Just do it!

INK
I am not sure that I follow your post. I have not perhaps been on the board long enough to have noticed everyone and all the posts, but I have always been treated with respect and tolerance, and I have not observed that others are treated otherwise.
We all started at the beginning at some time, and for those of us still struggling, this board has been a great help.

I was just wondering if it is the wording of the introduction and the fact that this forum is listed under "professional" that makes the contributions a bit thin on the ground. At most there are three or four professional writers that post here off and on and I am asking if there would be more action if the forum did not have the slant it has.

The volume of response to my question raises another question, is anyone reading this?
It seems to me that this forum could be a lot more value than it is and I am asking how.
If indeed you prefer the somnabulant situation that exists vote with your silence.

I read it, I just didn't know how to respond.

Eddie: a voice is all. Look at the statistics. You (eddie) ask a question and then there a downhill ride from there. It is not necessary for us to be at one anothers throats with criticism especially as peer criticism is taken so badly but it sure gets lonely out there. My question asks, can we make this forum better by changing the paremeters for contribution?

I've been following along .. not a writer at the momement can't quite get exactly what your driving at INK.

Perhaps there are just more gardeners then writers ??

Someone said it a while back .. quality versus quantity.

If you want to get the forum going you need more writers ??

Good Day ...

INKognito -

The forum mission statement is this: "This forum is for the discussion of writing about gardens, gardening, horticulture and related subjects."

I note that they say DISCUSSION OF WRITING ABOUT, not just "writing about".

1. - What is the current problem with this forum?
2. - How do you propose to change the forum mission statement to will solve the problem?

3. - How will we know when the problem is solved ... what are the specific, objective criteria we shuold look for . (INKognito says it's fixed is not objective)

1. there is not as much activity as one would imagine there might be amongst people who write.
2. I am not sure I understand the second part but I am not proposing anything more like asking a question.
3. another mystery piece but the result of a change would be more forum like activity.
As I said, if everybody else is happy the way it is then fine but if not how can we change it? It may be nothing to do with the "mission statement" that was just a suggestion. It could be that there are only a few garden writers at the garden web but I think not, if, as I suspect there are many who glance at this forum periodically to see what is going on why don't they contribute?

Another vote for "Just do it!".

Perhaps the problem is that as gardeners we are busy juggling gardening, writing and summer (ie vacations and kids). Most boards go somewhat quiet in the summer and revive when the snow and hail are battling the windows.
So my vote would be to hang in there and wait till cabin fever hits us!

I think you are right, there are many lurkers who don't feel professional enough to post here. I consider myself a garden writer but Lord knows I am bringing up the rear. I don't mind that at all as I never aspire to be a famous and prolific garden book author. I am just happy to be included at any level. I too feel there is a shortage of discussion going on here but there is nothing I can do about that except to do my part. There are several who have gone beyond the call of duty to keep topics flowing here. I predict that within a month as things cool off outside things will pick up here and we will be back to our normal posting of one or two topics a week. Truly, if one reads some of the old posts we have covered a lot of ground and answered a lot of questions. Hope that's still on topic?

Thanks Eddie and katy perhaps I am being a bit impatient, I will wait and see what comes with the snow.
As for just "doing it" I thought I was but if we are to vote on it what are the alternatives? I know one is to wait for someone else to do "it" and then we can jump in with something, we are hoping, is smart.

I occasionally post an answer if I'm sure of something.

But the only free-wheeling writer's communities I've seen are fiction writers, especially genre fiction writers.

I can tell you why there's a dearth of posting here... i posted a reply this morning, a tad bit tongue-in-cheek i admit, and it looks like it was deleted. Too bad someone has no sense of humor.

Guess it's not worth the time to post... seig heil!

Poppa

oops, that should have been "sieg heil!" if i remember my H.S. Deutch.

Herr Poppa

I think this forum works very well. I see people asking questions and others responding with helpful (usually) comments and information. Just on the first page I see over 400 responses.

