April fun 2026: Tandem blogs
Published: April 1, 2026
I wanted to do something fun for April 1st. When I was active in the Re-Volt community, we would think of some subtle but funny things like rotating the website by just a few degrees, flipping the logo upsite down or giving all players a funny hat in online races.
I'm not a big fan of pranks where something entirely unexpected happens to someone, I think it's best if the fun is experienced on both sides. So for April 1st this year, I'm introducing tandem blogs to paperboat.website:
Think of a topic, sign up to the tandem program and wait to be paired with another person and write a blog together!
Join a tandem blog
If you're new to paperboat.website, you can create a new account and join a tandem blog right away on the tandem register page.
If you already have an account and would like to join the tandem program, head to your sites list and join from there.
How does it work?
Users sign up to the tandem program by submitting a single topic they will write about. For example, Sam decides to write about spaghetti and joins with that word.
Then, Alex joins and wants to write about quantum mechanics. Then, magic happens and a new tandem blog will be created: In this case, Alex and Sam's blog Spaghetti and Quantum Mechanics.
Can I contact the other person?
You'll only be able to communicate using posts and pageson your new tandem blog. Each user can only edit their own posts and pages. Just start writing and check back later to learn more about your tandem partner.
Why?
First of all, it's a fun experiment. Maybe it'll work out really well and you'll get to know a person and make friends for life. Maybe you'll find a pen pal you'll write with every now and then. Maybe nothing happens. Who knows! I'm super curious about what's going to happen.
Soon, I'd like to introduce collaborative blogs and the tandem program is a fun way to test it. I'd love to hear from you how it works out both technically and personally. Who did you get to know? What did it feel like to be paired up with a stranger? Did you learn something interesting?
Have fun!
~ Marv