As of this issue of the Bootleggers Buzz, Poison has been appointed the new Head Editor. While the reason for me stepping aside is actually pretty boring, I will give a brief explanation for it, as well as why the quality of the Buzz has been off for the last few weeks.
Essentially it boils down to one problem; I simply do not have the spare time which I can dedicate to Bootleggers and The Buzz as I had, say, a year(ish) ago when I was a writer/editor before. When Mika approached me at the beginning of the round to edit the Buzz again, I was initially opposed to the idea, but I could not have foreseen how busy I would become offline over the weeks after I agreed. I came into this round with a burst of enthusiasm and rode the wave of motivation that always comes at the beginning of the round, so in the beginning, the Buzz came at a very good quality, however, it was inevitable that as the round went on, interest wavered and as well as that, I became more and more busy managing university (social and academic life), a new job, having busy Sundays due to travelling to and from home and university, etc. Basically, I just had a lot going on and I was forced to prioritise and, of course, I prioritised my offline life over the Buzz so the quality slipped.
These are just a few reasons why the Buzz has been of a less than satisfactory quality recently, and so I have decided that it would be best for the Buzz in the long run if I stepped down and let someone new take over. After discussing it with Mika, we decided it would be a good idea for us to find a whole new editor, so Poison was offered the position and accepted. We all hope that this means that he can come at the Buzz in an original and innovative way to respark player interest in the feature, which would have been lacking somewhat if someone like Mika, Aldarion or myself ran things - with so much history with the Buzz, we would always be stuck in the old ways of things in some way or another.
I hope this can truly be the beginning of a new age of the Buzz, and we all have confidence in Poison to lead the team on from here. I'd just like to give out some thank-yous to the people who have helped me with the Buzz in the past.
Thanks obviously have to go to my now long-term friend and mentor in all things Buzz, Mika. In his time, he ran the Buzz brilliantly and I learnt everything I know from him. Aldarion was also a big big help when he took over and wrote in the past. I was also around in the days of Nyxxie and Air and they were both excellent journalists and taught me a lot. Every single writer I have worked with, edited, hired and fired in the past deserves a HUGE thank you for the time and dedication they put into the Buzz, giving up their real lives to voluntarily contribute for the selfless reason of making other players' Sundays a bit more interesting and informative; thank you. And every single player who has messaged me offering their gratitude and thanks for encouraging me to continue running the Buzz, and for letting all of us know that, despite trolls and those who blindly hate on the Buzz, while offering no constructive criticism or help, there are players out there who really do support the Buzz, and I really hope you will continue to do so with Poison in charge. Thank you all for your kind words over the years.
Best of luck to the current team, any future writers, and, of course, Poison. Writing and editing for the Buzz takes up more time than I think a lot of people realise, so they can never be appreciated enough. Thanks a lot.
