We have a new framework for writing essays for this poll. I described this in letter, which for now I'll paste in here, then edit as necessary until it melts into this file:
The one thing I've done some time thinking about is how to handle the essays, and that's what I want to write up here. My idea is that I will write up a bunch of skeletal essays, which you may help expand into finished pieces. Each essay will be structured into 2-4 parts:
- A brief introduction, introducing the theme of the essay.
- A table or list (optional, depending on the topic).
- A summary/conclusion of the table/list (optional).
- An edited set of comments, from invited critics.
I will write outlines for the essays, and start to flesh them out. I'll go into how below, but let's start with the list:
- One essay for each of the categories, so New Jazz Albums, Rara Avis, Vocal Jazz, Latin Jazz, and Debuts.
- One essay reflecting on Francis Davis and his interest and commitment to the poll. Terry Gross has agreed to write something "very short" which we can use as an introduction here.
- Our usual "In Memoriam" list, which Andrey Henkin has offered to do.
- I'm thinking about doing the critics list as a separate file: short intro, list of names. I don't know that there will be any need for comments.
I'm willing to consider other topics, but I'm conscious of having limited time and bandwidth, and no real need to expand beyond this basic package. This is tailored for ArtsFuse, but they will decide what exactly they want to publish. One additional piece I would like to produce would be a list of other jazz-related EOY lists, as this is useful research for our own use. (I've started, but rarely finished, files like this in the past.)
Given that the overwhelming focus will be on New Jazz Albums, I thought about splitting that into two (or more) pieces, where I can take a more process-oriented approach, and someone else could focus more on the winners (or possibly a third which would give people a chance to champion their more obscure picks). For now, I think we should start this way, then consider splitting if there is sufficient demand. I'm also willing to consider other essay concepts, but this should suffice for now.
In my above scheme, I can see 3-4 sort of bleeding together. While the essay introduction writer gets first shot at summing up, I can see inviting a couple more writers to comment first, before opening up to more random comments. It might go like: keynote speaker, panel discussion, open discussion. Except I don't think it's practical to get everyone together and interact. But in editing, we should try to limit redundancies. The key question for each comment should be: does it add something interesting to the discussion?
I'm pretty much convinced that the Pazz & Jop open form comments approach won't work. We should raise questions, and search out and solicit comments. We can also (with permission, of course) make use of previous published work. (I had one writer offer to let us reuse anything we want from a piece he published on Francis Davis. There are a dozen good pieces like that.) If we want something on a specific record, a good place to start would be to look at published reviews. Give people a chance to tweak their comments, but don't insist on starting from scratch. We should consider non-voters as possible sources.
I'll update this file with a detailed list of essays, authors, and comment questions specific to each. The upshot will be that if you wish to contribute a comment to be appended to an essay, please email that comment to 25comments AT hullworks DOT net. (It would be nice to include a form here.) Comments should be single-paragraph, plus your name (which will be published to open the paragraph, as if this is a transcript of a panel discussion). If you have questions, or need more information, use the same email address.
By sending us your comments, you are granting us the right to use them in our essays and on our websites. We have no money to pay for comments. We do appreciate your interest and help.
You may send quotes from previously published work, as long as you have the right to submit it. We may search out quotes that we wish to use in the comment section, in which case we will attempt to secure permission. We will only run comments that add substantial insight to the essays. The comments will become part of those essays when they are published, and will not be added later. Later reader reactions can be submitted through ArtsFuse's comment system.