My new role on Compuserve
As some of you may have heard, over the weekend I was offered the position of Section Leader (SL) in Diana Gabaldon's folder on the Compuserve Books and Writers Forum, which is the online community where Diana hangs out.
[UPDATE 4/19/2018 - The forum has relocated to TheLitforum.com.]
Naturally I was delighted (and rather stunned) that Diana and the other forum staff would think of me, and I accepted the offer with pleasure.
So, what does a Section Leader do? The job was described to me as "a cross between moderator and janitor". [g] I can -- theoretically, as I'm only just starting to learn how -- move, edit, and delete posts, change thread titles, split off discussions into new threads, and so on.
Basically, the idea is to keep the discussions from getting out of control, and also to free Diana from having to do these sorts of housekeeping functions herself -- so she can spend more time focused on finishing AN ECHO IN THE BONE [vbg], which she hopes to have completed by the end of the year.
By the way, in case you're wondering, the forum staff are all volunteers.
I really enjoy the atmosphere and the intellectual stimulation of the discussions on Compuserve, and I'm thrilled that they let me take on this role even though I have only been a member for a year and a half, and only posting regularly on the forum since BOTB came out about a year ago. (Some of the people there, like Diana herself, have been members for 20 years or more.)
I know that some of Diana's fans view her Compuserve forum as a scary or intimidating place, especially for first-time posters. I understand why people feel this way, but I don't happen to agree. I hope to use my new position to make the forum a more welcoming place for newbies. And the fact that I've been given this opportunity just proves what I have said for a long time: you definitely don't have to be a writer (or even an aspiring one [g]) to participate in the discussions over there.
[UPDATE 4/19/2018 - The forum has relocated to TheLitforum.com.]
Naturally I was delighted (and rather stunned) that Diana and the other forum staff would think of me, and I accepted the offer with pleasure.
So, what does a Section Leader do? The job was described to me as "a cross between moderator and janitor". [g] I can -- theoretically, as I'm only just starting to learn how -- move, edit, and delete posts, change thread titles, split off discussions into new threads, and so on.
Basically, the idea is to keep the discussions from getting out of control, and also to free Diana from having to do these sorts of housekeeping functions herself -- so she can spend more time focused on finishing AN ECHO IN THE BONE [vbg], which she hopes to have completed by the end of the year.
By the way, in case you're wondering, the forum staff are all volunteers.
I really enjoy the atmosphere and the intellectual stimulation of the discussions on Compuserve, and I'm thrilled that they let me take on this role even though I have only been a member for a year and a half, and only posting regularly on the forum since BOTB came out about a year ago. (Some of the people there, like Diana herself, have been members for 20 years or more.)
I know that some of Diana's fans view her Compuserve forum as a scary or intimidating place, especially for first-time posters. I understand why people feel this way, but I don't happen to agree. I hope to use my new position to make the forum a more welcoming place for newbies. And the fact that I've been given this opportunity just proves what I have said for a long time: you definitely don't have to be a writer (or even an aspiring one [g]) to participate in the discussions over there.
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