Tummler is a Yiddish word used to describe the act of catalyzing others to action. Tummelvision is a weekly Internet live podcast hosted by Heather Gold, Deb Schultz & Kevin Marks first on Leo Laporte’s  TWiT Netcast Network and now independently.

Why did it start?

Heather, Deb and Kevin have always lived and worked at the intersection of technology, culture and business  and the art and complexities of social engagement both online and off.  It all came together in 2008 when Kevin responded to Clay Shirky at a Supernova conference. Clay was saying that we didn’t know why communities and conversations form and flourish. Kevin disagreed and so did Deb and Heather. If we live in an age of participatory media and culture, why is it we place so little emphasis on the art of the types of skills required to engage and collaborate in this new online world. Heather & Deb were in the room and had also been equally frustrated with the lack of the right word to describe this skill set as well as the lack of emphasis on these uber-connector types who bring life and humanity to the Web.  None of the existing definitions seemed to work and they were also loaded with preconceived notions that didn’t quite fit: community manger (community is served not managed), evangelist (too religious and too much about advocacy of an agenda or idea),  organizer, host/hostess, geisha – you get the idea.  The best suggestion came from Teresa Nielsen Haden who suggested tummler!

To come along and join the conversation. There is often an active online chat between listeners at the same time as the on air chat, so all is in! Details:

The show livestreams every Thursday at 5pm PST and 8PM EST.  Just hop over to TummelVision LIVE! and you can take part in the chat and listen to the show live.

Here are some other timezones for that time. Come and heckle me at TummelVision.tv!

The lab is aimed at European media professionals with a strong track record in their sector, and has a particular focus on the creation, finance and distribution of cross-media properties to create sustainable European media businesses. The Pixel Lab will enable producers and other media professionals to tap into the business knowledge-base of the film, advertising, online, broadcast, gaming and mobile industries.

There are two labs, and I’ll be mentoring at both the Welsh Mini-Lab and the full Pixel Lab. I’ll be with a great bunch of mentors:

• Ian Ginn, Producer, Hubbub Media (NL)
• Ben Grass, Producer & MD, Pure Grass Films (UK)
• Brian Newman, Consultant and Former President, Tribeca Film Institute (USA)
• Michel Reilhac, Executive Director ARTE France Cinéma (FR)
• Nuno Bernardo, CEO, beActive Entertainment (PT)
• Wendy Bernfeld, MD, Rights Stuff BV (NL)
• Guillaume Blanchot, Director of Multimedia and Technical Industries, Centre National du Cinema (FR)
• Alexandre Brachet, CEO, Upian.com (FR)
• Christy Dena, Director, Universe Creation 101 (AUS)
• Mel Exon, Managing Partner, BBH Labs (UK/USA)
• Lizzie Francke, Senior Development & Production Executive, UKFC (UK)
• Jeff Gomez, President & Chief Executive Officer, Starlight Runner Entertainment (USA)
• Paul Grindey, Head of Legal & Business Affairs (Scripted Content), Ch4 (UK)
• Monique de Haas, Audience Engagement Expert, Dondersteen Media (NL)
• Michelle Kass, Film & Literary Agent, Michelle Kass Associates (UK)
• Ray Maguire, President, Sony Computer Entertainment UK, Nordic, Ireland (UK)
• Erica Motley, Film & Digital Consultant, Terbish Partners (USA)
• Steve Peters, Experience Designer & Partner, No Mimes Media (USA)
• Gregor Pryor, Digital Media Lawyer and Partner, Reed Smith (UK)
• Timo Vuorensola, Filmmaker (Iron Sky) & Internet Pioneer (FIN)

We’ll be working with an awesome bunch of practitioners who will also be mentoring each other and sharing with us!

