NElizabeth
True, it's probably possible to appeal to both. Especially if we think long term and imagine a future where people have followed along with the creation of a doll here and then bought it and now want a place to share what they do with it.
So, I have some thoughts, this will be a lot of text. Keep in mind these are only personal opinions and how I would have done it.
I absolutely agree that fewer forums are probably better than many. Every time you split a category you have to spell out exactly what that split mean, why it's made and then continuously moderate to maintain it.
If the forum is to be focused on the creation of dolls, the doll making forums should probably come before the general doll discussion forums in the list. As it is now it signals that the doll discussion is prioritized and the doll making is an after thought, while from a makers perspective, a doll has to be made in the first place before it can be discussed. Never mind if it was made on forum or off.
I don't understand the distinction between the categories of asian/small business/artisan as if they were different things. There are plenty of independent artisans in asia and a lot of well established makers in other parts of the world. Further, a lot if not most of the "larger" companies are tiny, as in run by a single person with at best a few employees. How do you vet who qualifies? Does it matter? And if it does, then why?
If it were me I would have one single forum for all doll discussions that focuses on a doll that is already made.
I doubt there will be enough activity to flood the place and collecting it in one pool will lower the threshold between new artisans and established ones.
There will still have to be some kind of decision made on what makes a doll on topic, but something as simple as "tension strung ball joints" could do it and catch everything from the regular polyurethane dolls to spring strung porcelains and home-made-one-of-a-kind-made-just-for-fun projects. I think it would actually be very fun to see them all in one place. Most doll makers are already doll enthusiasts and often collectors and they rarely limit themselves to just one type of doll and mixed collections are common. And sadly, I think we need a clear "no recasts" as well. The kind of people who'd buy them are the same kind who would exploit it if it's not spelled out and nothing would drive real artisans away quicker.
When the big places like DoA chose to focus narrowly on just one type of ball jointed doll, they did so to keep traffic manageable, but I don't think that will be a problem here.
Besides, if a doll has it's entire creation documented here it would be natural that once it's made it can be discussed on the same terms as any other doll. It shouldn't be limited to a small section of the forum.
The categories by medium has a similar issue.
If the categories are meant for technical discussion only it does make some sense, but not if this is where project journals go.
Imagine a project where the artisan sculpts the joints and cores digitally, print them, then sculpts the actual doll in epoxy on top of that, makes silicone molds and then cast the finished doll in polyurethane resin. Where does that project go?
Or a project where the artisan makes an updated version of a previous doll they've made, where a heat resistant resin part is cast in an existing mold to then be added on to by polymer clay, before finally having new molds made and cast in polyurethane.
Or a project where the maker started in one medium only to later decide to switch, like you did in your own project journal. Would the thread then have to be moved when the decision to try something different is made?
Most doll making projects are mixed media in some way. The process is complex and the learning curve is steep.
If it was me I would have one forum for project journals, regardless of material and process. I think most doll makers are still interested to see how others do it, even if the method differs from their own.
Because of the slow nature of these projects, I doubt the forum will be flooded.
If you want technical discussion, then there could be one forum to catch all that too. One place to talk about different sculpting materials, different digital sculpting programs, different printers, different casting equipment and all that. Since a common topic may be compatibility between materials and processes, it make little sense to split them up. It could also serve as a good place for beginners to ask questions about getting started.
Doll makeovers, sewing, and the making of accessories etc. could easily be lumped together in one "doll styling" section.
Regardless of if you made a doll yourself or bought a blank one you'll want to make it pretty and I think it makes perfect sense to have a place for that. But I don't think there needs to be a split between them.
Maybe, if you really wanted to split them up, then perhaps one forum for things that is traditionally seen as part of the doll, such as face up eyes and wig and separate one for the add-on stuff like clothes and shoes.
If you want to make really sure no one accidentally click a thread they weren't interested in, you could simply put in some recommendations (or even rules, if you think it's important) about thread naming conventions. Or labels, if this platform supports them. That would keep the forum easily searchable and also simplify things if you ever want to split the forum up in the future due to too much traffic.
About the blog and where tutorials go, mailing list etc. I don't know enough of the structure of this place to really comment.
As a user, if this place was already up an running when I got here, I would probably stay on the forum and never read the blog unless something relevant was linked in a discussion I was reading and I have enough random stuff in my inbox to ever want to be on a mailing list. I much rather come here when I am in the mood for doll stuff and read manually anything that interests me at my own pace, but I understand every one has different reading habits and I may not be representative of the average user.
I would not split tutorials between forum and blog, it should be one or the other.
If it was my forum I'd skip the blog altogether, because it's one more place to maintain.
If you are married to the idea, you could possibly use it to "feature" an extra well written tutorial already posted on the forum every now and then. With the authors permission, of course and only choosing ones you deem blog worthy. I could see a superficial reader who is more interested in being inspired by the pretty pictures just skimming the blog now an then without actually participating in the forum. Just note that anything that is readable without a log in can be scraped by data miners and training tools for generative AI these days, so it's inherently hostile to creators. But as long as that is clearly stated and the author is fine with that, go ahead.
If it was me would instead have one forum for tutorials and patterns. So just one place where users can post things for others to work from. it could be sculpting tutorials, sewing patterns, doll body blueprints or whatever. As long as thread titles are clear I think that would be enough to keep things searchable and easy to find.
I don't have much of an opinion on the market place section, I think it looks good.
Maybe as a boon to the doll makers that post their projects here add a "Preorders" section where a one time post for the first preorder run for a doll that has had it's making documented on here can be posted to give it a bit of an extra boost. I realize this will not be a common occurrence, but it's a very real way to reward a maker that can actually help them reach customers and also helps the average user who has seen the project develop to not miss out if they have had their eyes on the doll during the making.
But since doll projects are slow moving, there is no hurry, you can add that later when the main forum is more firmly established.
So to sum it up, my simplified forum suggestions:
*Technical Discussion (materials, process, compatibility, beginner questions, tools and equipment.)
*Projects Journals (the whole journey, from blueprint to finished doll)
*Doll styling (all the things that makes the doll into That Doll)
*Tutorials and Patterns (all the things that gives somebody else's project a head start)
*General BJD discussion (look at my dolls, look at what I bought, heard of this company? etc.)
Marketplace as is.
And for all that is holy, stop changing things around until you have decided on how you actually want things. I have started three separate times writing up things that could work as forum starters for existing forums only to have it being entirely irrelevant the next time I log in. I want this place to work out, but you are making it very difficult to help.
Make a plan. Think it through. Then and only then implement it and stick to it!
Communicate it to the rest of us and enforce it strictly.
Once you know what you want, we need clear rules and guidelines for what to post where and examples right there in the forums. No one posts in an empty forum, because it looks like you are not supposed to since no one else has done so yet. People are herd animals.
And don't take all this the wrong way. I think this place is a good initiative and has potential. You are doing a good thing and I want to see this work out.
/Lillith