Magazine Madness - I'm so behind edition

I'm currently using stacks of magazines to help uncurl a new rug. The stacks include current issues of ESPN The Mag, Wired, Popsci, BestLife, The New Yorker, MacLife and about 17 other magazines.

At this point, I pause to share with you - dear reader - the futility that is my subscription model. Use my learning experience to avoid pain and frustration. Do NOT subscribe to 20 magazines. EVER. No matter how much time you think you have, the reality is that all the magazines show up at the same time and suddenly a wide-open calendar becomes bogged down in glossy-page madness.

Add to that a quest to write 50K words in November (DONE, THANK YOU!) and you have a recipe for a library's worth of periodicals. Here's another in what will likely be a never-ending series of magazine time-saving reviews.

To refresh your memory, I read the magazines and share with you pertinent articles. Then you can recycle or use the rest of each mag for fireplace fodder. If you agree or disagree (GASP) with my opinion, please post your thoughts in the comments.

Here we go...

Poets & Writers Magazine - Nov/Dec 2008 issue



Most of the issues of P&W are pretty helpful. Upon opening this issue I feared that the editors had gone off the rails and only included poetry. I'm not smart enough to understand the nuance of poetry, so I though I had wasted $5.95. Not so.

Even with the heavy poetry slant in the beginning, the magazine pulled out a win with a few good pieces. First is the special section called MFA Prep that starts on page 78. This piece gives the not-so-harsh-reality behind MFA programs across the nation and the specifics on applying for an advanced degree as a writer. It includes easy-to-understand charts and shares financial info broken down so even a writer can understand it. Good piece. Makes me want to run across the country and enroll at Purdue.

Next, page 70, was an interview with Chuck Adams of Algonquin Books. The Adams interview is sixth in a series called Agents & Editors and left me feeling as if I had learned some secrets about the publishing world and gotten to know a pretty smart editor at the same time.

The writer, Jofie Ferrari-Adler does a good job of asking the right questions...and I skeptically wondered which ones weren't used until I saw the note at the end of the piece saying: "Read an expanded version of this interview" at PW.org/magazine. OUTSTANDING.

Lastly, the market info in every issue is great and that's worth the entire price of admission. Grants, awards and submission deadlines are given for dozens of programs, publications and organizations. If you're a writer, pick up this issue or pay for an online subscription.

BestLife Magazine - November 2008 issue



This magazine is an add-on subscription. If you're unfamiliar with my terminology, it's an appeaser. How's that? Still don't get it? Well you wouldn't be getting this magazine on its own, but if you had subscribed to a mag that went under, you might get this publication. Essentially, BestLife - from what I can tell - shows up in my box to make me forget that the defunct Cargo Magazine had five year's worth of subscription money in its coffers before it tanked.

So I get a wannabe Esquire in my box pretty often. I'm not sure what mag went under to get me on BestLife's list, but it is a Rodale publication so it could be anything from Mountain Bike (now folded into Bicycling) to Details or Cargo or other.

But we're all about reading not kvetching, so here we go.

This month, BestLife has some good stuff in it. Here's the quick report.

The Dangerous Skies expose on page 112 tells what challenges Obama will face when he takes the Presidency in terms of keeping our airports secure from terror. The article also shows you how to make a bomb out of coke bottles and a bunch of stuff you could find at a Home Depot or local hardware store.

The writer lays out the info in an easy-to-understand manner (not the bomb stuff, the dangers still in our airports) and conducts meaty interviews with people like inspectors who are on the front lines every day. The piece is scary and informative. If I were to knock anything about the article, it doesn't reach high enough into government to speak with real accountable people. But I don't imagine the writer could have gotten an interview anyhow, so I still give it an A.

Mark Adams' column on allowing your children to fail is poignant and well-written. Adams touches on the tenets of allowing your offspring (of which I have none, but can relate because the way he teaches is the way I was raised) to reach for things and learn the ramifications of their actions. Simpler, if you don't let your child leap for things, how will he or she ever realize what happens when they miss?

Don't allow me to get all soapboxy on the issue of parents who pamper their kids to the point of not allowing them to play sports in which people keep score. But do allow me to praise Adams for keeping things realistic and explaining to new dads how it's supposed to go. Good work. It rang true and was a fun, informative read without being preachy.

As you might hope, the cover story also got my attention. But only part 2 of the multipart piece. The second part of The Best Adventure is titles The Trip That Changed My Life. In it are seven rules of travel, multiple photos, lots of quick stories from famous and not-so-famous people. It makes for a great read and starts on page 130.

