mark says:
...and we're not talking about cheap chocolate either. (BTW, we'll consider a peach cobbler for Tara Lazar.)

mark says:
@triptych: Agree re embeds. That's coming in v0.2 Love the branching comment! One of our devs is totally into branching and we think we can do it easily enough within Storymaker using drag and drop hotspots. Very "choose your own adventure."

mark says:
@taralazar: "Themes" is actually a bridge between v0.1 and the next release. It's meant to pull themes from across ALL artists, but we've disabled it along with "visual typing" until we have more art in the database. We'll probably just remove themes for now since it's causing more confusion than anything.

BTW, peach pie is sounding really good about now!

mark says:
@idrawpixels: we'll be creating a personal queue for hearted items in v0.2. We wanted to squeeze the basic feature into this release simply to give people an alternate way to comment. As for re-ordering pages in Storymaker—sigh. We had that working in several pre-release versions but it became wonky just before this trial so we disabled it. It'll be here soon though.

And no—chocolates are for anywhere! And Chocolate Arts has us on account, so we're always ready to ship to the West Coast ;)

mark says:
@nobledesign: great feedback.

-That is one annoying bug. We're tracking it, but haven't solved it quite yet. Soon. (I saw one of the developers with some Raid earlier.)

-The simplest fix for that is to hit "back" rather than Read, which is meant to take you to the Read main page. That said, when we introduce search in v0.3 you'll have a subset from your search that you can pan through without getting dumped back into a generalized view.

BTW, we'll soon be adding a quick filter to the general stream of SBs: Recent and Active. The "Active" tab will let you see those SBs that have a lot of conversation happening around them. Eventually, when the system grows enough, we'll add the final filter: Notable. That's a far more complex algorithm and it's super secret...

-Yes, please do come back and tell us what you like or don't like, or features that you want to see. We have a definite view of where we're going, but we rely on everyone to get the general feel of the road.

kaye says:
Hi aGiantGirl - great comments, I especially love that your daughter wanted it as a birthday card -- I constantly think now, whether it's a party invitation or similar, 'could I do this with a Storybird?'.

However, first things first, and some of the items you mention are definitely on our list: Making it easier to heart/comment when you're done reading a Storybird, re-ordering pages, pages as icons are all on the list most definitely. We're also going to look at enlarging or 'previewing' the thumbnails, I've received a couple of similar comments.

Both music and notes and other types of interactivity are ideas we've considered for future versions most definitely. I'll let Mark answer your last couple of questions, but thanks again for the fantastic and detailed input :)

mark says:
@aGiantGirl: we're not sure how to use music. Somewhere around release v0.5 we're adding voice (probably a premium feature), and we know people will use that to insert music. But a feature to specifically deal with music we're still kicking around/scratching heads.

re dark: if it's kept private, as dark as you want. If you share it publicly, as long as the age range is accurate and it conforms to community guidelines—go for it. Your friends and followers will keep you honest. Besides, some of the best kid's stories have shadowy undertones. Life is often dark. Stories should reflect that.

re invites: you can invite anyone you'd like as of now. We'll be dropping the privacy wall sometime next week, so just ask them to use the chirpchirp code in the meantime.

...and a happy birthday to Indi from all of us at Storybird.

mark says:
@laughwme: great feedback. Some answers/thoughts:
-editing and backspace ARE a bit buggy. We're working on those.

-fonts and text size manipulation are unlikely. We stripped out lots of page layout functionality because it tends to paralyze people and leave them frustrated, rather than staying focused on the story and enjoying themselves. That said, we are thinking of a "pro" version of SB later down the road that would provide more controls. Tricky issue.

-resizing illustrations. Absolutely. You're currently working with "panel" art, which is fixed in size. We'll have "pieces" soon (vector art) which you'll be able to scale and move.

-narration: Definately. It'll be a paid feature though (Storybird will be ad free, so we'll be making money from printing and premium features)

-various artists in the same story: our original prototype included this. It's called "visual typing" and surfaces images from various artists as you write. We'll be re-introducing that once the image database is bigger. Right now, you can go to "Create" and choose Option B, Themes. Clicking a theme will take you to an art page with a link in the top right corner: Start a SB with art tagged "xx" That gets you into a story with various artists.

-we'll also be introducing an "image library" within Storymaker that lets you search and use images immediately within your story.

Hope this helps. Looking forward to stories from the old man and the girl!

mark says:
@onemoreryan: nice find. Added to bug list.

adam says:
Thanks Ryan, I think something got changed around on that page and the title tag got missed.

@arxpoetica - Yes, social networking functionality and embeddable Storybirds are coming soon (hopefully very soon). Aviary is new to me, thanks for the pointer.

mark says:
@arxpoetica @adam: I'm in love with Aviary's tools and think they're ideal for artists as an alternative to Adobe. But I doubt we'd see them here. A HUGE part of our design focus is stripping out everything but the essentials in making stories. As soon as you start giving hi-fidelity controls to people, they focus on everything BUT the story.

That said, Storymaker will get richer and richer. Our challenge is to also make it simpler and simpler.

mark says:
@fantastic5th: thanks for the great comments.

"Clear thumbnails" is one feature that's part of a bigger set of tools within Storymaker, some of which didn't make it in this release. The key one is "visual typing" which allows you to start with a blank page, start writing, and images appear based on your keywords. "Clear Thumbnails" was designed to help with the growing mess of thumbnails that might occur. But without visual typing, Clear Thumbnails is quasi-pointless ;) If you use it now, the best thing to do is just start a new Storybird.

Visual typing speaks to your larger question about different ways to make stories. The easiest way, and thus the one we released with, is using a set from one artist: it provides some visual consistency and some themes that run though their work. And you're right: it forces a puzzle-solving approach to storytelling rather than an uninhibited narrative. Visual typing, which we'll turn on when there's enough images in the database, solves this to a degree since you just write and the images appear to suit your story.

We'll also be enabling image uploads soon so folks can upload their own art or photos: that provides a way to tell very particular and personal stories. Later, we'll be including voice so members can narrate their Storybirds. That too will change the nature of how you tell stories.

As for one account versus all students having one: for now, each student should have one. It's really the simplest way to deal with using the service. Interestingly, while we had always planned on teacher/student features, they were much farther down the line (given our constraints). But it's incredible how within two days after release v0.1 students and teachers have found us. We'll be rethinking our approach now ;)

mark says:
@scheherazade: fun is good!

We're working on the writing quirks. We've managed to squash a few bugs, but we are seeing intermittent hiccups that continue to evade us. Part of it is due to a feature called "visual typing" that we haven't turned on yet. Visual typing searches the database for keywords and surfaces art based on what you're writing. It's a complex interaction system that, in trying to make simple, introduces the flakiness you describe. We'll get there.

Teacher accounts look inevitable given the huge response we've had from teachers and students since our release on Friday. We'll have lots to say about that in the weeks and months ahead.

mark says:
Hey Lizzie,

Thanks for the exclamation marks. We like those. (Well, when they're attached to good stuff ;)

The reason your fun characters aren't showing up in the system is because the shop hasn't been approved yet. Also, you landed smack in the middle of our new activation process which now has a 15-images minimum to submit a shop, along with a new interface (you were using the old one). I'll ping you by email and we'll finish up the process offline.

Embeds. Coming in a couple of weeks.

Toasters: yes. This is way better than toasters. I can only hope that @gwenamon agrees, since your toaster offer passed to her and she's been waiting for a banana colored model for a couple of months now.

mark says:
Thanks for all the kind words folks. Deeply appreciated.

Re teacher accounts: we're already rethinking our feature roadmap to build some basic features.

@allie701: printing is a core aspect of the service. Not only will we have softcover and hardcover options, but low cost PDFs for "baby birds" (small size, lo-res SBs) and high-end premium hardcovers.

@ihancock: we're working on a small tweak that allows you to change the name of the author within Storymaker. That way, covers can have whatever author names you like. However, the linkable name at the top of the Storybird will, for now, remain as the account-holders user name. We need that in order to provide cross-linking throughout the site and trace SBs back to the account holder.

@reddoor: thumbnail size is tricky. Make the thumbnails too big and you don't get enough inventory on the screen. Provide a roll-over preview and a cluster of thumbnails will start flashing a dozen previews as you mouse over them. And a one-click "hold-down to preview" gets confused with drag-and-drop behavior. Oy. For now, dragging the thumbnails to the canvas and seeing them full size has been the most practical and favored approach. But we're working on it. It will get more sophisticated.

