Hi, I used to write a column called Style and Passion in the Sunday Herald (Jamaica). Had to give it up when they changed the word ‘Bollywood’ to Hollywood in my last piece. Now I’m looking forward to life without editors in this blog which i hope you’ll tell others about…
The para above was the statement my original blogger bio carried from the time i started blogging in January 2008. Perhaps its time to add a little to it. Two and a half years later i’m happy to report that the move from print to blog has proved invaluable. Apart from the many new readers and online friends i now have, and the many opportunities that have come my way, both Active Voice and my twitter feed @anniepaul have been quoted in various international media, something every journalist/writer dreams of. See a few links below…
In June 2010 Active Voice was quoted in The New York Times’ Lede blog, a Village Voice blog and in an Associated Press article on the Dudus imbroglio.
Channel 4 News in London asked me to contribute twice: here and in their story Jamaica death toll rises as unrest continues.
Also in May 2010 my tweets were featured in a Lede article called Following Jamaica’s State of Emergency Online.
There, just a little bit of blogflogging, what else…I work at the University of the West Indies, Mona, where i edit a Social Science journal for a living (Social and Economic Studies). I was born in Kerala, India but have lived in Kingston, Jamaica for 22 years…
This is one of my favourite comments from a reader in Australia:
Lance
The world wide web is a sticky place and blogs are like mini-webs spun by human arachnids who aim to trap you with silky tripwires. Not to eat those who wander into their webs but to entice them to return, again and again, leaving trails of page views and visits and occasional comments— blogfood—that rich humus that feeds the growth of blogs. Hopefully you’ll step into my parlour on a regular basis…
courtesy @therealnickmack
PS: 13 Feb 2011 Active Voice has finally been discovered by local media (see above) who are belatedly realizing that blogs can be news sources too. Hallelujah! The story based entirely on quotes from Active Voice is on the front page of the Sunday Observer today. Here’s a post by Endzoftheearth about it.
PPS: In January 2012 Active Voice was given the personal achievement award by Jamaica Blog Awards for excellence in blogging.
And in July-Aug 2012 I was commissioned by Newsweek to write two pieces on Usain Bolt just before and during the Olympics.
July 16, 2012 Newsweek
Jamaica’s Usain Bolt: Is He Still the World’s Fastest Runner?
Aug 13, 2012, Newsweek
Usain Bolt’s sly bravado is a source of Jamaican pride
hey annie, the new site looks great! glad to see you blogging on.
so what about wyclef for president?! “People can say, ‘Clef what do you know about politics and running the country, it sounds pretty insane Clef.’ i am inclined to think this is the time for artists to have a turn. those who supposedly should know about politics and running countries have proven over and over again that they know as muc about those things as the next guy. looking forward to reading about this on active voice.
anil
OMG Anil! glad to hear from you…yes waiting to get a handle on Wyclef…yes i suppose a post is due on the subject…will do. you still in delhi?
Hi Annie, checking out your new site… great going…This blogging this is contagious!
Hey Sonjah! yes, blogging is the only way to go for a writer…congrats on starting yours…thanks also for leaving a comment, wish more people would take the trouble to do that.
Hi Annie,
I got lead here by a referred post on our blog, and read your excellent piece on WikiLeaks.
“I’ll be back” – as some Austrian/American chap once said.
Welcome NobblySan, thanks for your comment, do return! Here’s to more and more leaks–
Hello Annie
I’m French and I’m at the moment translating (or try my best to do so) this beautiful novel By earl Lovelace ‘is just a movie’. Practically none of caribbean novels or poems are translated in our country and since i’ve got time, (and since i discovered the beauty of Derek Walcott a couple of years ago), I thought it could be a good idea to work on it in order to , why not, publish it one day and give more visibility to this beautiful writing. I let you my mail in case…
Hi Elodie,
thanks for leaving a comment. how wonderful that you’re translating Earl into French. I’ll let him know…of course you may have done that already. will send an email too…
Compliments on superlative trubute to Usain Bolt, hero of 2012 Olympics. He more than matched Jesse owens and Emil Zatopek. Hurrah Jamaica!
Thanks Kailas!
Love the new blog Annie, raised the standard on us again
-Nicole
ta Nicole!
dear madam,
We malayalees take great pride to the fact that wherever you go in the world, you will find one. As a syrian myself all I could say is God bless u in whatever you are doing. But I would certainly like to know real story of how you ended up in far away rastaland. Would make a great biography if you could write in malayalam
Haha, and I’m illiterate in Malayalam, can speak it but can’t read or write…but thanks for visiting and leaving a comment…all the best for 2013!
Two points for Jerrin Thomas:1. great pride IN the fact reads better than TO the fact; 2. why does Annie have to write in malayalam because her biography would make great reading in any languare because somebody around will produce one.Finally, malayalees are not the world’s greatest travellers. To wit, I am a South Indian “pattar” who has covered four Olympic Games, but decided to settle down in Hong Kong to edit an English daily!
Hi Vernon, am only just reading this comment properly. thanks for the support. interestingly i’ve just finished my first column for a new venture called Azhimugam.com which will be translating a bi-weekly column by me into Malayalam.