Well folks, here comes the day I know I’m going to look back on and think, “Wow, I wish I had written something much more insightful and interesting.” Starting September 1, 2009, I will no longer be the senior editor and owner of ARGNet. This is a decision I’ve reached after a great deal of thinking and soul-searching, and I know I’m walking away from a great group of people that work behind the scenes here. What I’ve come to realize is that with a new job starting in September and with two kids that are active in extracurricular activities, I don’t have the time necessary to put into this site anymore. So, rather than try to muddle through at a sub-par pace, I’ve asked Michael Andersen to take the reins, and thankfully, Michael has accepted the job.
When ARGNet (then ARGN) first arrived on the scene, it was a network of like-minded web sites, and I has happy to have my Lockjaw-inspired site GuysGuise included. I worked with Steve Peters, Sean C. Stacey, Bill Shaw and others to make a Flash banner that appeared above all of the member web sites, but over time, that network dissolved and ARGN became more of a news blog. I started writing news articles in 2004 (yay, ReGenesis!) along with other community members, and Steve handed control of the site to me a few months later in the summer of 2005.
Since then, it’s been a wild and crazy time filled with aesthetic overhauls and substantial amounts of delivered swag, but more than that, it’s been four years of watching this site grow and develop as fast as the genre of alternate reality gaming has expanded. And along the way, I’ve made many friends and acquaintances that I wouldn’t have made if not for this web site and the ARG community.
Before I pack up my things and move on, I’d like to thank some pretty important people:
- Jackie Kerr & Marie Lamb: Two wonderful editors who have helped me out enormously with their contributions and support. I owe you both more than I can ever give back.
- Michael Andersen: You have your finger on the pulse of a ever-expanding ARG community, and you are a talented writer. I know that the site will flourish under your watchful eye.
- The ARGNet team: There are so many wonderful people that contribute to this site. We wouldn’t even have a site without our volunteer writers, and we have more interested parties coming forth all the time. I wish all of you well!
- Our readers: We provide a service for a very smart, very sophisticated group of readers, and I thank you for challenging us each and every week.
And with that, I bid you all a fond farewell. I will still be around, kicking around the Unfiction forums from time to time, perhaps immersing myself in some game or another. For the time being, you can still catch me on the ARG Netcast, talking about ARGs and transmedia and all that great stuff. You may even see my work in a future project. In any case, I’ll miss this place, for it was really, really good to me.
Why does it take a minute to say hello and forever to say goodbye? ~Author Unknown
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Congratulations- it is important to come to good decisions about what to keep and what to cherish.
You’ve done a great job succeeding Steve, and I’m sure that Michael will do that same.
Thank you for all your work here; it is a great deal to us all that this site helps keep our functionally fragmented community informed of what its other tentacles are up to.
I would like to believe that I join the entire ARGing community when I say that you will be well missed. I wish you the best of luck in whatever endeavors you may go on to from here!
Wow. Thank you for all your work all these years. You’ve put in so much effort for the love of the community. Well done. All the best with this exciting new phase of your life.
Wow.
We really are going to miss your insights and various nod-nod’s and wink-wink’s. Your wit and information have been the keystone of the ARG archway.
I don’t feel as if we are losing a great editor/reporter. I feel as if we are gaining another deity.
You certainly shazammed ARGNet. 😉
{{{Jonathan}}}
Glad to hear you will still be doing the netcasts (and ARGFest).
You are one of our inspirations and everyone in our office has a tremendous amount of respect for you and what you have done for Alternate Reality Gaming. You have helped to guarantee its place in history. If there should ever be a hall of fame for this genre, it would most definitely have to include you. We wish you nothing but the best in everything you do.
You have been a wonderful and talented organizing force in the community both before and during your tenure here, and your input will be missed. I look forward to many more podcasts!
You’ve done a terrific job, Jonathan. Thank you. I’m glad we get to keep you and the netcast, at least. 🙂
And bravo on seeing the need to clear some commitments to reclaim some more personal time — and then actually doing it. Look out for what’s best for you and your family, and don’t you dare feel guilty about it, either.
Thank you for the love and grit that you have put into this site and the community, thank you thank you thank you!
Stay in touch, and we’ll see you in the funny papers. Or blogs, as the case may be!
Thanks for everything you’ve done for ARGN, Jon. =) Here’s wishing Michael the best of luck.