CONnieVERSATIONS

Niall's 60,000-word journey

One of my daily blog reads is Collective Conversation, the blogging community from the international communications consulting firm Hill & Knowlton.

I was excited to read Niall Cook's post today, announcing that he has just signed a contract to write a business book on using social software in the enterprise. I'm always happy when a new author gets a book deal, but this one really got me excited because Niall intends to blog the entire experience and set up a wiki with chapter summaries that will be open for comments. How cool is that!

Niall, who is H&K's worldwide director of marketing technology, added: "If you're interested in following my journey, please subscribe to my personal blog's feed."

You can bet that I'll be closely following the book blogging experience. Thanks, Niall, for the invitation to join you on your 60,000-word journey. Happy writing! (and blogging)

Walk-on Kicks Winning Field Goal in First College Game

Just 27 seconds left on the clock, and your team is down by two points. The roar of 85,000+ Nebraska fans is deafening, even over the biting wind that whips the snow across your face. The Longhorns are in field-goal range, but kicker Greg Johnson has already left seven points on the table: two missed field goals and a blocked extra-point kick.

You're a walk-on, a sophomore who has yet to play in a college game. And then, all of a sudden, the outcome of the game -- and perhaps the Big 12 championship -- is riding on your shoulders when Coach Mack Brown signals you onto the field.

That was the situation yesterday when Ryan Bailey, a hometown boy from Anderson High School here in Austin, sprinted onto the field for the first time ever and kicked a 22-yard field goal to hand the 'Horns a victory over the 'Huskers. Sweeet!

And how sweet to see that orange-lit Tower. Hook 'em!

Finding My Voice - "Ack!"

As someone who has spent the last two decades ghostwriting (books, articles, direct mail, you name it), I have a finely tuned ear for the way others speak. I've honed the knack of thinking and communicating in someone else's voice -- and I've done it well enough to make a living at it. Not a great living, but I've kept a roof over my head and food on the table.

The downside of ghostwriting is the loss of your own voice. That's one of the reasons I am drawn to blogging -- it provides the ability to express yourself quickly and naturally to anyone who may be listening out there. I've been reading blogs and commenting for a number of years, and now here I am starting my own.

I feel a bit like my cat, Gracie, must have felt when she first turned up on my doorstep 14 years ago. It was around Thanksgiving and we were having an unusually cold spell for that time of year. Every time we opened the front door, this cute little kitten raced inside. She was not afraid of people and had obviously been someone's pet. She also had a crippled back leg and sashayed around the room with a swagger reminiscent of a sailor trying to find his land legs after a prolonged period at sea.

When we couldn't find out who the kitten belonged to, we wound up keeping her. I named her Amazin' Gracie -- because "she once was lost but now she's found" (to paraphrase the old hymn, Amazing Grace).

At first, Gracie was not very vocal. Her entire vocabulary consisted of one feeble syllable: ack. After a couple of weeks, however, that little ack began to morph into a whole range of meowing, purring and kitty communications.

So this first post is my feeble ack, and it probably will not reverberate with much force throughout the blogosphere. But I'm finding my voice, and it will get stronger, I'm sure.

Comments are open, so join the conversation if you're so inclined.