Celebrating mom is what the month of May is all about. Ken Denmead knows that mom’s truly make his world go round. How so? Ken‘s the Editor of Wired.com‘s ever popular blog GeekDad, Raising a Geek Generation 2.0.
Recently Ken reached out to Techlife to ask if he could use a family photo of ours to headline their photo contest. We made him a deal, use of the photo for a few answers from the GeekDad lair. We drive a tough bargain, but only to get you readers the best arm twisted stories.
Crack open a cold one, and let the grilling begin!
Techlife: How did GeekDad start?
Ken Denmead: GeekDad was originally the brainchild of Wired Editor-in-Chief Chris Anderson (you know, the Long Tail and Free guy?), mostly as a place for he and his friends to post about cool projects they were doing with their kids.
TL: How has your focus changed since you started?
KD: It’s broadened out quite a bit. If you’re going to generate content every day, you’ve actually got to find things to write about. For us, that’s technology and geeky culture and books, movies, video games and so on. All from the perspective of geek parents, though.
TL: Do you love being the GeekDad you are more than the chance to report it to others?
KD: The wonderful thing these days is that the joys feed each other. I’m having my cake and eating it too, you might say 😉
TL: What’s your favorite story of 2010 so far?
KD: The iPad. It’s a transformative device, especially for family computing. It’s the jetpack of personal computing, and it represents the arrival of the future.
TL: What’s your kids’ favorite story of 2010?
KD: The premiere of the new Doctor Who.
TL: How has writing GeekDad changed your life?
KD: It’s actually made me a writer, where before I was someone who wrote as a hobby. It’s also allowed me to meet and talk to people I would never have had a chance to before. And it got me a book deal!
TL: Has there been any negatives to GeekDad?
KD: It takes time, and as a dad, I always have to work to find the balance between GeekDad and my kids, who are the reason I’m a GeekDad.
TL: What should new readers expect to see in the next 12 months?
KD: More, more, more. We’re considering a number of new ongoing projects. We recently hosted a great panel at the first ever PAX East gaming conference, and we’re hoping to do another one at PAX Prime. We’ll be hosting a huge booth at Maker Faire, San Mateo in May with plenty of fun things to do, and lots of giveaways.
TL: Are you currently working on any other projects?
KD: My book “Geek Dad: Awesomely Geeky Projects for Dads and Kids to Share” hits the streets on May 4th, which is tremendously exciting. (Available on Amazon and elsewhere)
TL: What’s a writing dream job for you?
KD: Getting to help write a TV show or movie, preferably something really geeky!
TL: Have any famous reader’s who you were surprised to find were GeekDad’s?
KD: Adam and Grant from Mythbusters!
TL: What’s the GeekMom readership like?
KD: Pretty significant and positive. We’ve always tried to be about geeky parenting, not just fatherhood, and I think that has attracted a lot of moms as well (and we have some mom writers).
TL: What’s your advice for any aspiring niche writers?
KD: Write. A lot. Every day. Blog all the time. Get to the point where you can think up a topic, and have 500 words of quality content published in an hour. And be good to other bloggers and writers you make connections with. Remember, the internet is about networking, and it’s the people you know online who will help make your career.
Thanks Ken! GeekDad’s brand of useful, interesting content is certainly worth a subscription in your RSS reader. We also agree content creation is not for the elite. The best content is the kind that gets people up and out, to explore the world around them, create content, and enjoy life. Keep writing the inspiring fun, and we’ll keep letting the kids judge the ideas.
