And So It Goes

So, the preview of the first cover is below:

What do you think?

It features art work by artist Andie DeRoux (www.deroux.com) as well as a logo designed by A.C. Linstad.

I'm 99% sure this is how the cover is going to stay when it goes to print.  There's no need writing who's in the issue as the majority of the issues will be sold directly to the consumer (i.e. not sitting on shelves in a store or newsstand).

The second issues cover is debatable at this point.  I have to do some investigating first before I can commit to that issues cover art.

Issue 3 is slowly taking shape as well.  I have a phone interview scheduled for this Wednesday that I am looking forward to!

I think this week will be spent getting the final copy to the printers.  Then I have to wait for the proof, make any corrections, and then place the order.  I'm still targeting a March release - mid or late March.

Issue 2 should be hot on Issue 1's heels - the only thing that would stand in the way of that is revenue.

I'm looking to the final product!

Curves Ahead

As life likes to do, the publishing of the zine threw me a curve today.  Due to the sheer volume of content and the extremely restricted budget, I am looking to now split the zine into either Issue 1 and 2...or some thing similar.  Basically, there will be two issues.

This isn't necessarily a bad thing but I just had to get used to the idea that everything I had done for the last 4 months would be in two separate issues.  You know, like, when you have a vision of how something will be and then at the 11th hour you have to change it?  Yeah, that's what I'm experiencing right now.

What's cool about it though is that I can have 2 covers, 2 review sections, etc.  What's not so cool is that it won't have the original impact that I had envisioned.  But, hey, it'll still be cool!

I now get to figure out a few things - how to lay this thing out myself and which content goes in which issue.  I'm actually kind of looking forward to that. 

I don't see this being a split where Issue 1 comes out....then months pass before Issue 2 comes out.  There is dated information in both issues so they need to come out as close to each other as possible. 

I know some zines have done a 1a and 1b type of thing for the very same reason.  I might do something more like Issue Eclectic and Issue Arts.....The whole a and b thing makes it seem like one is superior to the other and I don't like that.

So, a bump in the road but onward we ride!

-Mark

And Then Some

Besides documenting the last stages of the zine, I'll of course relay my own little insights into some of the interviews, odd ball facts, etc.  I will do my best to keep them E.A. related and not some left of center tangent (which I have a habit of doing).

So, one of the obvious questions is who will be featured in the zine?  Now that the contents are set - here's the preview *drum roll please*

*Maniac Butcher - black metal band from the Czech Republic. 
*Blodsgard - black metal band from Norway.
*Clandestine Blaze/Northern Heritage Records - black metal band from Finland and label
*Warblade - metal band from the US (New York)
*Dawn Desiree' - singer from the US (Virginia)
*Black Tape for A Blue Girl/Projekt Records - darkwave band from the US (New York) and label
*Satanic Warmaster - black metal band from Finland
*Negative Existence - label from the US (Georgia)
*Vienna Teng - singer/songwriter from the US (Michigan for now)
*Jester King Craft Brewery - new craft brewery from the US (Texas)
*Andie DeRoux - artist from the US (Washington)

I know what you're thinking.  That list is a bit heavy (no pun intended) on the metal artists.  I had to start somewhere and that's where my roots are so there ya go.  But, having said that, the interview with Vienna Teng is a lengthy monster (18 pages) and is such a great snap shot of her as an artist, it's the anchor piece in the entire zine.

Each issue will put a spotlight on a craft brewery and an artist of any medium.  I was fortunate that Jester King and Ms. DeRoux stepped up to the plate for the first issue.  I visited Ms. DeRoux's studio a few weeks ago which was very inspiring.  And, I received a beautiful beer from the guys at Jester King which is reviewed in the zine.

The interview process for Issue #2 has already begun.  One interview is partially finished while another is scheduled for next week.  I'll save who for a much later date.  No use giving it away so early.  ;o)

-Mark

The Rebirth

I actually created this blog in November 2010, right about when the idea for the zine took shape.  The first posts were written prematurely so they have been deleted and I've decided to start anew.

Initially, I was thinking of having both a print and a web zine.  This may take shape further down the road but for the time being, this blog will serve as the web presence for Eclectic Arts.

Right now, we're nearing the finish line in terms of content.  The layout and printing of the first issue still remain.  With any luck, this thing will see the light of day mid March 2011.  In reality that's not a bad timeline at all considering back in October, this zine wasn't even an idea!  Everything fell into place rather quickly.

I'd say the majority of the interviews were completed by the end of 2010.  As January came, a few more interviews, albeit very important ones, came through.  Not that all of the interviews aren't important but you know what I mean.

Also, more and more ideas came to me so that delayed the eventual printing of the zine.  As I sit here and type this, I am trying to juggle the first issue as well as some interviews for the 2nd issue.  It's an exciting time and I'm really looking forward to the finished product!

This process has taught me a few things:

1.  Persistence pays off.
2.  Being prepared (even overly so) pays off.
3.  It's never too late to start a new project if you're passionate about it.

It's rather ironic to me that the creative endeavor that I haven't spent any time with over the past 5 + years, is the one that is now at the forefront of what I do between music, writing, and photography.  Some of you that eventually read and hopefully enjoy the zine will know me only through that medium.  Whereas others have known me either through Seattle Next Door (my photography) or possibly through my days in the metal underground which stems back to the 80's.

Creativity is the key to my existence.  In small doses or large ones, I need it, like a drug.  In a good way.

-Mark