People are talking. They're talking on blogs, in social networks, in forums and chatrooms, on instant messengers, in virtual worlds and on Twitter (maybe a little too much on Twitter.) And let's not forget email and the phone and face-to-face. At home, at work, in cafes and, really, anywhere people are.
While the Internet didn't invent people-talking-to-people, it has certainly ushered in a new age in which easily accessible technologies continue to erase boundaries -- time zones, geography, the line drawn between people you know and people you don't -- and drive an explosion of chatter and the widespread, unfettered sharing of ideas and opinions. And that's a good thing.
So Gavin Heaton and Drew McLellan had a conversation (over email, if you're interested) about bringing together a bunch of people who are leveraging technology to talk to other people (well, bloggers actually) and pooling words, ideas and images about what all of this means and the impacts it is having.
The end result? "The Conversation Age", an e-book featuring submissions from 100 bloggers, all addressing the subject of "conversation" from different perspectives. And in the spirit of community, the proceeds from the sale of the book will go to Variety International, a charity dedicated to helping children across the globe. You can learn more about the project from Gavin and Drew, including how you can get involved with this exciting project.
I'm on board and, as of this morning, so are these other great bloggers:
- Gavin Heaton
- Drew McLellan
- CK
- Valeria Maltoni
- Emily Reed
- Katie Chatfield
- Mack Collier
- Lewis Green
- Sacrum
- Ann Handley
- Mike Sansone
- Paul McEnany
- Roger von Oech
- Anna Farmery
- David Armano
- Bob Glaza
- Mark Goren
- Matt Dickman
- Scott Monty
- Richard Huntington
With a goal of 100 pages by 100 bloggers, there's plenty of room for more. So if you're a blogger, ping Drew, let him know you're interested and what specific angle you'd like to take.
More to come as the book release gets closer.
