Is there room for a Scottish genealogy magazine?

[DavidWW]

.....snipped........ One point I would say though David, is that a lot of the mags down south are forever guilty of running an article on say agricultural labourers and then providing links to resources just in England. Or forever proclaiming that statutory registration began in 1837, when up here it didn't, etc. In those situations, they are actually fairly unhelpful as you tend to wonder a) was the situation the same up here? and b) where do I go to follow up if it was?

Chris

The relevant editors are regulary reminded of this aspect by me and others.

Some are better than others in terms of requiring their contributors to include at least contact info and "further reading" info relevant to all other parts of the British Isles, if there isn't some brief reference in the body test of the article.

But then, the reality is that 90%+ of their readers are English with mainly English interests , and one can only assume that the editors' post bags are not full of complaints of lack of relevant Scottish info and/or requests for more Scottish info................

David

[Chris Paton]

Which is why there should be a Scottish magazine....!!!!! lol

I know the score, I regularly write for one of them, and occasionally for another, but I do sometimes get the feeling that we are commissioned to write articles just to prevent the accusation of Scotland being ignored. It often feels like crumbs from the rich man's table, and I would imagine that there is plenty of interest up here and within the Scots diaspora to sustain a mag if only someone would be brave enough to take a punt on it financially. Ah well, guess it is not to be...!

Chris

[DavidWW]

Which is why there should be a Scottish magazine....!!!!! lol

Undeniably so, and when you win the Lottery and are prepared to invest £100,000+ with a reasonable prospect of a half-decent return starting after maybe 4 or 5 years, I'll be there working with you

I know the score, I regularly write for one of them, and occasionally for another, but I do sometimes get the feeling that we are commissioned to write articles just to prevent the accusation of Scotland being ignored. It often feels like crumbs from the rich man's table, and I would imagine that there is plenty of interest up here and within the Scots diaspora to sustain a mag if only someone would be brave enough to take a punt on it financially. Ah well, guess it is not to be...! Chris

The key word being "punt", and the fundamentally key aspect being how you "reach" the descendants of the diaspora, i.e. in marketing terms it's not sufficient just to know who the target market are, but how to access them economically ................

David

[Russell]

Just to follow up David's comments on financial viability.
TalkingScot currently has just over 2,200 afficionados with variable 'guests' visiting the site.
Even if we all purchased a copy of a Scotland specific magazine there would not be sufficient income to jutify it and distribution costs to meet the needs of the Scottish diaspora would make the cost daunting, if not prohibitive.

My thinking is that we, as an easily accessed website, are providing an electronic equivalent which is not only as good as, but in many ways better, than a printed version.
There are more articles on how to research, how to lay out family histories, where to seek off-line resources, ways in which detective work can be accomplished (with explanatory notes too), naming patterns, overseas contacts - to name but a few items.
Combined with almost immediate feedback for queries without having to wait until next months issue.
Add Humour, history, religion and its role in Scottish life, family stories, successes and failures. What more do we really need ?
I love the printed word but it does not have the immediacy that TS offers.
Nor do we have to put up with the adverts which are essential to any magazines survival.
Scotland is ahead in all aspects of our genealogical resource and access mainly due to the electronic age. Lets work to add to what is already available to us on-line.

Russell

[emanday]

=D> =D> =D> =D>

Well said, Russell.

I know I've learned more since I joined TS than I ever got from anywhere else and I'm sure most of our members would say the same.

[Chris Paton]

Hi Russell,

The financial question is a good one, but on the other point, I don't see necessarily see why the existence of TS should be a justification for not having a Scots based gen mag! TS is an excellent resource, there are no two bones about that, and far surpasses any other site of the sort in the UK. But it doesn't stop me watching WDYTYA, listening to DUYR the radio, or reading a good genealogy book as well!

One of the strengths of TS is that it has a range of excellent tips, articles and experts willing to help those doing their genealogy. What it doesn't do is convince the ordinary punter on the street that he or she is actually interested in his or her family history, but they just don't know it yet! That's why WDYTYA was such a success, why DUYR has been recommissioned etc. A mag on a shelf with a headline like "My Grandad was at the Somme" will instantly attract a casual viewer in a shop who also happens to have a grandad at the Somme, but who had never thought of looking into it, etc.

Also, some people actually prefer to read a mag than to sit at a computer all day. It's a big world, I'm sure it could accommodate both! lol

Chris

[Pandabean]

Rather than a magazine that is printed have you considered a monthly newsletter for talkingscot? It does not need to cost much to make if each of us puts in a small part/article.

