MagsWest returns in Vancouver November 3 and 4 at UBC Robson Square

MagsWest returns, bigger than ever, November 3 and 4 and in a new location at UBC Robson Square, next to the Vancouver Art Gallery in downtown Vancouver. 

MagsWest 2016, presented by the Magazine Association of BC, includes 6 professional development sessions, 2 labs, 1 workshop, a couple of free Q&A/consultation sessions and a variety of great speakers.

The keynote is by Léonicka Valcius: "On Equity and Inclusion".  She is a Toronto-based publishing professional who advocates for equity and inclusion in Canadian publishing and literature. She is the founder of DiverseCanLit, a growing online resource for readers and writers from marginalized groups, and is the Festival of Literary Diversity’s Chair of Board of Directors. She has been a literary agency intern, a sales intern, and a children’s book buyer. Léonicka is currently a title analyst on the online and digital sales team at Penguin Random House Canada.

See the full lineup below.

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MagsBC revives MagsWest conference

The Magazine Association of BC is reviving its MagsWest conference on November 6 at the VSO School of Music in Vancouver. MagsWest is a one-day conference for magazine staff and contributors, freelancers, bloggers and others interested in publishing and promoting creative content. This is good news after a difficult period for MagsBC during the past couple of years becaus funding problems raised a question whether such professional development could any longer be afforded.

Among the sessions on offer is Ian MacKenzie, filmmaker and media activist (Occupy Love, Sacred Economics), presenting Kickstarter or Bust, for anyone who wants to make their idea a reality through crowdfunding. MacKenzie has successfully helped raise over one million dollars through over 40 crowdfunding projects. In this workshop he demystifies the world of crowdfunding and shares the strategies behind some of the most successful campaigns. 

Other sessions:

• Financial Management for Small Magazines: Lisa Whittington-Hill, This magazine, Toronto
• Inbound Marketing for Online Magazines and Bloggers: Patrick Sauriol, DigiBC, Vancouver
• Production Workflow/Project Management Tips and Tools: Jess Ross, TVA Publications, Ryerson University, Toronto
• From Social Media to Social Websites: the Changing Nature of an Online Presence: Phillip Djwa, Agentic Digital Media, Vancouver.

Dan Post elected president of MagsBC

Dan Post

Dan Post is the new president of the Magazine Association of BC (MagsBC) for 2015-16. In a note to members, he acknowledges that there have been "a challenging couple of years" for the organization. Post is the publications manager at the BCIT student association and publisher of Link Magazine, a monthly digest of student culture and ideas. Previously, he worked for Geist and was managing editor at Color magazine from 2011 to 2013.

It will be smaller, and members will pay more, but MagsBC will carry on

The Magazine Association of BC, beleaguered and under threat for a couple of years, is going to carry on, after a vote at the association's annual general meeting on June 26. It will do so as a smaller entity, operating out of executive director Sylvia Skene's home and giving up its longtime offices on Homer Street in Vancouver and even its fax number, to save money. And its fees will be going up.

In a member newsletter, Trudy Lancelyn, the 2014-15 president, said

"Associations exist because their members derive benefits from joining. For MagsBC, the internship grants, professional development seminars and networking events pay back – in some cases in ways that go directly to members’ bottom lines....However, funding is only possible if the association exists, which means that we as members have to show our commitment and support by ensuring its continued viability."

Members are being asked in a survey to rate current and suggested projects and member feedback is very important, says Lancelyn.

As but two examples of the difficulties under which MagsBC has been labouring, the newsletter pointed out that their popular internship subsidy may or may not be subsidized by the Canada Periodical Fund and, in the meantime, they will continue to collect applications should funding become available. And the announcement of an Economic Impact Study being undertaken this summer by Rowland Lorimer and associates at Simon Fraser University turns out to have been premature, though magazines are being asked to continue to take part.

"What we didn't realize [when the announcement was made] was that the CPF has not yet decided whether to approve funding for this research. 

"We apologize to the folks at CPF for thanking them prematurely. We had no intention of using our thanks to pressure or embarrass the CPF, only to acknowledge its importance in supporting our industry."

 In February 2012, Mags BC was  thrown into a crisis when two funding applications, totalling $151,694, were rejected by the CPF; the agency relented and approved one of the two applications, but still with $25,000 less than it had applied for. A task force was created to address problems in four areas: grants/partnerships, fundraising/sponsorships, Board/Committee recruitment/development, and advocacy. The positive vote at the AGM is the most recent outcome of these discussions. 

Financial problems force MagsBC to let ED Sylvia Skene go

The financial problems of the Magazine Association of BC have culminated in letting executive director Sylvia Skene go. A note to the membership from president Jenn Farrell said this was effective March 28 and that the work Skene had been doing will, for now, be done by members of the board and other volunteers. The organization is also looking to sublet part of its current office space.

"None of you will be surprised to hear that times are financially tight. MagsBC, along with many of our member magazines, has always had to make do with a little less than we’d like. But recent years have been especially challenging: we’ve seen a decrease in federal and provincial funding, along with a distinct shift from operational funding to a project-based model. All indicators suggest that this trend will continue, and so our focus, as always, has been on creating projects and initiatives that will best serve our diverse membership."

The message made it clear that Skenes' departure was part of an effort to streamline costs and find a more sustainable model for the future, thanking Skene for her "tireless work as ED and her commitment to our organization." Skene was appointed as executive director in August 2011 and came into an organization that was already funding-challenged. 

Mags BC intends in the coming year to continue to offer its internship program, its Magazine of Magazines and its new web-based professional development seminars.

