2009 Plans for AiBURN

Big Thanks for 2008

First off, big thanks to everyone that supported AiBURN last year! 2008 was my first full year blogging, and yes AiBURN has crossed the one year mark. I learned a lot last year and met loads of great artists and designers. I look forward to picking this blog up again this year and getting back to weekly posts.

AiBURN Plans for 2009

I've been a little busy with running PSDTUTS and VECTORTUTS the last few months, but I'm confident I can find time to build AiBURN into a great site as well, while I run those TUT sites. Welcome everyone who's signed up for the feed recently and I appreciate all the interest in this site. Let's take a look at a few of the plans for AiBURN this year.

New Drupal Theme Design

I'll be redesigning the theme and upgrading to Drupal 6, which is long overdue. There will be numerous changes to the layout and some restructuring. I'll be adding a few modules that work well for Drupal blogs and overall just improving the professionalism of the site. And on the professionalism note, I'll be working to monetize the site so that it has long term support and success.

Contests and Community

Last year I had a lot of fun running contests over on the TUTS sites and will continue to do so there. I'll be brining contests to AiBURN this year as well. We'll make the illustration or design contests loads of fun and I'll get some good sponsors. Look for the first contest in March. Also, I'll be utilizing the AiBURN Flickr group more this year by occasionally posting roundups of submitted artwork to help give members more exposure.

Focus on Digital Illustration

This site underwent numerous changes in 2007. This year the focus will narrow a little bit to Art and Illustration, though I'll still cover some design and web design issues occasionally. My plans are to eventually expand AiBURN into a creative blog network and launch seperate sites dedicated to topics like web/interface design. So, in the network, AiBURN is focused on Art and Illustration Burning Up The Web. This means a heavy focus on Digital Illustration, the tools to create great art, and the inspiration to keep your creative fire burning.

Interviews and Reviews

One of the things I love about blogging is meeting new people. I especially like to meet thoughtful and talented artists and bloggers. I'll be looking to bring you more resources and introduce you to lessor known artists.

On that note, if you would like to be interviewed, or you would like a review of your site, feel free to contact me. Keep in mind the more useful your site, or the more interesting your artwork, the more likely I am to post an interview or review. Also, if you have guest post concepts, feel free to contact me as well. I don't have a specific budget for this yet, but I'm happy to discuss options with you.

Vacation Plans

Tomorrow I take off for Orlando, Florida. I'll be traveling there with my wife and son, and can't wait to take them to SeaWorld and Disney World. We're also going to look at apartments and get to know the area, as we may move there later this year or next. I'll be on vacation January 15th to February 1st, which is the longest vacation I've had in a long time.

I'm also picking up a new 15" Macbook Pro. My last laptop was an iBook, which stopped working after 3 years of use early last year. Since then I have been using a Mac Mini with a nice Apple Monitor. I'll still use that, but the flexibility of having a laptop again is going to be really awesome.

Look for AiBURN to Kick it Up a Notch in February

Once I'm back in February, I'll be posting at a minimum weekly and of course more often when I can. My content plans are to post inspirational roundups, artist interviews, reviews of various resources, one tutorial each month, one freebie each month, and more. Feel free to post any requests you have in the comments.

Also, I'll be off Twitter the next couple of weeks, but back posting there during the week again in February. Here is my page on Twitter, if you'd like to follow me. I often post a few links to illustration, design, web design, business, or blogging resources throughout the week. Also, I answer questions and get to know new people there. Thanks.

Feed Hungry

If you would like to keep up to date with all the great content that's coming, then sign up for the AiBURN feed. We'll be kicking off new content in early February. So, stay tuned!