How to Produce a Magazine

Many people dream of being a publisher, but are unsure of where to begin. Although there are many different types of publishing, one of the most popular is that of publishing magazines and periodicals. With a little hard work, it can be a realistic goal to produce a magazine of your very own. If being a magazine publisher has been a dream of yours, keep reading to learn how to produce a magazine on your own.

Step1
Select a niche that your magazine will focus on. While you can technically have a magazine that is about anything and everything, it is generally not a good idea. Your magazine should be based around a specific topic or theme, which allow you to build a core audience of loyal readers who have an interest in that topic. Ideally, it should be something that you either have a strong personal interest in, or have expertise in, so that your job of editing and producing the magazine will be an easier and more enjoyable experience.

Step2
Start a blog or web site about your chosen niche before you move on to the phase of being a magazine publisher. This step is certainly optional and can be skipped, but there are benefits to taking this step. It will allow you to get used to managing content, to form relationships with writers and to develop an audience who will subscribe to your magazine when it is ready to be published.

Step3
Decide what your publishing schedule will be. Not all magazines are published on a monthly basis. Many magazines are published every other month and some are even published quarterly. A popular tactic for new magazines is to start with publishing 6 issues per year (every other month), and then begin a monthly publishing schedule when there are enough subscribers and newsstand sales to justify the increased production.

Step4
Hire writers to produce content for your magazine. If you have a smaller scale magazine that operates on a tight budget, then you may be able to find writers who will submit content to your publication in exchange for a by-line, and perhaps a mention of their web site. You may also use a free advertisement as a method of paying for articles. However, if you want high quality, professionally written stories for your magazine, you’ll have to be prepared to pay your writers. After all, a by-line is nice for building credibility, but it doesn’t do a lot for putting food on the table. Expect to pay at least three cents per word, minimum, with higher profile writers demanding more.

Step5
Hire someone to do the graphic layouts for your magazine. These layouts blend the text together with images, to form a professional looking layout and design. Magazine and newspaper layouts are typically put together using a computer software program called Quark Xpress. This program comes in versions for both the Mac and PC, although the Mac version is more widely used. There are other layout programs as well, but Xpress is clearly the industry leader, so you will need to find a layout editor who is proficient with this software.

Step6
Line up distribution channels for your magazine. Paid subscribers are one way of getting your magazine out, but if you only send to subscribers, you’ll be completely missing most of your potential customers. You need to seek out distributors of periodicals (newspapers and magazines) so that you can formulate deals that will get your product carried by super markets, drug stores and newsstands from coast to coast. Having a strong distribution network is one of the keys to producing a magazine successfully.

Step7
Find a print shop that can print the magazine that you produce. Every metropolitan area has one or more professional print shops that can handle the job for you. The prices can range greatly depending on the number of copies printed, the number of pages per copy, the paper weight chosen, whether glossy paper is used and how much color ink is involved. Arrange a meeting with your printer to discuss your budget and the particular details of your magazine, so that you may work together to find a solution that works great for everyone involved.

Don't ever throw away unsold copies of your magazine. It is worth the added expense to mail them out as freebies to potential customers, along with a letter inviting them to subscribe to your publication.

How to Start an Online Magazine

Although an online magazine doesn't require the outlay of a print magazine (print runs for color glossy publications are very expensive), it's still a complex venture. At the start, it's wise to keep your goals modest

Step1
Know your subject. It's easiest to ensure quality contributions if you have the knowledge to analyze them.

Step2
Think about finances. Even if you start modestly, making the magazine a side project in your life, you'll probably need to spend money for articles; for artistic help; and for site design, server space and maintenance. If you want to make the magazine a real business, you've got to think about a marketing budget; office supplies,phone Bill and mailing costs; research costs; any staff salaries; and legal and business help.

Step3
Work with other people, especially if you want to make your magazine a Business, as opposed to a hobby. Work out the practical and financial details of your partnership.

Step4
Consider how to make a profit. Possibilities include attracting advertising, charging for access, or publishing as a nonprofit and getting grants and donations.

Step5
Consider the legal aspects of publishing. Be willing to pay for expert advice.

Step6
Decide how frequently you will publish. Regular, scheduled updates will keep your readers coming back to your site.

Step7
Decide what rights you will buy from your contributors (both text and visual).

Step8
Design your site or hire a designer.

Step9
Learn how to maintain the site yourself (how to substitute new articles for old) or hire someone to maintain it.

Step10
Start collecting material for your first issue

Start small, perhaps as a one-person "zine." Choose a simple, readable site design and a doable schedule of issues (twice a month, for example). Concentrate on getting high-quality articles and building a following among a core audience. Then you can expand.
Or consider starting out as an e-mail newsletter, which is much simpler to put together than a Web site.
Agreeing to nonexclusive electronic rights to the articles you publish will get you the broadest range of contributions, since the authors will be free to republish their work elsewhere in print or on the Internet.

Don't think you'll make money - or break even, for that matter. Start the magazine because it's what you want to do.

How to Download Music Free and Legal

Get legal free music downloads for your ipod or personal media player free from these free mp3 resources.

Step1
There are lots of illegal sources for downloading music to your mp3 player that are likely to contain viruses as well. There are some legal safe sources offering free music downloads. See below for some of these sources.

Step2
Try Download.com - Offered by CNet, this is a huge selection of free mp3s ranging from popular music to new artists. Secure, safe and legal way to download free music.

Step3
Seach FreeAlbums.blogsome.com - This is a blog that tells free music download sources. Only posts free mp3's available from full albums. Posts at least one full free album a day from legal sources.

Step4
Use SpiralFrog.com - Free legal music download website that is ad supported - meaning the free mp3s are available because the advertising you view on this site is how they make money. Claims to have over 3 million free songs and videos from new artists and more.

Step5
The links to these websites are listed below under resources.
Download.com
Freealbums.blogsome.com
SpiralFrog.com

How to Download MP3 Samples Legally

MP3 is a method of audio file compression. MP3 can compress sound files into a very small space, yet the sound quality is unchanged when you play the file. You can download MP3 music files and player software from the Web. Typically, you need to actually download the file before playing it, unlike "streaming" audio that you can play directly from a Web page.

Step1.
Download an MP3 player program from the Internet. Look for shareware applications such as MusicMatch Jukebox, Microsoft Media Player or WinAmp for Windows and MacAmp for Macintosh.

Step2
Look for Web sites that explicitly state that an artist has given permission to download songs.

Step3
Find a song you like and download onto your computer.

Step4
Open the MP3 player program and play the file

You'll need a Pentium processor, 16 MB of RAM, a sound card and speakers to play MP3 files.

Playing illegal MP3 samples (when the artist has not given permission for the file to be downloaded) might not land you in jail, but it is illegal and it also denies royalties to the artist.

How to Find MP3 Samples!

With MP3, sound files can be compressed into a very small space while their sound quality remains high. To play MP3 files on your computer, you need player software and some music files. Both are available for free downloading on the Web.

Step1Look for Web sites that claim downloading of songs is allowed by the artist.

Step2Find sites with legal downloads, then follow the links on those sites to other sites.

Step3Use search engines on those sites to search by artist, song or genre.

Step4To search by artist or song, type the name of the artist or song into the search box. Use the Enter or Return key to begin your search.

Step5To search by genre or other categories allowed by the search engine, click on the icon or down arrow to select the category of interest

Some search engines require entering solo artist names in a particular way.

MP3 files are not limited to music. You can find news, comedy, book excerpts and other types of audio files.

Downloading unauthorized MP3 samples is illegal. Only download samples that have the artist's permission.