Stack Magazines

"Let's just stay up until four in the morning..." Marc Holzenbecher is the publisher and executive editor of Still, the brilliantly eclectic arts and literary magazine based between Berlin and New York. In this conversation he speaks about the practical difficulties of working on a passion project with a team that is scattered across time zones, and about the thrill of producing something that's as close to perfect as it can be. We delivered this issue of Still to Stack subscribers in June last year and I spoke to Marc in May, shortly before the magazines arrived at our warehouse, but it has taken me nine months to post this episode because it took so much work to clean up the background noise! If you haven't already seen this one for yourself and you want to pick up a copy, head to the Stack shop to place your order: https://www.stackmagazines.com/product/still-issue-6/

"It feels like you can find everything on the internet, but that's just not true." Reagan Clare is the founder of Homesick magazine, the title that delves into archives to present previously unseen images and the stories of their creation. Going behind the scenes of the fashion, music, film and entertainment industries, each issue takes a tour of vintage pop culture from the 60s to the 90s, for a pre-internet exposé featuring fascinating characters you'd probably never otherwise have come across. We're hosting a launch party for the new issue at The Ace Hotel in Shoreditch on Thursday 7 February. So if you're in London and you'd like to come along, RSVP to reserve your free tickets and join us for a beer and a chat with Reagan herself: https://www.acehotel.com/london/events-and-spaces/calendar/2019-02-07/stack-homesick-launch/

"Don't do everything yourself – that's mad..." Recorded live at The Book Club in London on Tuesday 22 January, this extra-long episode 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. And as always with independent publishing, you can expect open and honest conversation from people happy to share their expertise. This podcast is supported by Park Communications – tap into their printing expertise at https://www.parkcom.co.uk/

"We wanted to break something..." Dominika Hadelova and Aldo Buscalferri are the editors and creative directors of Matto, a new magazine based in Paris that combines art, photography, fashion and erotica. The artists, designers and other people featured in the magazine are united by their utter dedication to what they're doing, and Dominika and Aldo reflect that with a similarly obsessive commitment ('Matto' means 'crazy' in Italian). All independent magazines are inevitably personal reflections of the people who make them, but for this one Dominika and Aldo have really immersed themselves in an editorial world, admitting that there's often no separation between the magazine and their personal lives. If this is the sort of crazy you want in your life, head to the Stack shop to buy your own copy of Matto: https://www.stackmagazines.com/product/matto-issue-1/

"It's like a little chameleon..." Suze Olbrich is the editor of Somesuch Stories, the literary magazine that covers a vast range of subjects including nature, sex, society and spirituality in its aim to reflect, "the full contemporary experience". It looks a lot like a paperback book, and in this conversation Suze speaks about the pleasure she gets from seeing it popping up in different places, alongside both books and magazines, quietly carrying its short stories and creative non-fiction to new audiences. This issue is built around the theme of redemption, and Suze also speaks about her personal experiences of making the magazine, with all the challenges that entails, and the strategies she has found for overcoming and coping with those difficulties.

"You don't need to be into video games. You just need to like pretty words and pictures..." Caspian Whistler is creative director and editor-in-chief of A Profound Waste of Time, the magazine that uses beautiful illustration and long first-person stories to reflect the experience of making and playing video games. The magazine sold out of its first print run, and has proven so popular that even after a second run it's difficult to get hold of copies. But it hasn't all been plain sailing. In this conversation Cas reveals the difficulties he has faced along the way, from early success with a Kickstarter campaign that raised almost twice its target amount, to the "nightmare" of the reprint, when his Croatian printer went bust, taking his money with them.

"The word 'finance' made me want to run a mile." Elana Schlenker and Mark Pernice are the art directors of Hacking Finance, a new magazine that takes a progressive and provocative look at business and our relation to money. This first issue is themed around 'movement', and features stories on a wide range of subjects, from the man trying to make a commercially viable hydrogen-powered car, through to the disruptive and creative impact that skateboarding can have on cities. For more information and to buy a copy, check Hacking Finance in the Stack shop: https://www.stackmagazines.com/product/hacking-finance-issue-1/

"We approach special issues with trepidation..." John L Walters and Simon Esterson are the editor and art director of Eye magazine, the international review of graphic design. Their latest issue is the second in a two-part special focusing on magazine design, and it's their biggest issue ever, packed with fascinating interviews and comment covering both the mainstream and independent worlds (and the places where those two realms intersect). It's a massive undertaking, so it's not surprising that this double issue has been bubbling away for a number of years before finally emerging onto the newsstand, and I loved hearing the stories behind the stories straight from John and Simon. As I write this we currently have copies of this latest issue available to buy from the Stack shop, so do head over there to pick one up for yourself... https://www.stackmagazines.com/shop/

"My degree suffered a little..." Arne Meyer was one of the editors and art directors on the current issue of Brasilia, the magazine made by students at the University of Applied Sciences and Arts in Hanover. They won Student Magazine of the Year at the Stack Awards, so Arne dropped in at the Stack office the morning after the ceremony to speak about the making of the magazine, and the challenge of keeping quality high when the team has to change each year.

"Magazines tell the story of what's going on right now." Bobbie Johnson is the editor of Anxy, the California-based magazine that aims to break down the stigma around mental health. Anxy won Art Director of the Year and Best Use of Illustration at this year's Stack Awards, so the day after the ceremony Bobbie came over to the Stack office to talk about their evolving mission, and why a group of people based in Silicon Valley use a print magazine to communicate their ideas.