Holy moly, we survived a year. A whole year! Aside from one power outage that cause a one-day delay, EMG-Zine has faithfully updated on the first of every month for all of 2006, great, informative features, a handful of columns, a smattering of fiction, and at least one piece of fantastic artwork (usually much more!).

I am so happy and impressed and grateful for all of the people who've made this possible. Megan, you've done a lion's share of the work, and I wouldn't be writing this without you! Ren and Deb, you make us look good. :) Our columnists have carried the load for us, churning out great advice, warnings, and insight every single month; our feature writers have made us shine, and everyone who has submitted artwork and writing has added that extra level of polish. Janet, the site is functioning fabulously - if I were still having to code the pages individually, I'd have run off screaming by now! You guys are awesome, and I am one appreciative monkey. Pats on the back all around.

And what a year it's been!

~All areas of EMG got a whole new shopping cart and shipping system.
~The new Portrait Adoption site was launched!
~New products (totes, buttons and clings) were added to the Giftshop, as well as dozens of talented new artists.
~Wholesale shopping was added to the Giftshop!
~The EMG Printshop got started up!
~New ACEO blanks and other artist supplies were added to the site.
~A whole year of EMG-Zine goodness!
(And yet somehow, I managed to stay relatively sane!)

But wait! There's more for this month!

The newest project I'm tackling is Fantastic Portfolios! This site will be a selective, juried site, based around critique and education. Every piece submitted will be critiqued by three (trained!) critics, so that even if your piece doesn't make it onto the site, you'll know exactly why, and how to fix it, or what to do on your next piece. Check out the site for more information! Paid memberships are now available, including, for a limited time, Eternal Memberships.

The site is about 90% coded, our core administrative crew is in place, and we're training our critics now, so that your judgements are consistent and fair. If you would like to take part in our beta testing, please check out the Fantastic Portfolios Forums for more information.

If you're running out of Christmas shopping time, remember that EMG Gift Certificates can be used in any area of EMG! It can be used for something from the giftstore, a portrait adoption (even a submitted description adoption!), print services, Fantastic Portfolio memberships, or a subscription here to EMG-Zine!

Best wishes for a peaceful and artistic holiday season!