The last two magazines on my list are Budget Travel and Inc. Each is a quicker read than the previous tomes and therefore I'm going to list out what was good with each and let you continue your day.

Budget Travel - November 2008 issue



Travel tips are FANTASTIC every issue. They give 20 Tips each month and I rarely read through it without finding half a dozen great ideas. This issue they start on page 16. An example is replacing your luggage wheels with Rollerblade wheels for a more rugged and durable base on your suitcase. Brilliant.

The travel blog section is light, but informative. I harbor a little anger at the mag for labeling this a 'travel' piece, but I guess it applies. The eight steps are basic for anyone who blogs about anything. It's called Expert Advice because it's written by a travel writer and blogger, but honestly, if you know how to leave a comment here on JeffsNotes, you know how to write a travel blog. That's on page 36.

Page 45 gave the real gem this issue. It's a Vacation Rental Handbook. If you've ever spent time overseas - in whatever direction - you know that hotels are heinously expensive and renting is the way to go. Budget Travel gets to the nitty gritty and shows you how to figure out all the details before your next trip. Would have saved me some time if they had this out when I rented a place in Paris for two weeks in 2007. C'est la vie.

Inc. Magazine - November 2008



Inc is trying to hard to keep pace with the newest tech companies and they really fell down this month. Not because the writing was bad or because their layout was horrible - both were fine. No, Inc missed the boat because their cover story and subsequent trumpeting of Kevin Rose feels fake now that Rose has closed down Pownce and is in slightly more dire straits than he was three months ago when the writers were compiling their Rose stories.

Yes, Kevin Rose of Digg fame is a true entrepreneur. But he's fallen a notch in some eyes and none of that comes through in the Inc issue. Blame it on the deadline cycle for magazines. Not to begin a whole commentary on how the news machine should revamp itself to tell features with depth in magazine form and put the rest of their news online...but that might be where we're headed.

Ironically, that's exactly what Rose's model is. Aggregating the news via the opinions and work of 30Million subscribers/users of his online sites. It's a good piece, but I think you're better off buying the magazine for the 6 Ways to Soup up your PC and the story on how water might become the next big opportunity.

That's all for now. I still have about 10 November mags to plow through. If you'd like to submit a review here, just leave a comment and I'll get in touch.

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Magazine Three-For-One: Fast Company, ESPN the Mag & Conde Nast Traveler

The pile of magazines on my desk has started to block the bottom of the window looking out over the farm here in suburban Boston. So I've decided to take an active role in whittling down that pile, recycling the glossy paper, and sharing the information in these publications.



Also, if I neglected this stuff any longer the issues would be so out of date you wouldn't be able to find them on any newsstand, much less in your mailbox, the library or even on a friend's or colleague's coffee table.

Let's jump right in...

Fast Company shouts on its cover about the best design gurus in the world, a feature on Marcel Wanders, a profile of Samsung and Target, and a neat little piece on the 52 gadgets they love. But I think the most valuable article in the October issue is the one on page 95.

It's the column by Dan and Chip Heath on why companies make it so difficult for customers to praise employees, the process and the firm in general.

The Heaths explore the productivity gains that people exhibit when they receive direct compliments versus their regular daily output. In one particularly well-written sentence, we learn "A thank-you from a customer, then, creates a radiating halo of happiness-employees feel recognized, customers feel joyful, and there's less coughing."

The coughing comment comes from the Heaths' contention that appreciated employees have a better health level than those who aren't appreciated.

Elsewhere in Fast Company is the aforementioned gadget article. Although it's misnamed on the cover, I like the piece and the editorial connection it has to the cover theme.

The feature starts on page 157 and is called Design Factories. On the following handful of pages there are 52 WIDGETS (not gadgets) that the magazine loves. Everything from sleek watering cans to thermometers to video game systems to phones, golf clubs and eyeglasses.

These gadgets/widgets blend cool looks with superior function. There's some stuff on the list and on these pages you might never connect with design excellence (like the Adiri Natural Nurse Bottle - as all it does is mimic a woman's architecture), but after a closer look you'll be won over.

Finally, Robert Scoble goes on a rantpage about how technology is ruining the newspaper industry. He stridently feels that if managed correctly, the newspaper firms that are around today can survive if they use tech to share their coverage and serve their advertisers.

While this column is passionate Scoble, it has a point. The one thing I wish he touched on more was the inclusion of citizen journalism as a factor in news organizations' demise and the necessity of skilled, trained reporters regardless of the media's eventual form.

