Why Now?

Some people ask "You want to start a magazine now? Don't you know the publishing world is falling apart? Print is sooo yesterday." And others comment, "A magazine on letter writing? Are you crazy?" But the fact is some people do write letters. Granted, not everybody, but somebody.

My favorite analogy is Cigar Aficionado. Not every one who smokes cigars will buy this magazine. And a lot of people who don't smoke cigars will buy the magazine. With Letters & Journals you get the same mix. Not everyone who writes letters or journals will want to read the magazine. But a lot of people who don't write letters or journal, will buy the magazine. Maybe they like the ads (all to do with this world of writing, letters, journals, mail, postcards, stamps). Maybe like the image and feelings that a world of letter writing portrays. Or maybe they can't get enough about the world of journaling. Somerset Studios recently published Art Journaling in 2008 and it sold out at newsstands.

With Letters & Journals there is so much more subject matter than 'how to write a letter' or 'how to start a journal'. Here are some potential story ideas:

A Stationery Lover's Guide to Paris (NYC, San Fran, you get the picture)
How do you start a Stationery Business? A Look at some people who did
Postcards from Around the World- Postcrossing.com
Highlights of famous people's journals
Fan Mail- Do Movie Stars Still Get it? Let's Take a Look
Letters in the Attic? Genealogy
Let's Peek in Your Travel Journals
A Teacher sends a graduation class the letters they wrote to themselves when they were in the 5th grade
365 Letters- A Woman Writes a Letter a Day for 1 Year

And think of the advertising partnerships! Stationery stores, stationery designers, pen companies, notebooks, journals, dayplanners, post office, Hallmark, and the list goes on!

I believe the internet is helping to bring letter writers together. There are groups for letter writers, penpals, writers, blogs about blogging, postcards, mail art, stamp collecting. I also think that this type of personal writing also can play a part in genealogy as well as scrapbooking, for those hobbyists pursuing those interests. All potential buyers for Letters & Journals.