There's no truly humble way to announce your own promotion, so here I go.
Starting today, I'll be assuming the role of the Community Manager for LitReactor. My responsibilities generally include keeping watch over the free parts of the site, such as these forums. In addition, I'm going to be running some side projects, which I'll be discussing below.
I joined LitReactor in February of last year, right around the time the Teleport Us contest deadline was coming up. I had only just begun to take my writing seriously, and so I poked around the community to see what LitReactor could offer.
What I found was helpful, friendly, and like-minded writers who took themselves seriously and yet still managed to have fun at the same time. Without a doubt, had the experience been worse, I would not have joined the site, and therefore would probably not have finished the first draft of my novel, nor gained the many skills I have since signing up. I've seen this place transform okay writers into great writers, and I've made contacts here that I never could have made on my own.
After the departure of our own wonderful Avery, I wanted to make sure that this site continues to meet the high standards of our community and serves as your creative refueling station between all the writing, workshopping, and querying. I'm looking forward to the challenge, and hope that I have your support.
So, what's changing?
Immediately, not much. I'm still in the planning stages for a lot of ideas, but there are a couple of things you should see within the month.
I'm going to be doing a monthly roundup column. I'm still working on the exact template, but you can expect to see a lot of cool community news, such as member profiles, cool stuff going on in the forums, and most exciting, I'll announce any new work that our members want to plug. If you're part of the community and working hard, you can expect some time in the spotlight.
We hope to have a submission form up shortly where you can send me a message with what you've been up to, because I can't see everything that happens in the forums at all time.
Yet.
So when will my favorite article/contest/feature start running again?
I'm aware that there are a lot of requests out there to get various features up and running again, and yes, much of that will be within my realm. Some of it may get going pretty quick, while other concepts might need to be modified. For instance, the community spotlight feature is, for the time being, abbreviated into the shorter version which will be found in the monthly roundup. We're also working on revamping the much-loved featured workshop story, which will be one of my main focuses as I hit the ground.
Bigger projects, such as new contests (like Teleport Us), are on my table as well, but will take a little more time for me to figure out. On projects like these, I may also call out to the community for some support, and I will definitely keep you guys in the loop so I can get your feedback.
I can promise...
- that I will read and respond to every message you send me within a few days. If I do not, send me a reminder in case I overlooked it.
- that I will pass your original ideas up to the leadership, and present them fairly.
- that I will keep you as informed about what's going on in the community as I can.
- that I will do my best to quickly and neutrally resolve conflict between two parties within the community.
I can't promise...
- that everything is going to work right the first time, or at all.
- that I or the site leadership will accept and implement your idea once we've considered it.
- that I won't make an occasional mistake.
In conclusion
My job is partly to manage the community, partly to serve it, and partly to represent it. For all these functions, I need to hear from you. Feel free to shoot me a message at any time, and if I don't respond, bug me about it until I do. I want to know about what's working, what isn't, or any other ideas you have. The more I hear, the more I can do, and the better the community can be.
Thanks, all.
Love,
Nathan
Hey, our current president used to be a mere community organizer. Oh, wait …. You'll do just swell, I know it. Congrats! And be sure to keep an eye on Official Whoring Thread for member goings-on.
Congrats Nathan :)
We salute you, fearless Community Manager! Congratulations Nathan! Wish you much success, and I'm looking forward to reading your monthly roundup.
Great stuff.
Nathan, Thanks for joining! I'm realy looking forward to the roundup especially because I like seeing what people are up.
Community Manager? Neat title!
Enjoy it, have fun, congratulations, etc.
XOXO - Avery
We shall ride forth and consume the hearts of all who dare oppose us!
Also, could we get a 'something I liked box' on the workshop? The current setting doesn't encourage someone doing a review to point towards anything they felt was done correctly.
I'm not sure what you mean by that. Could you elaborate? There's a text box for the review itself, and four sections for grading on the star system. Are you suggesting a new element?
