Head for the Edge columns, 2012-13

Depend upon it, sir, when a man knows he is to be hanged in a fortnight, it concentrates his mind wonderfully. Boswell

Although this sentiment does not hold when I am two days from deadline without a frickin' idea of what to write about, I really like writing columns. The 800-900 word limit is a nice constraint and opinion is an expectation of the format. Like a public hanging, a public expression of opinion tends to focus the mind wonderfully.

I've written columns for several magazines and websites over the years (you can find a complete list here), but my favorite remains "Head for the Edge" in Library Media Connection. Who knew back in 1995 when I pitched the idea to Marlene Woo-Lun for a column for her then new, now defunct magazine, Technology Connection, that I would still be writing it nearly 20 years later.

Anyway, here are the columns from this year's issues:

• Bring Your Own Device to the Library, August/September 2012
• 10 Ways to Encourage Creativity in Your Library, October 2012
• 21 Dangerous Statements Librarians Make, November 2012
• The Entrepreneurial Librarian, January/February 2013
• The Neglected Side of Intellectual Freedom, March/April 2013
• The Swiss Army Knife Approach, May/June 2013 

And from the shameless self-promotion department...

A collection of Head for the Edge columns, updated and organized, can be found in my book School Libraries Head for the Edge. Buy it and I might one day be able to afford a nursing home where my drool bucket will be changed on a regular basis. Thank you.