Good Internet Magazine: a regular publication for the small web

after asking here in discourse and on the discord server about whether or not folks think a print & digital magazine would be worth it, i’ve decided to move forward with this project that’s been in the back of my mind for a while!

a magazine?

for some background, i was a journalist for 10 years for both newspapers and magazines before pivoting to digital content. i’ve laid a lot of type in my day. this project is kinda combining these two passions! :two_hearts:

yes! enter good internet magazine!

some observations that kicked off this project:

  • the small web is decentralized by design. this means that keeping up with this side of the internet can be difficult, especially if you’re trying to unplug from social media habits.
  • having an outlet to get as many folks seeing, sharing, and getting to know other websites, website owners, and designs will only help the personal web grow!
  • most hobbies have publications about that hobby. webweaving should be no different!

format

the print magazine will be 8.5"x11" glossy pages, likely under 24 pages. illustrations will definitely be needed and preferred to promote small web artists.

the digital version will include two types of articles: low media (text and images only) and interactive. low media articles will require just text from a writer with perhaps some images attached, like a standard news article. interactive articles will have entire pages dedicated to that article, displayed exactly the way the writer/coder intended. think of the interactive articles as webpage submissions to our code jams! code the page however you want to tell the story.

both interactive and low media articles will be in the print version, with a QR code to take folks to the interactive version directly on the page.

topics

here are some ideas for topics of articles that we could have:

  • showcasing someone’s website or giving an overall review of someone’s site–not critiquing, but explaining what it’s like to experience the site.
  • unplugging, divesting, or degoogling from corporate social media and products
  • using the web as an art tool, highlighting weird & wacky projects on the web
  • aesthetics of the indie web
  • self-expression, collecting, curating–what “making content” looks like on the personal web
  • building communities, what social networking looks like in the small web
  • news about different websites, projects, open source collaborations, etc.
  • highlighting aspects and communities around this side of the web and their differences
  • different layout types, CSS tricks, design tips, planning out aesthetics of your website, design trends
  • “last [month/quarter] in the small web”–news and happenings around the different communities
  • interviews with other website owners, project owners, and figures within the indie web spaces
  • showcasing lesser known websites to give them some love~
  • how were people talking about personal websites in the 90s? 00s? 10s?
  • art around the small web, how to help artists
  • first-hand experiences of the small web like setting up your first web server or moving hosts for the first time
  • indie social media like pixelfed, cohost (rip)
  • explanations of federation and decentralization and its relationship to the web
  • reviews of web hosts or comparisons
  • zines within the indie web, finding guides and compiling them
  • answering frequently asked questions we commonly see around the small web

logistics

periodical cadence

a monthly magazine would be ideal, but we can also start quarterly if we think that might be too much to begin, considering we don’t know the number of subscribers we would have.

printing

i’ve found a printer who will accommodate $2/copy, so the print version will be paid to help us pay for future issues and postage. we can keep it low cost, which is awesome! i will be aiming for a preorder model initially to help offset the cost of the initial run, but if that doesn’t happen, that’s OK too.

website

the website, goodinternetmagazine.com, has a placeholder page currently with an email capture to notify when we launch.

first issue

may 2025 is a reasonable deadline (4 months) to develop an overall style, brainstorm article ideas, write articles, edit articles, and develop imagery. if we start quarterly, we’d need to accomplish this in four months anyway!

volunteer staff

i will definitely need help with this. i can’t write this all myself. <3

if you like writing about the personal web, the best way you can help right now is by brainstorming ideas for articles that you could write about the small web. if you’re unsure, ask me if the article idea is solid! i’m happy to help!

if you’re a digital artist, please consider lending your talents for illustrations, collages, and designs for our magazine! hoping for a polished, high-res look. if you’re interested, please let me know. we’ll have a better idea of what will be needed when our article ideas are finalized.

please share your thoughts!

if you have ideas, hesitations, questions, please let me know below. :smiling_face_with_three_hearts:

cc’ing @armaina & @Finel

20 Likes

Oh my god this is so cool! I don’t have any talents to contribute, but I’m excited to see what people come up with and how this turns out.