@rhinoab: good point about social aspects and kids. In the same way we've stripped out everything but the core tools to make a Storybird, we've also stripped back the amount of information that's presented about people and the ways they can interact on the site. For instance, profiles don't disclose anything about you other than the stories you make. There's no instant messaging within Storymaker for collaborators. Turn switching is via email, so it has to go to known accounts. And so on. When we do build our teacher features, we'll keep that philosophy in mind. Simple. Fun. Safe.

mark says:
@tuscon_cowgirl: Thanks for stopping by and kicking the tires. Uploading your own images is on the way in release v0.3. And, if I'm understanding your comment about rewrites, remember that you can edit a SB even after it's published, just like a blog post. You'll find "Edit Story" under "More about this Storybird" on the Storybird page.

@ian: lol. No worries. All of us are Apple descendants, Google observers, Twitter-lovers, and 37 Signals fanboys. Storybird will always be simple. Our view is that all tools should be simple. How people use them is what should be complex.

mark says:
@davemarc: that's a bug we just removed. Yay!

@megapixel: a good chunk of our members are using Mac/Safari and haven't reported any crashes. If it keeps happening, trace your actions and send us a note: support [at] storybird [dot] com Include the title of the Storybird as well.

Thanks both for the kind words about Storybird :)

mark says:
@eb123 @kentompkins @draculajones: we made an update to Storymaker and Storyplayer last night. We suspect your issues may be occurring as a result. The team is looking at the matter now. We'll update here as soon as we believe it's fixed.

Thanks for the details guys. Much appreciated.

mark says:
@eb123 @kentompkins @draculajones: can you email us the names of the Storybirds you had troubles with? Email to: support [at] storybird [dot] com

mark says:
@hoogland: Can you tell us what browser and operating system you're using? We haven't had any bugs related to Flash upgrades as of yet. Email to: support [at] storybird [dot] com

@markaltosaar: Thanks! Us too.

mark says:
Folks, the issue that @eb123 @kentompkins @draculajones described seems to have occurred because Storymaker can handle empty pages while Storyplayer can't. We'll tweak some code and run some tests and should have it fixed by tonight. Until then, try to avoid empty pages in your Storybirds!

mark says:
@daisymae: it's quite possible he clicked "Start over" or deleted several pages in between your turns (collaborators can go in and make changes at any time, even if it's the other person's turn).

I'd suggest starting a new SB and mention to him not to make changes when it's your turn. That way you can tell if there's actually a bug occurring or it's just a slip of the finger ;)

And many thanks for the kind words about SB. We built it for folks just like you.

mark says:
Fixed: the issue that @eb123 @kentompkins @draculajones described occurred because Storyplayer, the engine that plays published SBs, was hiccuping over empty pages. The issue has been resolved and we haven't seen it re-occur. Thanks for your help in uncovering it.

mark says:
@thejbru: thanks for the love! As for CC image search, we’re installing personal image uploads in v0.2 that will enable you to import photos from your Flickr or Facebook accounts. But we’re holding off on CC searches in general until we get a feel for how people use their own images.

@onemoreryan: we’re planning on “sets” for v0.3 that will let everyone (artists included) group images into theme packs. That will help the majority of the time with “thumbnail glut.” Plus, we’ve got some nifty thumbnail ideas that will make everything less clumpy. I like your idea about pre-select—we’ll explore that. And, as for images within Storymaker, v0.2 (maybe v0.3) will have a tab called “Image library” that will let you work with items you’ve previously imported, or, as you say, drop thumbnails you’re currently using into the grid. It’ll also feature direct image search without having to leave the app. Given your great input and your lovely Storybirds, I think this might be our first chocolate award. Ping me with your addy and we’ll send you and the family a little Vosge love: mark [at] storybird.com. Tara, if you’re reading this, we’re still tracking down a peach-pie delivery company ;)

@kate_barsotti: Great feedback. Some answers/thoughts:
-image resolution will improve from release to release
-animation is distant, if not unlikely. It introduces far too much complexity and works against our goal of “focus on the story.” Plus, there are great animation tools already available. That said, Kaye (our creative director) has been interested in “onion skinning,” a phrase she uses to describe simple animation effects that can be included by artists as Easter eggs.
-commissioned art: we think this is viable.
-rhyming dictionary: now added to our “let’s explore list”
-voice is planned in a future release. It’s a big focus of ours.
-agree about sentiment/greeting card. One of our elevator pitches is “read like books, play like games, or send like greetings.”
-phone friendly: absolutely. Various stages of an iPhone app are on the drawing table.

@acuteinvasion: first, awesome username. And second: merci! That’s really sweet feedback. We are currently texting the powers that be about elongating the day to 48 hours. We’ll let you know how that goes.

mark says:
Hi @lschoff: given the big hug we've received from teachers in over 100 countries in just four days of being live—absolutely. Our short-term plan is to create a simple teacher account that can be linked to student accounts and don't require email. We'll have news on that when it's available. Thanks for the kind words, too.

adam says:
Papa: Sorry about the confusion. Your account has been activated, so you must have hit the confirmation link already. You only need to click on it the first time, after that you can just log in normally. You're probably logged in now, but if not, you can just log in and use the site normally.

mark says:
Fran, we were updating our server around that time. Try again and let us know if that occurs.

adam says:
whataboutki: Thanks for the report, you're right, I'm seeing the same thing in Firefox. Hopefully we can track that one down and fix it soon.

In the meantime, you can refresh the page in the tab and it should let you read the story (if the flipped up corner that says "open" is there, you can click to read it). I know it isn't a great solution, but at least you can read what's in your tabs while we get this fixed.

mark says:
Ian. Possibly the only reply to your comment and the kids is: you guys rock.

Thanks for the kind words and the love. We plan to make Storybird even better as we go along, and hope you'll be there with us.

mark says:
Glorious, we'll connect via email. But, yes! We love the idea of grandparents learning more about Storybird. It's built for them and their kids ;)

mark says:
Ian: yes, we turned it off as we work on a few connected features. Visual typing will return, bigger and stronger, in a week or two.

But we had closed off (we thought) all the access points to start a SB with an empty screen. Is that what you're experiencing? Or did you have art and VT simply wasn't producing more?

mark says:
Patricia: we have several browse functions coming up, and search will hit around release v0.3. As for printing, we're studying several options that look something like this:
-PDFs: $1-$2
-Softcover: $10-$15
-Hardcover: $20-$25
-Premium: $35-$45

We're also planning some other great format, like minibooks and sequential stories (you mail someone one story panel at a time). We'll figure those out as we go.

Thanks for the kind words. And let us know how you end up using Storybird in your life. We love that stuff.

mark says:
KDV: Absolutely. In fact, while we had planned for teacher accounts much further down our development pipeline, we've actually pushed some basic school functions to the top of our list—with no emails required for students being the priority.

We'll be updating our feature set progress on the blog, Twitter, and via email. Stay tuned.

mark says:
Hey Ian, that's a great story. Be sure to tell her thanks for using Storybird ;)

Regarding visual typing: yes, we'll tell everyone. And yes, as you mouse over the words on your page, the keywords can be clicked to find new art. Also, by v0.3, we'll have search installed within Storymaker. That'll make finding images even easier.

Regarding our location: we're a distributed company with half the team in the US and the other half in Canada (New York, San Diego, Vancouver, and Toronto.) In other words, we're a a mutt (or the bird equivalent).

Cheers.

mark says:
@archit: thanks for the suggestion. We'll be updating the Read page as we grow with several ways to browse and categorize books. What you're seeing is just a basic approach for v0.1. BTW, if you click on "Active," you'll see the stories that have the most conversation building around them.

@MsSturzen: thank you. We love it too! We'll be creating a teacher's account soon that will let your students all log in without emails—but be able to have their own dashboard and name on their stories. As for separate names on the covers, in the short term we'll be adding the ability to change a name within Covermaker. The Storybird will still be linked to the main account in this case, but you can use any name for what appears on the book cover and inside.

mark says:
@atkauffman: Thanks for the kind words and spreading the Storybird love. Teacher/student accounts are on the way. In the meanwhile, one of the easiest ways to manage the issue is to set up a teacher account AND a class account. That way the students can save to the class account in order to retrieve/share/comment on work.

mark says:
@creator: when you say "artwork," do you mean "open a Storybird/read a Storybird?" If that's the case, you may not have upgraded your Flash player. Email us with details about your issue and we'll help you through it: support [at] storybird [dot] com

And thanks for the kind words as your lead-in!

mark says:
@npeters: completely agree. For special needs and early readers, being able to click and hear the words is ideal. We have it in our roadmap, but it's more likely to appear in v0.6-v.07.

