Being The Chief
From The Typesetter’s Desk
Editorial
Reorganizations, revamps, new designs, deadlines, community spirit, snowstorms, proofreading, coding, administration, writing... Phew! It's tough being a Paper Editor!
Any project worth doing is worth doing right, and worth the time and effort required to accomplish the worthwhile feat. The Pan Historian is a product, created for the membership of Pan Historia by the membership, and facilitated by the Paper Staff. Many hours are spent writing content for the publication, and then several more are needed to take that amazing work and place it into a design that will present the writers’ creativity in a way which is clean and esthetically pleasant to our readers. Then of course there is the additional labor behind the scenes where the administration takes place too.
Consistently contributing to the paper isn’t always easy no matter how passionate or involved the column or theme may be for the writer. Those who produce regular contribution should be commended as they dependably draw from a well of ingenuity and ensure there is always wonderful articles for each edition. Having to deal with a adamant and fervent Paper Editor is another challenge the Paper Staff faces as well.
So many can well imagine how difficult keeping the delicate web of the Pan Historian together and balanced can be! Like other collaborative endeavors there are a multitude of strands coming towards the center and they are all tethered strategically so each line leads into a cohesive pattern, displaying the beautiful creation that is the Pan Historian. When something gets unexpectedly tangled in the web, be it classic time constraints or as unusual as a snowstorm, unraveling the mess and mending just right is a meticulous process.
Certain instances can definitely be tricky. Such as assisting a writer to find their feet when not yet inspired so they can write a piece they will be proud of and take pleasure in writing without being discouraging or demanding. Deciding how to get each edition started is another, and making sure the choice for paper theme will allot enough room for diversity without being too vague to support.
What makes the Pan Historian easier to create and manage is keeping the membership involved. With the community involved the paper becomes a living extension of the site, a fantastic amalgamation of site activity we can all appreciate. In effect, the paper does not belong to one person or even a single group at Pan Historia but Pan Historia as a whole. Although the majority of what’s offered in the Historian tends to be from a particular pool of participants anyone at Pan can join in and everyone is encouraged to take part.
So as you read this I am putting on the finishing touches to our beloved paper, and hoping, as always, that you’ve enjoyed the paper and look forward to our next edition.
