storyboard

 Not much has been going on on this blog, mostly because of other engagements, including another blog baby, Shortcut, which has been growing and demanding a lot more attention. There's been changes too, with the Athens correspondent returning to her home country and our London contributor moving to Paris - and we're always looking for fresh cities to write up.  If you happen to be a blogger in Brussels, Milan, London or Vienna, and write wittily about life in one of these capitals, don't hesitate to contact me. You may just be perfect for Shortcut.

So much for plug number 1, plug numer 2 is more personal, or maybe not. One of my short stories made the finalist shortlist for this year's Faulkner Creative Writing competition. While husband-to-be is already checking out whether spouses get to share in the winner's bounty, I am more modestly awaiting the announcement of the actual finalists with every available extremity crossed. My friend Kiki Denis, whose first novel is "The Last Day of Paradise" is coming out in August, is listed as well in the poetry category.

Lastly, I am back in the corporate fold at digital agency Framfab working on this. 

So that's why this blog has been so quiet.  

it's not legal protection, but it may help prevent misunderstandings, and at the very least, give an explanatory outline of a blogger's intent and expectations to those who have no idea what a blog is and how it should be used, or worse, those who by ignorance or ill will use blog content against its owner.  bloggage offers a disclaimer that you can link to from your site. It addresses issues like copyright, privacy, contact and courtesy.

It can also help you as a blog owner clarify your own rights and interests. After having had some of my content used against me by a person who without consulting me "publicized" some material, the following section was of special interest to me:

It is important that as a friend, relative, co-worker or whatever you may be to the writer, that your presence at their weblog not impede their ability to express themselves. Remember this is their outlet. They may not want you to read certain things they might write about you or others you care about, in order to spare your feelings, avoid drama or maintain their privacy. You should respect this and immediately stop going to the site, and never relay any information you gather at their site to others who might use it against them.

 on another note, here's an interesting report by George Simpson on how (US) corporations and marketers are going about the phenomenon of "social media" as they have termed blogs. The gist of it:

In spite of the survey results that indicated the PR folks are getting on the social marketing train, there was still widespread trepidation from marketing and advertising folks about how appropriately to enter an environment where control of the messaging has shifted from the producer and marketers to the consumer.
 

the view from southern spain: no eerie darkness descending, no sudden cold winds lashing out. but if you look closely, you can see the "fiery" ring of the sun glaring behind the disk of the moon.

click to enlarge

spanish ghost.