@creator: thanks for the tip. You can tell them we're pretty standard, though: we host on Media Temple and storage comes via Amazon's cloud services.

mark says:
@swagganerd: if you want your chance at chocolate, you need to come up with great ideas for features that we haven't thought of or fixes that make the site easier for people to use.

BTW, thanks for the kind words about the site! We've heard from dozens of teachers and hundreds of students that it's becoming very popular in classrooms. We're going to make it easier for students and teachers to use it in the weeks ahead. Anything you'd like to see?

adam says:
dangerousduckling: page reordering is coming very soon, we're just working out the last couple of kinks. I tried typing ONE and nothing got deleted when I did it. Was anything else happening when you saw the text deleted? Are you still having this problem?

mark says:
@zaira281997: we didn't delete the story: we returned it to you because it contained inappropriate material for the Storybird community. If you make the necessary changes, we'll happily consider it again. And, if you have more questions on how to make those changes, email us and we'll help you through the process: support [at] storybird [dot] com.

mark says:
Hi Gelu,

Thanks for the kind words. As for your three questions, there are two answers:

1. Soon we'll turn on "visual typing" inside Storymaker which matches words in your story to art tags and surfaces those images on the sideboard. It's like automatic search and enables you to then choose the images or artists you'd like to see more of. Visual typing is built and working—we're just waiting for sufficient artwork and tags to turn it on.

2. Outside of Storymaker, we'll have site-wide search in release v0.3. That will enable you to search for specific Storybirds, artists, tags, authors, etc.

It's all coming! But baby steps...

adam says:
Hi thegnome,

I'm really sorry to hear that your work wasn't saved :(. We have had a few bugs that have popped up in saving. I agree, it's very frustrating, we're doing our best to fix these issues as they arise. Telling us about it helps, so thank you for bringing this up. A couple of questions:

1) What's the title of the Storybird where you had this problem?
2) About how many pages were lost? Hopefully it wasn't all 19.

Feel free to either respond here or send an email to support [at] storybird [dot] com, whichever method is easier for you.

adam says:
thegnome: Thank you for the extra info. Unfortunately, I wasn't able to recover your lost pages. I apologize again for the trouble this has caused you, we'll continue to look for the source of the problem. I hope you do rewrite the story, I'd like to read it :).

Uploading your own pictures is something that's coming, but we don't know when just yet.

Thanks for the kind words!

mark says:
@Tahu1: have you watched our demo? It explains how to use Storybird:
http://storybird.com/tour/

If you still have trouble after watching it, let us know. You can post here, or email us directly: support [at] storybird [dot] com

mark says:
@markelittlefield: you'll need the current Flash plugin to view the demo (and use Storymaker, our story engine). Just Google "Adobe Flash" and download their most recent plugin and you'll be good to go. (And, if you're still experiencing hiccups, email us: support [at] storybird [dot] com

mark says:
@Curtiskiddoes: thx for the kind words. Regarding search, we'll be releasing that in v0.3. You'll be able to search for tags, art, people, and Storybirds. However, in v0.2 we'll be lighting up "visual typing," which triggers art based on your story's keywords. It's essentially a search feature that's perpetually looking for images to match your story. That will help you a bit.

As for various poses or instances of artwork, that's an evolutionary aspect as artists discover what kind of narrative art members are looking for and experiment. But we're certainly thinking about character poses and multiple views in how we design Storymaker to behave and offer up options as people craft their story.

mark says:
@marierush: yes. Each art size variation (panoramic, square, etc) creates a different character count per page. If your text is longer than that, it disappears. We're working on a few things that will both alert you when you've gone over and give you other layout options with the same image. But for now, the best thing to do is toggle between fullscreen and edit mode within Storymaker to see how the text behaves. And, remember that you can edit your story after it's published in the event that see text clipping after the fact.

mark says:
@elamac: for now, it'll be tough. In future releases we'll have Following so you can follow/find your friends/contacts easily. Search will help too. Both of those are coming in v0.2-v0.3.

kaye says:
@elamac: in addition, if you do find a friend's Storybird that you like and think you'll want quick access to it later, you can also 'add it to your reading list'.

mark says:
@coltman: no, you're not doing anything wrong. There are occasional network hiccups (similar to those that make you lose an email or a website not accept a comment) that cause Storymaker to not save. It's rare, but when it happens the best thing you can do is start over.

We're working on a sensor that detects the network interruption and gives you an immediate message that your SB will not save. That way you can cut and paste what you do have and transfer it to a new shell.

Over time, we'll get even better at reducing the incident and managing it. For now, chock it up as a growing pain. (That is to say: thanks for your patience as we grow.)

adam says:
Coltman: I'll second what Mark said, you're not doing anything wrong, and we've been battling some hiccups that are causing issues with saving for a few users. I'm sorry it has affected you. If you try again and it still doesn't save, can you send us an email to support [at] storybird [dot] com with the text you're trying to save on the second page? It's possible there's something more going on since you said your collaborator had trouble saving too.

klalexander: That definitely shouldn't be happening. Do you mean you see the story on your dashboard (the page you get when you click "You" on the top of the page), and when you click it you get a page that just says the Storybird is private? If you're still having this problem, can you send an email with the title of the Storybird you're having trouble with to support [at] storybird [dot] com?

mark says:
@luoji: we can't, at this time, moderate and thus approve Storybirds for the PUBLIC library/timeline that are written in languages other than English. We’ll be expanding internationally soon and add specific language support as we do. In the meantime, Storybirds in other languages can still be published in your PRIVATE library and shared with your friends and family.

mark says:
ed422: for now, you can't. Two at a time. We'll be expanding it to multiple authors in the future though. It's slowly moving up the ranks as a requested feature.

mark says:
@Tahu1: you have a couple of Storybirds that you wanted to share in the public library that have been returned to you because they contain content that does not meet our community guidelines (see link in footer). You need to fix the problems before we can accept it in the public library or you have to keep it private.

You should be receiving emails notifying you when a Storybird has been "returned."

mark says:
@skittles10101010: ha. No. I'm obsessed with chocolate. The peach cobbler is for children's book author Tara Lazar, who is a friend of Storybird.

mark says:
@cmoffitt: we'll be adding multiple collaborators (more than 2) in a future version. As for the jiggy cursor, that'll get better with each release too ;)

@Tahu1: Do you know that you can edit a Storybird once it's' been published? Just click "Edit Story" on the Storybird page and you can jump back in, make the necessary changes, and re-publish your story.

mark says:
@nyx: Thx. Storybirds that are marked public go into a moderation queue and, until approved, remain in a private space. Yours were approved this AM and now appear on your public profile. Search arrives in v0.3: you'll be able to search for authors, artists, art, and Storybirds.

mark says:
@suemiller: Thx for the kind words. Page reordering is in the final stages. We hope to have that out shortly. Class accounts are also in the pipeline: big request from teachers around the world.

mark says:
@annemarry: search is coming in v0.3: you'll be able to search (and filter) for authors, artists, art, and Storybirds. As for age filters, we'll be updating the Read page in the next few weeks to let you find stories by age. And languages will come in a bit. We're just figuring out how to create a volunteer corps to help moderate non-English stories that are shared publicly.

mark says:
@Tamoythestar: You're absolutely right. Thankfully, search is coming in release v0.3 and we'll be upgrading the "Read" page throughout all releases of Storybird. Remember—we're only 5 weeks old! We've got to walk before we run.

@chicabee: layering images is also something we're working on. It won't be released for a while...but it's coming.

adam says:
Hi gaffney3, what web browser are you using? Can you tell me what it says your player version is on this page: http://kb2.adobe.com/cps/155/tn_15507.html

It sounds like you're trying to use Storybird on several computers and some of them work but one doesn't, is that right?

mark says:
@minhed237: embeds roll out in the next few days.

@lilyl10: were you able to find your story? If not—what's the name of the SB? We'll see if we can find it for you.

mark says:
@amberlie: Thanks! And you're right about multiple poses. A couple of things will improve this over time. One is that artists, as they study how Storybird and its community operate, will develop characters specifically for this environment. The other is that our tools will evolve to enable you to a) manage multiple character poses easily and/or b) use one image in multiple ways to give the appearance of change (ie. moving from a wide shot to a close up). Either way, we're focused on this issue too and plan to nudge it along as we grow.

mark says:
@DMcAndrews: page reordering is coming up in our next release (possibly sooner). Stay tuned. And yes—everything on Storybird (from art to stories to comments) is moderated for a PG rating.

mark says:
@mattiebyrd: Thanks for saying the nice stuff. We'll have "favorites" in a future release. That creates a collection of art or SBs that you heart. We'll also be adding "following" so you can follow the work of an artist or member/author.

