kids write

Another Editor Speaks
Leah Larson of YALDAH Magazine

Leah Larson is a fifteen year old wonder – and the editor and publisher of Yaldah magazine. Yaldah is a quarterly magazine for Jewish girls, written by Jewish girls. Starting a print magazine is no small undertaking so we’re excited to connect with Leah and learn more about Yaldah.

KMW: What magazines inspired you as you created YALDAH?
LL: American Girl was the magazine that I read most often then, but it was more of the lack of magazines for Jewish girls that inspired me to create YALDAH. There are many similar elements between YALDAH and American Girl, though.

KMW: What have been some of the greatest challenges of starting up a magazine?
LL: Getting advertising has been tough, but thank G-d it's getting better. One of the hardest things is just having enough time to do everything! My days are so full now, and I still have schoolwork and lots of other things. So it's hard to fit in everything I need to do, but I enjoy it tremendously.

KMW: What has been your favorite part of magazine creation?
LL: I enjoy deciding on the articles that will be in the next issue. I have so many ideas and not enough space. But even more, I enjoy reading responses from our readers. It's so encouraging to read how much girls enjoy YALDAH, how it has inspired them, or changed their life, even in a small way.

KMW: If you had to describe the tone of YALDAH, what would that be?
LL: Fun, upbeat and friendly. We write what young Jewish girls want to read--and who would know that better than young Jewish girls?

KMW: I know you're a quarterly right now, do you have dreams for expansion?
LL: Definitely. I've received many requests to increase the frequency, but at this point we just don't have the staff to get out issues that frequently. That is something I hope for in the future. We've also received requests for a kind of 'step up' magazine for older girls (YALDAH is geared for ages 8-14) but it will be a while until we have the staff to do 2 magazines!

KMW: How do you fit being an editor in with being 14? [I remember 14 being a pretty busy spot in my life]
LL: Good question! Now I've gotten used to the rhythm of magazine publishing, so I know when I'll be busier, etc. The hardest thing is probably fitting in YALDAH with school. This year I'm homeschooling so I have a flexible schedule, but it was challenging last year. I know there was one occasion when I was up all night getting an issue to the printer, and couldn't hand in an essay for English class in on time...My friends love reading the magazine and share their opinions with me. And I love meeting so many other Jewish girls and interesting people from around the world because of the magazine. I'm really enjoying it.

KMW: What kinds of things would readers of teen and tween magazines find in YALDAH that would be familiar? Fashion? Quizzes?
LL: There are many familiar features: fiction stories, interviews, crafts, recipes, quizzes, true stories, poetry, puzzles and a lot more.

KMW: What kinds of things would readers find that are really unique to YALDAH?
LL: One feature that is unique to YALDAH is our "Mitzvah Profile" (Mitzvah is usually translated as commandment or good deed). In each issue we do a short feature on a Mitzvah such as not gossiping or lighting the menorah. Our articles have a Jewish slant. For example, in a quiz about leadership we wrote about important Jewish leaders, and our fashion column only features modest clothing.

KMW: Are you subscription only? Or can YALDAH be found in any newsstands yet?
LL: We are mainly subscription, although about 3 bookstores sell YALDAH (in New York, Massachusetts, and Oregon). I just haven't had the time to call up bookstores and work something out. Hopefully we will be in more bookstores soon, or maybe go through a distributor.

KMW: Wow, you have a big editorial board...do you find it complicated to coordinate input from so many people? How does that work.
LL: This is our second year doing the editorial board, and last year's board had 12 girls. So this years 26 girls is much bigger. I received so many amazing applications, that I just couldn't narrow it down past these 26 talented girls. It is a challenge to coordinate, especially when they were first getting started. We correspond over e- mail so some days I was getting 200 e-mails just from the Editorial Board. Believe it or not, it's also hard to find jobs for everyone to help with! But I'm thoroughly enjoying getting to know these special girls, and they're doing great work for YALDAH.

So there you have it. Plus, YALDAH is open to submissions from young writers and you can submit online.

This page last updated on 01 June 2006