Yes. A box that has to have something in before you can submit a review, labeled "something I liked". Even if you make "Nothing" an acceptable answer, it seems like the workshop never brings up anything positive about the work posted in it and this would make someone have to think about it. Just from the point of view of revising that is bad, since overlooking the positive doesn't give any feedback about what worked and should be kept.
Cool deal, Nathan. Good to have you.
Congrats, Nathan! I dig your "It's Made of Science" columns.
I was wondering if we'll ever get to do WAR once again. I didn't understand the whole concept, but digging through past posts I learned of this ancient tournament between writers-- possibly with pens (hopefully not by trying to stab each other in the eye)
The forum's got lots of new blood this time, ready to prove their worth and pounce on each other. :)
Is this why your user pic changed?
Seriously though, congrats and I look forward to seeing what you cook up!
(and ditto about the science articles---I worked in science for a while, and it is so obvious the amount of work that goes into those articles. They are really really good.)
Thanks all for the support.
Natso: I never ended up doing WAR, but they worked similarly to our official event competitions. It was something our last forum manager ran (perhaps she can speak more on it), but I'm going to focus on trying to get an official contest running soon rather than another WAR, for the time being. That may change depending on various things, but I'll make sure to keep you guys in the loop.
Not to speak out of turn, but WAR wasn't a LitReactor event, it was an "Unofficial" event created by Utah and Avery. There was a helluva lot of hard work involved and I kind of see it as "their" event. Much the same way "Flash Me" was Chester Pane and Wicked Voodoo's, and "Rough House" was Pandamask's. Much as we miss these threads/events, it feels disrespectful to copy them.
I don't know, maybe that's just my opinion.
I, for one, welcome our new alien overlord...
Seriously. :)
RE: WAR
Yeah, that's my deal so it won't be hosted here on LitReactor. It was generally decided that LR should focus on other events like Scare Us and wasn't interested in doing the Wars officially.
But I will be hosting War on a different site later in the year. I'm still working out the kinks on using the new forum and getting it set up, but there will definitely be War later this year. I don't want to be a jerk and get into specifics here or anything, but if you want details you all know where to find me. :)
And thanks, Em.
Yes. A box that has to have something in before you can submit a review, labeled "something I liked". Even if you make "Nothing" an acceptable answer, it seems like the workshop never brings up anything positive about the work posted in it and this would make someone have to think about it. Just from the point of view of revising that is bad, since overlooking the positive doesn't give any feedback about what worked and should be kept.
Dwayne, this is a cool idea. I'll see what we can do.
That would be awesome, thanks.
@Nathan, thanks, contests are awesome in any case.
@Voodoo_em. Can I just say that if I had a time machine I would only use it sign up for Litreactor 2 years ago?
@Avery.
but if you want details you all know where to find me. :)
You mean Kentucky? :) In any case, I think WAR was awesome. In this new forum, will there be metal music videos on auto-play? One of them almost gave me a heart attack... heh.
I like Dwayne's idea too. Knowing what is great and what works is just as important as what doesn't. Here, here,seconding the motion and all that other 'make it happen' stuff. It takes a lot of guts and underbelly showing to even post in the workshops (I think as a x1 poster in the workshop, that took a lot of deep breathing before hitting submit and knowing my total armature status, but keenness), so hearing something that is working is really helpful. The constructive critique won't be lost by the new feature. Thanks Kirk.
P.S.. -how we will know who has won the battle for the last post? And yes I know it is when the last person posts there... but are there any parameters? Or will a future race find the records and wonder at our perfect line of history?
@Natso - I can neither confirm nor deny autoplay.... :D And you can just message me here, silly! No travel required.
@Natso - That would still make you the new guy here.
@avery, Already booked the ticket, I guess I'll go to Lexington and see Dwayne then... haha, just kidding. :D I'll pm you and ask for the name of the website then. You can tell me, I won't spill it out. :)
@Dwayne, Well, how about I go meet Chuck in 2010 and tell him this awesome website idea for litreactor.com?