@tricias: are you able to see the embed link now? It's possible that your SB was still in the moderation queue waiting for approval. Until it's approved, the sharing or embed links do not appear.

adam says:
Hi mrjarbenne, I think what's happening is that the link is getting cut off in your email. Is it possible it's wrapping to two lines and when you click it, it isn't going to the whole URL?

Try copy-pasting the full link into your browser. If it still isn't working, let us know (either here or support [at] storybird [dot] com).

(Either way, thank you for pointing this out, I've updated the reset page to give a (hopefull) more helpful message in this case.)

mark says:
@ihancock: love it! But I'm not sure how wise it is to offer us chocolate. We're a bit addicted to the stuff and you may find us sleeping on your doorstep, begging for more ;)

@tricias: we are currently training a couple of our cats to moderate—but it is not going well. One of them refuses to approve anything about "humans" and the other keeps chasing her tail. We're beginning to explore other possibilities...

mark says:
@TheWrightKids: page reordering is coming up in a couple of weeks, along with several enhancements to Storymaker including pictorial page thumbnails.

As for dropping the images onto the the thumbnails (as opposed to the large canvas/white sheet)—we toyed with that idea and dropped it since, in the new version, each thumbnail can have multiple layout options that you wouldn't know about if you dropped them on the thumbnails. But we're holding onto the idea.

Glad that the kids are enjoying Storybird!

mark says:
@allanramsby: it appears that your SBs are in a language other than English, which means we are unable to moderate them at this time, which means they can't be published into the PUBLIC library (they can be used in your PRIVATE library). Storybirds that are not public don't have sharing tools, and that's the (likely) reason you're not able to embed. We'll be adding other languages as we grow, and we are interested in hearing from volunteer moderators who can help us accelerate the process.

mark says:
Hey @ethanhewitt: thanks for the feedback. Let's go through it:
-surprised by the words being small. What size resolution are you using? We haven't heard that one yet in our usability tests.
-small thumbnails ARE a pain. We're releasing an update to Storymaker with a double-click option that expands the artwork for a quick view. You'll love it.
-regarding saving: did you ever get a message in Storymaker that it was having a hard time saving your work? We installed a sensor to deliver a message if network hiccups made it unlikely that Storymaker could save an edit. That said, you should NOT have to go and remake anything. Chances are that putting a few hours distance from your session (like whacking a tv for a better signal) will do the job.
-we're constantly working to make the experience simple, rugged, and fun. But we're only a few weeks old. We've got lots of work to do.

You can reply here, or feel free to ping us by email: support [at] storybird [dot] com

mark says:
Hey Ethan, just emailed you. A bit easier to sort this through :)

mark says:
@missgreer: we're working on teacher accounts that will enable you to have one master account and the students to log in with just a UN/PW. After that, we'll get an early form of "Groups" going so you can bring the student work together and focus the comments in one space (plus, we're working on "Comment options," which means you'll be able to have moderated or no comments in addition to the current setup). And yes—Storybird may get more powerful, but we'll always keep it simple. We've designed it that way from the start.

@benasulim: as the very handy and generous Ian pointed out, embed codes are available above the Storybird cover. However, you'll only find them there AFTER a SB is approved for the public library. Private SBs are not shareable via embeds or social networks.

@Agatha: Thanks! Site-wide search is coming in vo.3, and before that we'll have visual typing turned on in Storymaker. VT surfaces images based on your story keywords. It's essentially predictive search, but without filtering features.

mark says:
@pinsite: thanks! hope to see more of your stories.

mark says:
Welcome Cheeky! Look forward to your stories and feedback.

kaye says:
Hi there strietelmeierr - sorry to hear you're having problems. Can you email us the names of the Storybird you had trouble with and any other details that might help us figure it out? Email to: support [at] storybird [dot] com.

Regarding printing, our service will not be launched in time (sorry!) and we are definitely also working on the ability to put more than one picture on a page :)

kaye says:
jophster, thanks for all your kind words :) we were thrilled to be featured on the BBC. What do you mean by 'digitally sign our work'? Sounds interesting, just not sure what you mean.

Tahu1, if you haven't already, email us at: support [at] storybird [dot] com and please provide us with the name of the rogue Storybird.

mark says:
Problem solved: @strietelmeierr's book restored. Yay!

mark says:
Thanks @emmabarker! You'll be happy to know that a new upgrade to Storymaker will allow multiple sizes to the same image. So instead of one fixed size (for instance, panoramic) the image can have multiple locations/sizes—leaving more or less room for text. Re: spellcheck. It'll come in a later release and probably be optional (many people are using SB to focus on spelling and don't want to give kids have this feature ;)

mark says:
@Purplesteffi: re spelling: agree, nothing obvious. We're thinking it'll be an on/off function too, so teachers or parents can disable it for certain occasions. Re printing: we're hoping to have something in place for the holidays. Same thing for UK shipments; it's definitely part of the plan. Regarding the author age: unlikely, since we don't want to expose any more details about members than their stories. Our view is that the story generally suggests an age/maturity of the author and that comments should follow suit.

mark says:
Hey Ethan, just sent a reply to your email. Team's looking into it.

mark says:
@suep1223: Thanks for the kind words. To be clear on artwork: it will always be family friendly, whether it's issued by "dispensing artists" or uploaded by members into personal stories and shared publicly. Anything that's inappropriate is not accepted.

@maogli: as Ian noted...it's a matter of time. We're just 8 weeks old and have a feature roadmap that's quite extensive. But worry not—the READ section is an entire universe unto itself and will mature dramatically with each new release. Coming up soon: find (notable) stories by age and themes, along with an author spotlight. (PS. You're right about star artists AND star authors. We're already seeing some great work from kids, teens, and adults.) And down the road: search, extensive filtering, visual book search, mobile/iPhone books, following...lots of great ways to search, browse, follow, and serendipitously find great stories that fit your family or students.

mark says:
@slhbc: it takes anywhere from a few minutes to a few hours, depending on volume of Storybirds in the moderation queue.

@strietelmeierr: thanks for the kind words. We're adding your dittos to the vote tally ;)

adam says:
@CeliaMorris: I'm sorry you're having trouble saving, there are still a few bugs in the system that we're trying to flush out. Is there a particular story that's giving you trouble? If so, what's the name of the story? Did you get a message within Storymaker about having trouble saving your work?

mark says:
@rezaxboy: let us know if you're able to view this video: http://bit.ly/28Gm2k

adam says:
@strietelmeierr: I just sent you an email, so we can figure out what's going on here.

mark says:
@Kprox12: not yet. Search is coming in the next couple of releases, but until then, you'll need to ask your friend to email you the URL or her book.

mark says:
raven12: we've got a great search prototype right now. Not too long... (and, until then, let's just use the word "serendipity" for how people find things ;)

mark says:
@shermanssuperstars: Storybirds that are publicly shared are moderated. During the time they're in the moderation queue, you don't have social sharing or embed features available. That said, all of your SBs have been approved, so if you recheck the page, you'll find the tools you're looking for.

mark says:
@jenniferdiggs: some of those Storybirds may have been returned as not viable for the PUBLIC library because they contain identifying information about the author or the subject. You can have students edit those portions out, or mark them as private.

Yes, you can edit Storybirds as many times as you'd like—just like a blog post. Simply click on the "Edit this story" link underneath "More about this Storybird" in the bottom right corner of the Storybird page.

For now, you can use multiple artists by choosing a theme (Option B in "Create") and using the link in the top right corner to "Start a Storybird with art tagged xx" That will launch Storymaker with all art tagged by that theme, irrespective of artist. That said, we'll be releasing Visual Typing shortly, which surfaces art as you write based on matching your keywords to the art tags in the database. It's quite magical and fun.

As for saving, some members have mentioned an inability to save previous work, a bug that we have not been able to replicate yet. Given how much Storymaker saves information as you use it, and given a member's occasional hiccup with their Internet connection, this blip is bound to happen and create a "ghost in the machine." The best advice we've heard from members who shook it off was shutting down, trying the next day, or switching browsers. We're working on this one...

