (or Illustrate): Inform the reader of the solution or illustrate how the solution can help. 

Call to Action: CLEARLY state what you want the reader to do. It's best if you can do it in the form of a question that should be answered with a "yes" or a "no."

THINK Before You Post
There are plenty of bloggers making names for themselves by being edgy, negative, or snarky. However, my advice to you, especially if you are just starting out and haven't found your voice yet, is to play it positive. It seems like the online universe trends toward the negative side of things. Isn't there enough name calling and disrespect out there? Why add to it? Remember, once you put something negative and nasty out there, you can't take it back once it starts being shared and re-tweeted.

I found a sign in the hallway at an elementary school and thought that its message is even more applicable to bloggers than school children. It encourages kids to think before they speak and ask themselves about what they are about to say: Is it true? Is it helpful? Is it inspiring? Is it necessary? Is it kind?

I strive to hold similar standards in my blog posts. I want this blog to be uplifting and inclusive, so I also give consideration to "Who might I be alienating with the way this draft is written?" I know I don't always get it right, but stopping to think before posting helps a great deal.

Use Pictures (your own pictures!)
Pictures are a great way to get someone to click on your blog and hold attention. They don't even have to be award winning photography. Just something to give the brain a break from a solid wall of text. Case in point: In the bullet suggestion above, I could have just listed out the bullet points of the "Think Before You Speak" poster. But it was more interesting looking at the quilt-like bulletin board that a teacher spent a good amount of time putting together, wasn't it? I've taken pictures of legos spilled on my floor and heaps of my own dirty laundry to make my points. The main thing is that you own the pictures you use or credit the person who does own the photo (ideally with his or her permission). You can also purchase stock photos on websites for not much money if you wish. Sometimes if I don't have a good photo, I might simply draw a quick sketch like this one I used on a blog about sadness.

http://endpoverty-ccyl.blogspot.com/2015/07/sadness-is-underrated-emotion.html

Be Sincere and Find Your Own Voice
Frank Gilbert, English teacher and fellow RESULTS advocate, guides his students in the art of finding their own writing styles. He tells them, (paraphrased) "If anyone ever tells you that they can hear your voice when they read your writing, then you know you have found your genuine writing voice." When I began this blog, my own writing was quite stilted and - frankly - extremely boring. If you don't believe me, you can read my post from 2007 about the Farm Bill. Or - better yet - don't bother unless your having difficulty sleeping and want to be lulled to unconsciousness. Over time, I found that many more people respond to my posts when I write as if I'm writing an email to a friend. Sure, a post should be more strict about grammar (see Weird Al Yankovic's "Word Crimes" if you don't understand why) than your twitter feed. So, be casual while also being correct. Please also accept my apologies for the unintentional typos you may be reading over in this very post. Additionally, when I became more authentic in sharing who I am - a nerdly stay-at-home mom of two - and shared my opinions through that particular perspective, my posts became more interesting to more people.

Like I said, I'm still growing and learning. If you have more pieces of advice for new (or old) bloggers, please share them in the comments. I'd love to hear it!

Image: Book cover

Buy an autographed copy of "From Changing Diapers to Changing the World: Why Moms Make Great Advocates and How to Get Started" at my website www.changyit.com or order it from Amazon, Barnes and Noble, or any independent bookstore!

Stay-at-Home Parents Can Set Their Own Schedules to Save the World

Today, I turned into a crazy lady intentionally jumping in front of a truck. What does this story have to do with parenting and poverty? Nothing. And everything. Let me back up.

This exciting photo was recreated so your imagination
doesn't have to work too hard.

I often walk my children to school and run back home for exercise. My kid accidently took along a bag with a martial arts uniform in it this morning. She didn't need it, so we left it on the lawn for me to pick up when I came back later. After drop-off and a 3.75 mile run later, I waved at the recycling truck driver on the way home to see...excuse me...to NOT see a blue bag with a uniform in it! OMG. The recycling guy. Did he take it by accident!? I spun around and chased the truck about 1/4 mile vainly yelling in full awareness of how much the uniform costs and that this kind of thing should only happen in sitcoms. I whooped with glee as I saw him turn down a dead-end cul de sac, but didn't slow because each house he stopped at meant more junk dumped on top of our bag. I jumped in the street and ran straight at the truck waving madly as it lumbered back up the hill.

End of the story: he didn't have it. My husband saw the bag on his way to work and he'd already brought it in the house. I thought to myself, "That was a total stay-at-home mom situation." A working person who left a bag on the lawn might realize it at the workplace and just say, "Oh, well. I can't do anything about it now." Stay-at-home parents sometimes end up doing odd things during the day because we urgently know we can still affect the outcomes of situations in progress if we act RIGHT NOW. Other people give up many things as Lost Causes because they have to stay at work and there is nothing to be done about it. This can be a bad thing - like this morning  - when I put a lot of effort into fixing something that doesn't actually need to be fixed. OR, it can be a great thing when only you are in the position to go for the save!

A stay-at-home parent has the ability to affect problems working people don't have time or flexibility to address. 