• Chiara Carbonara, Arcane Star Productions with My Uni Experience
• Dave Edwards, DEEM with Project X
• Nathan Erasmus, Gravy Media with Roze and the Robots
• Kevin Moss, PlayThisNext with Dr0id
• John Shackleton, Movie Mogul with Panic Button
• Owen Stickler, Dinamo Productions with The Heavy, Heavy Monster Show
• Tom Ware, Rondo Media with Rockford
• Steve Williams, Dai4films with Milly’s World
• Rob Alexander, Perfect Motion with The Bow Project (UK)
• Jan Bednarz, Buzz Films with Turf: The Road to Paris (UK)
• Emilie Blézat, Sciapode Films with Fleurs du Mal (FRANCE)
• Helena Bulaja, Alt F4 – Bulaja Studios  with Mechanical Figures_Inspired by Tesla (CROATIA)
• Peggy Desplats, Cassiopée Films with Midnights (FRANCE)
• Benjamin Faivre, Telfrance Série with La Scénarioze – 142 euros (FRANCE)
• Gabriel Festoc, Yunkunkun Productions with Clandestino (FRANCE)
• Marc Guidoni, Fondivina Films with Kinopanorama (FRANCE)
• Patric Jean, Black Moon with Miracles (BELGIUM)
• Tom Murphy, Streamline with Quest (UK)
• Arabella Page-Croft, Black Moon with Outpost: Black Sun (UK)
• Justine Potter, Savvy Productions with The Cupid Concept (UK)
• Jeremy Pouilloux, La Générale de Production with L’OEIL AMÉRICAIN (FRANCE)
• Krishna Stott, Visit Sheerport – Bellyfeel with The Alexander Wilson Project (UK)
• Paulina Tervo, WriteThisDown with Awra Amba – Virtual Village (FINLAND)
• Lena Thiele, with Farewell Comrades! Interactive (GERMANY)
• Marietta von Hausswolff von Baumgarten with Krev?! (SWEDEN)
• Stephane Adamiak, Transmedia Project & Partnership Manager, France Telecom/Orange (FRANCE)
• Diogo Andrade, Filmmaker (PORTUGAL)
• Nichola Bruce, Filmmaker (UK)
• Ian Fenton, Writer/Director Lynchpin Productions (UK)
• Andrea Garello, Scriptwriter (ITALY)
• Caroline Gerdolle, Writer/Development Producer (FRANCE)
• Ilann Girard, Producer & Consultant, Arsam International (FRANCE)
• Pati Keilwerth, Creative Producer & Consultant, Patisserie Film (GERMANY)
• Sabine Lange, Director Multi-Media ARTE (GERMANY)
• Dan Lawson, Head of Production, Development & Inward Investment Screen WM (UK)
• David McKenna, Executive Producer Cross-Media & Arts, RTE (IRELAND)
• Despina Mouzaki, Producer and Director, Thessaloniki Film Festival (GREECE)
• Stavros Papageorghiou, Documentary Producer/Director, Tetraktys Films (CYPRUS)
• Anna Reeves, Freelance Writer/Director (FRANCE)
• Simon Staffans, Format Developer, Media City (FINLAND)
• Mira Staleva, Head of Co-production Market, Sofia Film Festival (BULGARIA)
• Petra Strban, Production Manager (SLOVENIA)

We are going to have an amazing time. You should also know that Power to the Pixel has also announced The Pixel Market

:

The Pixel Market incorporating The Pixel Pitch and The Pixel Meetings has now opened for applications. We are looking for international projects with stories that can span a combination of film, TV, online, mobile, interactive, publishing, live events and gaming. Applications must be made by the producer of the project and submitted through a production company. Enter now for your chance of winning the £6,000 ARTE Pixel Pitch Prize! Deadline for applications is Friday, 6 August 2010.

Yay!

Some people haven’t understood me. In the beginning many in my university department didn’t understand what the heck I was talking about. You want to do a thesis of what-media? I applied to the creative writing department, and they sent me to the media department. It’s about media, right, not writing. Hmmm. Others didn’t understand why I would do a PhD when I’m keen on pursuing my creative passions? Why on Earth would anyone do a PhD if they don’t plan to work in academia? It’s like walking the Sahara before you write a book. Well, funny you should say that. I watched an interview with writer Paula Constant a few weeks ago (transcript, video). She wanted to be a writer. But before she wrote her first book she decided to walk across the Sahara. She needed to take that journey before she wrote. It was a perfect expression of who she is. A long road to a destination, but a path that is truly her own. This is where I think people who knock others, who claim that they can’t be X because they also do Y have never taken a risk themselves, have ever been courageous enough to be truly different…indeed, to be themselves.