Glad to hear the kids are enjoying it. If you encounter any further hiccups, you can always email us: support [at] storybird [dot] com

mark says:
Ian: lol. Sorry, for some reason I hadn't seen your response to Jennifer. Thanks for keeping me covered ;) @jenniferdiggs: here at Storybird, you get two answers for the price of one. And from handsome men, no less ;)

mark says:
@prettyone2011 @jellybeanlvr: we'll be adding search in the next release: you'll be able to search for members, Storybirds, art, and artists.

mark says:
@famerbrown: what did you find hard about making Storybirds public?

mark says:
@lainey @figmalix @maplegears: search is coming soon.

mark says:
@biddinn: are you running a current version of Flash? If so, are you able to view any videos from Vimeo.com? (They host our videos.) If no, is it possible your're behind a firewall that blocks the Vimeo domain?

mark says:
@Dessiato: For now, you can use multiple artists by choosing a theme (Option B in "Create") and using the link in the top right corner to "Start a Storybird with art tagged xx" That will launch Storymaker with all art tagged by that theme, irrespective of artist. That said, we'll be releasing Visual Typing shortly, which surfaces art as you write based on matching your keywords to the art tags in the database. It's quite magical and fun and accomplishes what you're looking for.

mark says:
@hungribunni: thanks for all the kind words—and your great words bundled up in stories. Looking forward to many more ;) As for profile info—tricky. Unlike Flickr or Vimeo, a good chunk of our members are kids and enabling profile information is too risky. However, we will be adding some nifty features to let members further personalize their experience (shareable reading lists, profile page configurations, etc) and "imply" their persona to the world.

@kaelenwee: we're redesigning the Read page over the next month and adding search; it'll be much easier to find things specifically and much more enjoyable to discover things serendipitously. Stay tuned.

@tom_da_budjito: have @medthatred "Opt out" of the Storybird via the Details page. After that, you'll be able to delete the book and start over. Ping us if you still have trouble: support [at] storybird [dot] com

mark says:
@rockchick: our library of images will continue to grow as new artist join and existing artists continue to release new work. When we started 8 weeks ago, we had five artists. Today we almost 20 artists. This will continue. As for uploading your own images/art, that function comes next year.

@harnden: thanks! Page re-ordering comes in a week or two, along with a new dock and a few other features inside Storymaker. As for an "image stringer," we'll be adding "art interactions" that make it easy to find alternate poses or images.

mark says:
@Lizard1212: As Ian suspected, your Storybird was still in the approval queue; until it's ok'd, it won't show up in the public timeline or your public profile. It should be there now.

@Franglish5: Let us know how Storybird fares in your classroom!

mark says:
Tshirts! Yes. In the new year. After we launch printing... ;)

mark says:
@chocolate: can you email us the name of the Storybird? We're support [at] storybird [dot] com. We'll see what's going on. PS. LOVE your username!

mark says:
@martie: some members have mentioned an inability to save previous work as you mention, a bug that we have not been able to replicate yet. Given how much Storymaker saves information as you use it, and given a member's occasional hiccup with their Internet connection, this blip is bound to happen and create a "ghost in the machine." The best advice we've heard from members who shook it off was shutting down, trying the next day, or switching browsers. We're working on this one...

Re search: we launch search in a couple of weeks. You'll be able to search and filter for Storybirds, art, shops, and members. We've been playing with the prototype and it's coming together beautifully.

mark says:
@Nobula @amold: thanks for the kind words. And welcome. Some answers:
1. The most literal response to this is Visual Typing, which we'll roll out shortly. VT allows you to simply write and we surface art that matches your keywords. It's quite magical and a lot of fun. As for artists creating new work, I think we'll see some response to trends. For instance, Chichiboulie added new tween girl characters once she saw stories forming around a smaller cast of her characters.

2. We'll be enabling "add to image library" next year. That way you can add any image you stumble upon to your library and retreive it within Storymaker. And vice versa: if you find some art in Storymaker, you can save it to the library and retrieve it for other stories.

3 & 4: We have a new feature launching in a couple of weeks that enables any image to have various layouts—rather than the one they occupy now. So you'll be able to choose from full screen, panoramic, half-page, and portrait for all the art. It's auto-cropping built-in.

5. We'll add spell check and a few other similar features next year, but make those optional settings since many parents and teachers don't want any language intervention.

6. Search: yes! Coming shortly. Just testing the prototype now.

mark says:
@tuc2556: thanks! We're seeing students from K-12, even college and university. Shift in usage, of course. Early language skills up to advanced writing.

@lesliedart: Storymaker (our core story engine) does support various language characters, but it's your browser that makes the difference. Safari DOES support special characters inside of Flash while Firefox does NOT.

As for non-English stories: you're free to make Storybirds in languages other than English, but you'll only be able to use them in your PRIVATE library (and share via email; embeds are not available for private Storybirds). We don't currently accept non-English stories into the PUBLIC library because we can't moderate them and therefore can't verify their content to our members. However, we are looking into creating a volunteer team next year to help moderate Spanish, Portuguese, German, and French SBs.

@Ian: a new thread for teachers might be a good idea...

mark says:
@dve: glad to hear you're liking it. Storymaker (our core story engine) does support various language characters, but it's your browser that makes the difference. Safari DOES support special characters inside of Flash while Firefox does NOT.

mark says:
@soapyw @ iridescentpurple Personal uploads will be available next year, most likely in the spring.

mark says:
@dmileham: thx for the kind words. Great to hear your feedback. Now, I need to ask about your bug. This is what I *think* you're saying: 1) you make a Storybird, publish it, and generate a Storybird page (the place where you can make comments, heart, share, etc). 2) You use the "Edit Story" link, go back into Storymaker (which I think you're calling "preview") to make the changes and then Save & Close. 3) Back on your Storybird page, you open up the story but the changes you made in Storymaker don't show. The book is the way it was back in step #1. In other words, your edits aren't sticking. Is that correct?

If that's not accurate, let me know.

If that IS accurate: some members have mentioned an inability to save previous work as you mention, a bug that we have not been able to replicate yet. Given how much Storymaker saves information as you use it, and given a member's occasional hiccup with their Internet connection, this blip creates a "ghost in the machine." The best advice we've heard from members who shook it off was shutting down, trying the next day, or switching browsers. (We're working on this one...)

adam says:
@michaelr9a: We're constantly releasing updates to the site. We have some good stuff that we're exciting about releasing throughout the month of December.

@jppsstech11: Search in a couple of different forms is coming soon. Along with a traditional search (which is currently slated for January), we'll soon be turning on Visual Typing which will let you find gingerbread man art from right within Storymaker.

@jppsstech05: A thumbnail "stash" is something we've discussed. It's a good idea and I think it's something we'll add at some point.

mark says:
@marcia73: Thanks for the kind words! Storymaker (our core story engine) does support various language characters, but it's your browser that makes the difference. Safari DOES support special characters inside of Flash while Firefox does NOT.

mark says:
@justme: Easy choice. You rock.

mark says:
@tarabear2340: thx! But don't focus on being a famous writer. Focus on being a good writer ;)

@gabbygoo: nice catch. We updated Storymaker with the fancy dock and forget to hide Visual Typing, which is coming soon. Those blue links will soon trigger artwork when you click them. We'll be turning off the blue highlight shortly.

mark says:
@estev: some members have mentioned an inability to save previous work as you mention, a bug that we have not been able to replicate yet. Given how much Storymaker saves information as you use it, and given a member's occasional hiccup with their Internet connection, this blip creates a "ghost in the machine." The best advice we've heard from members who shook it off was shutting down, trying the next day, or switching browsers. (We're working on this one...)

mark says:
@tmitchellcms: we're not aware of any current bugs with Flash Player installation. Have you tried accessing Storybird through another browser with similar results?

mark says:
@ian @ayreguitar: We'll check re IE6 when asking about future Flash upgrade bugs. That said, the whole web is a miserable place to be with IE6 ;)

@ayreguitar: Thanks for the kind words—and typo catches. Re deleting: we didn't want to make it too easy given shared family computers et al. You'll find "Delete this Storybird" at the bottom of the Details page (the one where you tagged the story and set its privacy, etc). When it's unpublished, the Details link is on your dashboard. After it's published, you'll find the "Edit Details" link on the bottom right corner of the Storybird page.

Commerce—notably, printing—will come onstream next Feb/March. We'll have PDF, softcover, and hardcover versions available.

mark says:
PS: @ayreguitar: if you're going through the hassles of switching browsers, reading our terms of service, catching typos in our artist FAQ, and still staying upbeat—you deserve some chocolate love. Ping us with your address and a box of molten cocoa is yours to devour. We're info [at] storybird [dot] com

mark says:
@Stephanietanzil: your account is activated and looks normal. Why weren't you able to log in?

mark says:
@dve: Glad to hear they're loving the site. Tell them we say thanks.

