Suppose you started a magazine and nobody came … to read it because of a pandemic. And if they could, nothing in it was relevant, all of the events were cancelled or on hold, and none of the advertisers had anything to advertise.
Which is, not surprisingly, where we find ourselves right now and why we must announce the postponement of the launch of our new monthly print publication, scheduled for April 1.
If you’re just hearing about it for the first time, sorry to be a tease, but the mag has been in the planning stages for the past couple of months — an actual print version of what we do (with a different name), with arts and culture coverage, news provided by our friends at LiveWire Calgary, sports from people such as the Alberta Dugout Stories website, and, of course, the best listings in Calgary.
That was the plan. It is now on hold.
It’s disappointing, but it could have been much more so had we gone ahead and sunk immediately. And, hell, there are people who are going through much worse right now, so we can’t really complain.
That said, the reaction when we did announce it on Facebook and on CBC Calgary‘s Eyeopener was overwhelmingly positive. People saw the need for it, wanted to support it either by contributing to it or advertising with us, which we found incredibly heartening and encouraging.
That’s why we’ll continue to monitor the situation, continue to plan ahead and, when things eventually turn around, we do plan on publishing.
We know that at that time clubs, restaurants, bars, venues, arts spaces, taprooms, musicians, actors, artists, theatre and dance groups, festivals, etc. are going to want and really need the support and exposure, and for patrons and audiences to return.
So when things do begin to subside, please keep us in mind and reach out for coverage and inclusion into what it is we’re hoping to do.
To that end — and please don’t consider this insensitive or opportunistic — when we do eventually launch, advertising will be half price for the first three months to help alleviate some of those financial concerns, so keep that in mind.
If you have any questions, please contact us via email at mike@theyyscene.com, kari@theyyscene.com or info@theyyscene.com.
We’re all in this together.
Please stay safe, support each other however you can, and bet on this city bouncing back in a big way.
Cheers.