To be nobody but yourself in a world which is doing its best, night and day, to make you everybody else means to fight the hardest battle which any human being can fight; and never stop fighting.
 e.e.cummings

One of the things Paula Constant said was that she had never completed something. I have completed things in the past, but nothing substantial. I wanted to do the PhD because I wanted to explore every aspect of a phenomenon I was passionate about. I wanted to research the past and present, I wanted to understand. I also wanted to train my mind to stay on one thing. Ha! At least I’ve learned to complete multiple things. But the training of the mind was important. I wanted to learn how to form an argument, to have knowledge that can be communicated in a sophisticated manner. I was very surprised by what I discovered.

I entered academia being bewildered by big words. It frustrated me and so I understand when others are frustrated too. Why can’t they just say the same thing in accessible language? I’ll tell you why. Experts delve deep. Discussions in academia last for decades, centuries. It is amazing, you don’t just turn up and say this is what I think! You enter a rushing river in which people throughout time have been pondering the same thing. Over that time the discussions get more and more specific. Generalisations don’t work, and terms have years of significance behind them. This isn’t just in academia. Any area of specialisation leads to jargon. So, big words aren’t about being a wanker (though a small population are like that), they are about communicating a specific point.

I also learned a lot about seeing something you create through to the end. I mean, this thesis has been in my life for years. I had to learn to keep going no matter what, to force myself to work. I’ve learned the easiest and most fun stage is definitely the wide exploration stage at the beginning. I’ve learned writing is research too. You discover things while you write. I learned that the hardest and darkest part of a major project is the final leg. This was for me in part due a significant death.

In the last four years, all of my significant female elders have died: my maternal and paternal grandmothers, and most recently mother. I know most people don’t have good relationships with their parents, and I know many are not brought up in loving environments, but I did and I was. My mother was an extraordinary woman and my only parent growing up. My life is less without her.

In fact, while writing the thesis was the hardest thing I have done, the worst part was finishing it. It broke my heart to finish it because it meant the end of a chapter of my life that included my mum. Just putting it online makes the end of this chapter undeniable. She isn’t here to be a part of it. It is the last leaf on the autumn tree. I remember when I was cleaning her blood out of the carpet (she hit the floor when she collapsed). I relished it because I could smell her, she still had a life-force of some kind, she was present. The heart-wrenching part was not cleaning her blood, but removing the last bit. Until there was no stain, nothing. Gone. Releasing the PhD is that last moment for me all over again. As long as my PhD is not released, I’m still in that world where I was struggling to finish it and she was there with me.

But she was there at my undergraduate ceremony, with my Granny too (see pic). And a couple of months before she died, she sent me a graduation gown for PhD ceremony. She was magically clever like that. Yes, now I have to leave that chapter of my life behind. She’ll be with me in other ways.

I am actually lucky to have a gift to give to the world as part of this crossing-over. It isn’t the thesis I thought I would write, it isn’t the thesis I wanted to write, but it is what I decided to give at this point in time. It lovingly embraces the complex breadth of the area, and so most of you with it. It is in many ways a mirror of you all, the beauty I see in you.

In the name of all who have created their own path, walked their own Sahara, and had the courage to follow their own star, I give you what is hopefully my first substantial gift to the world: my PhD.

Then I’m off to Lucerne, Switzerland, for the Eurovision TV Summit. As part of the Eurovision iTV, Crossmedia & Mobile Content track, on 22nd April, I’ll be speaking at the first TEDxTransmedia. This too has a wonderful line-up with (in alphabetical order) Stephen Dinehart, Ian Ginn, Jeff Gomez, Nathan Mayfield, David Rowan, and Christopher Sandberg. Then on 23rd April at 10.15 am, I’ll be presenting on the ‘Transmedia Discussion panel with Stephen Dinehart. They’ve asked me to talk about serious ARGs etc there.

