As of a few minutes ago, the big blue “BETA” is gone from our banner. But that’s not the only thing that’s been changed. We’ve done some polishing up of the site top to bottom, responding to your early comments as well as finally launching things we’ve been thinking about and working on since last summer.

Some new things to watch out for:

1. A more streamlined design. You’ll notice this all over, from our main page all the way to our blog pages, but the place it’s probably most obvious is on our individual essay pages (see today’s essay, for example).

2. Improved comments. Let’s start with the blog. Comments on posts are now a heck of a lot more attractive and, I…

If you’ve glanced a few inches upwards here at Smartpopbooks.com, you may have noticed a banner change: from our black Dollhouse contest banner to a (fittingly bright!) green banner calling attention to our upcoming Smart Pop on Glee—and your chance to be a part of it.

We’re asking Glee fans to share your Glee: to tell us how Glee has impacted your life, from the silly to the sublime. We’ll publish your stories alongside the book’s essays and special reference sections. (The book’s scheduled for release this fall; more details to come!)

We have another month to wait before we get more Glee; have to use that time for something, right?

I’m pleased to introduce you to Jennifer Canzoneri, previously BenBella’s general marketing manager and newly in charge of Smart Pop’s marketing and online efforts. Jen and I have always spent a lot of time talking about television and books in the office, and it’s been a blast making those conversations an official part of our jobs!

As of this morning, she’s taking over chief hosting duties for our blog, Twitter account, and Facebook page. I’ll still be blogging, giving book updates, and sharing the occasional comment or link. But when you @message us or comment over on Facebook, chances are Jennifer will be the one answering.

I’ll miss getting my daily Twitter fix, but—as you’ll see over the next few days—having Jennifer take the reins is…

We’ve just done something we really should have thought of doing from the start: added a form on the Dollhouse Essay Contest page where you can put in your email to automatically receive

• updates on the contest and book (including the first look at the cover)
• notice that we’ve posted another essay tip on the blog
• a reminder a couple of weeks before Feb 1 so you don’t miss the deadline

It’s right up at the top and hard to miss; just go to our contest page, enter your email, and hit submit!

Hope your essays are going well!

. . . or get entered to win one, anyway.

You may have noticed the big “BETA” stamped on the right side of our header . . . or a glitch or two around the site. Have you found a typo in an essay, or a bad link, or something else that looks like it’s gone awry? We want to know about it!

Email me at leahATbenbellabooksDOTcom with anything you find . . . and for every honest to goodness error, I’ll put a metaphorical slip of paper with your name on it into the (equally metaphorical) hat. After midnight on Friday, I’ll randomly select 10 names and send those people a Smart Pop book of their choice.

There are two ways, theoretically, to start a blog (or Twitter account, or heck, real-life chat): in medias res, or with an introduction. Most people choose the latter. (It’s why we usually start conversations with the word “Hi.”) Who are we to buck the trend?

I’m your de facto host, Leah, Smart Pop series editor—and this is the new Smart Pop Books.

I wanted to use this inaugural entry to give you a feel for the site: what we’re aiming to be, and what kind of content we’re trying to provide.

Overview

First and foremost, you’ll find essays we’ve published in our Smart Pop series—a new free essay every day.

Over the past six years we’ve put out nearly 50 anthologies, each with an average…