Sunday, December 27, 2015

Blogging Moving Forward

So this post is several days late. I apologize, but as I mentioned previously, travel and my holiday schedule is making it difficult to get these done in a timely fashion. I should have been  more proactive about scheduling so as to avoid this issue. Speaking of which...

As we approach the end of another year, I find myself rethinking how I want to use this blog space moving forward. Rest assured that despite all the turmoil that Standard Pauper has gone through over the past few months, I certainly intend to continue writing about the format, especially as new cards come into Standard.

But beyond that, I am curious as to what my readership would enjoy reading about. In the past, I've covered everything from fantasy authors to espresso to board games to writing tools. I know from the feedback I've received that many of you have enjoyed my looks at other video games, and that is certainly something I will continue to promote. However, I would love to hear what else you would enjoy reading about.

Specifically...
  1. What have been some of your favorite posts or topics outside of Magic?
  2. Do you prefer shorter or longer posts?
  3. How often do you prefer to see content on Standard Pauper vs. other topics?
  4. Would you enjoy seeing guest posts from other bloggers?
Please take some time and share your thoughts in the comments below. I've done my best to remove most of the restrictions on comments to allow as many of you as possible to share. Thanks!

6 comments:

  1. gwyned:

    Let me say 'thanks' for your current blogging and (co)hosting many PDCs for the Standard Pauper community. You've been a passionate and smart defender of the format. Your commentary comes from tournament experience and a willingness to play despite the current Izzet menace. For these things, thank you!

    I'll share a small laundry list of topics, but most importantly, lead. More people will follow if the content is something that inspires you. I'd rather read more D&D adventure synopsis than a frustrated MPDC experience written to fill some imaginary deadline. As long as YOU seem to be having healthy fun, readers will see it and respond over time.

    Regardless of my wish list from you, none of it will fly if your heart isn't in it. Decide what time and topics interest you enough to keep writing, and write well.

    Here're my suggestions:

    1) Schedule. Tell me what/when to expect certain content, within reason. Will content be about D&D this week, or more Standard Pauper? When will I read about Hearthstone from you?

    2) Pauper in Action: Aside from PDCs, perhaps offer to engage readers by hosting a side-event for 1:1 play. It's one thing to pontificate the possibilities of Azorius, and it's another to offer a "high-noon shootout" on XYZday to test the deck before a regularly-scheduled PDC. It's another way to connect with fans.

    3) RPGS. What do you like to play? What edition/format? What houserules do you have? How many players? Do you impose any restrictions on players (i.e.: no evil characters?) What is the most recent mission? Did you offer players handouts? Can we see 'em? What about character sketches? Help set the stage of your play group and characters so we can be interested in thee outside of static rules.

    Regardless of what I want, please continue writing - at your pace and style - about stuff YOU enjoy. Thanks, gwyned.

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  2. Hey G!

    The number one thing I'd like to say is: don't stop blogging! Keep up the good work, man. I may not be playing MTGO anymore due to several reasons, but I still like keeping up a couple times a week with the Standard Pauper news and I'm sure the format will live on and never get boring. I do hope that Writer Adept keeps the Standard Pauper blogs coming, especially strategy articles with attractively formatted deck lists and the occasional video. I do hope to see an article on Standard Pauper at least once a week around here.

    When it comes to other topics, one of the reasons I'm not playing Magic Online any more is because I've become romantically involved with somebody (I know, I know, the classic girlfriend excuse!) who likes RPGs so I'll probably be keeping an eye out for more Dungeons & Dragons and other RPG related posts for her sake so I'm not a total noob once we start our campaign together.

    As far as length and regularity of content goes, I think you've always struck a good balance of keeping things short and to the point and continued to be excellent on maintaining a regular schedule. I can deal with longer posts from time to time if you find the subject at hand requires a couple hundred more words, though. But really, whatever you're doing seems to be working just fine. God knows my self-indulgent blog posts were never regular for an extended period or individually digestible in a reasonable amount of time ;-)

    Like I said, several factors are keeping me from being an active player and blogger on the Standard Pauper scene on Magic Online, but I will always be regular reader of Writer Adept as long as you keep publishing. Thanks for all the writing and all the work you've done fostering the community and our favorite format. And Happy New Year, too!

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  4. Hey, gwyned!

    I really like your mix of topics here. Espresso machines are not my thing lol, even if I love me some espresso, but I like to read just about anything.

    I've not played board games or tabletop RPGs for a long time but I enjoyed they a lot when I was able to play and I still read about them from time to time, so I find it nice when they appear here. The recent post about the story driven character creation process you tested was nice.

    Posts about writing (including your own fictional pieces, which I liked a lot but you haven't posted any for a while) are probably my favorite non-mtg texts here.

    As for post length, I like long posts, but I understand that not everyone may like them as much and they require a lot of extra work. So in my opinion you should keep they short and divide lengthy subjects between multiple posts, unless you are willing to write longer posts, which I personally enjoy.

    Keep up the good work!

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  5. I have enjoyed all that you have written about. While it was originally Magic (via PDCMagic) that originally captured my interest, I've found the rest of your content both relevant and interesting to me. I have learned to play Magic (a little) over the past year and this site has helped shape my development. This recognizes that I have a long, long way to go. Its such a large game. I do enjoy standard pauper allot and wish I could allocate Sundays or Mondays to play in the PDC events.

    Reading the comments above, it sounds like you have periodically posted your stories. I love reading and I focus mostly on fantasy. So, I'm sure that I'd enjoy your form of the art.

    I've also enjoyed your posts on other games. I finally was able to experiment with Darkest Dungeon over the holidays and its great fun. This will date me but it reminds a little bit of Wizardry if anyone remembers that from Apple IIe days. That is a long ways back!

    Best wishes on your plan of attack!

    Aaron (Bark)

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  6. I have enjoyed all that you have written about. While it was originally Magic (via PDCMagic) that originally captured my interest, I've found the rest of your content both relevant and interesting to me. I have learned to play Magic (a little) over the past year and this site has helped shape my development. This recognizes that I have a long, long way to go. Its such a large game. I do enjoy standard pauper allot and wish I could allocate Sundays or Mondays to play in the PDC events.

    Reading the comments above, it sounds like you have periodically posted your stories. I love reading and I focus mostly on fantasy. So, I'm sure that I'd enjoy your form of the art.

    I've also enjoyed your posts on other games. I finally was able to experiment with Darkest Dungeon over the holidays and its great fun. This will date me but it reminds a little bit of Wizardry if anyone remembers that from Apple IIe days. That is a long ways back!

    Best wishes on your plan of attack!

    ReplyDelete