What a wonderful time this is going to be! I hope to see some of you there! Videos of these sessions MAY be put online after. The TEDXTransmedia ones MAY be streamed. I’ll keep you posted (through Twitter most likely).

The First Day was Super
Oh how I remember that (real) first day I discovered my superpower. I say ‘real’ because, well, I experience every day as if it is the first day I discover my superpower. That is the down side — the catch — to my superpower. I’m well aware of this now though, and so I leave a note for myself, explaining how I’ve discovered this before. I detail how I shouldn’t call my parents, friends, workmates, no one. They are so sick of me ringing them. They’re happy for me and proud of the good I do with my power, but getting breathless phone calls and frantic visits from me every morning was too much.

I’ve tried many ways to break the news to myself. It is all about timing and easing myself into the truth. Early on I tried leaving a note on my bedside table, an audio message on my alarm, and even a poster on my roof. But that just ruined it for me. I would only have a few seconds of yelling ‘woohoo!’ before I felt like a fool. There is nothing worse than realising you’ve suddenly got a power that can help solve problems for people, solve crime, only to find the solution has already been discovered, by you. For a long time I spent each day depressed, jealous of the morning I first discovered it, and sometimes even resentful of having this superpower with such a stupid catch. But I eventually left a note on my bedroom door. That works, but I have to make sure there are no communication devices in the room, and that I gently explain the situation to myself.

It took many drafts to get that note right. It had to be short enough to ensure I would read it immediately and not throw the envelope to the ground in my race to get out the door. I also wanted to take the time to congratulate myself, and share in my jubilation for a few moments more. As you can see, I’m more at home with the downside of my superpower. But it took many sessions at Superpowers Anonymous to come to terms with it. What good is having super photographic memory when every night you forget you have it? Yes, my fellow superheroes have had many laughs at my expense. You can imagine the names I get, and the jokes.

But hey, I appreciate you giving people with superpowers the chance to share our stories. Writing the experience of my first day has helped me. I didn’t have the confidence to submit my story in the first round because I wasn’t sure how people would respond. But I can laugh about it now. So give me your best taunts if you like. It would be good to hear a new one. Oh, and if by chance you receive multiple submissions from me about my first day, please break the news to me gently.

In 2004 (six years ago!), I started a blog on cross-media entertainment. It was a time when cross-media was well known in the marketing industries (integrated marketing practices being the ancestor of such endeavours). I worked hard to share what I was discovering about the area, as it emerged with force in franchises, independent arts, publishing, and around the world. I did hundreds of talks and articles and blog posts, worked 7 days a week, 10 hours a day. Hard yards.

But I had a personal mission. I took on the PhD because I wanted to know everything I could about the area (not just what I was limited to with my own creative explorations), I also wanted to discipline my mind to focus on one project long-term, and thought academia may be a good back-up career. Ha!

I saw a PhD as different to all other types of schooling. In my research-based approach, this meant I didn’t go to classes or had to recapitulate what I was taught. A PhD is meant to be about contributing original thought. But then something happened in my final few months of writing my PhD. I realised that I couldn’t write whatever I wanted. I was being assessed. I had to write a thesis that showed I can research, engage in critical thought, and execute a rigorous argument. These skills are not the faint-hearted (many think being an academic means just referring to theories — which is incorrect).

So, I took out much of what I wanted to talk about, things which I was passionate about but which I couldn’t execute as yet in the manner needed for a thesis to be assessed on. I consoled myself by promising that after I submitted it, I could write about whatever I wanted, wherever I wanted.

But the state of postponing myself has lingered. It has lingered because although I’ve now finished it (I’m just waiting on the examiner reports and then I will put it online), I’m not in a position to do what I want to. That is, I’m not rolling in the cash I need to create the big projects I want too. I have the time now, but not the resources.

I panicked. Although I believe great things can happen, I realised that I couldn’t bank on what might happen, I had to act. What to do therefore? I’ve been offered some amazing jobs in industry and academia. Jobs that would give me lots of money, have me working with amazing people on large-scale projects worldwide. But I don’t want to go straight into being an employee. That is part of the reason for the PhD, it was part of a long-term plan to be my own boss. And the most important thing…I would be postponing doing my own creative projects for another couple of years.