-You don't have to be logged into SB to read stories. But you do need Flash.
-You can embed any PUBLIC Storybird. You'll find the link above the cover of your book.
-Published means it's done and "published," like a blog post. Public or Private are the settings you apply to a Published Storybird. Public means anyone can see it (and you can embed them). Private means only those you share it with can see it.
-Like a blog post, you can always edit your Storybirds after they've been published to fix errors, update them, etc. Use the Edit Details link in the bottom right corner of the Storybird page.

Cheers.

mark says:
@ellis: I see a girl in your avatar. Is that the one you wanted? Or are you trying to change it to something else? If you want to change it to something else, go here:
http://storybird.com/accounts/settings/avatar/

...and upload a new picture.

If you're still having trouble, email us at support [at] storybird [dot] com

mark says:
@moonandchi: thanks! we love it too.

mark says:
@brittanymorgan: agreed. We have some changes coming to the reader in the new year that will resolve that. We'll also be introducing a feature for reading lists that lets you queue up several SBs (of your choosing) and read them all in the player without having to close/find/open/etc.

@dawnschreiner: we'll be introducing personal uploads next year as part of the premium service.

mark says:
@jenbird23: Thanks! It's great to hear that kind of feedback. Tell the kids we say hi!

mark says:
@thesundaybest: we'll be turning on Visual Typing in January. That triggers artwork based on your keywords and works across the artist range. As for structure vs freedom: we're big believers in constraint-based design and focusing people on the act of storytelling. Everything we do revolves around stripping away the noise. Well, that and making things shiny.

@jbuss: currently, the only images available in Storybird are those provided by the artist shops. To our knowledge, none currently have fireworks (when we launch search in January you'll be able to look for specific artwork). Next year, though, we'll be adding "personal uploads" so members can import their own images when required.

mark says:
@mslaneeus: contact us at info [at] storybird [dot] com and we'll give you some details on how to manage your situation in the short term. (We'll be rolling out teacher/class accounts in 2010.)

kaye says:
Hi bhwilkoff – thanks for your kind words. It is a known bug that we're working on. I'll check in with Adam and some of the folks here and let them know about your post. Thanks!

kaye says:
Hi Lizard121– Searching for tags (and a lot more) is on it's way – we're working on it now, and hoping to launch it in January. You'll be able to search (and filter) for authors, artists, art, and Storybirds.

adam says:
Hi bhwilkoff, this might be the known bug Kaye mentioned (we're working on that one right now), but the way you're describing it sounds slightly different.

Do you mean the text was disappearing while you're within Storymaker (editing the story)? So you'd switch pages within the story, and when you come back the text is gone? Or were you exiting out of Storymaker and when you go back in the text is gone?

Can you email us at support [at] storybird [dot] com with some details? The title of the story would also be helpful (or, if it doesn't have a title yet, the URL you're on when editing the story). Thanks!

mark says:
@tsmotivator: we're going to email you directly about this.

kaye says:
Hi Lydia (fabgigglygirl) – congratulations on the book and the feedback! Printing will definitely be a core part of Storybird. We're working out all the logistics now and hope to launch it in early spring. We can't wait either!

kaye says:
Hi Lizard1212 – we're trying to track that one down as well and are interested in the details and may be able to get it back for you. Can you email us at support [at] storybird [dot] com with some details such as the title of the story and when you were working on it?

mark says:
Hi all. I'm not answering a question or posting a bug. Just wanted to say how amazing you've all made this joint (I'm talking to you—the members—not Storybird staff, since I'm one of 'em). It's buzzing with great stories, smart people, and a sense of possibility. I always smile when I'm here, often laugh, and occasionally cry. It's such a great community. You. Guys. Rock.

mark says:
@foland @bsdesantis: please email us: support [at] storybird [dot] com and tell us:
-the usernames affected (if more than one)
-the titles of the Storybirds affected
-what browser and operating system you're using

Also, do you have multiple people using the same username/account?

Thx! We're working on this.

adam says:
Hi everyone, I think we've finally fixed the saving issue that some people were having. It appears it was an issue that affected Internet Explorer only. If you have your browser open, please close and reopen it before trying to edit again, just to make sure you get the latest version of the site.

If anyone has this saving issue again, please let us know. Thanks for all of your patience and help in getting to the heart of this issue.

mark says:
...and please write to Microsoft and ask them to make better browsers. KThxBye

mark says:
@scsRoom19: this was a small hiccup from solving the big bug yesterday. It should be gone by the time you read this. If not, can you tell us what OS/browser you're using?

mark says:
@scsRoom19: yay!
@MrsC: yes. Look above the covers of the book and you'll see an embed link. (This doesn't show up automatically, however, since public Storybirds are moderated. During their time in the queue, social sharing and embeds are turned off).

mark says:
@jbrogley: can you look/try again and let us know what happens?

mark says:
@scott: thanks for you comment and raising your concern. When you do identify what specifically bothers you about Storybird, please feel free to write it here or contact us directly at support [at] storybird [dot] com. Also, you may find this section for parents useful in understanding more about us and how we manage and moderate the site for kids: http://storybird.com/parents

mark says:
@storyempress: we'll consider that flagged. Thx.

@miquelangelfuentes: search is on its way. It's scheduled for a January/early Feb release. Working out the kinks of the prototype and, as always, trying to simplify it. Thx!

mark says:
@BeccaTG: were you able to eventually save? If so, is there a title for the Storybird? Let us know and we'll take a look.

@mkohlerfr: what OS and browser are you using?

mark says:
@BeccaTG: network connectivity can momentarily drop and create odd activity w/browsers. It's possible that Storymaker experienced a blip and needed to be shut down and restarted. Glad it worked. We'll pass along the title to our dev team for forensics in case the issue was deeper. And, if anything else pops up, feel free to email us at support [at] storybird [dot] com. Cheers.

mark says:
@butwait: No worries about repeat comments. Re: illustration by tag. Working on that. Alternative layouts: not in the near future: SBs are optimized for transmedia: desktop, iPod, iPad, projectors, and print; we're quite focused on a very specific size. (Unless you mean art and the ability to crop it differently. Auto-cropping is something we've just implemented.) Personal uploads: absolutely. A premium feature coming by spring/summer.

mark says:
@mysecret1959: thx! And thank your parents too!

@shoebe144: we'll look into it. Thanks for the tip.

@lizard1212: featured authors are chosen by Storybird editors.

mark says:
@ferinhator: let me clarify a few things about getting featured.

First, you have to write great stories (interesting characters with a compelling plot). That's the best way to get noticed.

Second, the stories have to be well written and free of (most) spelling and grammar errors. Proofread your work. It helps.

Now, to be included in Featured (the big stories at the top of Read), your Storybirds have to be great. No exceptions. People want to read the best of Storybird and that's where they find it.

To be included in New & Noted, your stories have to be good (although some of the N&N are great). We use N&N to showcase up and coming writers, younger writers who have done something exceptional for their age, and stuff that's random and hits our editors on a good day. You yourself have been included there—congratulations. That puts you in the top 15% of all Storybirds.

Finally, all Storybirds have various placements in the Recent | Active | Popular stream. They're just sorted differently.

One thing to keep in mind, as Ian noted above, is that getting activity around your Storybird will move it up the ranks in the Active stream. We scour that page in case we've missed something during our initial reviews and occasionally plunk it in N&N.

Hope this helps you understand how it all works.

mark says:
@ian: Not yet. We're too busy to add to the FAQ. Or too lazy.

adam says:
@MollydeA: That's a good idea, I like it. I'll take a look at making that happen. It might take a bit to slot it into our limited development time, but I think it makes sense.

mark says:
@Joshua10172: how come you can't publish them? What's happening?

@dve: embeds are found above the cover of all public Storybirds. However, they only appear once the book has been approved in the moderation queue. Take a look again and you'll probably see it.

mark says:
@Ferinhator: in Create, choose option B—Themes. Once you chosen a theme, it'll take you to an art page with various artists. Use the link in the top-right corner: "Start a Storybird with art tagged x" That will launch all those various images into Storymaker.

mark says:
@lizard1212: After Search is added in a couple of weeks, we'll have hit v0.2. It's incremental. We add features until we decide we've hit the next level/version.

mark says:
@ayumiao: good catch! The themes tab was an old piece of functionality related to a new feature we've been playing with called Visual Typing. VT draws images out of the database that match your keywords and surfaces them on your sideboard as you write. It's like persistent search. It'll roll out soon-ish. We will also add a personal image library so you can add anything you see in the artist shops to it. That's mid-year. As for comment systems, it's unlikely that we'd use Disqus (which we love) simply because of the kids who visit the site. Disqus is too distributed a system to be safe for them.

mark says:
@Dolphinnecl: search is underway right now. Few weeks and our prototype should be ready.

