Studio Notes by Shai Coggins» Press Mentions

Web Wednesday #20: CNET Asia Interview and More Webby Finds!

Shai Coggins — Tue, 27 Jan 2009 21:24:17 +0000

So, it’s finally time for another Web Wednesday edition. Here are some things that you might find interesting -

Make Your Own Comics – It’s a web app that enables anyone to create their own comic by using pre-drawn characters and symbols. Just add in your story! (Found this via Janette.)
TwitBacks – Customise your Twitter backgrounds using this free web tool. To remove the ad, you can pay a small fee.
How to Make a Hobo Bag – This one’s for crafters who love the idea of making bags like I do.
Blogger Templates – If you’re using Blogger.com and you’re looking for some fresh templates to use, check these out. These ones seem really fun!
Better Fonts – I so love fonts. If you do too, then here’s a site where you can find some really cool free fonts for download.
Musicalgorithms – The marriage of maths and music. Quite interesting!
Bootstrapping a Startup – When it comes to starting businesses, I’m all for bootstrapping. The last business I started, I barely spent $1,000 in capital – and it turned out to become a multi-million dollar funded company. So yes, it’s possible.

Also, I just want to share my two-part interview with Joey Alarilla from Babelmachine (CNET Asia) : Filipina co-founder of b5media cited among most influential female bloggers . Here’s Part 1 and Part 2.

On Gratitude, Influence and Possibilities

Shai Coggins — Mon, 19 Jan 2009 08:48:51 +0000

If you haven’t figured it out yet, I’ll just admit it: I can be sickeningly sappy. At work, I get all serious and business-like when needed. In front of my kids and husband, I get all silly or ‘mummy-ish’.

And, in the face of amazing love, support and encouragement from incredible sources – I get sappy.

And, that’s what I am right now. Just unashamedly sappy.

You see, I can’t begin to express how I feel about the incredible comments, messages, and emails that I’ve been receiving from many of you over the last few days since I shared my news. I really appreciate you all for taking the time to offer your sincere support and encouragement. I am so, so grateful.

Other than these very kind words, I’ve also been receiving some wonderful offers of help — and even opportunities. Many of them are quite exciting. I’m definitely exploring all of them. And, looking forward to the possibilities.

And, as an extra bonus, just shortly after my last post, I was contacted by Fast Company to let me know that I’ve been included in their latest feature of “Most Influential Women in Technology“. Listed, of course, in the Bloggers section. At first, I thought the private Twitter DM was a mistake. I even asked them if they weren’t mistaking me for someone else. But, when I found the link, sure enough, I found myself listed there – together with the likes of Heather Armstrong (of Dooce), Elisa Camahort Page, Jory Des Jardins and Lisa Stone (the BlogHer folks), as well as Gina Trapani (of Lifehacker), among a few others. It’s always an honour to be mentioned alongside these incredible women.

Definitely a nice way to be acknowledged and encouraged.

And very, very sap-worthy.

Oh, and another thing that got me all sappy the last few days: Jade Craven’s post, “25 Awesome Lessons I Learnt from Shai Coggins” (Thanks again, Jade! I learned a couple of awesome things from your post too.)

The Advertiser Readers: A Belated Welcome!

Shai Coggins — Sat, 06 Sep 2008 13:08:03 +0000

Last week, The Advertiser published a piece titled “The world at your fingertips” by Samela Harris in the Review section of this local newspaper here in Adelaide. It’s basically a collection of the writer’s Top 50 Blogs to read. And yes, ShaiCoggins.com got a mention:

Text:

http://www.shaicoggins.com/

Adelaide’s most influential female blogger. One cannot omit Shai Coggins, a professional blogger, who not only keeps the postings prolific but keeps her blog up to the moment in the blog design stakes. She is a go-go-go multi-talented person – artist, psychologist*, community strategist – and, among other things, is one of the country’s experts in blogging. Her blog is a mix of diary and reflection and geeky news.

Stop me from blushing already!

Okay, seriously, thank you so much Samela and the rest of The Advertiser crew. And, thank you to all new readers and visitors from Adelaide (and beyond) who came here after reading the article. I’ve already received a handful of wonderful comments/emails. And, thanks too to all my fabulous Adelaide friends who sent congratulatory/caring messages. And, of course, a special thanks to Lee Hopkins for scanning the complete article and sending the file (a whopping 200 Meg). What a patient, caring person ‘eh?

Yes, I actually missed the paper that weekend. We usually buy a copy – especially the Saturday one – but sadly missed it that day. That’s why I was confused when I began to get some comments/emails about getting mentioned on The Advertiser. I thought they were just referring to an old piece that was published about me a couple of years ago. It was only after a Tweet from Lee that I found out that there was indeed a different article published (another yay for Lee).