So, I then thought about the business ideas I have. Beyond the transmedia consulting and public speaking that I continue to do, I have ideas for producing online services that can help the transmedia ecology and hopefully bring me a consistent income beyond my consulting. This income I use to produce my own creative projects. I just need to create these services and then I’ll be able to do the projects I want to do.

I crashed. I cannot keep putting myself off. Time is ticking and I haven’t done any of things I wanted to do in my life yet. I have things I want to say. Personal visions, ways of seeing the world I want to bring into reality. When will it be okay to do so? How many consulting jobs must I do before I have enough of a reputation and money to do what I want to do? How long do I have to “position” myself to appeal to people who will pay for my services, before I can just be me?

Then I saw this quote. It is by artist Jonathan Harris who has some insights online from a talk he gave:

You will become known for doing what you do. This may sound obvious, but it is a useful thing to realize. Many people seem to think they must endure a “rite of passage” which, once passed, will allow them to do the kind of work they want to do. Then they end up disappointed that this day never comes. Find a way to do the work you want to do, even if it means working nights and weekends. Once you’ve done a handful of excellent things in a given way, you will become known as the person who does excellent things in that given way. And that’s the person you want to be, because then people will hire you to be that person.

Of course. It helps to be reminded of such things. And so now my heart is at rest. I will continue to explore my services and do my consulting (which I love) because they are expressions of me. But I’m not going to wait any longer to get the money I need to create the projects I want to do. I’ll use whatever media I have available to me and write anyway. If it means I have many unproduced scripts sitting on my desk when I die, so be it. At least I would of brought them into the world, one blueprint at a time. From training wheels to blueprints, sounds like a plan of action.

Thank you training wheels, for taking me this far. It is now time for me to live on my own.

Photo of my late mum and I

I’m now in the USA to celebrate Xmas with family in Philly, then have two conferences I’m participating in, as well as lots of catch-ups with awesome people.

On Tuesday 29th December I’m on a panel at the Modern Language Association Convention being held at the Philadelphia Marriot. For those unfamiliar with the event, it is BIG in the traditional academic world. The panel is put together by Marc Ruppel, a theorist who has been researching what is now known as ‘transmedia storytelling’ but which Marc (like me) studied long before it was well-known. I’m really looking forward to meeting Marc and Burcu in person for the first time.

Re)Framing Transmedial Narratives (7:15–8:30 p.m., Congress A, Loews, Presiding: Marc Ruppel, Univ. of Maryland, College Park)

1. “From Narrative, Game, and Media Studies to Transmodiology,” Christy Dena, Univ. of Sydney
2. “To See a Universe in the Spaces In Between: Migratory Cues and New Narrative Ontologies,” Marc Ruppel
3. “Works as Sites of Struggle: Negotiating Narrative in Cross-Media Artifacts,” Burcu S. Bakioglu, Indiana Univ., Bloomington

Our submission abstracts are:

Marc Ruppel, University of Maryland College Park
To See a Universe in the Spaces In-Between: Migratory Cues and New Narrative Ontologies

As narrative continues to move beyond mono-medial storyworlds and into massive, multiply-mediated, multiply-authored fictional universes, literary structures have begun to form which attempt to link together these disparate clusters of media when their material properties do not allow for such networked operations.  Drawing upon narratology, network theory, cognitive science and user-interface design, this paper will examine what I call migratory cues, signs present in universes that work to connect the content of one media channel with that of another. Functioning much like a hyperlink metaphorized through different media, migratory cues can take the form of virtually anything, from objects to events to shared locations, or as external markers such as logos and website URLs. By locating and investigating the properties of migratory cues, we can not only witness the means through which new networks of narrative information are rapidly coalescing, but also the remarkable flexibility of narrative itself as a technology of media convergence.