@garmentor: that's a new one we hadn't heard. What OS and browser are you using? And are the kids it happened to signed into the same account or each have unique accounts?

mark says:
@galvan: why not just send your teacher the link to your Storybird?

BTW, search is coming out in a few weeks.

mark says:
@ngabel:
-spellcheck is on it's way in a few weeks
-same with class accounts
-pre-select art is on the drawing board; few months off
-thumbnail organizing/batches/rippling is something we're playing with right now
-level of difficulty is intriguing!

Thanks for the thoughts.

mark says:
@Kushal_akhter: to delete a story, click "Edit Details" on the Storybird page (you'll find the link at the botom-right side under "More about this Storybird.") At the bottom of the details page, you'll see a link "Delete this Storybird."

kaye says:
Happy Valentine's Day Ian! Storybird hearts you too!

mark says:
@sieg @lemonpie: yes. Printing comes online in spring. You'll be able to buy PDFs, softcover, and hardcover versions of your stories (and they look AWESOME).

@ian: yay! Glad you like 'em. More to come (maybe even visual typing ;)

mark says:
@Ferinhator: it doesn't cost artists to have a shop. However, owning a shop is by "invitation only" from Storybird. We only accept top narrative artists into the roster.

@bct1994: yes. Go to Create>Option B: Themes. Choose a theme. On the art page of the theme, click "Start a Storybird w/art tagged x" in the top right corner.

Later, we'll have other ways you can combine artists.

mark says:
@shoebe144: thanks for the kind words. Makes us proud. Regarding symbols: most work, and the greater than/less than symbols will eventually be available. They were initially coded out of Storymaker because of a bug. But they'll be back...

mark says:
@Ferinhator: featured authors are chosen by Storybird editors. We typically look for work that has a strong voice, a unique style, great grammar, and is fun to read.

Thanks for all the kind words about the site and the community. It's people like you that make it great and give it the awesome vibe it has.

@liam5sm: thanks! And thanks for the hard work. Trust us—it pays off. Writing makes you totally cool and wicked smart.

mark says:
Hey Sarah. Do you mean comments for a group of stories? Like if I visit your profile I could add comments about all your books?

mark says:
Sarah: ok. Noted. Good thinking.

adam says:
Hi lizziechase, thank you for the kind words. Search is coming very very soon now. We're just putting the finishing touches on it (a bit of straw here, a twig there).

mark says:
@Ferinhator: Yes. Age is NOT a restriction for featured author. However, mature writers tend to be better writers and thus get featured more.

PS1: your welcome
PS2: I have not been a featured author yet. I have no plans to be, either. But thanks for the compliment.
PS3: Featured Storybirds are the best of New and Notable. We have featured younger authors there, so you might find one of your SBs there one day. Just make sure—in addition to a great story—that your grammar/punctuation/spelling are rock solid.

And now my own PS. You're awesome. You ask great questions, write great books, and are a super contributor to the community. Really love seeing you around the place!

mark says:
@Altheteacher: the illustrious Ian has a gi-normous response to your question which should be coming up shortly. Just wanted to say thanks for the kind words.

mark says:
@liamh: the embed code for public Storybirds is found above their cover.

@Ferinhator: You're too kind. I'll be sure to check out The Lonely River.

mark says:
@Ferinhator: you can search for Storybirds, members, artist shops, and art. Use the pull down menu on the search bar to switch "focus," or use the links above the search box on the search results page. You'll also notice you can filter your search results. For instance, you can search for Storybirds tagged "princess," but then filter them by popularity, relevancy, title, etc. Same with art: search for art tagged "love" and you can filter by most used art, least used, most recently added, etc. Very powerful.

Hope you like it.

kaye says:
@Ferinhater - Just saw your compliment above, thanks!
@Lizard - agree, the search bar is a great addition – much requested!

mark says:
@ferinhator: it's not your browser or a bug. What you were experiencing is something we call Visual Typing. It's a feature we initially had and turned off while we worked on other things. However, we didn't turn it fully off (which was why you were able to do what you describe) and it ended up causing some nasty issues. So, for now, it's off off.

Printing comes online in May. We just selected our international print supplier and start the R&D and onboarding process.

We change the featured author every Monday and featured Storybirds every 2-4 days.

mark says:
@Ferinhator: visual typing's future is uncertain, so I'm not sure. However, we're working on search inside of Storymaker, which will be a more specific and powerful way to find and add images to your stories—across artist portfolios. Look for that in a month or two.

@Joshua10172: if this thread is putting you to sleep, go make an exciting story!

mark says:
@jvasilyadi: Thanks! Printing is on the way and due in May. You'll be able to buy PDF, softcover, and hardcover versions of your stories.

@Ferinhator: We'll do our best to keep you happy. Can't have you getting bored. Congrats on learning Italian—it's a beautiful language.

@ardumisa: there are some images that suggest dark issues. But it's what you do with them as a writer that counts. If you've had a Storybird returned due to your word choices, rethink your approach. You'll be a better writer for it. And, remember—you can always keep your work private if you disagree with our views.

mark says:
@dolphinluvr98 @Taylorswift122: Thanks! It's a growing community and people with your enthusiasm make it stronger and grow faster. Look forward to more of your stories, comments, and insights.

mark says:
@ClarieAdema: thanks! Personal uploads are coming in a couple months. As for mixing art, we'll be adding search to Storymaker in a bit. Until then, you can mix it up by going to Create>Option B/Themes. Choose a theme, and then click "Start a Storybird w/art tagged x" That will launch all the images from that theme into Storymaker.

mark says:
@Ashlain: good point. The community guidelines spell most of this out, but they're not forefront when you start using Storybird. We plan to tweak the "starting experience" in general, and I think we'll add "Brush up on the community guidelines" as part of the initial links. As for age, there's no minimum age: we've had 1.5 year olds sitting in their mum's lap banging on the keyboard or pointing to the images and "dictating" words ;) Regarding "dynamic images:" do you mean vector-images that can be combined (like a background with a foreground character?) If so, we had prototyped this in an earlier version and weren't happy. We try to get members to focus on storytelling, and building scenes immediately stops that process and shifts the energy of the experience. We'll continue to develop the idea, but for now it's in the R&D stage.

mark says:
@audreymouse2: you CAN search for author's by name. Just type it in the search box and choose "people" in the drop-down menu.

mark says:
@kikibear: thanks! Writing is a great way to explore what's going on inside your head and heart.

@meggy10: try sharing your stories with family and friends. That way more people will read it and comment.

@julielake2: use the Facebook icon above the cover of a Storybird to share it with your FB friends. You can't do it from "You."

@CornellGirl: welcome! Look forward to your stories.

mark says:
@kikibear @tomgirl @runsausage @lauren13 @Rose1024: thanks! Really nice of you to say.

mark says:
@Sniffdog @Rose1025: Stephen King scares a lot of people, and he's not evil. He's just a dude with a typewriter and an imagination. Either way...bring it on. But be sure to follow our community guidelines.

mark says:
@doofdaddy: thanks for the kind words. Social sharing (including embed codes) are turned off while public Storybirds are in the approval queue. If you've made your story public, it may take a few hours before the embed code appears above the cover of your book.

@storymakerdude @soccerrulez: personal uploads for your own images is coming later this year.

@soccerrulez: you can use multiple artists by choosing Option B/Themes in "Create." Then use the link in the top right corner: "Start a Storybird with art tagged x" That launches Storymaker with multiple artists.

We use @ when addressing people because the symbol means "at." It implies that I'm talking "at" a particular person. If you use Twitter, you'll notice how it's part of their system.

mark says:
@chimetime: we'll be updating the process of publishing and using a SB page in the weeks ahead. That will include helping people understand the moderation queue (so that they don't have to wade through this stream or the FAQ ;)

@jackjva: class accounts (and thus teacher/student accounts) are just around the corner. We plan to release a feature set in a couple of weeks.

