Russell Blackford joins Talking Philosophy (an announcement and some thoughts)

I'm pleased to announce that I have joined the team at Talking Philosophy, which means that I will now be posting there quite frequently, beginning ... well, soon. Maybe as soon as later today, if I find some moments to get the hang of things, or maybe tomorrow, but, in any event, soon.

This is an exciting move - Talking Philosophy is a high-profile, prestigious, and intellectually powerful site associated with The Philosophers' Magazine. I couldn't have found a better home. It will give my posts a considerably larger and somewhat more (ideologically, etc.) varied audience, and one that is generally more oriented to philosophy.

Please do follow me over to there ... and while you're visiting, why not check out the posts of other people on the team? As you'll see, it's a fascinating site with an eclectic and interesting group of contributors offering and debating opinions. There's no party line, and you may find that some members of the team inspire you while others infuriate you. That's all good for the life of the mind.

It's now clear in my own mind that this place will also continue, though the mix of posts may be a bit different and posting will be slightly less frequent than has been the case in the past.

I expect that my longer, more philosophically careful posts will find their way to Talking Philosophy (which will become more my philosophical sandbox, where I work on ideas that may one day find themselves being woven into books or articles).

Meanwhile, this will continue to be my personal web log, dealing with stuff that relates more to me as a person. That much seems fairly clear.

But there is also a whole range of categories of posts that fall somewhere in between, or which simply deal, albeit with some intellectual rigour, with topics that may not be appropriate to Talking Philosophy. I expect those will tend to belong here, but I'll be working out the balance as I go.

Nonetheless, I hope you'll continue to read this blog - it can continue to be an interesting place as long as it finds an audience for its particular mix of topics. I will, of course, point you in the direction of specific posts over at Talking Philosophy.

Bear with me over the next few months as I try to get the balance right. For now, transmission from this blog will return to something more like normal after a busy few weeks, including a week and a half overseas just recently.

I do intend to post slightly less overall than has been the case at my peak. At that peak - in the first half of this year, say - I was posting at a rate that I find I cannot sustain, given the complexity of some of the posts and the fact that I need to devote energy to other projects such as writing and editing books (which is my main focus at this point in my life). Back in August I noted that my posting rate had fallen in that month, and that the place had become a bit quieter for a mix of reasons. That has continued, with some of the same reasons continuing to operate, but this blog still has an important role from my point of view.

I doubt that the overall amount of posting will be much less than what you've seen from me in the past, but I needed to drop it at least a bit, while finding ways to enlarge my audience. When considering the future of the blog in early August, I wrote:

But to be honest, there's also a question whether I should be blogging at all unless I can move to a situation where I: (1) receive some payment for it; and/or (2) at least reach a much bigger audience. Arguably, unless that happens I should be putting the time and energy into writing books or something.

I certainly want to maintain a presence on the internet, but there may be ways that are more time-efficient and more effective in reaching a wide audience. Over the coming months I want to explore/think about that.

The new arrangements, where my most "philosophical" posting will happen at Talking Philosophy, should help me accomplish those goals. No, there's no payment involved, but I can see myself reaching a wider audience in a more time-efficient way. That's important from where I sit, so I'll now be posting with renewed enthusiasm.

Talking Philosophy is going to be a great place to hang out. I'm looking forward to making a home there. Please consider bookmarking it, and, yes, do stay with me as my posting activities enter a brave and better new world.