I’ve been wanting to update you on a few blogging items, so here goes. . .
Author, speaker, and unabashed bibliophile Mark Bertrand has recently launched a new site that I’m stoked about. I had a chance to briefly meet Mark at last year’s ACFW conference in Dallas and my first impression was he’s pretty tall. (Perhaps it’s because I’m short and fat.) I felt like this standing next to him. 
Along with Mark’s new book Rethinking Worldview, he’s rearranging the furniture on his site and has given a wonderful collection, Notes on Craft, its own room. It’s now called Write About Now and is devoted to the craft of writing. I had a chance to interview Mark before he was famous, and it’s one of the funnest, most informative interviews I’ve ever done. (Of course, I’ve only done a dozen, and two of the interviewees ripped of their mics and stormed out of the room.) Anyway, I’m thrilled for Mark. If you’re a writer, or someone simply interested in what makes great literature, check out Write About Now.
Another old acquaintance — or should I say, e-acquaintance (cuz we never actually met) — is Brett McCracken. I first “met” Brett when I submitted a piece entitled Let Us Decompose to Relevant Online. Brett was then the editor of the Progressive Culture section of the site and accepted the article. It was one of my first published works and has become a magna carta of sorts for me.
Shortly thereafter, I threatened to kidnap Brett and drag him to L.A. unless he did an interview with me. He conceded and the result was a thoughtful, thorough discussion of culture and Christianity. But I guess he liked the idea of crowded freeways. rampant immorality, and smog, because he moved here. His new site, The Search, is an exploration into Man’s search for meaning through the lens of pop culture. Brett has some terrific insights into film and music, and his reviews at Relevant and Christianity Today are equally illuminative. (By the way, I’ve added his logo into my sidebar.) Before you surf away, check out The Search, or I will drag you to L.A. to confront the Smog God and his labyrinthian highway to hell.
Finally, I’ve been doodling on MySpace, along with my peeps — Chris, Alayna, and even Theo have a MySpace page. Figuring I’ve got to keep up with the kids, I got one too.
Pretty retro, huh? Okay, so it’s a work in progress. But it’s a start. Over there, I’m known as Cerebral Grump, or www.myspace.com/cerebralgrump. No, I’m really not that grumpy, but I liked the way the words sounded together. Either way, I’d love to add Friends or be one. . . as long as it doesn’t involve running to the store for a loaf of bread and a Swisher Sweet. So rush on over to Mike’s MySpace page, Mark’s Write About Now, and Brett’s The Search.
So, there you have it. Some miscellaneous blogger updates and a cerebral grump to boot. God bless all readers of Decompose!
I like the look of your myspace page, Mike. Very hip and California. 🙂 I registered on myspace a long time ago mostly to have access to the inner workings of some musician friends’ pages, but I’ve never added any content to my page.
I joined facebook for reasons similar to yours–to hang out with my kids and see all the fun photos they and their friends upload there. I’ve not explored myspace’s options, but I really like the way facebook is set up. Since I started mine, lots of my former students, other writers, my kids’ friends, and a hodgepodge of random people I’ve known from here and there have found me.
You can’t really personalize the look of a facebook page, but it’s a great way to connect with a lot of people. And you can post links to your other pages. Maybe you could generate some myspace traffic there. You should come check it out. 😉
Thanks, Jeanne. I have never looked into Facebook. Of course, it would be one more e-item to manage, but since you mentioned it. . .
Thanks for the plug, Mike! I’m not that tall, just over six feet, so I must have been standing on my pedestal when you first spotted me. When I discovered no one was likely to put me on a pedestal, I started carrying my own around — and that, as they say, has made all the difference.
“I’m not that tall, just over six feet. . .” Mark, it was the “just over” part that made me feel like Billy Crystal. Hope you get a chance to check out Brett’s site, I think you’d like it. And I’m personally hoping your book kick starts thinking, among writers, about worldview and how it influences our stories. . . and our readers. Thanks for dropping by JMB!