Make Sure You Use The News

We post a lot of news here.  That's part of the service we provide to our fellow geeks, after all – calling out and analyzing news for people.

So I want to encourage you to do something WITH the news.  The news here.  The news elsewhere.  Whatever method you get news, you need to act on it and need to get in the habit of acting on it.

What do I mean?  Well it's easy to get news.  We geeks have news feeds, RSS, aggregators, social media, Twitter, and everything else.  We're constantly getting news – good news, relevant news, news that's important.

But getting news is one thing.  It's acting on it that makes a real difference.

So get into the habit of acting on news:

  • If you see a story you should read, don't just read it – ask what it means for you, and perhaps act on it.
  • If you hear about a company that sounds good then check their job listings, and send them a resume, or pass the lead onto friends and family.
  • For that matter if a story is relevant, just pass it on.
  • If the story links elsewhere, follow.  If you want to learn more go do a web search for a few minutes.
  • Does it mention a good book?  Download a sample or buy the thing.

Simple?  Sure. It's all stuff we think we should be doing – but we have to get into the habit of using that news.

So get active – news is only news you can use when you use it.

– Steven Savage

Guest Post by Rob Barba: Fixing a Hole

One of our regular commentors and occasional posters, Rob Barba, is launching his own series.  A long-time fan (as in, he helps make me feel not that old), he's also been around and has given a lot of thought to issues of what fanfic, fandom, worldbuilding, etc. mean for him as an author.  He's written an extensive essay on the subject – and it's one that might just shock or surprise you as he touches on a lot of areas of controversy and some past internet incidents.

So if you've got that indie series a-brewing, here's some advice . . . fix the holes

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