1) Writer's Edit journal article
1) What is the definition of an independent print magazine?
This special feature will focus on a growing area of independent publishing that may surprise you; that of the print magazine. The independent print magazine is characterised as “published without the financial support of a large corporation or institution in which the makers control publication and distribution…“independent” in spirit due to a maverick editor or publisher who leads the magazine in an exploratory, noncommercial direction” (Thomas 2007 40)
2) What does Hamilton (2013) suggest about independent magazines in the digital age?
2) What does Hamilton (2013) suggest about independent magazines in the digital age?
A small but growing body of evidence suggests that small printed magazines are quietly thriving even as the global newspaper and book industries falter” (Hamilton 2013: 43)
3) Why does the article suggest that independent magazines might be succeeding while global magazine publishers such as Bauer are struggling?
Magazines produced by large companies like Bauer Media and News Limited in Australia are struggling to keep readers from moving online. In contrast, those behind independent magazines use digital developments to their advantage, and have a strong online presence.
4) What does the article suggest about how independent publishers use digital media to target their niche audiences?
4) What does the article suggest about how independent publishers use digital media to target their niche audiences?
It could be said that this return to less frequent, small print runs of well-executed magazines marks a greater appreciation of graphic design, community and also a cultural push away from trend-focused mass-market publications that tell people what they should be doing and buying. While rejecting many of the typical characteristics of large-scale magazines, independents face new challenges: raising funds to produce and print issues, distributing online or through atypical channels, and relying on free labour and shared passion to create original content.
5) Why is it significant that independent magazines are owned and created by the same people? How does this change the creative process and direction of the magazine?
5) Why is it significant that independent magazines are owned and created by the same people? How does this change the creative process and direction of the magazine?
Today a magazine publisher does not need the financial strength of a large-scale organisation to successfully launch a magazine. Independent magazines resourcefully utilise technological advances as well as social media to operate. Thanks to developments in areas such as digital printing and electronic file transfer, “people with expert knowledge of a special interest area can potentially take advantage of the low barriers to entry in the industry to originate their own magazine titles and use contract printers to create the finished product” (Cox and Mowatt 2008: 513)
6) What does the article suggest regarding the benefits of a 'do-it-yourself' approach to creating independent magazines?
6) What does the article suggest regarding the benefits of a 'do-it-yourself' approach to creating independent magazines?
This spirit of collaboration encourages likeminded creative people to produce works together without the confines of editorial briefs typical of mainstream magazine art direction. “The term “do-it-yourself/do-it-with-others” emphasises semiotic self-determination in how citizens formulate and live out their identities and actions as citizens” (Hartley 2010 241). It is through this collaboration that the concept of a magazine community is established.
7) The article discusses the audience appeal of print. Why might audiences love the printed form in the digital age?
As Brimble explains when asked why AFJ was not produced as a digital magazine, for her efforts, and for those who purchase the magazine, she prefers “something real [that] will never go away. Because nothing beats the experience of print. There is beauty in the ritual of holding a physical magazine in front of you” (Brimble 2014). This physical print magazine is the output of years of work, both online and in meeting and working with contributors and supporters. Other independent magazine creators, like Jordan Vouga, art director and founder of Ancestry Quarterly, share this attitude.
8) What are the challenges in terms of funding and distributing an independent magazine?
As Brimble explains when asked why AFJ was not produced as a digital magazine, for her efforts, and for those who purchase the magazine, she prefers “something real [that] will never go away. Because nothing beats the experience of print. There is beauty in the ritual of holding a physical magazine in front of you” (Brimble 2014). This physical print magazine is the output of years of work, both online and in meeting and working with contributors and supporters. Other independent magazine creators, like Jordan Vouga, art director and founder of Ancestry Quarterly, share this attitude.
8) What are the challenges in terms of funding and distributing an independent magazine?
As with AFJ, crowdfunding campaigns are often used to accumulate the initial costs to produce. From there, creators rely on subscriptions and high cover prices to continue to produce, while not necessarily making a profit from each print run.
2) Irish Times feature on independent magazines
1) Why are independent magazines so popular?
These are magazines that play with the form, from open binding to multiple paper stocks. Their subject matter is as diverse as their production techniques, from mental health to trans rights, from football to street wear. They are driven by a passion, both for their content, and the printed form, and thanks to technology, they are able to reach audiences around the world.
2) Why is the magazine publishing industry set up to favour the big global conglomerates?
Partly due to the way the magazine publishing industry is set up to favour the big publishers – those with multiple titles, large sales teams and economies of scale. These are the titles that rely on advertising (rather than copy sales) for revenue. They have a relatively cheap cover price (a 12-issue subscription to Vogue UK costs less than £20), and are filled with adverts.
3) What does the article suggest regarding finding an audience for an independent magazine?
Cost is just one factor. For potential publishers, figuring out who your audience is is key. Make your subject too broad (a magazine about football) and you will get lost in the crowd. Make it too narrow (a magazine about redheads who support Bohemians) and your audience will be too small. Get it right (a magazine about League of Ireland fan culture) and you just might have a chance. And once you know who your audience is, many other elements will fall into place. To take the example of the League of Ireland magazine, you are going to sell it outside football matches, which means it can’t be too big, or too heavy.
4) What are the challenges for magazine distributors?
For the new publishers, the challenges are similar. One big issue is distribution. Shipping boxes of magazines is expensive, and with publishers taking all the risk (they pay for both shipping, and if the magazines don’t sell, the price of shipping them back), it’s key that publishers focus on getting as many direct sales online as possible. This goes back to building an audience - the more people aware you exist, the more people will purchase your magazine. That conversion rate will probably be less than 1 per cent, which shows how important it is to start building an audience before you publish.
5) The article suggests that many independent magazines only make money by diversifying into other products. What examples do they give?
5) The article suggests that many independent magazines only make money by diversifying into other products. What examples do they give?
For those that do make the plunge, the rewards are many. From the feeling of seeing your publication on sale in shops across the world, to leveraging the magazine into paying work, to the satisfaction of executing a complex creative project. As for the money, if it does come, it’s often indirect. If you do set up that League of Ireland fan culture magazine, you can host events, sell graphic prints, T-shirts and maybe set up a Patreon account where you can host football podcasts.
3) Interview with Ruth Jamieson
1) What does Ruth Jamieson suggest about the 'death of print'?
I can see why it was a seductive narrative at a time when we were all very excited about digital media, but I don’t think print will ever die. New media doesn’t necessarily replace old media, it just refocuses its role.
2) What are the common themes for successful independent magazines?
2) What are the common themes for successful independent magazines?
The internet is part of what’s driving the new wave of indie magazines. From the programmes that allow you to design it and publish it, to using social media to find contributors, stockists and, most importantly readers. I also think the rise of digital has created a hunger for a different type of experience, one where you can escape from the endless scroll of Facebook and immerse yourself in something. Online media is so disposable and I think there’s something appealing about the permanence of indie magazines.
3) How many of these aspects can you find in The Gentlewoman?
The Gentlewoman has an online presence which aids their popularity. They also use famous and recognisable designers within their magazine in order to make the magazine more appealing. The unconventional photography is an element that is attractive to readers as it differs from mainstream magazines.
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