Our magazine chronicles one, overlooked American town per issue. Think this American Life meets your daily newspaper. Welcome to Local.
SUCCESS! Local is going to print!
Scroll down to see what we'll do with any extra funding. (hint) *sing it* Let's get dig-i-tal, di-gi-tal!
Local: A Quarterly of People and Places is a band of writers, editors, and designers with a passion to narrate the overlooked America. We do this by honing in on one town per issue, while not neglecting the larger stories from the region and state we are working in. In this first issue, Jersey Shore, Pennsylvania, you will read stories ranging from an infamous bootlegger by the name of Prince Farrington to that of The Fair Play Men, who wrote "The Other Declaration of Independence". Unlike traditional journalism where we run to where the story is, we travel to places to find compelling chronicles.
Like traditional journalism, we do investigative pieces, humor and meditative columns, reviews, and special sections. The difference is, we do so from a microcosmic vantage point. Think when This American Life meets National Geographic and your daily newspaper. Well, something like that.
Why should you fund us?
Our team has been working on sweat equity for nearly a year to bring this magazine from conception to print. In order for Local to be an innovative and sustainable product that develops relevant and high-quality creative material, we need to pay our contributors a fair wage.
Who are we?
We’ve brought on writers, journalists, and artists who have contributed to and published in Wired, MSNBC, ABC News, ELLE, and The Chronicle of Higher Education. Additionally, our staff claims an organic farmer, a music teacher, a documentary filmmaker, a librarian, a furniture maker, and the list goes on. All together, we are a unified group of emerging thinkers and artists who believe passionately in substantive storytelling.
What are you funding?
- Next Issue $10,000
This covers travel and lodging for our next town, as well as fair wages for contributors.
- Print Version $5,000
If funded, we will issue 3,000 copies to distribute to our pledges and bookstores around the country.
Why print? Because flipping through a magazine feels good and you can pass it along to your friends.
- Website $3,000
A user-friendly and high-quality website that will bring in the necessary traffic we need to generate a strong following. It will also serve as a venue for web exclusive written and multimedia content that is not part of our quarterly publication.
- Pledge Prizes
The cost of our prizes, and the postage they need to get to you!
A portraiture of your choice by the omni-talented Liz Laribee
EXTENDED GOALS
If we make it to $25,000:
An even shinier new website, with cool interactive features- like maps and stuff.
If we make it to 30,000:
Want to tap around? We'll make an interactive iPad app, full of multimedia content to supplement the written words.
Money above these goals will go toward other much needed areas of expansion. This means distributing issues to a bookstore near you, hiring full time staff, and securing advertisements. These are all part of our long-term business plan, and with your help in the future, we intend to be a self-sustaining magazine, funded by partnerships.
QUESTIONS? UPDATES.
For more information, leave a comment here or e-mail us at hello@localmag.org
Updates: Facebook page, Twitter
Wanna talk to us personally? Call us toll-free at (888) 519-4590.
FAQ
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We have 35 days to raise $20,000. Your account will be charged at the end of the campaign period only if the sum of pledges reach this goal. If we don’t raise the total amount by the end of the 35 days, your account will not be charged and the project will not receive any funding. We hope for the former!
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The majority of our content is stories from Jersey Shore, Pennsylvania, but we expanded our magazine to talk about people and places from around the region and the state we are working in. Some towns could fill two issues worth if we tried, others will need supplemental material. Riding by the seat of our pants is what makes this project so enjoyable.
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While we have an in-house editorial team, if you are interested in writing, drop us a line at hello@localmag.org. If you have a town or place that you feel we should invest in, tell us about it. We are always up for ideas and dialogue.
339
Backers
$21,470
pledged of $20,000 goal
0
seconds to go
Funding period
Jun 23, 2012 -
Jul 28, 2012
(35 days)
- First created · 8 backed
- Dan Webster 956 friends
- Website: localmag.org
Pledge $5 or more
43 backers
Give us a chance! You will receive a .pdf e-version of Local’s first issue on Jersey Shore, PA. Read it on your computer, tablet or e-reader of choice. Imagine sitting in your comfortable chair scrolling through and reading about Hunter S. Thompson’s old stomping grounds or a feature narrating the story of the greenest steel mill in the world.
Estimated delivery: Aug 2012Pledge $10 or more
41 backers
You will receive a custom Local Mag postcard signed by the team + that inspiriting .pdf e-version of Local’s first issue on Jersey Shore, PA. Read it on your computer, tablet or e-reader of choice.
Estimated delivery: Aug 2012Pledge $25 or more
9 backers Limited (1 of 10 left)
From the Editor's Shelf. Your choice of any magazine from our Editor-in-Chief's personal collection. Orion? Lucky Peach? Harper's? Pacific Standard? Yes. And of course, Issue 1 of Local is included!
Estimated delivery: Aug 2012Pledge $25 or more
104 backers
Now imagine sitting in your comfortable chair flipping through the very first print version. This will give you the tangible, full experience of our investigative journey. Find it in your mailbox in late summer.
Estimated delivery: Aug 2012Pledge $50 or more
10 backers All gone!
We are caffeinating our campaign through a partnership with Little Amps coffee in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. Now you will not only get a memo book, the print and e-version of our magazine, but a bag of beans from one of the best slow roasters on the east coast.
Estimated delivery: Aug 2012Pledge $50 or more
31 backers
Stop imagining. We will mail you a customized Local memo book, and the print and e-versions. Also, look for your name in the sponsor section.
Estimated delivery: Aug 2012Pledge $75 or more
18 backers Limited (32 of 50 left)
Our sensational photographer and supporter Liz Laribee is offering this "sketch"y pledge reward: a personalized portraiture made on recycled cardboard of you, a family member, Ira Glass, Flannery O'Connor, etc. Your choice. So for $75, you can get a print issue, a portraiture, and a local notebook. Christmas in July anyone?
Estimated delivery: Sep 2012Pledge $100 or more
33 backers
Same, same but a little different. You will be sent a bundle of gifts: a year’s subscription to all versions, one Local memo book, and a donor shout out in our sponsor section.
Estimated delivery: Aug 2012Pledge $250 or more
9 backers
Get all of the above plus a special edition print photo (of your choice) from Jersey Shore, Pennsylvania.
Estimated delivery: Sep 2012Pledge $1,000 or more
3 backers
If you are an organization, we will highlight your ad in our e- and print versions, plus you get all of the above. If you are an individual, we will give you a lifetime subscription, a chance to join us at our next site or to feature your town in a web exclusive.
Estimated delivery: Sep 2012Pledge $2,500 or more
0 backers Limited (8 of 8 left)
Receive an iPad with a commemorative engraving, a lifetime subscription, a special shout-out in the first four issues, five one-year subscriptions to our favorite online mags, and an invite (plus one) to our team’s launch party.
Estimated delivery: Sep 2012Pledge $5,000 or more
0 backers Limited (3 of 3 left)
Ding, dong? Who’s at your door? The Local Team is here to compose a whole issue in your hometown. That’s something to root for. Pool your money together with family and friends and wrangle us to your community.
Estimated delivery: Nov 2012