You could have stories in it submitted by people on here, small guides as well as humour or history of certain areas. Most people on here have an expertise in some areas that others don't. In the case of questions it can be something like question of the month. "How do I find out Bloggs was here?"

I know of a magazine on the subject of bushcraft where they are not in the shops but online and cost a couple pound for a 30page or so glossy A5 booklet packed with tips. Again you would still have to factor in the costs of producing it. However if it were in a PDF format for people to download then they could do with it what they please (print it, save it).

I would be more than happy to help out with it if it does go ahead at some point.

[Chris Paton]

It's an interesting suggestion Andy, but editorially who would run it I guess? It could also possibly go against the point Russell was making concerning the strength of TS. In his post, if I have understood him correctly, Russell was suggesting that the very immediacy of TS is the reason why not to have such a publication - if you make a post, you can get an almost instant feedback to it, and that is indeed a very valid point to a degree.

I think where I would differ is in the nature of how a site such as TS and a magazine or a telly prog or radio prog works, and hence why I think there is room for both. When we access TS we do so interactively. We can make a request and await a response, we can search through the site for older posts that may contain a subject or answer that we are looking for etc. However, when we read a book or a mag, watch a telly prog etc, we are undergoing a passive experience. The only interactive effort required is to switch the telly or radio on, or to turn the page!

My personal way of regarding TS and the media is that I see TS as being the absolute essential toolbox for Scottish interest genealogists, professional and amateur, whereas I see magazines, WDYTYA etc, as being a showcase of the stories that that toolbox can help unravel. When I read YFT, my personal favourite parts of that mag are the case studies, just to read someone' else's achievements and stories! I'm not looking for an education, just looking to be entertained for the duration of the read, the same as when I watch WDYTYA etc. When I want to learn about something, I come to TS and other forums, and am amused with anecdotes along the way, but the balance of education v being passively entertained is much different.

Actually, just to be controversial (!), I would make a possible suggestion that a genealogy mag in Scotland should not be run by genealogists at all! lol "Your Family Tree" in England was put together by Garrick Webster, whose background was in the editorial team of a computer magazine, which he has since returned to after a highly successful four years run as editor. The reason why his mag is now outselling the others is because he saw an opportunity that the others didn't to make it a much more democratically accessible magazine in its subject matter. The competition to a degree were focussed on a more genealogical elite readership, from the good old days in the past. But the ease of access to records has now changed that, and everyone can research their own history with some ease, nowhere more so than up here in Scotland. I think the fact that Garrick was motivated more by profit for his company (Future) actually made him editorially impartial, I would suggest, and he was looking to target people who were vaguely thinking about having a go or just starting out. He lured them in as a readership, got them involved, and built up a loyal readership that the other mags didn't cater for. Have look at the other mags now - they're playing catch up, having been trumped!

Anyway I guess it's all academic! I don't have £100K, and if I did I would probably think about paying the mortgage off first!!! lol

Chris

[Pandabean]

One thing that I find limiting in a way about the forum is that there is no way to post images in posts. Some people find it easier to follow pictures, for example if it was a how to on using ScotlandPeople or a quick guide to medals. This could be done with a PDF/Factsheet/Newsletter. I understand the reasons behind why we can't post images within our posts. Yes Talkingscot has that immediacy but sometimes there are a few things that may cause some topics to be missed by members. Such as a post within a forum that a person does not visit regularly or at all. But as said if it is in a magazine you have to wait to the next issue or two for an answer and that the forum is better in that respect.

As for who would run it, well thats down to who has the time. Its the same as for the magazine if it were run by ourselves. If individual people contributed all that would need doing is formating the text to the required format of the magazine/newsletter and some obvious checking.

Also there would be some competition from current literature such as the Scottish Family Tree Detective, which covers a fair bit on Scottish records and how to search them and what to look for.

On another aspect about the readership, you would not only have interest from Scotland but ther would also be interest from America, Australia, New Zealand, Canada etc. So there is potential for a much wider market. Is it not the case that alot of Americans claim Scottish Ancestry and are quite interested in it?

[Russell]

Hi Chris

If there was a specifically Scottish mag I would more than likely subscribe (provided the quality was there!) but it would take such heavy initial investment to reach a point where it just broke even that I doubt anyone would lay out the finance for it. Like you, I enjoy sucess stories and different approaches to finding the past.
The idea of a non-genealogical person wouldn't phase me as we all have rather narrow areas of interest whether they be family, one name, geographical and the editorial board would fall apart trying to meet the demands of its membership without neccessarily meeting the preferences of the readership.
Its just that out gene researcher pool is too small for a magazine to be viable.

Must go and run my family history group now

Russell