It is a good thing to have a place where a beginning garden writer can ask about the GWA, someone else can inquire about including photos in a proposal, and others can rant about poor spelling and grammer.

Just as other forums are the place to gather for other special interests related to horticulture, this is the place for garden writers. Want something else? Propose it to GardenWeb or start it elsewhere.
CLFO

A QUITE PERSONAL PERSPECTIVE

I donÂt know that what IÂm about to write will help to identify (and, therefore, aid in ameliorating) or further obfuscate (and, therefore, hinder finding a solution to) what seems to be the critical point in this thread: "It is not working." And what IÂm about to write may alienate or even anger some participants. But I have lurked here for, I think, about three years, at an average of IÂd guesstimate twice a weekÂpossibly more often.

IÂve always found here two characteristics that have resulted in my not coming out of the lurkloset: 1) there seem to be no writers of BOOKS in attendance; 2) all the wanabes as well as those who HAVE written or ARE writing seem to hail from what I call "the cold regions" and I just canÂt get very excited about what grows therein (see what GF is wont to call "My Page"). But, more importantly, IÂve not encountered (yes, itÂs quite possible I simply MISSED it) anything that, in any way, led me to believe that contemplation of what grows in these cryohortical areas would be interesting to meinzelf. I write "more importantly" because I __KNOW__ that good writing on almost *any* subject can be compelling and even convincing, much like images and the editing thereof in film.

I guess the point of this is that the focus of this forum (regardless of what the tagline says itÂs SUPPOSED to be) seems to me limited. But I must have some desire/hope that it might be otherwise, else I wouldnÂt bother returning at least twice a week  eh?

*The volume of response to my question raises another question, is anyone reading this?

I'm reading. I check in at least weekly but don't say anything. I'm a writer (vegetables and farming) and online magazine editor. Being an editor, I sometimes feel like I need to sit back and keep quiet so that I don't come across as looking for writers or promoting the magazine. I'm also a farmer and this is our busy time. When frost shuts us down for the season and I'm growing in only one greenhouse and one hoop house I'll be here more often.

IÂve always found here two characteristics that have resulted in my not coming out of the lurkloset: 1) there seem to be no writers of BOOKS in attendance; 2) all the wanabes as well as those who HAVE written or ARE writing seem to hail from what I call "the cold regions" and I just canÂt get very excited about what grows therein (see what GF is wont to call "My Page").

On point one, I think there are several writers of books here, but not writing books does not make one a non writer - several of us are content with articles - the immediate income of an article is faster than that of a book.

Your second point, frankly makes no sense at all -what does where we live and what we grow affect what we write? Tropicals can be grown in greenhouses in the north, as can many other plants. That most of us choose to write about what is outside is irrelevant to this forum. It is more about the approach to writing not the content of the writing that is at issue.

A good friend once told me that there are 3 months in the year when gardening was impossible - in the north it is the winter, in the deep south it is the unbearably hot and humid summer, and in the middle no doubt there are times when gardening is difficult, this is when we write more perhaps.
We write what we know when we can and garden with plants that we love, whether they be indoor hot house things or outdoor plants or sometimes both.
As my current project is more to do with historic gardens (ie from Egyptian thru Capability Brown) it has nothing to do with plants per se, and thus nothing to do with zones.

And as I have just purchased a 1920's book online for a not too small fee - I can tell you that what is in there is not what I grow, but it is a wonderful book anyway. (Frank Crisp - Medieaval Gardens, 1923) .

A good friend once told me that there are 3 months in the year when gardening was impossible - in the north it is the winter, in the deep south it is the unbearably hot and humid summer, and in the middle no doubt there are times when gardening is difficult, this is when we write more perhaps.

I thought writers wrote all the time.

Perhaps those who only write when the weather suits them is part of the problem, which implies there are only wannabe's and part-timers who contribute here.