Burcu S. Bakioglu, University of Indiana
Works as Sites of Struggle: Negotiating Narrative in Cross Media Works

This paper interrogates the divergent ways the materiality of the medium of cross media works affect the process of meaning-making and investigates how it influences the production of works. Works become sites of struggle because the stories that they narrate are in a state of constant negotiation between its producers/creators, the medium of the work, and the communities that these works mobilize. In a work born in media convergence, I argue, story-telling becomes a collaborative, and more important, a participatory process. Using Art of the H3ist, an Alternate Reality Game, this paper investigates the nature of performativity and collaboration in works that extend across various media and develops the model of performative narratives to refer to works that encourage and rely on such activities for the formation of its texts. 

Christy Dena, University of Sydney
From Narrative, Game & Media Studies to Transmodiology

A recognition of the multimodal nature of communication has reinvigorated narrative studies of late. This paper interrogates the methodological ramifications of a multimodal awareness: when observing the role and effects of different modes in a creative work, how can the understandings and insights of game, media and art theory be invoked? How can the understanding of non-narrative and narrative phenomena be recognised and reconfigured in a mode-agnostic approach? This paper presents some methodological frameworks for exploring this approach.

There are lots of great sessions at this event, so I look foward to hearing some interesting talks on gaming, new media narratives and meta discussions on academia in general, and also catching up and meeting colleagues.

I’ll also be at the Microsoft Research Social Computing Symposium.

For the past four years, Microsoft Research (MSR) has sponsored a symposium on social computing that has brought together academic and industry researchers, developers, writers, and influential commentators in order to open new lines of communication among previously disconnected groups. The 2010 symposium will focus on “city as platform”. We will have brief (5-10 minutes) talks by a handful of speakers on each of the topics, followed by related breakout sessions, and lots of time to interact with other attendees.

I was lucky to be flown to the event last year and this year I was invited back because I was on the team that won one of the games last year! Yep, that’s right. I’m not really invited back, just offered a place as a winner. Hehe. Luckily I’m in New York at the time so I’m attending again! It really is a great event that has such a great selection of people attend. I hold this event up as one of my favourites I’ve ever been to and so I’m really looking forward to it.

Other than that I’ll be catching up with many awesome people in Philly and New York. Can’t wait.

Hope you’re all having a great holidays. More soon.

Well, it has been a long time between posts and so you’re all probably wondering what is going on. As you know, I’ve been working on getting my PhD finished. I’ve had a few things delay its completion and so it isn’t done yet. But since I’ve been a hermit for so long, and have missed out on so many events, birthdays, launches, going-away parties and so on, I thought it best I crawl out of my cave and engage with the world again anyway.

I’m back to working too. I’m consulting with a few clients at the moment and am booking presentations. I’ve promised to keep people posted on where I’ll be when, so here is a run down of what I’ve been doing and trips I’ve confirmed:

• I did a talk a couple of days ago for the Historic Houses Trust for an event run by dLux Media Arts on ‘Mobile Histories’. Richard Fox presented on his serious game ‘Razorhurst’, a locative mobile game that uses photos and footage from the Justice and Police Museum. David Cranswick presented on the work dLux does with mobile gaming and what technologies they use (such as mscape). I presented on ‘ACTUAL WORLD FICTION’ – how the actual world is integrated into a fictional world in pervasive, ubiquitous and alternate reality games etc.
• Next public event I’ll be at is Power to the Pixel, London Film Festival. Wohoo! I gave the keynote last year so I’m thrilled to be asked back again to be a part of the conference and workshops. This year I’ll be doing a follow-up to my intro talk last year. I’ll give a quick run down ‘LESSONS LEARNED’ in Cross-Media. I’ll also be chairing a panel on ‘EXTENDING THE EXPERIENCE’ with three great cross-media folks (in alphabetical order): David Varela of nDreams, Steve Peters of No Mimes Media and Martin Elriccson of The company P. I’ll also be running a workshop of ‘CREATING CROSS-MEDIA NATIVE’ projects. I won’t have much time before and after the event so I hope you can make there and I hope you come up and say hi!
• The next confirmed public presentation after that is the Modern Language Association Convention in Philadelphia on December 29th. The panel is run by Marc Ruppel and will include Burcu Bakioğlu (aka ‘Pale Fire’). The panel is called ‘(Re)Framing Transmedial Narratives’ and I’ll be talking about ‘TRANSMODAL’ theory. It will should be a rip-roaring academic discussion about the area so I really hope to see familiar faces there to join in! I’ll be staying on the East coast of the US from late December until sometime in January. There are plenty of folks I’d love to catch up with while I’m there! So, please do ping me if you’re keen.
• The next confirmed public event will be at Cartoons on the Bay - the International Television Animation Festival held in Italy in April 2010. I’m excited about this too! Not only is animation in my heart (my first professional job in the ‘industry’ was working as a Producer in a fully-digital production studio managing 2D & 3D animation), but it really is on my radar in terms of my own projects in the future, and in terms of cross-media aesthetics in general. Indeed, Cartoons has a cross-media award in their Pulcinella Awards. I really look foward to being at this event, meeting Max Giovagnoli finally, and of course…hanging out in Italy! Let me know if you’ll be around then.

