Since I launched Flyover Geeks in August of last year, (for a trip down memory lane, see here and here) coverage of the tech scene in Chicago and beyond has moved forward in fits and starts. The reason, of course, is that I was alone… and covering everything happening in Chicago’s booming tech scene alone is akin to, well, covering ANYTHING in Chicago alone. (Here’s our first post)
Just covering Chicago was never the end goal. Sure, Chicago is home and HQ, but innovation happens everywhere. There are startup communities sprouting all over the country and when I used to daydream about the idea of FG, I was living in San Francisco and thinking how cool it would be if there was what I like to think of as “A TechCrunch for the rest of us.” Don’t get me wrong, I LOVE me some TechCrunch but the fact is, if Flyover Geeks was ever going to get anywhere and cover all the fascinating stuff happening outside Silicon Valley, I needed help.
In the next two weeks, watch this space. Flyover Geeks is going to go through some BIG changes. I am going to be joined by a Dream Team of talented writers and strategists that have found their way to me in one form or another and we are all united by a love of the startup world, journalism, and a driving passion to report on it. While I have had help from people that have been able to occasionally contribute, now we have a team- and as any good entrepreneur knows, when you have an A team full of A players, you can’t help but succeed. We’ve got writers coming on board from two of the very best universities anywhere as well as a linguist, artist and some rock stars from out of state as well.
You are going to be introduced to the team here and at our next startup launch event, coming very soon. You’ll meet our chief strategist, our editor in chief, our events planner and our stellar team of columnists that make up the core staff. You’re going to see one of Chicago’s highest profile entrepreneurs contribute a weekly column. CEO Sundays will be featuring more entrepreneurs sharing their stories in their respective fields.
Our coverage of other markets is going to be launching in earnest as well. You’ve already seen some articles on Milwaukee and Dallas thank to the efforts of Russ Dean and Mike Vosters covering their respective cities and there is going to be more of it from more locations. As 2011 moves on you are going to see writers from cities across the U.S. covering their tech communities and delivering startup news you’ll love.
Let’s get back to the name- I first named my New Media venture “Flyover Geeks” because I felt like the so-called “Flyover Country” needed representation. Since then I have gotten comments running the gamut from “I love the name” to “Wow. Kind of a brutal name, isn’t it?” Because Flyover Geeks is getting ready to really fly, we need a name that not only describes our journalistic focus but also celebrates the people and communities we are covering.
That means we need a new name to make our debut to the world. We’re open to suggestions- feel free to leave any you have in the comments below- but one way or another we’ll have a brand new name very soon.
There is more…a lot more, but first things first. Keep watching Flyover Geeks for the next few weeks and watch as we transform from the simple blog I started into a real live New Media Company being run some by some truly talented people. I am extremely lucky the Chicago community (and the Milwaukee and Dallas communities) has embraced my idea with open arms and I am incredibly lucky to have found some people with the same passion and drive that I have to work with me. You are going to enjoy meeting them and their writing. The irascible Jason Rowley will still be here every Tuesday representing the University of Chicago and his own unique take on things; Russell Dean will continue to rock Milwaukee coverage and Mike Vosters will keep on filling us in on the ever expanding Dallas scene. We’re adding Biotech coverage. The list goes on.
Our new Editor in Chief will be making her debut here very soon, and as our events start to span different cities and states (see you very soon Dallas) you’ll meet our talented events chief/writer.
There is even more that I can’t reveal just yet, but it’s big. It’s exciting. It’s going to be here really, really soon.
I hope you are as excited as we are and we can’t wait to take the stage. We’ll see you soon!
-Edward Domain
founder and CEO of Flyover Geeks (and the as yet to be named new version)
P.S. We’d love to hear what you think- don’t be shy- comment below!