@chocolateman @zoya78910 @soficor1104: thanks! We're glad you like it.

adam says:
@mthomas: Oops, sorry to hear that. Are you getting an error when you try to upload a new avatar? If so, can you try it one more time, and if it still doesn't work, can you send the image you're trying to upload to support [at] storybird.com? We'll try to get this sorted out for you. Sorry for the inconvenience.

mark says:
@jsplichal @Ferinhator: Ian's right: we disabled visual typing for now. However, a new VT and search are coming out in Storymaker in a bit (we're posting some images from it to the blog shortly). It totally rocks—you'll love it. Just gotta wait a month or so.

@daniellethestoryteller: search inside of Storymaker is coming soon, which will allow you to play around with other artist images. About a month away. Regarding type choices: our premium/pro version will offer a few additional type/font choices. Sizing change is unlikely. Instead, we've focused on making art moveable to variable sizes so you can free up more space on a page to write. A great example are Ine and Shishir's shops (search for them): notice how much of their art can be re-adjusted to 1/3, 1/2, 3/4 or full page, giving you more or less writing space vs drama of image size.

mark says:
@kayla96: you can't post artwork yet. We'll have personal uploads later in the year. Don't reply to the emails you get about comments. Just click the link in the email and you can respond on the site.

@Ferinhator: So far as I know, no featured author has been a kid. Early 20s, maybe. But no one under 18 for sure. Maybe it'll be you?

mark says:
@Ferinhator @kayla96 @1566: it's impressive how supportive you guys are of one another. I tip my hat to all three of you.

As for voting: we don't plan to have community voting for Featured Author. That power will stay with Storybird editors.

However, we are starting a very big initiative called "Challenges" in a few months. Challenges are monthly writing contests based on a theme (family, winter, vacations, etc). There will be three age streams to compete (kids, tweens/teens, adults) and the winners will be selected through Storybird editors AND community voting—just like you're discussing. Winners will receive prizes and a big prize will be up for grabs at the end of the year for the previous winners to compete for.

This will give all three of you 12 chances to get your stories into the winner's circle.

Sound good?

mark says:
@booksrule: to change your pic icon/avatar: click on your username in the top right corner, beside "Hi" and "Logout | Help." That takes you to your account panel where you'll see instructions to change your icon.

mark says:
@reabug11: thanks! Don't know about the chocolate thing. We ate the last lot ;)

@1566: yes. Our tween range is 9-12.

mark says:
@daniellethestoryteller: well, start with great stories. The better they are, the more they'll be read and shared. Next, use the sharing tools: email your stories to friends and family. Ask them to comment or send it to their f&f. If you have a blog or wiki (or one at school), embed your story. Share it on Facebook if you have an account. The more activity you create, the better.

Also, it doesn't hurt to build up a series or particular approach. TenaciousTheo does poetry-inspired stories. Plateau writes about romance and heartbreak. Stad11 is always witty. The more you define your style or your focus, the better chance you have of a) improving your work and b) drawing a following.

Hope that helps!

mark says:
@Ferinhator: Storybird editors AND members will choose the Challenges winners each month. And yes: each winner gets a prize (3 winners per month x 12 times/year = 36 winners per year.

Glad you like the new art system. We think it rocks, too.

mark says:
@Lizard1212: we'll eventually add a "series" feature that enables you to link them together. We agree with you that it's a good idea.

@Ferinhator: Sure.

mark says:
@jjern: good catch. That's a bug we need to fix. We've added it to our "To Do" list.

mark says:
@BHarper: on your dashboard, each unfinished/unpublished Storybird has a link beside the cover called "Details." Click that, scroll to the bottom, and you'll see the Delete option.

@dylankiczales: getting comments involves a few things. First, it starts with great stories. The better they are, the more they'll be read and shared and commented on. Next, use the sharing tools: email your stories to friends and family. Ask them to comment or send it to their f&f. If you have a blog or wiki (or one at school), embed your story. Share it on Facebook if you have an account. The more activity you create, the better.

Also, it doesn't hurt to build up a series or particular approach. TenaciousTheo does poetry-inspired stories. Plateau writes about romance and heartbreak. Stad11 is always witty. The more you define your style or your focus, the better chance you have of a) improving your work and b) drawing a following.

Hope that helps!

mark says:
@1566: good advice. You rock.

@Taylorswift122: Good question. Lizard1212 is right: check the email you signed up with. But that got our team discussing how to notify you on your dashboard—the same way you get the green bubbles when people comment on your stories—so you don't have to rely on the email alone. We agreed it was a good idea to add it to dashboards, too. So congrats! You just influenced a new feature for Storybird.

mark says:
@saukview: thanks for the kind words (and pass on our condolences to your dog ;) You'll be happy to know you CAN search by author. Just type in a username and set the pull down menu to "People" (or just hit search and use the filters in the search results). As for printing, looks like we'll be live in May/June—definitely long before the holidays!

mark says:
@Ferinhator: looks like May/June. We're working right now with our printing partner on getting everything set up. Lot of work since we have to be able to deliver around the world. But very exciting.

@funandnice: right now you can mix artists by choosing Option B/Themes in the "Create" section. Choose a theme and then click the link in the top-right corner called "Start a Storybird with art tagged x" That will launch Storymaker with different artist's works. However, we'll be adding some new features (Visual Typing and Search) within Storymaker that will allow you to choose anything from across the site. That'll be ready in 3-4 weeks.

@starrystar33: yes. If it's published, look for the "Edit Details" link in the bottom-right corner under "About this Storybird" (if it's unpublished, click the "Details" link beside the cover on your dashboard). Scroll down to the bottom of the Details page. At the bottom-right side you'll find the Delete link.

mark says:
@Sleepyteddy9: if you want friends and family to read your final book, don't delete your account immediately after making it—all your books will be deleted with the account. You may want to give them a few days to find it and read it before pulling the plug.

mark says:
@clover672: we agree and are thinking about something like that. Plus, we'll also be launching "Challenges," which is a monthly writing contest that will include member voting.

@coolgirl1: happy easter to u 2.

mark says:
@Ferinhator @1566: happy easter guys! Thanks for being such amazing members of our community. I salute you both by nibbling on this chocolate bar beside me ;)

adam says:
@TSB1: You actually can view all Storybirds past or present. Just go to Read, and at the bottom you'll see "Recent Storybirds". Those are the most recently published stories. If you keep clicking the "next" button at the bottom of that list, you can go back in time and look at all the pubic published Storybirds. Fair warning though, it will take you a long time to get through all of them!

mark says:
@Ferinhator: are you still having the loading problem? Initially, the book was in the approval queue. Now that it's public, we're curious if the problem persists.

mark says:
@Ferinhator: so, just to be clear: this is "The day breath was taken"? It appears to be working for everyone at the moment. And you're not able to read it or edit it—correct? Is this happening with any of your other stories? And, are you able to read other people's stories?

mark says:
@starrystar33: yes. If it's published, look for the "Edit Details" link in the bottom-right corner under "About this Storybird" (if it's unpublished, click the "Details" link beside the cover on your dashboard). Scroll down to the bottom of the Details page. At the bottom-right side you'll find the Delete link.

mark says:
@jjern: what you experienced was a software bug and you probably won't be able to add pages to the story you're working on. We suggest starting a new story and delete the old one.

But, thanks to you, we found the bug and will be getting rid of it in a future release.

mark says:
@phantom112: choose an artist you like from "Create" and click the big blue "Start a Storybird" button. That'll get you going.

mark says:
@jjern: it happens because of a software bug. But now that we know it's there, we can fix it.

@Ferinhator: we're stumped. We logged into your account to test the book and were able to open/read it and edit/modify it (we didn't). We can't understand why you're experiencing this issue. Have you tried clearing your browser's cache?

@kayla96: we're getting close to printing. The target is May/June. Probably after mother's day but before father's day. Fingers crossed. It takes a lot of work since we need to be able to ship to countries all around the world.

mark says:
@blueflowers: she should reset her password. Have her go here:
storybird.com/accounts/forgot-password/

If she's still having trouble, have her email us for help: support [at] storybird [dot] com

mark says:
AurelioAraujo: we plan to add multiple/group authoring some time this year. We've already built the features; just an issue of rolling it out with others in our roadmap.

mark says:
@kayla96: use the "Edit Story" link in the bottom-right corner under "About this Storybird." You can edit a SB as much as you want.

@Kareem: thanks.

@tina99: very true.

adam says:
@amyrdsb: You can delete a story from the Details page (down at the bottom). If the story is unpublished, there's a "Details" link next to the story on your dashboard. If it's published, you'll find "Edit details" in the "About this Storybird" section of the page.