In any case, it’s nice to see Darren Rowse’s blogs mentioned too (Problogger and DPS), as well as Karen Cheng‘s. Non-Aussie blogs like Wonkette, SlashDot, and Dooce were included too. Yay bloggers!

Anyway, here’s a quick tour of this blog, in case you’re looking for one:

About Page – For a quick background of this blog/blogger.
Highlights – Some of the most popular/most favourite blog posts.
Tell me about you – A post where you can introduce yourself.
52WoC Central – An ongoing project for bloggers.
Forum – A place to chat with other bloggers in this blog’s community.
Archives – A collection of all blog posts, organised by date/categories.
Galleries – Some of my artwork.

To keep in touch, you can subscribe to this blog’s RSS feed and/or receive updates by email. You can even visit via mobile phone.

You can also interact with me in various social networks like: Plurk, Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn.

So, take your time and hope you find something that you like in here. And, if you have any questions, just ask away. And, if you like to say hello, please do. I’d love to hear from you.

*PLEASE NOTE: I am trained in psychology but ‘am not officially able to call myself a psychologist here in Australia just yet until I get registered. So, that part isn’t entirely accurate.

Amazing and Top Lists

Shai Coggins — Tue, 18 Dec 2007 01:14:03 +0000

Just thought I’ll just do a quick thank you post on these —

15 Amazing Women in Blogging – Some incredible bloggers in this list, so I’m really honoured to be a part of it. Thanks, David.
Top Pinoy Probloggers in 2007 – Another collection of great folks in the blogging world from the Philippines. Some of them I even met during the Manila Bloggers’ Mixer. Yay. Thanks too, Basapa.

A Manila Bloggers’ Mixer and A Manila Bulletin Feature

Shai Coggins — Thu, 13 Dec 2007 07:37:19 +0000

After sharing some of the Manila Bloggers’ Mixer stories from the blogosphere, here’s my own take on the event that happened last 30th of November 2007 at Kape Isla (in Serendra).

The Philippine-themed cafe was closed for the evening’s event. There was the gorgeous chocolate fountain centre piece, plenty of desserts and light food – and coffee. No wonder the event lasted from 7 pm to midnight (some even went off to a nearby club to extend the fun; I was too tired to go drinking with the young ones. ).

There was an abundance of chatter, laughter, notes-sharing, and all sorts of geeky fun (like ogling over Juned’s Asus Eee PC mini laptop, doing live web cam coverages, checking out each other’s gadgets, and paparazzi-like photo taking sessions, among others). There were goodies to be shared – beauty goods from Style Manila and Sophie, art goodies from Studio S, b5media schwag, and blogging related books.

Oh, did I say that I REALLY had a fantastic time meeting this vibrant group of bloggers based in Manila?

And yes, thanks to Annalyn Jusay of Manila Bulletin, there was a fab press coverage of the event (and b5media) on the 3rd December issue of one of Manila’s largest newspapers via the Blog-O-Rama column -

If you want to read the article online, it’s archived at Manila Bulletin Online – A blogger mixer in Manila with Shai Coggins of b5media

Here’s a shout-out (and another massive thank you) to all the guests for the evening -

There were also a handful of non-bloggers who stopped by the event, to see friends and family. So, they were exposed to the world of blogger get-togethers.

And, of course, a big big thanks again to the two folks who helped me organise the event: Sasha Manuel and Rico Mossessgeld.

Hopefully, this is only the first of many blogging get-togethers.

From the photo collage:

1. Kape Isla: Reserved for the Mixer, 2. The Chocolate Fountain, 3. Annalyn, Azrael, & Myself, 4. With RG, 5. With Noemi, 6. Mark, Renzie, & RG (with me), 7. With Eugene & Juned, 8. With Annalyn from Manila Bulletin, 9. With Azrael & RG, 10. During The Raffle, 11. Jonas, 12. Paparazzi, 13. Fun with Gorgeous Bloggers from Manila, 14. The Beautiful Bloggers from Manila, 15. Sonnie & Son, 16. Talking Beauty!, 17. Mike, Jayvee, Marc, Rico & Me, 18. Blurred with the Looks! , 19. With Toni & Noemi, 20. Another One with Toni & Noemi

*NOTE: Yes, this is the last you’ll hear of this event. Regular blog programming will resume shortly.

Welcome, WOW Readers! (and Top 50 Aussie Women Bloggers)

Shai Coggins — Mon, 05 Nov 2007 14:48:07 +0000

If you made it here via WOW! Women on Writing, thank you and welcome. Thanks for finding your way here. I hope you’ll find something here that will delight you. Do say howdy via comments. I’d love to hear from you!