1 Like

grandiose! magnificent! good!
and now to the point =3

it is clear that everyone here will write their personal vision, ideas, and in their head they have already laid out the first copy, I say this because that is what I did.
what do I have in my head? -
if this is a magazine about small web, less manifestos, those who will subscribe to it already know what it is, what are the prospects, the greatness of small web, its importance, and all that. in essence it is like writing a manifesto article in a magazine about gays “how cool it is to be gay”. I have deviated a little from the point, but…

the point is that it is desirable to immediately get to the point, because you only have 24 pages, and this is a very big limitation. it only seems like a lot, in fact it’s 2 pages, with a cover, a preface inside, and a list of sections and articles, and a page with authors, links (the last page, number 23, the one on the back), so minus five pages, 19 remain, of which only 18 will have content (because inside there will be a poster with Vandamme like in the 90s, hahaha, no, I’m kidding, but in every joke - you understand).
so! we have 18 pages left for articles, of which probably 5 part goes for news, what new was created, what interesting and important happened in the world of website building, software, hardware, the Internet in general, important dates, anniversaries (on this day 30 years ago, and something like that), well, and some site on which Doom was launched (another joke). after that there are about 15 pages left, in the best case it will be 6 full articles, but we still want illustrations??? then there will be fewer articles, or the font will be smaller.
the author presented everything very competently regarding the topics of the articles, she is a good specialist and professional, she conducted reconnaissance - observation, made conclusions, and probably already sketched out some topics.
now about the design: I think that the magazine can be made as a classic site, just on the first page make “buttons-sections” with the page number, this will save you one page, which can be used for content, instead of writing a list of articles and everything else that was included in the magazine. if you are interested in this, I can sketch out a sketch later.

naturally a manifesto is needed, where would we be without it, in the first issue it is necessary, because it is the first issue, but in the future I would refuse it, because it is obvious information, and trained users who have already consciously chosen small net - have read this manifesto dozens of times on different sites, and are probably already tired of it.
information is needed that will educate and entertain at the same time (I am doing something similar, and since there is little criticism - most likely I am right).

Well, the cherry on the cake is the link mass, yes, it is needed, it is even mandatory. People who will see their pages on the pages of the magazine will definitely buy it. We are all people, we are all egoists, and we love ourselves very much. Even if it is only one link.

well and I would say it would be nice if it was decentralized. for example for a quarter of the price in the form of an e-book - how do you like that idea?

2 Likes

Maybe I could do something about collectives? Like “Collective Corner” where a few are highlights, shouted-out, explained, maybe creators interviewed. That’s a bit on the social networking side. I could also round-up some “news”. Whether it be for sprinkling throughout the magazine or in its own section. I’m not the most artsy, but I could maybe make some simple logos, symbols, shapes, designs. I imagine SVGs would be fine? I’ve been wanting more practice with them.

1 Like

This seems like a really cool idea, and I’d love to contribute some art and writings if possible!

1 Like

This sounds amazing, and also like a big undertaking! I’d love to contribute art and possibly writing. In particular I’m thinking some digital collages maybe inspired by the topics you aim to cover–I also do a good amount of pixel art, but that doesn’t always survive printing well.

If you want to reprint something from starbreaker.org, just ask.

Likewise, if you want me to write something specifically for Good Internet, you can also ask.

2 Likes

You can also add me as an author, I will be happy to write an interesting article, a new one. We will agree on the topic and size. If you say 2000 words, I will do it

1 Like

i won’t know if i’ll be able to help out with this directly until, like, late feb, but this is a thing that needs to exist and i will boost it as hard as i can

1 Like

id be happy to write or help with layouts! i dont draw much anymore but im solid at graphic design. let me know if/when you need anything :D!!!

1 Like

I’d love to help with the HTML side of the magazine — I have some experience making accessible HTML versions of my zines, and it would be cool if the digital version could be accessible (as possible).

4 Likes

It would be cool if one little segment (or maybe even just a strip along the side or top of one page) was a mini “button wall”, with different buttons in each issue. In the digital version they could be clickable, and in the print version they’d just be fun to look at and a way for people to show that their sites exist.

This could be in addition to one feature-length personal site showcase per month.

2 Likes

I don’t know if I have much to contribute but I am offering my skills as a digital artist where ever needed!

1 Like

This sounds like a fantastic project. Keeping my eye on this space. :-)

1 Like

I love this idea. A friend and I published a print 'zine about freestyle skateboarding for several years. I’ll buy your magazine!

1 Like

Some illustration and coding experience. Writing experience. Love this idea and can’t wait to see what happens with it. :D Photography, too.

1 Like

I have experience in magazine design so could contribute a bit if needed. Unfortunately have very limited spare time these days though.

1 Like

This is so cool! I can help with proofreading/copy editing if necessary, that’s what I do for a living anyways. :P

1 Like

This is an amazing idea! I don’t have anything to contribute atm, but I was wondering - what do you think about the prospect of also selling a printable version? Something like - you pay the same price you’d pay for a printed copy, and get the printable file yourself, that you can take to a shop. I’d love to have a physical copy of something like this, and help cover some costs, but I know that custom duties would make it a very, very expensive magazine :sillygoose:

I would love to contribute! One of my goals this year is to contribute more writing to magazines and zine compilations. I don’t have an idea right now but I’ll get my gears turning.

1 Like