Oh Comely Industry

Oh Comely Industry

1) Iceberg was set up because they believe in the power of the printed word and of the owners believes that lots of magazines have given up on their readers.

2) The mission statement for Iceberg is:

It's all about the audience.

Chase the work, not the money.

Compromise isn't our friend.

We will always make time for ideas.

We are stronger when we work with others.

We want good people to work in a good place.

Every year we will help a cause that matters.

We believe in a thing called Print.


3) Oh Comely and Simple Things.

4) Both magazines are focused on creative people and wanting to make things or talk about things that are likely to attract people who are creative. They also use a simplistic font and use minimal typography and captions for the magazine.

5) Hearst UK is a conglomerate whereas Iceberg is much smaller which has fewer workers. Hears UK publish more than 100 magazines whereas Iceberg Press only publishes 2 magazines.

Writer's Edit journal article:

1)  The definition of an independent magazine is "published without the financial support of a large corporation or institution in which the makers control publication and distribution".

2)  Hamilton suggests that "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. These creators set their own terms and rely on collaboration to achieve them."

3) The aim of Kinfolk magazine "do not seek to capture typically generic reader markets. Instead, they identify relatable communities within an ever-expanding online world. This aim exemplifies the DIWO approach, as collaborators share their united vision in print. To produce an issue of AFJ, Brimble relies on the philosophy that by sharing each others’ strengths, everyone will benefit. “Because they really love the project everybody is willing to help out” (Brimble 2014)."

4) The article suggests that "independent magazines are defying the predictions of many that print magazines are a fading relic of the pre-digital world."

5) Independent magazines launch "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"

6) Independent publishers use digital media through " potential readers will happen upon their Instagram page, Facebook profile or Pinterest account, or perhaps enjoy a review on a blog or write-up by a collaborator on other websites."

7) Its significant for independent magazines to be owned by the same people as "they are owned and developed by the same people: the founders, editors and art directors who share a similar creative vision. This is another distinction from mainstream, large-scale magazine publications."

8) The article states "do-it-yourself/do-it-with-others” emphasises semiotic self-determination in how citizens formulate and live out their identities and actions as citizens"

9) Audiences love the printed form in the digital age as "able to maintain a strong vision for their magazine without feeling the pressure to appeal to a wider market each issue"

10) The challenges in terms of funding and distributing an independent magazine "is  raise enough funds" and  "strength of an online media following built over three years, sufficient funds were received from online supporters donating to her Kickstarter campaign over a few short days to cover production costs as well as payments for contributors"

Irish Times feature

1) Independent magazines are popular as they are able to talk about things that traditional magazines aren't able to talk about. Also, "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) The common themes of a successful independent magazine is " 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) Finding an audience is hard because if you focus too much on one single factor then you are likely to alienate an audience.

4) The problem of for magazine distributors is that the big magazine publishers are favoured which can make it hard for smaller magazine distributors to compete.

5) "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."

TCO interview with Ruth Jamieson

1) Ruth Jamieson states "Absolutely. It’s never been easier to start your own magazine and find an audience. There’s never been a better time to be a magazine fan. The whole ‘Print is dead’ narrative has turned out to be only half true. The internet has killed, or is killing, print, but only print of the 10-minutes-of-distraction-before-you-chuck-it-in-the-bin variety."

2) The common themes for a successful independent magazine is " doing something no one else is doing, and offering something digital media can’t offer. That and great art direction and editorial, a focus on the reader rather than the advertiser, and having a strong, unique idea at the magazine’s core. Oh and investing in the magazine as an object, so, good paper stock, expert printing, well-researched, well-produced content"

3) Oh Comely are doing something that no-one else is possibly doing such as talking about transgender issues and including female rights activists as central topics in the magazine. They have a great art direction such as unique font and typography and hasn't got advertisers or captions in the front cover. They also have a unique idea such as the making the people who go through the issues as the writers.

4) Jamieson see's the future for the magazine industry "It’s never been easier to start a magazine. But it’s still hard to keep one going for more than a year. Especially as more great mags launch and the newsstands get more competitive. So, I think we’ll see more magazines come and go. But that the standard will continue to rise. There really hasn’t been a better time to be a magazine fan.

We’ll also see the mainstream starting to look more like the indies. They have to learn from independents if they want to survive. So, there’ll be more investment in content and more focus on producing a quality product, more collectable issues, a move away from trying to compete with the internet and towards doing things only print can do. We’ll also see mainstream magazine branching out beyond their print issues to offer other things, like events, products, educational programmes and experiences."

5) I think that Oh Comely will survive the next few years as they are talking about issues that are becoming more apparent and central in today's society and if they are only starting to be talked about now then in a 5 years time they are going to be talked about even more which will benefit Oh Comely as a magazine.