?
just an observation , not an accusation

I thought writers wrote all the time.

Perhaps those who only write when the weather suits them is part of the problem, which implies there are only wannabe's and part-timers who contribute here

Well Mich - I didn't say that we don't write at all - I said we perhaps write more. And perhaps because we spend more relaxation time in the garden during those gardening times, and have our writing commitments too - it gives much less time for online chit chat.

And as for being part time - yes I am a part time writer and proud of it - I have kids that need to go to the pool and other activities - I take the pad and paper with me and transcribe those in the evening. I also have a house and spouse and garden and community work. I write for at lease 4 hrs each day though and it is concentrated, uninterupted effort. The rest of the time I am writing in my mind, sometimes on paper and sometimes gleaning ideas from visiting neighbors and admiring their diseased whatever!

Writers can ideed be part time and making a reasonable income from it.

I write all the time -- and I love every minute of it.

*I write all the time -- and I love every minute of it.*

Hmm - well apart from the fact that even if I took that only vaguely as literal it would give me problem. Writing and enjoying it is fine. But as garden writers should we not know about gardening too? That takes time. Flowers/veggie/shrubs etc do not grow unattended - and growing them is what allows us to be the experts. I prefer to write what I have experience in rather than what I can find on google (which some writers rely on for articles). I visit other gardens and chat to other gardeners. I also write about other things than gardening (not often but sometimes).
So, if you write all the time - thats great for you - I prefer to eat, sleep and have a life which gives my writing better perspective and depth. We obviously approach the subject in different ways, but I assume that both of us produce decent work in a timely, efficient, professional way.
That makes us both professional writers, and not one better or worse than the other, I hope.

In a country of 250 million,(am I incorrect?) there is a market niche for any product or service. This forum is such a niche. Does it respond to your product or service?
I have written a little and been published even less; but when an idea germinates (pun intended) in my mind, I research it as and when I can and if I like how it is going, I would make the time to gather the information (usually at the expense of sleep). It took me a year to write a one stanza poem which was printed in the monthly newsletter of the Company I worked for at the time. On the other hand I wrote a short story over one weekend (I also mowed the lawn on schedule as I recall) which many 'friends' recommended that I should expand into a book. There is no set season for writing.
The forum is, or can be, an exchange center for ideas-a sounding board if you wish-and my very humble opinion is that it will function best as that. For instance, let me offer a plot for a romantic fiction with an agricultural/horticultural backdrop. The information is factual as far as Ican tell.
1. The Pride of Burma often called the 'Queen of flowering trees", Amherstia nobilis, (how does one underline words in this mode?) was named for the wife (Sarah) of Lord Amherst who was the Governor of Burma.
2. The Botanist who probably discovered or named it (his last name was Caleb)died at a very early age.
3. He worked in Burma under the Governor.
I am sure any one of us can write a juicy little scandal story about this 'affair'(again, pun intended). All fiction, of course.

Norman Taylor, writing in Liberty Hyde Bailey's STANDARD ENCYCLOPEDIA OF HORTICULTURE (Macmillan, 1925) says "Countess Amherst and her daughter, Lady Amherst, promoters of botany in India."

William T. Stearn in DICTIONARY OF PLANT NAMES FOR GARDENERS, Cassell, 1972/1992, writes under the genus name: "... named after Lady Amherst (d. 1838), wife of the Earl who took Dr. Clark Abel (for whom Abelia was named) on his mission to Peking (1816)and who later became Governor-General of India. An amateur botanist, she collected plants on her travels."

I suspect "India" in the early 19th century included Burma.

KC--

>>> not writing books does not make one a non writer I never said it DID; and I took the time to add as a subtitle "A QUITE PERSONAL PERSPECTIVE," which you either ignored or forgot in your haste to defend ... WHAT?!?

