Here's a 'teachable moment' for any writers making the transition from print to the blogosphere. Yesterday, Arena magazine was formally closed down, and I wrote a blog post for MediaGuardian on the mag's demise - I've written for the title, on and off, for nine years. It was a disastrous error of judgement on my part, a hugely regrettable mistake.

Because, while I absolutely stand 100% by everything I wrote in the piece, it turns out the timing was nothing less than ghastly. I thought the staff of Arena had been resigned to their fate for at least two weeks - I'd been sure of the mag's imminent doom since mid February - but it turns out that they'd actually been told just a few hours before my piece went online. They were, understandably, furious - I've been part of two magazine closures in my time, and it's such a horrible experience that I can only guess how infuriating it must have been to see a friend and former colleague kicking through your bones within a couple of hours of getting the bullet. What was meant as a pretty frivolous piece came across to them as rank opportunism and insensitivity. The moment to publicly, and pretty harshly, discuss what did and didn't happen at Arena obviously wasn't yesterday afternoon.

I can only apologise to my friends and colleagues, for whom I have the highest professional respect and personal admiration. Arena was consistently the best written consumer magazine in the country, for the whole time I was lucky enough to be involved. (Though no apologies to Dylan Jones, at GQ, who's big and ugly enough to take a joke).

And if any student journalists do stumble past this site, this is a salutory lesson. The average magazine feature takes around two months to get from an idea to the printing press. A weekend newspaper feature - two weeks, on average, I'd say. A feature in a daily newspaper's features section - sometimes it's a real rush job, but I think the average would still exceed two days. This blog posting, from a single sentence pitch to being written, subbed, headlined and posted online for eternity - TWO HOURS.  Leaving no time at all to discuss your thoughts with someone able to warn you that you're off on the wrong foot, or to point out a consideration you've not yet reached. This is a fact, not an excuse - but it simply, honest to God, didn't cross my mind during those two hours to consider the feelings of the men and women sat in the office soaking up the news tht they'd been canned.

So, be warned. I've made a right pillock of myself here, and I've learnt my lesson. Sorry again, guys.