Today we listened to a speech and were involved in workshop by Liv Siddall. Liv is a writer, editor and content producer who works across multiple forms of media including: print, digital and radio. She went to Kingston University where she found that she liked reviewing other peoples work rather than producing her own. She then moved onto working for web and print based creative platform 'Its Nice That' after a successful third year placement (note I need to start thinking about and look into opportunities). After a few years there she quit and after a few months of unemployment was offered an editor role at Rough Trade Magazine. The monthly print supplement found in the famous 40 year old record company's, record shops (East London, West London, Nottingham, Bristol and New York) but originally opened in New York (1976) by Jeff Travis. Her role involved filming bands playing in the shop and interviewing them 1,2,3 times a week as well as starting a new radio show and most importantly curating a 64 page monthly magazine. All on a £1,000 budget. She started by getting a feel for the shop and researching industry and brand specific graphic styles in preparation for the 5000 copy a month print run.
After a year or so in that post they decided to move the magazine into an online format causing her to leave. She is now a freelance and a contributing editor of Riposte Magazine. She has written for: It’s Nice That, Riposte, Printed Pages, AnOther, Dazed, The British Journal of Photography, Mr Porter Journal, Grafik, Freunde Von Freunde, Amuseum, Beyond Magazine, St James Correspondent, The Debrief, Gymclass, Rookie, SomeSuch Stories and many more as well as recording podcasts, giving lectures and hosting events and panel discussions.
Her creative process:
- Building relationships will be customers
- Looking at music mags that she already liked in London e.g. clash wife, crack, DIY,
- Thinking 'What if the magazine was a person' and building the identity around that
- What would Rough Trade be as a customer - pints, dry sense of humour
- Old gig posters; bubble type, punk scenes
- Want to convey the vibe of the shop - how shit it is, ripped, broken, layer of grime, disgusting toilets
- Got moodboard and found key areas of the shop
- Implemented rules such as never putting celebs on the front and having a smile on every page
- Finding a format/template so it's easier to make
- Found local photographers all over the world to save money
- Use free online fonts - openness
- Scavenge for free stuff
- Oldschool stuff - horoscope to fill up pages
- Got questions from public to ask to celebs
- Got people who don't write to write reviews
- Got Jof to do a fears feature of things he's scared of
- Got bands to send art in
- Mac Demarco to guest edit one month for free! because he was album of the month
- 'If you run out of budget just do everything yourself'
- The standard budget for big glossy magazines is 60k per issue - Rough Trade shows you can make good stuff for less
- You can always get press photos for free - as she did with Johnny Marr
- Lots of collage
- Good customer service
She suggested:
- that we ask ourselves 'What are you really into?' and 'What do you really want?'
- Talk to people
- Go to as many interviews and take as many opportunities as possible
- 'Don't worry too much about what you're actually doing, just get on with it'
- Trying to find your own solutions is more attractive to employers than constantly asking for help
- Proof check everything
Examples of Liv's work for rough trade:
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