“I’m hunting wabbits … ehehehehe.”

In the digital magazine world, I do feel like Elmer Fudd the slow-witted hunter after the wascally wabbit. I have been searching for providers of digital magazines that offer horizontal page-flipping features. There’s quite a few out there — each with their own set of prices and standards.

I’m getting familiar with digital layouts, that don’t really have different mechanics, but respond much differently across digital devices. More readers are relying on their iPads, notebooks, book readers, and even cellphones to gain the flexibility of reading whenever and wherever they wish. That fact alone makes my hunt for the appropriate software vendor a meticulous one.

I want the best color, layout, device support, and reliability that will keep my VintageWest Magazine on the “shelves” for a very long time. Drawing advertisers is also critical to keeping my magazine on the shelves. Yet, without readers to keep flipping those pages, well, I just wouldn’t have much reason fo creating it each time.

And I hate doing my work twice. Hence, I have taken a bit more time to hunt for a digital interface and become more familiar with what they offer.

The good thing about this is my blatant use of practicing with a digital flip-page magazine for California Writers Club The Bulletin statewide publication. With the blessings of the Board, I was able to lift the news off an email vertical layout (like many of you receive in your mailboxes) to a horizontal layout on a web-based platform.

In non-techie terms, I created the newsletter but then updated it through the software that Aglaia Software provides its clients.

Voila! Instant magazine in digital format with pages you can turn (you can even hear the pages turn!!) and advertising that helps pay for it. many of you are already familiar with catalogues online … and this is no different.

I’m very excited.  Go here to see a sample of what VintageWest magazine aspires to look like.

A digital glimpse at the possibilities for VintageWest magazine

And with that good news I am off to read a contract and make some decisions.

 

Rusty