Holly Grande: Short and Sweet

For almost eight years I volunteered at an online, by-teens-for-teens magazine called Kiwibox.com. At the time of my resignation, I was a Senior Editor of the eXpressions, Life and Dating sections. This week, KB celebrated its 10th anniversary, and site co-creator Mike asked me to write a guest post. A portion of my article follows--you can read the full post at Kiwibox.com.

When Mike asked me to write up my favorite Kiwibox memories, I thought it would be an easy task, but I'm having a tough time. I guess I never really thought about how much Kiwibox has affected me--it's a Web site, after all. But if my life were a great big tapestry, I think there would be a bright green thread starting somewhere in the middle, weaving in and out of college applications, internships, novels and my career now. Ten years is nearly half my life, and it is staggering to think that this Web site has been a part of it for so long.

I remember when I first discovered Kiwibox while looking for news about the Backstreet Boys. I was ecstatic to find this website that wasn't just for teens, the articles were written by teens, too. I was hooked on the deliciously scandalous KiwiSoap, and I spent hours refreshing the journals to try and score the elusive karma beads. Soon, I became a regular on the Young Authors message board, and within weeks I had submitted my application to become a full-fledged reporter.

Read the rest here.

Posted by Holly at 1:42 PM 0 comments  

Labels: cute websites, writing

Mygazines.com just may be the answer to my magazine and tabloid addiction. Yes, I admit it, I can’t pass up the latest issue of Cosmo however antifeminist it sometimes is, and I positively drool over Vogue editorial spreads. There is something absolutely alluring about fashion magazines, and now that I work in the industry, I’d like to justify myself by explaining: It’s research. Yes.

Anyway, Mygazines is a neat little tool that allows you to read and share magazine articles. The content is user-uploaded, which means not only can you share that juicy Guy Confessions, but you can also upload your own creative content.

The site looks like it will be a fantastic tool for businesses who want to upload and share their brochures, magazines or other creative materials. I can already picture some great uses for my company.

Because it is a community-based site, there is also plenty of opportunity to connect and network with the other users. The site combines the best aspects of dig and other content sharing sites with printed media, making magazine and news articles far more accessible to the Gen Y crowed who would rather read a computer screen than the black and whites. Plus, since often the entire magazine is uploaded, we are still seeing the advertisements.

At the same time, I can see the concerns that some magazines may have about copyright infringement, but before they start dialing up their lawyers, I hope Cosmo and the likes will consider partnering with this site. Grant them some bonus material in exchange for advertisements, or even create an official magazine-sponsored account that will upload top quality versions of the magazine and link back to the magazine website.

I think Mygazines is a fantastic idea. It is a great example of how to do social media Web 2.0 right, and I am looking forward to see the site grow.

Posted by Holly at 7:54 PM 0 comments  

Labels: cute websites, social networking

This site absolutely cracks me up. My mom is actually quite good with computers, and her grammar is impeccable, but every once and a while I get an email from her in the vein of these. I love it.

Moms win at life. :)

Posted by Holly at 3:25 PM 0 comments  

Labels: cute websites, family