My Journey to Squid Angel
I have been blessed. Yes, I have just been chosen for a tour of duty as a Squidoo Angel. In the first few hours, the excitement was almost overwhelming! There are many of us that aspire to be an angel. I have admired them close up and from afar, spreading joy and blessings over the entire community of Squidoo. Some I have gotten close to, some I have, as of yet, not been able to establish that friendship with.
The short story is that I started Squidoo in July of 2008 and didn't make much headway until I was invited to join RocketMoms. I was home. I made friends and learned to create lenses worthy of Squidoo.
I say this with much pride. I graduated with the first and second session and then in the third session, I became a Big Sister. It is exactly what it sounds like, a mentor of sorts, supporting and encouraging the new and the seasoned to not only participate but give their best in the process.
During that third session the whole world seemed to open up for me. I became a Giant Squid, I graduated with the third session of RocketMoms and then amazingly enough, the very next day, I was chosen to be a Squid Angel! I am over the moon about it!
Being in the company of angels I have admired is truly an amazing experience.
The short story is that I started Squidoo in July of 2008 and didn't make much headway until I was invited to join RocketMoms. I was home. I made friends and learned to create lenses worthy of Squidoo.
I say this with much pride. I graduated with the first and second session and then in the third session, I became a Big Sister. It is exactly what it sounds like, a mentor of sorts, supporting and encouraging the new and the seasoned to not only participate but give their best in the process.
During that third session the whole world seemed to open up for me. I became a Giant Squid, I graduated with the third session of RocketMoms and then amazingly enough, the very next day, I was chosen to be a Squid Angel! I am over the moon about it!
Being in the company of angels I have admired is truly an amazing experience.
What Exactly Do Angels Do?
Angels have volunteered to become the "Guardians of the Good" and the "Soldiers Against Spam" is the best way I know to put it in my own words. It is my belief that Squidoo was made for everyone to be able to get their fresh content out for the world to see. With that being said, "fresh" and "new" may have different meanings for some. In my case, it means if you are doing nothing but copying and pasting from around the web, with no thought for originality or beauty of the lens or for the trust your reader might put in your opinion, then you are not thinking of Squidoo as a community. You are thinking of it as a place to dump your trash. It means you haven't bothered to come up with an original viewpoint or any new information that can be garnered from your lens. It's called SPAM. That will get a "Ding" every time in my book. A "Ding" will drop the lensrank of that particular lens.Angels want to "Bless" more than "Ding". Blessings give the lens a temporary boost in lensrank and help you to rise above the more common lenses. If you have been Blessed by a Squidoo Angel, most of the time they will tell you, but some prefer to be Ninja Angels and fly by never telling you if they did anything. You will usually be able to tell by your lensrank if an angel has been at work though. Blessing or Ding, it affects lensrank, if only temporarily.
What Do I Look For in a Lens?
Every Squid Angel has their own standards, some are more lenient, some are very strict. The one thing we all agree on is that SPAM has to go!Angels want to encourage you to make the best lenses that you can make. Now for me, that doesn't mean you can't make a typo here and there or have an affiliate link. I think we are all here to make money. It's how we go about it that makes the difference. We are all human and mistakes and typos will happen. In our haste to get our beautiful new lens published sometimes we forget the all important value of changing the default headers on a module. A lens will not get a "Ding" for that. Instead, you may get a quick note that says "Hi! I just wanted to encourage you to fix...." whatever it may be "and I'll be back in a few days to look again." I keep a list of naughty, nice and needs improvement, so that I can go back and check later...and I will.
I look for lenses with some creative quality. Lenses that make me think, whether I agree or not with the subject matter, lenses that tell stories that tug at my heart, ones that are beautiful to look at and inform me, that make me laugh, and lenses that give hope and inspiration are the ones I hope to find. Don't we all feel this way?
If you think your lens is ready and you want me to look at it for a Blessing, you can leave the link in the guestbook or in the SquidU Angels Forum. HTML will be stripped out and only logged in Squidooers will be able to comment or leave links in the guestbook below. Beware, though, if you haven't read Kimberly's SquidU Critique Me, it would be a good idea to do that first.
What is Spam?
A "spammy" lens is one that makes me feel like I just walked onto a used car lot and the salesperson is trying to sell me things he/she doesn't believe in him/herself. It's easy to spot in most cases. When someone writes with passion whether it is a product review or a human interest story, you know it. When someone has only copied content and put no personality into the lens, you know that too. Not everyone will find a story humorous or heartbreaking but they will know if the writer did or did not.
I am not saying the lenses shouldn't sell things, as a matter of fact I absolutely believe they should. I enjoy a good lens that tells me about a new product or an experience with a product. I just don't think Squidoo should be used as only a store front. Why are you passionate about these products? What is your personal interest in them? Have you tried them? Give me a true accounting.
I am not saying the lenses shouldn't sell things, as a matter of fact I absolutely believe they should. I enjoy a good lens that tells me about a new product or an experience with a product. I just don't think Squidoo should be used as only a store front. Why are you passionate about these products? What is your personal interest in them? Have you tried them? Give me a true accounting.
This Lens Donates to Epic Farms
Epic Farms is a small family run non-profit striving to share the big picture with horses. We have kid-friendly programs geared toward area service organizations and small groups; our goal is to share the wonderful world of horses with everyone!
Have You Been Blessed by an Angel?
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- BertBert BertBert Dec 11, 2009 @ 8:44 am
- "The excitement was overwhelming", tells me that you make a good angel, congratulations.
May you journey be long as you go about being a blessing. God's speed. - bert
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- Tipi Tipi Dec 5, 2009 @ 10:08 am
- I am very sure that you really are enjoying being able to bless people's lenses to give them a boost in ratings, and help them prosper a little bit more. I know its work volunteering for Squid Angel assignments, but you are doing a great job Holley. I see you in many guest books spreading the love you have around, and I am very proud to know you. I feature a Squid Angel lens each month on Tipi's...I Believe in Angels, and this lens is featured for December. I hope it helps and blesses you. ~ Blessed by an angel with best wishes for a happy holiday season and a very merry Christmas. ~ Love!
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- ImproveMeU ImproveMeU Nov 30, 2009 @ 1:07 pm
- Thank you for sharing your journey, I have been inspired! 5 *
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- Sylvestermouse Sylvestermouse Nov 29, 2009 @ 5:58 pm
- This is a beautiful lens! The angel pictures are beautiful and they reflect perfectly the image I have of you. They are pure, tenderhearted, loving and gentle. I can't even begin to tell you how much your support has meant to me. You are very precious indeed and I am grateful for the tremendous blessing you have been to me with or without the fluttering wings:)
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- WhiteOak50 WhiteOak50 Nov 23, 2009 @ 6:15 am
- Thank you for the Blessing on Our Wedding Adventure-I greatly appreciate it. Congratulations on your journey here at Squidoo also. I was reading your bio and seen you are a coupon clipper too :0) I do that and stock pile as well, if you ever get a chance please check mine and my husbands adventure with homesteading. Stock piling really helped us a lot with that adventure.
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Hi, I'm Holley!
Lensmaster 24websurf has been a member since July 18 2008, has rated 1,870 lenses, favorited 868, and has created 79 lenses from scratch. Holley donates their royalties to Wild Animal Sanctuary and Epic Farms. This member's top-ranked page is "Mothers Squash Casserole Recipe". See all my lenses
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