[Robo]

So Capella and I have, I think, started an unofficial "write a scary story for Halloween" challenge, which everyone else is certainly welcome to try, and NaNoWriMo is next month and I know I'm not the only one here crazy enough to attempt it, so I was thinking that maybe it would be nice to have a "Creative Endeavors" forum? There's also that awesome "Your recent arts & crafts projects" thead in AppleOutsider, and I'd love to see more detailed threads on practically all of the awesome projects therein. The photography threads in AppleOutsider have obviously been super-successful, but the reason I think a new forum might be in order is so that it could be made non-public? It wouldn't have to have a high post count restriction or anything, it's just that some of us might want to share things without, y'know, publishing them, and right now there's really no place to do that, unless you count the super-secret members-only gay porn forum.

Thoughts on a members-only creative forum? I mean, I'm as conscious as everyone else about cluttering the main forum page, and it certainly wouldn't be as busy as AppleOutsider (or the gay porn forum - I never thought so many users would post there so much!). But I think Programmer's Nook is an example of a not-as-busy forum that has still proven useful, to the boards. Thoughts?

[Capella]

Obviously I am all in for this. On a board I (and chucker) administer, we have a set of sub-boards for creative work. Those have fluctuated between being members-only and not members only; since they have been changed back to publicly viewable, I am loathe to post creative works there, even though I want feedback from friends. It's not worth it since I want to get published someday. So, if we were to have a creative arts board, we should absolutely make it members only. So many of us have interesting creative hobbies that we can share with each other, and having a place to do so could bring nothing but good imho.

[Brad]

Hmm... I like the idea of this particular subject, but we generally shy away from creating new forums until an actual need arises for them, else they are likely to go silent and stagnate from inactivity.

Let's have alc and a few others weight in on this before I go running into the vB admin.

[Robo]

Originally Posted by Brad Hmm... I like the idea of this particular subject, but we generally shy away from creating new forums until an actual need arises for them, else they are likely to go silent and stagnate from inactivity.

Well, I didn't mean to suggest that you would have to run and create it right now. I don't know how long it takes to set up a forum or anything but I was thinking it could maybe launch for Halloween/NaNoWriMo? And then maybe the Halloween speed holes (there will be Halloween speed holes, right? Not massive scary spiders?) could link to people's horror stories, which might help the forum get some initial traffic.

I'm sure there would be times where it would be more busy than others, but I think it'd be really awesome if the Halloween "challenge" actually becomes sort of a regular thing, so maybe that would keep it sort-of-hopping, at least in bursts around the times when people post their finished writings.

Also, if this is OMG actually happening, it should totally be forum #27, just because.

[chucker]

Originally Posted by Roboman Well, I didn't mean to suggest that you would have to run and create it right now. I don't know how long it takes to set up a forum or anything

Two minutes?

Brad's concern isn't a technical one, but one of needless fragmentation for the users.

[Robo]

Originally Posted by chucker Brad's concern isn't a technical one, but one of needless fragmentation for the users.

That's true. Like I said, I know a super-clean design is one of AppleNova's strengths, so if Brad & Co. decide they'd rather not add any more forums at this time, that's okay with me (I guess ). But there's just really no place for that sort of exchange, right now. I mean, when we finish our ghost stories, what are Capella and I (and hopefully other peoples!) going to do, exchange emails and send our stories to each other? Even though it's an AppleNova user thing? We could do that, I guess, but it's not exactly the best way to have a discussion, and I'd like people who didn't write a story to be able to at least read mine if they wanted to...

Dammit, what we really need is Google Wave.

those words have never been said before

[Capella]

FWIW, I have a forum I started for a few of my friends to exchange stories and such and offer feedback. It hasn't really taken off (other than the 2 (idling) RPGs that are public, no one has posted anything creative but me), so we could quite easily co-opt it for AppleNova creative folk use if the admins decide not to add a new forum. I feel sort of like I'm tooting my own horn, but I wanted to throw it out as a possibility.

Link: The Outpost.

[Robo]

Originally Posted by Capella *helpfully offers another forum*

Stop dooming my idea.

Idunno. I'm feeling a lot of creative juju right now, and for that to take off I think we might need a forum here. But I'm totally cool with whatever our (lovely, handsome) administrators decide to do.

[Maciej]

Originally Posted by Roboman Stop dooming my idea. Idunno. I'm feeling a lot of creative juju right now, and for that to take off I think we might need a forum here. But I'm totally cool with whatever our (lovely, handsome) administrators decide to do.

He does have a lot of enthusiasm...

I don't have much to weight in here, I'm kind of a shy person with my work. However, I was wondering if you had a reason for choosing #27, Robo.

[Robo]

Originally Posted by Maciej However, I was wondering if you had a reason for choosing #27, Robo.

No reason, other than it being awesome (and conveniently available?).

Or at least no reason that I'm going to tell you all.

Maybe it will work its way into my ghost story. If only there would be a convenient way of sharing it with you all!

And don't be shy with your work. I'm actually a horrible storyteller. My posts here are pretty much a facade.

[Maciej]

I guess the little victories can be some of the most satisfying, we'll see how this one pans out.

[billybobsky]

Keep it in AppleOutsider until it needs to exist...

We are pretty good at keeping long lifed threads alive -- particularly ones with protuberances....

[SpecMode]

Well, we've got the photography threads, video editing threads, writing, and the like...I for one would support the creation of a forum specifically for those sort of threads, rather than using AppleOutsider and General Discussion as "catch-all" forums.

Just my 2¥.

[Brad]

Originally Posted by billybobsky We are pretty good at keeping long lifed threads alive

Well, I for one have never been a fan of "perpetual" discussion threads. They all tend reach a point where there's not a lot of attraction to start reading them if you haven't followed them from the beginning, IMO.

[Brad]

Originally Posted by chucker Two minutes? Brad's concern isn't a technical one, but one of needless fragmentation for the users.

Yeah, what he said.

[Robo]

Originally Posted by Brad They all tend reach a point where there's not a lot of attraction to start reading them if you haven't followed them from the beginning, IMO.

Especially ones with lots of images, like the photo sharing and "Post your desktop" threads. The old images are all broken.

Still, it's not like those threads in AO would up and vanish (unless a mod "rebooted" them or whatever). But WRT our story exchange, the two confirmed participants both have qualms about essentially publishing their work on a public forum (as any publication-minded author should - "publication" is an increasingly muddy legal concept, and since you're effectively selling first publication rights...). So even starting a thread in AO wouldn't facilitate the story exchange very well, although I'd still try that if this idea got shot down.

But I totally trust the admins here, which I can't say about any other board I'd ever been on.

[billybobsky]

well there is always that strangely relieving corner which is private... perhaps we could all use a little literature while we relax.

[Robo]

Originally Posted by billybobsky well there is always that strangely relieving corner which is private... perhaps we could all use a little literature while we relax.

I already mentioned the secret gay porn forum, sweetie. <3