Reading and writing and working—the three things that have filled most of the last two weeks. I am so excited for the little progress here at Greater Ape, but I need to add content, and while I’ve been writing quite a bit, nothing lately has been a fit for the site. So I figured I would just go ahead and write to you about where I am at, where I want Greater Ape to be and basically share the Category 3 mess of ideas, hopes and other things that make up my psyche right now.
I started Greater Ape in 2017 with a dear friend of mine. Jason and I had this vague idea of what we wanted it to be. We both wanted to put something out there that would help make people better. Make us better. We searched for appropriate domain names, but I think BetterHuman.com was taken, as were several other varieties of the same idea. I really saw it as a new sort of evolution. Evolution says we are apes; we needed another word for “better”… better = greater, play on “great apes”—and voila! Greater Ape was born. Actually, we had planned to be Greater Apes, but someone else owns that domain, so we dropped the pluralization, which irritated me at first. But as I’ve spent more time in it, GreaterApe.com has really grown on me, and I think I am happier with it, after all.
So, we get this thing started and I write a couple of pieces. Jason had been on a work hiatus for a while when this all went down but went back to the corporate machine just a short while later. We met now and again, talked about what we wanted the site to become, but eventually, he found he just didn’t have the time for it. His true love is in making films, and just by my having posted three pieces to the site, it really had become more me than him. He decided this year to pull back and hand it completely over to me. That is not to say you won’t be seeing anything from him in the future. He will always have a home here, and I hope to expand into the arts eventually, when I can decide how best to do so. When that happens, I will no doubt be sharing some of his films or videos or whatever the proper word is for the thing he does. After all, what sets us apart from all other apes, if not art? We must have it if we are to continue our evolution in any worthwhile direction. I am open to ideas and artists alike for how best to incorporate art here at Greater Ape.
I’m also interested in sharing writing from others that aligns with what I am trying to do here. It’s called Greater Ape, not Only Ape or Mediocre Ape, which is all you get if I am the only one contributing. The last post, When Standing Means Standing, was a post by Jason Kamler (different Jason), which I solicited from him, and he generously agreed to submit. There is just so much more value in the collective, don’t you think? So many people have wonderful thoughts and ideas to express, and I truly want this to be the place for that. So if you fancy yourself a decent writer and have something to share with the rest of us that may enrich our lives or give us something to think about, please let me know. I hope it’s obvious I won’t likely publish everything sent my way, but I can promise you I will read everything. It’s not a paying gig. I am not making any money on this site. That may or may not change in the future, but for now, it is just something I do for the love of it. The basic framework is you submit about one thousand words or less to me in a Word document. If I agree it belongs here for others to read, I will let you know and send it in for editing at my expense. This is just for basic punctuation, spelling and grammar. Your piece will be sent back to you, and you will get to review and approve all edits before it is published. I will include your brief bio and contact information (should you want others to be able to contact you), and your work will become part of this place that I believe has real value and purpose. I will also send you a cool GreaterApe.com sticker so you can show everyone where you are published. I truly hope to make that mean something great in the future.
Thanks for coming in to read here. It feels good to know this transmission is reaching someone. I hope to make that someone many more in the near future.
mandy@greaterape.com