May 6, 2005
IN Magazine
I took a course this semester called "Magazine Editing and Production" where the class created, designed, wrote, and produced one issue of an actual magazine. Each person in the class applied for jobs on the staff and then we worked all semester on what is hypothetically the "premiere" issue of the magazine. I was pegged to be one of two "staff writers" for IN Magazine, which basically meant my job was to write a lengthy, feature-style piece.
The editorial staff had a few ideas for story topics that I wasn't thrilled with, and I pitched pieces on both poker and blogs that they shot down. In the end, we settled on me writing about a topic that I've written about here occasionally, insomnia. In fact, you may remember me asking for any insomniacs who read this blog to e-mail me a couple months ago. Well, I was overwhelmed by the number of responses I received, and ended up using a handful of you in my story.
The magazine came back from the printer earlier this week, so those of you who are hanging around the University of Minnesota campus will probably stumble across a copy somewhere before the end of the semester. They are supposed to be available all over the place, from the student union and all the dorms to on-campus restaurants and stores. Here's what the front cover looks like, just so you can be on the lookout for it:
As you can see, my piece is the "cover story," although sadly that's not my bloodshot eye. We actually did a photoshoot with my eye, but apparently it wasn't bloodshot enough or something. My dreams of becoming a cover model were quickly dashed. Anyway, we also have a website devoted to the magazine that I thought the rest of you might be interested in checking out: InMagOnline.com
I have eight copies of the magazine (I was supposed to get 10, I only got nine, and then someone was able to convince me to give them one on my way home from class Wednesday) and the finished product looks really great. Far better than I could have imagined, especially after witnessing all of the chaos that went into producing it.
IN Magazine is a one-time publication, but it took some extremely hard work from a lot of people, and it would be nice to get as many eyes on it as possible. Plus, it has some really good content written by some really good writers. So go check it out, and if you read an article you like, go click on the "contact" page and let the person who wrote it know you enjoyed it. Hell, if you're a person in a position of power at a magazine somewhere, do yourself a favor and hire some of these people.
Incidentally, you'll notice that my contact information and picture are strangely and mysteriously absent from the contact page. I have no explanation for this, as I had my picture taken in the same photoshoot as everyone else. I can only assume that our editor-in-chief, Kay Steiger, made an executive decision not to drive traffic away from the site with my ugly mug.
www.InMagOnline.com
Today at The Hardball Times:
- Have No Fehr Toss Don On His Ear (by John Brattain)
- Ten Things I Learned From A Book (by Studes)
Today's Picks (27-17, +$1,170):
Los Angeles (Penny) -110 over Cincinnati (Wilson)
Houston (Oswalt) +130 over Atlanta (Smoltz)
Chicago (Hernandez) -100 over Toronto (Bush)
