Nine!
By
Michael L. Craner
Nine Years! I never would have imagined in my wildest dreams that a
simple tabloid type newspaper would have evolved into one of the longest running
eZines on the internet, much less would I have dreamed that I would have any
small part in it.
Nine years ago this month, Hobbie$ Etc evolved into Pencil Stubs Online.
We've had a number of great columnists come and go, hundreds of poets shared
their poems here, and more than a handful of poets and authors have moved on and
sold their talents to newspapers, magazines and book publishers.
Dreams have come and gone and come again. So have our friends.
Jacquie MacGibbon, a wonderful person, dear friend, and sister to us, has
graced our pages and moved on to a higher plane after bringing love, light, and
laughter to our lives. Her spirit lives on.
A.G. Adair, founder of Hobbie$ Etc, whose vision was the forerunner to Pencil
Stubs. His ideals and values promoting writing have inspired us and driven
us all these years.
Mary Adair, our kind and loving editor, always encouraging, seeking out new
authors and encouraging them to share their thoughts, wisdom, and wit.
Tolerating the often ignorant, and ever indignant opinions of this webmaster and
his generally republican outlook despite her own leanings towards the democratic
way. Always a kind word, and never critical, hers is the spirit that has
made Pencil Stubs endure, where so many other eZines have fallen to the wayside.
To Leo, L.C, Mattie, Gerry, Eric, John, Clara, Jay, and the rest of our
regular contributors, past, present and future, I wish to express my sincere
thanks for your sharing, caring, and selfless contributions. YOU are
Pencil Stubs. Your columns, articles and poems are the spirit and soul
that make up Pencil Stubs, and without you we would have faded away a long time
ago.
Being a contributor to Pencil Stubs, not only supports a great eZine that
provides entertaining reading to so many as well as a place for amateur and
professional authors alike to spread their visibility, but it also supports a
modern, unbiased, free-thinking publishing model that really works, and reaches
thousands each month, with potential to reach the world. I'm proud to have
played a small part in its success.
Great things are coming to Pencilstubs. I know I've mentioned them in
the past, and the move to the new system is long overdue, but I assure you it is
in the best interests of the magazine. I've been exploring new techniques
and scripting, trying to find the best new format for Pencilstubs without losing
our archives while bringing popular new technologies to our website, and I
promise, they are still in the works and on their way.
Nine is a magic number for me, so I know great things will happen at Pencil
Stubs this year, but I am also sure that we will live on for many more years,
perhaps another nine, twenty-seven.... Maybe forever, but only with the
continued support of authors and readers like you.
As always your comments and suggestions are welcome, as are your submissions.
At Pencilstubs, if you want to see more of something, you don't have to just
suggest it, you can submit it, and become a part of what we are. If you
would rather not contribute as an author, but would like to see more of a
certain type of content, you are more than welcome to suggest it and we will
seek out authors who would love the increased exposure.
Pencil Stubs Online is one of the few non-profit, unbiased eZine's on the
Internet today promoting and supporting amateur and professional authors, and
one of the longest running to boot. All because of people like you, by
people like you.
If you haven't submitted to Pencil Stubs yet, don't you think it's time?
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