An online magazine of baseball storytelling. Contribute today.
Inspired by Ethan Marcotte’s A List Apart article, I’ve implemented a responsive design on a small number of pages here at the Chronicle. I’ll add to that number in the coming weeks, as time permits.
What does that mean for readers? In short, the pages change to fit the browser window. For example, fiddle with the window on Tyler Kalmakoff’s “The Man on the Mound” (after you’ve read it, of course). Elements move and resize to better use the available screen space, and it works on handheld devices, too.
(Psst! Enjoying the custom designs on recent stories? They’re fun exercises for me and, I hope, add something to the reading experience. I’ll eventually spiff up the older stories, too. Browse the archive in the weeks to come.)
—September 13, 2010
News like this only makes clearer what others have already noted: URL shortening services aren’t good for the web.
But short URLs have their uses, notably in print and on Twitter. This site will be on Twitter shortly, and I hope to make a print version (details still being sorted out) of the Chronicle available someday, so: The Baseball Chronicle now offers its own short URLs.
As long as the site exists, these URLs will too. No link rot, no obfuscation—just handy little URLs. You can find them in the sidebar, next to every story on the site.
Here’s an example: http://bbchron.com/go/129 sends you to http://thebaseballchronicle.com/personal_stories/50_years_a_cubs_fan_part_one
Enjoy, and happy linking.
—August 12, 2009
All stories on the site can now be viewed in printer-friendly form. On any story page, click on “Printer-friendly version” to access the stripped-down story.
Here’s an example: http://thebaseballchronicle.com/fiction/the_rocket_a_tall_tale.print
If you find a bug, please leave a comment below.
—July 30, 2009
Beginning today, The Baseball Chronicle is switching from theme-based submissions to rolling submissions.
The change allows contributors to send in anything, anytime, with almost no restrictions. If the story’s good, I’ll find a place for it on the site.
This site’s purpose has always been to share great stories, thought-provoking opinions and essays, and much more, all with a common thread—great baseball writing. That will never change; the new rolling submissions system only makes that sharing easier, and opens the site to timely—though always thoughtful and measured—commentary and reviews.
The submission line is wide open: editor AT thebaseballchronicle.com
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I first imagined The Baseball Chronicle as a podcast—a stirring blend of oral history and storytelling, with some commentary thrown in. It was to be a baseball show as done by NPR or PRI.
But I decided the possibilities for a baseball storytelling website, not just a podcast, were far more exciting and, well, as a guy who’s only barely dabbled outside the world of text, attainable. And, I told myself, I could always add a podcast to the website later.
So that’s what I’ve done. It’s certainly not a professional production, but it’ll get better, (hopefully) moving closer to that original goal.
For the inaugural episode, I interviewed Marty Appel, author of the new biography, “Munson: The Life and Death of a Yankee Captain.” I’m still very new to podcasting, so I’ll apologize in advance for the verbal tics and general mediocrity of the thing. But it will get better.
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Putting these announcements together: I’m also looking for submissions for the podcast. Send your ideas—please, no .mp3s—to the address above, and we’ll go from there.
Until next time, thanks for reading (and listening, too!).
—July 17, 2009
I’ve received some great submissions, but I would love to see more. If you’ve got an interesting story or essay, please do send it my way by June 15.
Did you ever cheat during a ballgame? Know someone who did? Or perhaps you’ve got a interesting take on cheating. If it’s compelling—be it a story, interview, essay or review—I’ll publish it.
You can send your submissions to editor @ thebaseballchronicle.com . Thanks.
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Also: Sorry about the inactivity on the site this week and last. My computer’s logic board failed last Wednesday night, leaving me without a computer for over a week. But all is now well.
—June 5, 2009