Condé Nast puts out about a billion magazines and some are fantastic. I'm not a full-on fan of Traveler, but that's because I like Budget Travel Magazine and also because I can't afford a lot of the trips featured in Condé's publication.

On the October cover, Traveler has Asia Now, Paradise on Sale, and Endless Summer. Both Paradise and Asia tout great values. The Endless Summer piece talks about getaways to Hawaii, Mexico and other locales.

As with most magazines these days, Traveler gives you a full page (20) about their online options. They push you to the Web for more participation with other travelers on their forum. They give you short tip articles and they promise the chance to win a dream trip. Aside from that, there are lists and polls and a number of travel guides.

I say good job with the value-add, but enough Web talk let's go inside.

The Word of Mouth section is great as usual. It gives a series of one-page snippets and tips on half a dozen places and a few products. The info is easy to digest and seems useful. I'm not sure I can vet it yet because the places listed are Bangkok, Indonesia, Hong Kong and a few other spots I haven't been. But these parts are well-written.

The main section - StopPress - covers Central Asia. The 'Stans as the author calls them, are explored in great detail with neat little manners tips, an overview of each country/region, and details on prices and places to stay and visit.

Remember my caveat about this magazine? Well, in the hidden gem of Kyrgyzstan, hotels can be had for $310 and up a night. Some lesser-priced options are available, but this is what I fear every time I read a Traveler piece. I'd rather have a clean place to sleep for $100 a night and spend the rest of my money on food and entertainment.

Otherwise, the writing is descriptive and the pages on each place offer consistent details including The Big Picture, The Draw, Best Time To Go, Hassle Factor, Special Safety Concern and more. I like the layout and how the piece is editorially thought out.

In StopPress as well are a couple other gems. Wendy Perrin has a report on affordable (really) hotels and Kevin Doyle presents you with some interesting thoughts on whether you should give money to locals while on location in their home country.

Finally, the most fun I had in pawing through Traveler this month was with Boris Kachka's feature on etiquette in China. It's chock full of straight talk about how to act, react and what to expect when in China. From mealtime to social situations, and even driving, it's all here.

And in the last of our Three-For-One review, we have ESPN The Magazine. I have a pile of these and my schedule doesn't allow me to get through them in any semblance of a timely manner. The ones we're looking at this week are the 11.20, 11.21 and 11.22 issues.

I don't know where this issue convention came from, but suffice it to say, I use these mags as rest-room and time-killing fodder. These three issues feature (in order), an NHL Preview, an NBA Fantasy Preview, and an NBA Preview. This time of year fantasy sports have taken over the minds and souls of many sports fans. ESPN has recognized this and spends a good portion of its paper on that reality.

Inside each issue is the fabulous Sports Guy. Bill Simmons is from the Boston area which already makes him great. But his writing style, breadth of topic, conversational tone and real-world vignettes are fun to read and informative.

The column in the 11.20 issue talks about rules and Simmons uses golfers, poker players, baseball managers and NHL teams as examples to make his point that the world should follow the Simmons' set of rules. The little photos in each piece only serve to make them more fun to read (witness the Ted Knight/Judge Smails photo).

Another stellar writer on staff at ESPN is Luke Cyphers. He tackles the oft-talked-about issue of doping and uses the Lance Armstrong unretirement as the keystone to his column. Well-argued and written (and not only because I'm a cycling fanatic).

These two guys are in most every issue unless Simmons is taking another of his 14 vacations a year. But he's still a treat to read.

Also in each issue is the ZOOM section. Here, a series of amazing photos of sporting events grab your eye. I love the one in the 11.22 issue of the Rutgers College football team doing a drill. The symmetry of the photo is cool as is the way in which color on the field and in the uniforms makes the image pop.

Another piece I always look for is the Answer Guy. He tackles tough questions like why plays are called downs and why Nascar cars only turn left. It's done in a fun conversation with true experts and some pretty amazing research. You won't always get a definitive answer, which is also part of the fun. But this piece will always make you think.

Lastly, truly, is the Life of Reilly column on the back page. He's skilled, insightful and fun.

Ultimately, I read ESPN The Magazine for the writers and not especially for the data. I can find a lot of sports news online and to me, it's the personality and the commentary that drives the value of this subscription for me.

If you've never picked up an issue, take a look. They have regular little sections that cover all major sports and events within each league. They also do bang-up profiles on the big names and tiny names in all sports. It's deceptively light reading that informs you without much effort.

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