How to make an independent magazine

Recorded live at The Book Club in London on Tuesday 22 January, this extra-long episode of the Stack podcast focuses on some of the most common challenges encountered when publishing an independent magazine. Divided loosely into four sections that focus on funding, commissioning, production and distribution, followed by an audience Q&A, we devote an hour and a half to understanding the first-hand experiences of independent magazine makers.

Our expert panel features Caspian Whistler, creative director and editor-in-chief of A Profound Waste of Time; Elisabeth Krohn, editor of Sabat, editorial advisor to Suspira, and co-founder of Dreadful Press; and Helen Jennings, editorial director of Nataal. As always with independent publishing, you can expect open and honest conversation from people happy to share their expertise, even when the reality isn’t exactly glamorous.

For example Elisabeth reveals that she had to be economical with the truth when approaching people to feature in the first issue: “I lied so much about making this magazine – I lied to so many people that then I knew I just had to go and do it.” And Caspian reveals that he’s started work on his second issue, “Now that I’ve forgotten how bad it was making the first one.”

Of course there’s also all the passion and creative flair that makes these magazines so interesting, and I hope it helps anyone who is currently working on their own magazine project, especially those people who messaged us because they weren’t able to attend on the night.

apwot.com
sabatmagazine.com
suspiramagazine.com
nataal.com