Michael B. Duff

Lubbock Online has decided to discontinue its forum service for now.

We apologize for the inconvenience and we still welcome reader feedback in the form of story comments, blog comments, email and letters to the editor.

UPDATE 5-14: My editors are deciding what to do about the forum issue. We’ve got a couple options we’re considering but nothing has been decided yet. I looked into reactivating the old forums but the company that made them is out of business and we can’t control the spam on them. I’ll update here as soon as I know something.

We’re experiencing technical difficulties with our host and have had to take the forums temporarily off-line. We apologize for the inconvenience. We should have them restored in the next day or so. Comment functionality on our stories and blogs is still available.

Lubbock Online is about to expand its blogging roster and I need some good candidates. I’m open to pitches of any kind but here’s what I really need:

Political blogs: Not just right and left, but if you’re passionate about environmentalism or privacy rights, we could build a blog around that issue. Note that we already have a strong pair of political bloggers and that our standards for this one will be pretty high. The blogger who tries to take this on needs to be smart and prolific, willing to link to good sources and handle commenters with some level of grace.

Tech students: We really need to engage the Tech community and start writing about things that students care about. I’d love to see a blog about the daily life of an art student or med student — someone involved in Greek life or involved in student government.

Photo blogs: We have a great platform to host photos and I want to make the most of it. I’d love to showcase the work of a young artist specializing in the visual arts. Show us the progression of your own work and highlight great pieces from your friends. Show us your process and let us learn with you as you go.

Entertainment blogs: We need to find someone who’s plugged in to Lubbock’s live music scene; clubs and nightlife, concerts and special events. I’d also consider a TV or soap opera blog, or even a short-term blog devoted to Top Model or American Idol. If you know how to write snark without being vulgar or abusive, I’d like to talk with you.

Sports blogs: Not just the typical football, basketball and baseball — we want to cover the sports that don’t normally get noticed. Teach me about volleyball, soccer, flag football and intramurals.

Educators: We’d love to see a blog from a Tech TA or a first-year teacher at LISD.

Science blogs: Got an obsession with chemistry, physics or pop science? Want to be the next Carl Sagan? We need a blogger who can share the latest discoveries and translate them into a form that ordinary people can understand.

Guidelines: Lubbock Online is not responsible for the content of its volunteer blogs, but we do maintain a minimum set of editorial standards. That means no vulgarity or profanity and no adult themes beyond the content of a documentary or PG movie. We will not edit your content, but we reserve the right to remove posts and comments if they violate our standards.

Multimedia: Our blog platform can handle audio, photos and video. We encourage bloggers to spice things up with pics and video and I’m open to the idea of a podcast if you can think of a good one.

What you get: An audience! The Lubbock Online blogs are a critical part of our site. Relevant blogs get promotion on our section fronts and prominent placement on our front page. This is great exposure for artists and writers and it looks great on a resume.

What you don’t get: Paid. Lubbock Online bloggers are volunteers. Sorry.

How to apply: Write up a sample post and a short description of your blog concept. Send it by email to michael.duff@lubbockonline.com. Please include your full name, accurate return email, and a contact number. Please help me keep organized by putting your name in the subject line. Something clever like: “John Doe Blog Application” would help. Email submissions only, please.

Got a great blog concept that’s not covered in the list above? Send me an email and talk me into it. Multimedia helps, and good writing can redeem anything.

Annoyed that I missed something obvious? Burning to share something that you’ve always wanted to see us blog about? Please comment on this post.

P.S. We all know that good bloggers need to be a little crazy, but if you push it too far I’ll have to throw you back. You have been warned.

Welcome everybody from michaelduff.net

I’ve got my redirect in now and everything should be pointed to my “official” Lubbock Online blog. Thanks for your patience as I get this worked out.

Old RSS feed will NOT work, so please grab the new one at: http://blogs.lubbockonline.com/geek/feed/