Idea: Open Journal
 

Just a mad idea I had. How about a basic journal in the members' journal section, into which anyone and everyone can post? It would give those who would like maybe to start a journal but don't think they'd have the discipline to keep it going or the ideas or the time, to get a shot at writing stuff. And if everyone posted something it would surely make it an interesting read? Might be a stepping-stone for some members to take the plunge and start their own journal, or not. Obviously, if you already maintain a journal that doesn't exclude you from contributing to this, and anyone can write about anything they like.

I'd say the only rule would be if you contribute you have to post properly: some sort of article, review, thoughts, song, gig you went to, ideas, anything really except I wouldn't like to see it full of just comments with one or two people providing the articles; that would kind of defeat the freeform purpose of it.

No-one has to post regularly (though you can if you want) --- if you prefer just to post once that's fine but obviously more regular posts would be good. I'd love to see everything from music, film, TV and arts to soccer, baseball, politics, religion, anything and everything.

I know some of you will say that's what we have a forum for, and there are threads and even in some cases sub-forums dedicated to those subjects and more, but this would just be fun, collecting everything in one place where anyone could go at any time and read the latest entry, sort of like some sort of mad group diary, or maybe Facebook page without the inanity and corporate sponsorship.

Anyway, there it is: if anyone thinks it's a good idea I'll make the thread and if some mod would approve it we can be underway. If no-one likes it, then I hate you all and hope you have a rotten Christmas! :D

One question. I thought there weren't any rules to journals, I thought we had free roam with the content that goes in our journal?

I like Trollheart's idea.
Ki, what he means is that if you're to submit an entry there's no point in just linking youtube videos, try and actually put some effort into it and make it a worthwhile read.

Yeah, exactly as Merry says. I mean, there are no real rules, but would you read a journal --- at least regularly --- where there was nothing but a string of YTs and a few lines of text? The point is to make it interesting and fun to read, which is why I think a sort of open forum in journal form might be good. Get everyone's ideas, and as I say, for those who couldn't be bothered or wouldn't be able to maintain their own full journal it would be a way for them to express themselves.

There are no rules, per se, but I follow my own, such as proper spelling and grammar, and that the reviews must be relatively well researched (as long as they can be: see my review of Effrontery in "The Meat Grinder": I just could find almost nothing about them!), a usual limit of three videos per review, and the review has an intro to either the band or the album (or both), a midsection that discusses the album and usually, though not always, an afterword/conclusion. And a tracklist.

Things work better if you have some basic rules, so what I mean is I wouldn't want people just writing throwaway lines or putting in comments or not thinking through the pieces they write. Think of it less as a wall on which people can spray grafitti and more as one of those quilts people make that express their individualism. Think of it as something you should be proud of or at least happy with, that others can read.

That's all I mean. I don't want to stifle anyone's creativity; in fact, I want to stimulate it in ways perhaps even they were unaware it could be.

Do I take it you guys are in then, and if so, is that it or is anyone else interested? I know the thread has only been here since last night, but I see about 40 views and 2 replies. Hope to get more interest to make it worthwhile. If not then I'll just write it off as a bad idea. Let's see how things develop, if at all, over the next few days.

There are just a few things that i've thought about with this idea, because I do think it's a great idea, although it's risen some concerns:

• If such a thread is made, there is the issue that people will start to focus more on this type of journal than their own.
• Doubling the content could be another issue that arises. Someone could post in this journal than post the same exact thing in their own journal, it would make for a lot of multiple posts.
• The way this journal sounds, it seems like it'd be a free for all topic wise, which is sort of the opposite that people like to perform in their own journals. If that is the case, it seems like it'd be a messy / scrambled looking journal with people's content that doesn't even relate to each other.
• Which brings me to my last point, discussion. I'm not sure what type of discussion this type of thing would rise since it would be in the journal section, and all the post would have to be looked at and approved. You would have no way of knowing if your response has been talked about already, which sort of relates to my multiple content issue.