Being a stay-at-home parent can sometimes feel like you aren't doing anything important because you don't go to a workplace like your employed counterparts. Let me offer you an empowering thought. You have the blessing of managing your own time and being able to solve problems, whether it's the small problem of a missing martial arts uniform or massive world problems like poverty or climate change. You don't have to throw your hands up and say, "I'm here at work and my employer is paying for my time. I can't do anything about it for another eight hours!" You are in charge of your own schedule whether you have kids in school or still have toddlers and babies with you.

Here are actions you can arrange to include in your day with much less hassle than someone who is required to report to a cube. Whatever your advocacy issue is, you can...

• ...sign an online petition without using your workplace internet connection to visit non work-related sites
• ....make a call to your member of Congress anywhere without a boss telling you to use your own phone on your own time
• ....schedule a meeting with your district congressional office and even take kids with you without having to take a personal vacation day
• ....have other moms over to your house to write letters and help THEM feel great about changing the world, too!

Comic from The Mind Unleashed facebook site 

Lobbying with Kids: Immersion Civics "Summer School"

At the desk of U.S. Rep Lacy Clay of Missouri with
the Congressman and RESULTS

I see some folks out there in facebook-land talking about creative ideas or epic struggles to keep their kids from losing academic ground over the summer. How to make math fun, cajoling kids into picking up an instrument, or encouraging reading are recurring themes. These are great discussions. In fact, my kids might love it if I'd use some of those creative ideas!

I'm often a no-frills, no-fun Mommy who says, "Don't even ask to get in the pool or touch a digital device before you've read and practiced music!" But truth be told, I don't really require a lot over the summer. Summer is the time to explore other important things we don't get to during the school year. For instance, how to sand and paint a gazebo to look like the TARDIS on Dr. Who. Or, "what does poison ivy look like?" and OMYGOD-YOUR-STANDING-IN-POISON-OAK-DON'T-MOVE! 

Aside from nature and industrial arts, my kids do engage in another summer activity that goes beyond what they get in the classroom during the year.

I like to call it "Immersion Civics."

Civics doesn't get a ton of attention in school. Reading, writing, and arithmetic get top billing and lately STEM classes (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math) are in the news. Yet citizen engagement and lobbying don't make it to the classroom much. So, if summer is a chance to explore, then it's a great time for civics! Here's our story and ideas how you can still introduce your kids to a few actions before summer break is completely over.

Cathy Hurwitt, Chief of Staff for Rep. Shakowksy
explained how my daughter's letters helped keep
an issue at the top of her ever growing in-box.

There aren't really summer camps around here about saving the world using your personal political power. So, I went the Do-It-Yourself route. On a trip to DC, I took them on a guided tour of our democracy. Starting with a walk to see iconic monuments, I took them to the Martin Luther King Jr. memorial to talk about of one of the most celebrated American community organizers ever. Then, we attended the RESULTS International Conference and Lobby Day where they saw veteran advocates teaching other adults how to lobby for the first time about anti-poverty issues. The climax of the whole trip was going to Capitol Hill to visit six congressional offices in one day to talk about global vaccines! That's a lot of walking and grown-up talking. But along the way, they met adults who were pleased to see them. A few took time to make them feel special. Congressman Lacy Clay of Missouri will always send his aides searching for toys and goodies for small fry that visit his office (plush buffalo that grunt and snort were a hit). The Chief of Staff for Congresswoman Jan Schakowksy from Illinois is a no-nonsense lady, but when she found out my eldest was behind a letter-writing campaign for a water project, she sat down for a little private tutoring session to tell her all about what happened to the letters once they got to the office.

I like my kids to know they have a place at the table
in lobby meetings.

Full disclosure: my kids don't always speak in lobby meetings. Sometimes they have something to say on the topics of  education or hunger because they can relate to those issues. Most times, they watch and talk with me about it later. Sometimes they write letters ahead of time so that they can feel comfortable reading right from the paper. Other times, they deliver letters from their friends and they explain what the letters are about. The important part is that they see the process with their own eyes, know that they have a place at the table, and feel welcome to contribute when they are ready.

Just like immersion in a foreign language helps one naturally pick up words and tones, my kids naturally pick up our behavior, attitude, and even some phrases when they do decide to speak in meetings.

If there were ever a doubt for me that this is a good skill to teach kids and that the lessons were sinking in, they evaporated the day I saw a lobby agenda document drafted by one daughter in third grade after a peer suffered loss of his soccer privileges - unjustly, in her opinion. She and her friends requested a sit-down discussion with the principal and walked through all the logically arranged talking points. I gave her an A+ from Mommy-school.

I'll admit that this level of summer civics isn't for everyone. Just as my friends who are professional pianists are in a great position to teach their daughter advanced piano, my activities allow me teach them in this area. Nonetheless, ANYONE can start hands-on government lessons without even leaving the house. You can teach kids to write a letter to Congress and celebrate when you get a letter back. If they are old enough to have an email account, you can teach them about an issue and help them take an online action to send an email to Congress. Both of those lessons can be done in under 30 minutes. If you're especially ambitious you might even let them help you make a video showing other people how to call-in to Congress. Whatever you choose to do, I encourage you to find an issue that will make the world a better place help them be proud of themselves and the democracy we live in.

Hand-in-hand, I walk the halls of Congress with my girls.