>>I never said it DID; and I took the time to add as a subtitle "A QUITE PERSONAL PERSPECTIVE," which you either ignored or forgot in your haste to defend ... WHAT?!? Perhaps both. You said:

>>1) there seem to be no writers of BOOKS in attendance; 2) all the wanabes as well as those who HAVE written or ARE writing seem to hail from what I call "the cold regions" and I just canÂt get very excited about what grows thereinYour inference was that that your interest, if any, was in writers of books and not 'wanabes', current book writers' or anyone from the north. ie By inference - writers of articles, who are not book writers of any description - current or future, thus come under the catagory 'wanabe'. or just below the radar of your interest albeit that we might write about tropicals from time to time.

You interest can be as narrow as you please, but when posting on a public forum, with the caveat that it is personal opinion only, does not demand that it is not responded to or another opinion/defense offered. If one makes a statement/personal idea of any sort in a physical public forum, you would expect opposing opinions to be aired.

In short, you declared your lack of interest in the board. This was in defense of the general lack of posting on the board over the summer. I have no problem with your lack of interest, and if you feel the content and expertise of the contributors are one of the reasons, then that too is a valid point. Perhaps we could also use some southern writers - but as I pointed out in the first response, the board is more toward the business of writing than that of our horitcultural interests - though they will inevitably overlap.

Katy; "you have to trust me on this" ( a quote from 'Out of Africa') you are wasting your time and talent on this.

Thank you Ink, I appreciate that!

Well.

Lurker here.

I enjoy this forum very much. I must admit I have found it only recently, and I must admit that I was/am curious about the slow movement of the boards here.

I write for me. I have written a few gardening columns for the local newspaper, and they were written over 2 years ago. So, I am not a for-profit writer.

I write for the pleasure of writing. I write so that I will be able to go back in a month or a day, and find the name of that plant that I just planted. I write to express my joy and sorrow caused by everything from my children to my pets to an expensive plant that only came to my yard to die.

I have volumns that I have written, going back years and years. They are big 3-ring binders, filled with my journals now, but in years past, they were hand written, with pictures carefully pasted in the pages.

I write only for me, and I write the way I talk, the way I think. I don't always use perfect punctuation, and on the keyboard, I am prone to mis-spelling, or misspelling, whichever you prefer.

I love to read this forum, but I have not learned much about writing here. I have learned nothing about the garden here. I do get a kick out of the high-spirited discussions that happen here.

One point I must disagree with. I don't pay as much attention to a writer who is writing about gardening in New England as I do to a writer who is describing what is happening in his/her garden in the South. I live in zone 9a, and our gardening is nothing like what they do in Maine or Michigan. If it is not relevant to me, or if it doesn't help me grow peonys or tulips, why bother? Also, I am very sorry, you are not likely to get the same flavor from one growing our tropicals in the Michigan greenhouse.

Janie

Change has arrived. I notice that many regularly posting members are strangely absent these days as the little tempest swirls in the G W teapot. There is an absence of new ideas and interesting topics, much less with photos! There are not even enough folks interested to give sharp answers on LD to newbies who inquire about 'a program to do one's own landscape plans.'

Meanwhile, unabashed self promotion is all over the board as users openly advertise personal business sites in their posts, refer to other servers that heretofore were not allowed mention lest one be banned, and freely invite users to 'new' boards competing elsewhere. Will there be sweepinng changes after the 24th?

Stop bemoaning and make yourself a site.

Just do it!

Are you suggesting that I make a site, Trudi, or were you addressing someone previous to me?

I have a site. It won Eddie's Greenthingie award this year.

Actually, I'm having a great time, bemoaning. I only bemoan between seeding and transplanting and weeding.

Nell

I see now you have a site at bellsouth--very nice ;-) For my site I need a heckuva lotta space and run high traffic through it. I'll be dropping another 80 or 90 pages into it this winter. I use a url and hosting plan that supplies updated and live stats.

I don't have one of Eddie's GreenThingies. I have a green thingie on my home page too, but mine's round and plain and not as cute as Eddie's ;-(

T