Read all about it at www.Modenus.com – and may the best entries win!

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Dear Modenus and the BlogTour advisory board,

I would like to be considered as a guest blogger for the New York City destination of BlogTour 2012 based on the following online influence factors:

• My blog, Building Content, focuses on providing high-value content for my fellow architects.
• I leverage my blog, Twitter, LinkedIn and other social media platforms to promote the work of others. (Featured Blog Series and Guest Book Reviewer, BIM and Integrated Design)
• I have previous blogging recognition. (Guest blogger for Coverings 2010, Exceptional Contributor Award, for UPworld, 2011-Q1)
• I am a creative and prolific deadline-driven writer. (Winner of NaNoWriMo 2011; a 52K word novel written in the month of November)
• I nurture my online influence as reflected in my steadily growing scores with Klout (44), PeerIndex (47) and Kred (736).

I sincerely appreciate being considered along with the other exceptional bloggers for this exciting opportunity.

Collier Ward

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I never played an instrument in school, but I bet I could be First Chair in blowing my own horn.

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Architectural Bloggers’ Chat

Architectural Bloggers’ Chat – As posted earlier, we are launching the Architectural Bloggers’ Chat, a regularly scheduled Twitter chat with the designated hashtag: #ABlogChat

From feedback already received we will likely meet the second Thursday of each month from 8 to 9pm EST. Our initial session will be January 12th. Please let me know if this day and time won’t work for you.

Featured Blog Series

Featured Blog Series – I hope to continue promoting your blogs as I did with these featured blog posts: Church That Moves and Dear Polia…

Ideally I will feature a different blog each month. If you would like to be considered, please let me know.

Guest Post Series

Guest Post Series – This will be a new – and overdue – component of Building Content, where Architectural Bloggers’ Twibe members present a guest post telling how they got started blogging, how blogging has influenced their practice or any other topic they’d like to share.

I would like to host a guest blog post once a month as well. Are you interested in sharing your story here? Please let me know.

For all the details about joining the Architectural Bloggers’ Twibe, see this post: Membership has its Benefits.

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As a young designer, adventurer and studio owner, Nadia already has more blog-relevant experience than many her seniors. But more importantly, she seems to have even a greater capacity for curiosity and wonder. She displays graceful but persistent exploration that provides enjoyable reading for her growing audience.

First a note about her chosen title, “Dear Polia…” (which Nadia deftly explains in her featured post, “Who is Polia?“). Polia is an idealized character from early Italian Renaissance literature. In the book Poliphilo’s Strife of Love in a Dream Polia is earnestly sought after by the protagonist Poliphilo in a protracted dream-within-a-dream. Poliphio (whose name means “lover of many things” and therefore represents the quintessential “Renaissance Man”) encounters many strange and wonderful characters, environments and situations in his odyssey. Poliphilo’s quest is archetypal and allegorical.

It is with Poliphilo’s dream in mind that I write this blog.  Each posting is addressed to Polia.

For Nadia, this blog serves “as a reminder of the many things that interest me, the many things that inspire me, and the many things I have yet to learn.” It is therefore an excellent reader for those willing to encounter new characters, environments and situations; to look over Nadia’s shoulder as she addresses, Dear Polia…

Nadia personally recommends the posts, “The Secret Garden”, “The Original Green” and “HAWC Goes Back to School” while I would like to direct you to her “Heights Living Series” because they prove exploration and encounter can take place in your own community:

• Heights Living: Victorian Style
• Heights Living: On the Porch
• Heights Living: Water Under the Bridge
• Heights Living: Whiteout!

As a note to my readers, those looking to develop their own architectural blog, please note the unifying theme to Nadia’s work. Her unique title sets a tone of exploration and investigation, and under that banner she addresses a multiplicity of interests and topics. It is evident from many of the posted comments, this approach is building a consistent and appreciative audience.

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(Nadia Palacios Lauterbach is an associate member of the Texas Society of Architects and the American Institute of Architects, as well as a professional member of the Institute of Classical Architecture and Art. She operates her own Design Consulting Studio based in Houston, TX. Images are from her blog and Facebook page. Connect with Nadia on Twitter and Facebook)

I want to use this space to further promote the architectural blogging community. To that end I will begin featuring the individual bloggers from the Architectural Bloggers Twibe. If you are a member now and would like to have a post here promoting your work, please let me know…

(By the way, being a member of the Twibe (Twitter+Tribe) is as easy as visiting the Architectural Bloggers Twibe site (here) and joining us.)

Comment below or e-mail me directly (collier1960@hotmail.com) and I’ll send you a form I’ve prepared for these Featured Blog posts. This form isn’t a requirement, it’s simply a means for you to relay the basics of your blog. I also want to know your audience, your goals, your aspirations – or whatever else you think is unique or noteworthy about your blog.

Being the opinion-meister that I am, I will also make a comment  or two on why I read your blog and why others should too. I’m excited about letting the world know what we have going on in the architectural blogging community. I believe we have the ideas and insights that will endure the current recession and usher in a new Golden Age of our profession!

Exploring the how will be a theme of Building Content this year. As I uncover ideas, insights and answers from around the Internet, I will present them here.

Today, reading Patricia Brizzio’s Huffington Post article Architecture 2011: What’s Coming and What to Expect Next I found this silver lining;

The limit of resources might in fact bring about more interesting and creative solutions. With tighter constrains and less possibilities, we might focus more in ideas, efficiency, and details, instead of area, height and quantity. Innovation comes in any size, and scarcity brings about the most ingenuity.

Reference: Architecture 2011: What’s coming and what to expect next by Huffington Post (blog)

Brizzio provides a big-picture, big-project state-of-the-profession. Please read the full article for the global overview; however I believe the pull quote begins to address our how issue.