Sorry folks, no politics here. Today we’re talking about some changes happening to the blog.

New contributors

I’ve been working this blog and Words Mean Stuff solo since the beginning. But, my point of view and skill set aren’t the only ones out there. It also takes a lot of work to do it all right. So, to bring you better and more interesting content, and to help me find the time and space to do the back-end stuff I need to keep up on. I will be joined by other contributors in the next few months.

My most significant partner in writing (who hasn’t decided on what name to use with the blog) has a PHD in instructional design and experience teaching French and Chemistry. She’s also female…

Instructional design and psychology (my science background) have some similarities but significant differences in focus, meaning we’ll be able to expand the understanding and viewpoints presented on our topics.

We may add other voices as time goes on.

Improved planning

When it was just a one man shop, it was pretty easy to handle the planning. I rarely got into arguments with myself over what content to put up and when. But, with multiple authors, we’re improving our planning process.

In the past I’ve sort of had a plan, but there was no paper trail. I never had to write anything down. In the future, we will have more detailed three month and year plans that help us coordinate who’s writing what and when.

In might not sound like much but it’s important. It’ll save a lot of head banging about what to write and allow for better preparation.

Better pre-writing

Speaking of better preparation… One of the side effects of my previous writing methods was a dearth of pre-writing research. There was some, but not nearly as much as I’d like. Often, I was falling back on what was in memory and on the shelf over my desk instead of digging deeper.

Having a better schedule will mean I can collect information over time and not have to rush at the last minute to put stuff together. I’ll be able to feel (and be) better prepared for the stuff I write and share. And I’ll have time to deal with the “should do” stuff too…

There’s more to it all, of course. But this is a blog post, not a book. And, the situation is developing as we speak. If I waited to write it all, it would be a book, and one written after the fact.

That’s it for this one, dear reader. We all have things we can learn, that we need to learn. Learning and growth can be challenging. But we can do it! Good luck with your journey. And, I’ll see you next post.

P.S. Over at WMS I’m talking about the process from a slightly different (more internal) angle.