Obviously, I think it could work, but it seems like the demand for such a thing is very minimal in relation to how active the journals have been lately. People like the free will of putting whatever they want in their own journal, i'm not sure creating a journal to put all the content in one place would really help in the long run. Just my two cents.

I doubt this'll be a problem. There's no way in hell that I'm posting any of my better ideas anywhere other than in my own.

I'm the same way, though that's sort of what rises some concern. The content wouldn't be that great to call for such a thing, it'd just be people's not so thought out entries that would eventually come to look like the spam thread.

Okay then, let's look at those and see what we can do...

• This presupposes that the people posting will have their own journal already. It's more aimed at those who don't, to encourage them to try. But those who do, well it's up to them what they post. As Urban rightly says, you're not going to divert attention away from your own journal, so you'd naturally keep the best for that. But there might be something you don't feel fits well into your current format that you could write about here. Or not. I don't know. It's a fledgling idea, maybe dead before it even has a chance to try and leave the nest. In the end though, if someone HAD their own journal and found they were spending more time on the "open journal" than their own, isn't that up to them to correct if they want? Nobody's forcing anyone to write anything anywhere: it's up to you where and when you post.
  
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  Doubling the content could be another issue that arises. Someone could post in this journal than post the same exact thing in their own journal, it would make for a lot of multiple posts.

  I would have thought it was obvious, but I guess not. I'd have to insist/advise that nothing that is posted in the "open journal" (RIP, already?) could or should be reposted in someone's own journal. Otherwise I could just shunt a load of my material from "The Playlist of life" into this new journal, which not only would overload and unbalance the journal in my favour, but would be lazy and completely against the spirit of the thing. It's like, I maintain two journals, but nothing that's reviewed in "Bitesize" appears in my other journal. Well, it might, but I've already noted that, and for the best reasons. These things need to and should be kept separate.
  
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  The way this journal sounds, it seems like it'd be a free for all topic wise, which is sort of the opposite that people like to perform in their own journals. If that is the case, it seems like it'd be a messy / scrambled looking journal with people's content that doesn't even relate to each other.

  Who says anything has to relate to anything? In my journal you could have a review of say a Springsteen album, followed by a Motorhead one, then a discussion on classical music and finally a dig a Eurovision. It's the very fluid and unconnected nature of a journal, for me, that makes it such fun. It would in fact be boring were everyone to write about the same subject. it would in fact be pointless. The idea about this journal is supposed to be that you could go there and not know what to expect. One member might write about hip-hop in LA, another about Norwegian music, another about dance routines or the best places to see death metal bands. That's what I would be aiming for. Variety. Difference. Total confusion. ;)
  
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  Which brings me to my last point, discussion. I'm not sure what type of discussion this type of thing would rise since it would be in the journal section, and all the post would have to be looked at and approved. You would have no way of knowing if your response has been talked about already, which sort of relates to my multiple content issue.

Doesn't have to elicit any sort of discussion, but if it did, people only have to quote the section/entry they're talking about and you could have multiple conversations going on at once without any real confusion.
Again, that's not what I'm saying. I'm not telling people not to create their own journals, nor advocating that everything be put into this one. I'm just saying that some people might like a "drop-in centre" as it were, where you can call in, write an article, then if you want **** off and never post again, but if you want you can become a regular contributor.

Anyway, as you say it doesn't exactly look like it's getting support, so chances are it won't happen. If it does though, I hope the above answers your questions Ki.

Oh, and another thing: why aren't you wearing your Santa hat? You some sort of Grinch or something? :laughing:

Thanks for the responses, and the idea sounds a bit more clear to me, though I honestly think if you wanted to, it could wait another month or so, that way you're not waiting around through the holidays for people to see the journal. I would say have it up and going in January, you know, once people are off holiday, etc.

Yeah, good idea. No hurry. I'm happy to wait, see if there's more interest after the Yuletide festivities have died down.