Life, the Blogosphere, and Everything: Changes Coming to DBW

Sue Archer

Today’s post is a smorgasbord of poll results, life events, and announcements of blog changes here on DBW.

I was realizing today that I have been blogging for almost six months. When I started this blog, I had a goal of creating one post a week. I am happy to say that I’ve been able to do that, and it’s been a fantastic experience for me. I love sharing what I’ve learned about communication in creative and fun ways. And I’ve met some great people!

But I still have more learning to do. Although I have spent years writing and editing in my various day jobs, I’m constantly looking for ways to learn more and improve my skills. (If I could get paid to learn, I would take that job in no time flat!) So I’ve decided to take a university course in substantive and stylistic editing this fall. I am looking forward to this course a lot, but it means that I will have less time for blogging over the next three months. The good news is that I will be able to take all of those juicy tidbits I pick up from my course and share them with you. But if you don’t see me for a little while, it’s because I haven’t had time to post on them yet. I think I am going to be doing more liking than commenting on your blogs, too, since I will only have so much time to read! Please bear with me as I learn more about how to help writers craft a great book.

blogging

Don’t worry, content is coming! Source: www.xkcd.com

I also wanted to let you know that the content of my posts will be changing (more like expanding). Back in August, I posted a poll asking you, dear readers, what you would like to see more of on my blog. Thank you to those of you who participated. Here’s a summary of the results:

Most of you liked anything to do with communication, whether on writing topics or on other topics. So I’m not going to try to specialize in any particular communication topic, but will keep providing variety. I tend to slant more towards writing topics, so that will probably keep happening.

The top two new post ideas that you liked were definitions of terms and recommended resources. So in the future, I am going to post four types of posts:

– The “story” posts, where I will weave writing and grammar tips into a fictional story setting.

– The “metaphor” posts, where I will use TV, movies, and sci-fi/fantasy pop culture to illustrate points about communication.

– A new series of posts called “Universal Translator,” where I will pick a tricky term and define it using fun sci-fi/fantasy sentences. (This includes confusing usages of similar terms, like effect vs. affect.) I need your help with this one! In the comments, please post any terms that you’d like to see defined. (I remember the first time I saw the term “dangling participle” on a returned essay, and was embarrassed because I had no idea what a participle was. So please don’t be shy! Share any terms that you think are tricky. Otherwise I will inflict my own terms on you! Bwah ha ha.)

– A new series of posts tentatively called “DBW Discoveries,” where I will share my thoughts on different communications learning resources – books, websites, you name it. (I have some current faves, but I’m sure I’ll be finding more in my upcoming course.) I’m always on the lookout for good sources of learning, so please feel free to post any in the comments. If you know anyone who’s written a helpful resource, I am happy to read through it and provide an honest review.

I hope you will enjoy the changes, which I’ll be adding in gradually over the next little while. Any feedback is appreciated!

Thanks for making this such a fun ride. I’ll see you again soon, whenever I have time to pull myself out of the books. 🙂

All the best,

Sue

14 thoughts on “Life, the Blogosphere, and Everything: Changes Coming to DBW”

  2. Sounds like an excellent plan! Blogging can be tricky–and all-consuming–since it’s so wide-open, but it sounds like you’ve come up with a great structure for yours. Best wishes with your class–it sounds like a wonderful opportunity. And if I can help you with articulating differences between terms, let me know; I have to do a LOT of creation of mnemonic devices in my work with ESL students. They can remember the difference between “effect” and “affect,” for example, by remembering that “affect” is usually a verb, a verb is an action, and “action” and “affect” start with “a.” Fun stuff like that. 🙂

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    1. Hi Brenna, thanks so much for the offer! It’s always good to be able to bounce ideas off of others, and having your input would be very helpful. I have a post idea about articles (generated from our earlier discussion on ESL), and, if you don’t mind, I’d love to get your input on it before posting. (Of course, I haven’t written the darn thing yet, and it may be a while.) 🙂

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  3. Hey, this all sounds wonderful! And pre-congratulations on your upcoming 6 months of blogging. It’s almost your 6th Mooniversary!

    I hope your enjoy the course, and look forward to your presentations on what you’re learning.

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  4. Firstly, congratulations on deciding to return to learning in a formal atmosphere. I am dripping with envy, but want to wish you massive success. Secondly, I can’t believe that your readers will be the lucky recipients of your new knowledge, and I for one cannot wait to see how you put the complex into commonplace and comfortable for the rest of us. Yippee!
    Lastly, all the new bits of ideas for the blog get a huge thumbs up from me. I will eat up every one of them with delight.
    Good luck, Sue! I will be cheering you on. 😀

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  5. Congrats on diving into a new learning experience! It sounds like a fantastic class, and I can’t wait to read all about your new knowledge. Thank you for sharing. I’m also looking forward to your new blogging direction. I know it will be good!

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    1. Hey there, DragonSpark! Don’t worry, I’ve been having a tough time keeping up with my reading, too. I would love to do more fiction, and someday I hope to participate in something like the Yeah Write Speakeasy, but right now there’s only so much time in the day. I’ve been having fun doing the writing tips as fiction stories, so I figure sometime I’ll move from that into pure fiction. Maybe when my course is done. In the meantime, I will enjoy reading yours. 🙂

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