"We’re also encouraged by our involvement in Creative BC, an independent non-profit society that will engage government and industry to develop a five-year strategic plan for the creative industries and conduct a review of government support programs for the sector," said Farrell. 

"Three million dollars in government funding has already been earmarked for Creative BC, and MagsBC will be working with its creative partners—MusicBC, the Association of Book Publishers of BC (ABPBC), and the Canadian Media Production Association, BC Producers Branch—to drive that funding to the requested $15 million over the next five years. 

"A fully funded provincial creative industries strategy—no matter what government is in place—will go a long way to ensuring a vibrant and long-lasting creative community, of which Mags BC will be an integral part."

Related posts:

• MagsBC continues to be beset by funding refusals from Canada Periodical Fund
• Carry On regardless": MagsBC promotes its 2-day professional development conference
• MagsBC gets temporary financial reprieve
• MagsBC appoints Sylvia Skene as new executive director
• Magazines BC dealing with staff turnover and CPF funding disappointments

Carry On regardless: MagsBC promotes its 2-day professional development conference

The Magazine Association of BC, which is coping at the moment with a funding crisis, is plunging ahead with a professional development conference called (irony intended, we're sure) BCALME & Carry On. It's a two-day event with workshops, presentations and is aimed at helping BC magazines grow and flourish.

It is on Friday, March 23 and Saturday March 24 at BCIT's downtown Vancouver campus. There will also be an evening reception and keynote address at the Bill Reid Gallery.

More information can be found here, or on a Facebook events page. 

MagsBC gets temporary financial reprieve

The Magazine Association of BC has received what it describes as "a stay of execution" as Canadian Heritage has reviewed and approved one of the two applications that had earlier been rejected. This gives MagsBC $125,020 to fund a number of projects (some of which have alreadywell advanced and for which money has already been spent) such as the 2012 magazine directory, MagsWest 2011 (held last June) and the association's BC Ferries initiative with the News Group. The $25,000 application for industry market research will not be revived.

MagsBC was thrown into crisis by the turndown in funding and warned its members that it was within weeks of closing its doors. 

The association says it may not see a cheque from Heritage until April, after an amended contribution agreement has been signed, though the ministry has said it will expedite things. As a result, the task force meeting was held Feb. 9 to consider ways of reacting to the crisis, current and ongoing and means of finding new ways to function and become self-sustaining. Among the suggestions is to expand the membership to other content providers and media publishers.

MagsBC appoints Sylvia Skene as new executive director

The Magazine Association of BC has appointed Sylvia Skene as its new executive director, effective immediately.She replaces Rhona MacInnes who resigned in June.

Skene was formerly with the Advanced Education Media Acquisitions Centre (AEMAC) at Langara College, responsible for updating two web sites and an online distributors’ database, CANDI as well as other administrative duties. She held a variety of instructional roles as Langara and was on its board of governors from 1998 to 2001 and Langara Council from 1996 to 1998.

These days [says a post on the MagsBC e-letter], Sylvia volunteers as part of the team of "Beautiful Minds," a show that focuses on de-stigmatizing mental illness, on Vancouver Co-op Radio. She also volunteers for Art for Life, an auction that is a major source of revenue for Friends for Life, a charity that supports people with life-threatening illnesses and their families.

In the same newsletter there was a farewell from Heidi Waechtler, who is leaving to enter the SFU Master of Publishing Program. Skene will be running a one-person shop for a while, largely an outcome of funding challenges in BC.

Magazines BC elects a new executive

Magazines BC now has a full executive slate after the following were elected at the recent board meeting:

• President -- Kim Mah, managing editor, TV Week
• Vice-president --Steve Ceron, publisher, Arrival
• Treasurer -- Alexandra Samur, managing editor, rabble.ca
• Secretary -- Michele MacKenzie, marketing consultant, Business in Vancouver

The new slate was made necessary because of the resignation at the first of November of president Elizabeth Rains, treasurer Jennifer MacLeod and director at large Patrick Mackenzie. Macleod is leaving Color magazine in December. Rains's  is said to intend to rejoin the board sometime in the future. Mah, then vice-president, stepped in as acting president until the recent board vote. MacKenzie and Samur are new to the board.

* * *

The regional association is getting ready for its annual conference ("magazine camp") at the Tigh-Na-Mara resort in Nanaimo January 28 to 30. Keynote speaker is Terry Sellwood, the general manager of Quarto Communications. Other presenters will be

• Jon Spencer of Abacus Circulation; 
• Haig Armen, creative director, LiFT Studios and John Maxwell, assistant professor, SFU Master of Publishing program;
• John Burns, editor at Vancouver magazine and instructor at Capilano University;
• Gwen Dunant, president of Dunant Consulting and Magazines Canada program coordinator;
• Hilary Henegar, digital editor of GranvilleOnline.ca;
• Patty Osborne, executive director of Geist magazine;
• Rick Staehling, art director, instructor and consultant

Shuffle at MagsBC as president and treasurer resign

There have been major changes to the board of the Magazine Association of BC with the resignation of president Elizabeth Rains, treasurer Jennifer MacLeod and director at large Patrick Mackenzie. Macleod is leaving Color magazine in December.While no reason was given for Rains's resignation, it is said to be temporary and she intends to rejoin the board sometime in the future.

Vice-president Kim Mah has stepped in as acting president, pending executive elections at the next board meeting November 30. Two new board members have joined: Michele MacKenzie, marketing consultant at Business in Vancouver magazine; and Alexandra Samur, managing editor of rabble.ca.