editors speak
LOGAN Magazine
At sixteen years old Logan Olson sustained a brain injury. That
changed her life, but it didn’t stop her from being a young woman with
all the interests and hopes of any young woman. As her mother, Laurie
Olson told us: “When Logan came home from rehabilitation, life was
different but not over. We searched the web for a magazine for young
girls with disabilities.” Logan wanted a magazine that recognized her
dreams as a young woman. “When we didn't find what Logan was looking
for, we decided to create a cut-and-paste dream magazine. Logan's
brother and friend took pictures of Logan in downtown Spokane and we
used Photoshop to create a mock up magazine. Her high school teachers
and transition coordinators were shocked when Logan took it to school.
The more people we shared our homemade magazine with, the more help and
advice we received to really get this going.”
Logan
Magazine grew out of this very humble beginning, with a lot of
hard work and help from their community. “Two years later we were
working with a design firm here in Spokane called Klundt and Hosmer. The
creative director Jean Klundt loved our idea and helped Logan and I
create a template for the magazine.” Laurie Olson says the hard work
doesn’t stop the experience from being fun, too. “Logan is having a
blast! We never thought this would be a part of her journey.”
Support didn’t stop with the edges of Logan’s community. It seems
everyone who sees the magazine, loves what the Olsons are doing. “The
response has been overwhelming. Typically, a publication our size ends
up with about 50 new subscribers for every issue they release. We had
over 500 new subscribers after the launch issue debuted,” says Joy
Carlsen, a feature writer and editor for Logan Magazine. “We are
hearing from people all over the US and now, in Canada. We are hearing
from people living with disabilities, but lots of people without, as
well. We have subscribers who just liked the “look” and content of the
first issue so much they subscribed. We are being asked to expand the
features, adding new ones, and grow into a national publication.”
Despite the fact that the magazine has expanded amazingly from its
Photoshop beginnings, Logan is an important part of every issue. “Logan
is completely involved with the magazine, creatively, editorially, as
well as becoming a bit of a celebrity here. She has so many speaking
engagements I can hardly keep track of them, and has been speaking out
of our area as well. She attends almost every meeting and is filmed or
photographed nearly every week. She also has the most incredible sense
of humor and a great eye for color and design.”
“Logan enjoys presenting her story to audiences and she tells them
about her dreams for the magazine,” Carlsen says. “She encourages
everyone to follow their own dreams, talk about them, and make them a
reality. I think Laurie and Logan would agree that this entire journey
has been a lot of fun for them. The creative process, the fashion,
meeting new people, and hearing other stories are what we love to do.
Its hard work too, but more than anything, it has been fun and
rewarding.
Logan Magazine has opportunities for freelance writers too.
Carlsen says, “We have a wide variety of content open to freelancers. We
are always interested in hearing ideas for new features, as well as
entertaining options for single-run articles. Since we only expect
growth, there will be a lot of freelance opportunities available as that
develops too. The mission of Logan Magazine is to inspire,
encourage and inform young women with disabilities about how to lead a
lifestyle that is productive, purposeful and pleasurable. Our goal is to
motivate young women to live, work, play, dream big and look great
experiencing all life has to offer.
We especially like queries, yet are open to finished manuscripts,
although do not always have room for them. Most features in Logan
Magazine do not exceed 750 words (excluding sidebars). We want to
maintain a clear and open, inviting design, and future additions will
keep this in mind. Resumes and samples are welcome, especially if
submitting a query. (Finished manuscripts can often speak for
themselves.) E-mail is a great way to submit items, but we will consider
submission via postal mail too. Please direct submissions and queries to
Logan and Laurie Olson.
It can take several weeks before we are able to respond, and we try
to get back to everyone who writes in. We look for moving stories, eye
catching products, practical life tips, and are especially interested in
tools, services, ideas, etc. that encourage a young adult living with a
disability to live a happy life integrated and included in society. We
also ask our writers to use “People First” language. More information on
this is
available here.”
Our articles in Logan vary from a traditional teen magazine, in
that so far we focus primarily on success, dreams, and triumph. The
people we feature have not used the disabilities they have as a reason
to give up. We don’t try to weigh the readers down with drama, and
instead focus on the steps one would take to realize their own vision.
We aim for products that are more widely affordable, yet still
fashionable and practical. We don’t tell our readers how they should
live or what they should be interested in. We just present real workable
options and attainable goals, step by step.”
We are open to fillers, crafts, quizzes, and “how-to” ideas. Again, we
look for original, practical, and eye-catching. An open design, photo
accompaniments, contest giveaways, or feature sponsors are all extra
details that can make the difference in our acceptance of a submission.”
Writer’s guidelines are currently available by request, through email or
mail. We will be adding the guidelines to the site itself at some point
in the future. We look for writers of any age and experience, so new or
young writers are always welcome. We request first publication rights.
Payment consideration and other details can be found in the writer’s
guidelines.”
We are working very hard at moving Logan Magazine into the national
spotlight. Major advertisers, including Target, Microsoft, and
Nordstroms, are watching us closely. Target has made a donation for our
first contest giveaway, which will appear in the spring issue of the
magazine. We are trying to expand the magazine by at least another 16
pages. We hope to hold fashion shows, feature models in our beauty &
fashion features, and encourage more celebrity involvement. Our spring
issue will feature a story on Bethany Hamilton, for example, and our
summer issue features an interview with NBA player, Adam Morrison. We
dream about our readers spreading the word…getting Logan Magazine
into the hands of our audience, and reaching even more lives.”
For writers who want to contact Logan Magazine via mail, the
address is:
Logan Magazine
Logan and Laurie Olson,
Founders and editorial directors
PO Box 48262
Spokane WA 99228-1262
This page last updated on 01 April 2007
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