There are other events, but they are unconfirmed or not for the public. I’m just letting you know about these international gigs so we can arrange to meet! It helps me know ahead of time so flight bookings etc can be made accordingly.

As for why I’m still working on the PhD. Well, it is a few things.

1. Since I started my research the area has become well-known. However, despite its pervasiveness, there still hasn’t been lengthy work done to distinguish the area from existing research areas. So, rather than talk about the stuff I find an issue for me now, I had to go back and argue just what I think this phenomenon is and how it differs from existing theories.
2. I’m encompassing a range of practices in mass entertainment and independent arts. That means I need to apply a range of different methodologies as you can’t apply research questions from one to the other easily.
3. Related to the previous point is my multi-disciplinary approach. I’m utilising media, narrative, game studies and semiotics to help illuminate the nature of the phenomenon. Each of these disciplines have their own research questions. I started by writing a thesis that put the phenomenon first, but that doesn’t work. In order to write a PhD that will be examined, I have to design the argument according to certain research questions.
4. Because I’m referring to a range of theories from different disciplines I cannot assume any shared knowledge at all. This means I need to preface every theorist, explain the context of every theory, and I cannot employ allusion at all.
5. My mother passed away unexpectedly just before Xmas. This means feeling a lot of grief and loss (I loved her very much, she was my best friend and my only parent growing up). But it also means I feel my own mortality. How does this relate to the thesis? Well, what if my thesis is the last big thing I contribute to this world? What if I die suddenly? I had to let go of these ideas and not try to communicate all that I want to say now. Instead, I had to write with the assumption that I will have time to develop my ideas…

I’m not sure if these points illuminate my process at all, but it is true for me. I must say I’m very close. I’m currently finishing my conclusion, refining my chapters and going through my references with a fine-tooth comb. But since I’m working again it’ll be another few weeks. Nearly, nearly there.

Anyway, just thought I’d touch base with you all. I look forward to seeing some of you at events and will continue chatting with you online.

Australian new media arts organisation dLux Media Arts was one of my sponsors for the trip, and so I’ve published my report on their site: http://bit.ly/fId0H 

Enjoy!

Second Nature: The International Journal of Creative Media is a new open access, peer-reviewed online journal that explores the distinctive particulars of and interconnections between textual, visual, aural and interactive creative research and practices.

It welcomes contributions from across the field of creative media including creative writers, media and art historians, media practitioners and fine artists, performers, architects and architectural theorists and historians, curators, museum professionals, scientists, cultural and media theorists, archivists, technologists, software developers, educationalists, philosophers and any others who have a stake in the understanding and future developments of creative media. Second Nature publishes research papers, articles, and creative projects.

The first issue is themed ‘Role Models’, which editor (the wonderful) Shiralee Saul explains:

The theme of this issue, “Role Models”, is intended to be as multifaceted as the journal itself. What, it asks, is academic research’s, and creative media generally, relationship with the past? What is our ‘proper’ role as academics? And what models should we be providing, and critiquing, for our students? How can we facilitate their entry into an increasingly rapidly changing industrial and cultural landscape?

Check it out!