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New Editor Speaks.

First of all, I have to give a big Thank You to @Gary Oswald for the work that he’s done on the blog to date. I have big shoes to fill. So big that there’s a train service inside them to get from one end to the other, and if I lay the shoes East-West, they are in three separate time zones.

Maybe I exaggerate a little. But he did do an amazing job, and I’m going to be hard pushed to match that. Thanks, Gary.

He’s taking a well-earned break and I have somehow landed up in the role. The interview process I went through was exactly as described. Well, it was in my head, anyway.

What does this all mean?

Firstly, the Blog is in need of articles. My intention is quite simple. SLP is a website for AH, and I’m keen to see a variety of articles pertaining to AH. Expect wheedling.

Secondly, those Reithian Principles I mentioned – it may sound pretentious (it is), but I believe that it’s a worthy goal to aim for. Educate, Entertain, Inform. And, since this is an AH website for a publisher that produces AH books, the focus will be on AH.

It might be actual History, which will help inform for the writing of AH. It might be about the craft of writing (I’ve lost track of the number of timelines I’ve given up on because they are written so badly).

One thing I will note for authors and potential authors of articles: this blog is accessible by the public. Children could easily be reading this. Therefore, I will be applying a U-rating for articles. Write in as academic fashion as you like. I don’t mind if children don’t understand an article. I do mind, very much, material that I would not be happy for a 12-year-old to read.
 
Incognitia said:
Congratulations on the new position David, I'm sure you'll do very well.
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Thanks. I'm following on from @AndyC , who created the basis and did a remarkably good job in setting up a blog for a community, and from @Gary Oswald , who took that and developed it into something rather special.

I've got giants to follow.
 
David Flin said:
Thanks. I'm following on from @AndyC , who created the basis and did a remarkably good job in setting up a blog for a community, and from @Gary Oswald , who took that and developed it into something rather special.
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I am very strongly of the opinion, that if the blog was ever special it was because of what @AndyC did in establishing it. I changed very little about the basics of the blog and he deserves huge credit for establishing a brand and making it easy to follow in his footsteps, I still think of it as his blog and I think that first year was probably the best it has been, all I did was follow the mould left for me.

Thank for everyone for the kind words, you in particular David. You are all giving me far too much credit.

I have no doubt that David will do a wonderful job and hopefully the change will be largely unnoticed and David finds it as easy to take over as I did from Andy.
 
Many, many thanks to Gary for a fantastic stint as editor, including the unexpected extension. He proved more than capable of plugging away with the sometimes tedious admin of managing a Wix blog while never allowing that to dampen the obvious enthusiasm he had for innovating the blog and getting great new articles out there. I agree he's far too modest, and SLP and the AH community owes him a debt as great as the one it owes Andy for getting the blog off the ground.

With David, I know the blog is in very very good hands. He's experienced with the real world of journalism, extremely knowledgeable about swathes of history, and of course has displayed time and again a commitment to quality and detail with Sergeant Frosty Publications (and the hard community-led work put into the Ukraine-aid collections).

I look forward to reading the blog under your tenure, David, and thank you again for stepping up to this role.
 
Meadow said:
I look forward to reading the blog under your tenure, David, and thank you again for stepping up to this role.
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Aw, shucks.

Actually, I get a lot of pleasure in enabling people to contribute and develop the sense of community.

If I succeed, it'll be because of the hard work of people contributing. If I fail, it'll be down to me not being able to enthuse others.
 
Many thanks to @Gary Oswald as said for stepping up when I was unable to keep going and making sure all the effort before was worthwhile. As others have said - whilst I'm very gratified for his words, he's downplaying his own excellent contribution. He not only kept it alive, but grew it; not just panel discussions, but the interviews with members of the community stick out as all his own.

And many thanks to @David Flin for stepping up to ensure it continues yet further. As Meadow has said, David's experience and background are going to be enormously beneficial, and I look forward to seeing the blog go from strength to strength.
 
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