If you don’t know what I’m talking about… Do check out the November issue of WOW! (this month’s issue is mostly about literary agents and writing). You can read my interview with the fabulous Angela Miyuki Mackintosh in their Inspiration Column: Meet Shai Coggins.

I really enjoyed this interview. I like the fact that it covered a lot of aspects of my life right now – and at the same time, gave some insights on how I got here and where I want to go someday.

Anyway, do head over to WOW! They have a fantastic ezine for folks interested in writing, reading and publishing. And, seriously, I’m not just saying that because they interviewed me.

In fact, they have featured amazing folks like author Amy Tan (one of my faves!), Ann Moore (CEO, Time, Inc.), Tiffani Amber Thiessen (aspiring writer/actress that I feel strangely connected with for some reason), and Debbie Ridpath Ohi (a blogger/illustrator/author that I really, really admire), among many others. So, you can imagine why I’m sooo thrilled to be a part of WOW!

Another list I’m excited to be a part of is the Top 50 Australian Women Bloggers list – for Just Make Money Online (currently in Top 10) and ShaiCoggins.com (currently in Top 25). A big thanks to Leigh from All for Women for putting this together. And, congrats to everyone who made it to the list. It’s a great way to get to know many fabulous Aussie-based women bloggers. I already recognise a few names there – and it’s cool to discover new ones.

So, there ya go.

Excuse me as I do a little happy dance today.

Random Notes & Things...

IF Emergency and an Interview

Shai Coggins — Tue, 14 Aug 2007 18:20:30 +0000

It’s been a while since I last participated in the Illustration Friday (IF) project. In fact, looking at my old doodles I realised that it has been over a year since I last sent a doodle. Ergh.

Anyway, when I checked last Friday’s theme – “Emergency” – the first image that came to mind was a literal interpretation (an ambulance or a fire engine). But, last night, as I went to bed doing some practice doodles, a different story came to mind. And, that chook came in to picture. I just went with it. And had fun.

I really, really like the idea of creating doodles with a story in mind.

I still have a lot to learn when it comes to illustrating. Especially using digital tools. I mean, I have the general idea of how to work with ‘traditional’ tools like pen, paint, pencils, markers, etc. But, working with digital tools still feel a bit awkward. Yeah, I’ve been trying to master this media for a while. But, I know that I haven’t really given it a lot of time and practice. Ah, well. At least I’m enjoying the process. I just hope to keep getting better.

In any case, here’s my process with this IF doodle: First, I used pen and paper to draw the idea. Then, I scanned it in. Once I had the scanned image, I launched ArtRage2 and used the trace function to help me transfer and re-work the doodle using my Wacom tablet. Then, I launched Adobe Photoshop Essentials 2 to “colour it in” and add the text.

Since I already have your attention, I thought I might as well share with you my latest interview: An Interview with Shai Coggins of b5media by Steve Remington of Skinny Moose Media. It’s been some time since I granted an interview. The piece talks about professional blogging and the general state of weblogs. Thanks again, Steve!

Technorati Tags: digital art, doodles, emergency, illustration friday, interviews, skinny moose media

Random Notes & Things...

SBS Radio Interview: On Air

Shai Coggins — Fri, 16 Mar 2007 01:47:05 +0000

As I mentioned in this blog entry, I was interviewed by a journalist* from SBS Radio Filipino (Australia) early February of this year.

Anyway, apparently, the first part of the interview aired last 13th March 2007 in the business and finance section of the radio show. It’s basically where Kristyn just asked me about some basic dos and don’ts of starting and running an online business. Nothing fancy or earth shattering there. Except, maybe for those of you who never heard me speak in Tagalog, you’ll hear snippets of me speaking in my native language. There’s an archived version of the interview, available in MP3 or Real Player.

The second part, one about profiling me as a woman in the IT industry, aired yesterday (15th March) on 97.7FM here in Oz. Kristyn kindly emailed me last night but I only got to catch the online record of the show. It’s no longer available. And, I’m not sure if they’ll also post an archived version of it. If they do, I’ll let you know in case you’re interested.

* It was Kristyn Maslog-Levis, a Filipina journalist living in Sydney, Australia. She also happens to be a very talented photographer.

Studio Notes by Shai Coggins» Press Mentions

Web Wednesday #20: CNET Asia Interview and More Webby Finds!

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On Gratitude, Influence and Possibilities

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The Advertiser Readers: A Belated Welcome!

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Amazing and Top Lists

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A Manila Bloggers’ Mixer and A Manila Bulletin Feature

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Welcome, WOW Readers! (and Top 50 Aussie Women Bloggers)

Random Notes & Things...

IF Emergency and an Interview

Random Notes & Things...

SBS Radio Interview: On Air

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