@Renae Gee. I think Battle for the last post has become a cheap shot to get the excessive post achievements, so I don't enter it (I'll get the Scribbler achievement soon with my proper contribution to the discussions, thank you) Writing a single word per post is kinda silly, but that's just my opinion.
Update: My bad, I'm mixing it with the word association game.
@Nathan, sorry I'm hijacking your thread. Ditto on Dwayne's idea. I'll shut up now.
Hijack away. People know who I am now, and the thread I'm using for actual work is now stickied at the top of the forums.
And everyone: Avery will be hosting WAR on LitDemon. We won't be doing it here, so I'll just put it out there. The code-speak is making my head spin.
@Natso - Just leave the timeline alone!
If you aren't really in Mongola Jessica is having a Booked and Boozed thing thing in Louisville next month. I mean people from Mongola or anyplace would be welcome I think but the distance don't make it seem practical. Although it would seem weird if you just showed up at my place without asking me. I'd never thought of either or both those being a way to get achievements, and I doubt anyone else has, but that would work good thinking.
@NS - If you posted it I was going too.
Cool, I look forward to the new features.
Natso, have faith. Even though I am no longer personally involved with WAR, if there is any way -- any way at all -- to rig the rounds to autoplay heavy metal, I plan to make that happen.
Because I like to contribute.
And if I can make it happen, plan on it getting done for about 1/3 of the length of the competition and then just...not, after that.
@Dwayne, Nah. I don't think I can handle an event in the States, much less in Ulaanbaatar, our capital. My procilivity for social gathering must've been misplaced somewhere. All I want to do is read and write home.
@Utah, yeah. FWIW, autoplay metal music might have been one of WAR's defining elements. :)
Okay, well, i guess cat's out of the bag. Yep! War's new home is Lit Demon. It hasn't started yet, I'm still getting everything laid out, but we will be having it this year for sure. And one of the things I'm workingon is an awesome prize package for the winner (and runner up, and probably 3rd place, and a best revier prize as well...because I love prizes). So stay tuned and be excited.
This thread confuses me.
This thread is really only confusing if you're still trying to see it through the filter of "Intro Thread". This has been one of the more successful hijackings I've seen in that no one person orchestrated the hijacking. Everyone, including the OP, decided individually to just talk about other (and varied) stuff.
Entropy, man. It's made of science.
You crazy kids...
And why is Chris Cornell our new Community Manager?
Because he stole a thousand beggars' change and gave it to Dennis.
NICE.
Not hijacking an intro thread would be the worst intro ever here.
Chris Cornell?
Yeah, I can see that.
You wish!
I had a guy piss on my shoes at a Soundgarden concert, DURING the concert, in the middle of the venue. No class.
That was obviously old Soundgarden, rather than the new, genteel Soundgarden. Tickets to the reunited band cost far too much for shoe-pissing.
Nope, it was the re-united Soundgarden. It was also the closest I ever came to punching someone in the face.
Where was this? Why didn't you?
Josh, if getting pissed on only gets you close to punching someone, I think you should be nominated for some kind of award for forebearance.
Also, if people are still pissing on each other at Soundgarden concerts, maybe it's time for me to actually fork over the cash for the show.
We don't need to hear about your desire for public golden showers Utah.
No WAR at LitReactor? THE HELL YOU SAY
My people have a word for this. That word is 'feh'.
Feh. Feh, I say.
Well, like you said, tickets weren't cheap, and I didn't want to get thrown out of the show. This was at Webster Hall, I think, In NY.
And has anyone here visited the announcement thread? Because something was hinted at over there. Something... glorious...
It's the Sweaty Historical Romance writing competiton, yeah? "Plunder Me"?
WTF is Chris Cornell?
WTF is Soundgarden?
@JYH:
Good questions, all.
@Utah: Plunder me? Cool! I'm really into historical fiction these days. Ivanhoe's on my list and I recently finished Mongoliad. Although I don't think one can except any romance in the Middle Ages?
