Visit My New Website!

Hello, Optimists! How are things going? I hope all is well and I am praying for those dealing with hurricane weather. My latest newsletter addressed some of that.

Right, so you’re here about the new website. I am pleased to announce DanteWrites.com, the official site of Dante Nelson. This is not a blog…really. It’s really more of a core for all things me in the writing world as well as the lighting world.

Yes, this site has all of the links for all of my written work on the web. It also houses info about my BRAND NEW BOOK coming out the end of the month. You’re the first people I’ve told about this book too. I can’t wait to share my discount with you for following me on this blog.

You’ll be able to see lighting videos and articles I make. I also have intentions of making videos exclusive to just the site.

That site links back to this blog as well. I recently told you how this site saved my life. This blog ain’t going anywhere, but, I needed to invest quite some time in building the site and that explains why this blog wasn’t as active as I liked it to be. But, again, that’s not a blog. It’s a website that will only update when I deem it necessary or when there’s an update about my writing and/or lighting projects I need to share.

So, if you need or want to keep track of where I am and what I write, then you’ll want to hit that site. Thanks for the support!

How This Blog Saved My Life

It’s kind of funny how you can spend your time trying to help others but inadvertently help yourself, perhaps even more than anyone else.

There was a time when I basically said life didn’t matter. Late 2015 until now has been a tough road and I am all out of options. Family. Gone. Career. Gone. Academic aspirations. Gone.

In February 2011, I launched a blog called National Sixers. A little later, I launched a blog called Dante’s Opinion. Dante’s Opinion turned into DALANEL which turned into Dante’s Optimism. Little did I know, this blog would literally save my life.

I think just about all of us has something we cling to when we’re in a dark place. It could be a person, a concept, item, song, place, or whatever. For me, I found out it was this blog. When I was ready to give up on everything, I had this blog.

To be honest, I would not be here today if I didn’t have this blog. I know it. I just know it. It’s hard to explain. I actually don’t believe in “things” making an impact like this, so this is like a…a big deal. Just looking at the pain I have faced, I noticed a trend: I write when I’m…lost…sad…depressed…I write. If not the blog, I would write for any of the other websites I contribute to. If not there, I’ll go ahead and write a short skit, sometimes, based off of the real life trauma I’m facing.

You reading this and following this blog really helped too. You helped to save my life. Thank you. If I had to stop writing…if I had to stop blogging…it would be the end of me.

People close to me don’t really appreciate what this blog means to me. Some think it’s a hobby. Some think it’s a cute little thing to pass time. It’s so much more than that. That’s something I realized about myself in the past couple of weeks. This blog was lowkey pushing me onward for years.

Sometimes I wonder if I had been writing when I was a kid, would I be able to deal with crap better. Would I be a better person? Live a better life? Be more confident? See, that’s what blogging has done for me. But, here I am. A not that good person trying to figure out my purpose. Why I should keep getting out of bed. And, when I think about shutting myself down, I think about this blog and I continue to think of better days ahead.

That’s how this blog saved my life.

 

Dante’s Optimism’s Potential

This blog has some nice potential in terms of what kinds of media forms it can take. Let’s take a look at what I am doing and what I can do. Also, these are ideas you can take for your project.

Blog

Well, that’s obvious. You’re reading this now, and this is a blog. On a blog, you can do quite a bit of content. Besides the normal text, you can also do video and/or images. I’ll talk about video in this list. This is my favorite form of media. My favorite style of writing.

Digital Newsletter

I just started doing this in 2017. So far, I really enjoy the challenge of a monthly newsletter. I say digital, because I indeed would rather do it online than print, especially since doing it digitally didn’t cost me anything. That’s where a lot of print newspapers are heading towards. Well, the ones that are trying to survive.

Podcast

I almost did a podcast for the blog before deciding on the newsletter. I do have recording tools as I had been working on an audio book so the option to do a podcast is still alive and it’s still heavily on my mind. I may do it one day. I would need to figure out how to make it engaging.

Vlog

What in the world is a vlog? It’s a blog, but for video. V-Blog. Vlog. Anyway, my YouTube channel sort of is a representation of my vlogging. I produce videos on my lighting projects and such. So, the question, can a vlog work for this blog’s content? An optimistic vlog? Just like with the podcast, I’d have to really make it special, visually.

Social Media

Well, this is an interesting one. On one hand, I’m on social media. On the other hand, Dante’s Optimism doesn’t have its own designated social media platform. It’s under the “Dante Writes” umbrella. What if you extended the blog, newsletter, podcast, or vlog with social media? What if you replaced those with social media? Take Instagram. You can easily run a video and picture blog right there. This is the least likely to happen in my case, however. I am of the opinion that I should continue to push the Dante Writes agenda and brand.

Mobile App

A potentially quicker way for followers to get your content? That’s a mobile app. Making an app isn’t simple, especially if you’re not all that great with coding and stuff. But, it can really be a great addition to your brand. I think it would go nicely with my blog. I did make an app for it in the past. Maybe I should try that again.

Those are ways I can grow my blog. Yet, some of these methods fits your blogging style better than mine. There probably won’t be a vlog for this and I likely won’t give this blog its own social media presence. If you’re thinking about expanding the empire, these are some areas…common areas, to look into.

Weekly Optimism 3

Weekly Optimism 2

Weekly Optimism 1

The road to success is dotted with many tempting parking places. Author Unknown

Your work is going to fill a large part of your life, and the only way to be truly satisfied is to do what you believe is great work. And the only way to do great work is to love what you do. If you haven’t found it yet, keep looking. Don’t settle. As with all matters of the heart, you’ll know when you find it. Steve Jobs

Consider the postage stamp: its usefulness consists in the ability to stick to one thing till it gets there. Josh Billings

All you need is the plan, the road map, and the courage to press on to your destination. Earl Nightingale