Below is a letter from Doug Van Pelt, I contacted him a couple of months back and asked if he could write a bit about what is happening with HM Magazine so we could share it with our readers. I’m sure that you guys know who Doug is; he has been the editor of HM Magazine for 26 years. The demand for a different technology has pushed many a print book and magazine right out of business. Fortunately for us, Doug stayed current with the upcoming trends and is still running HM, just in a different platform. HM’s presence and contribution are undeniable! While always focusing on metal and its varied genres, HM also gave a voice to notable acts that were outside of the mainstream CCM arena. HM Magazine is a treasured act in the scope of Christian magazines and they have endured while multiple others have fallen to the side. We need to support this endeavor, and if it is info on the heavy side of the music spectrum, they are the best thing going! Please read the letter below from Doug, he gives an explanation of what is happening and then we also reprinted his column directly from the magazine. On a personal level, I use the HM app, it works great and it keeps me in the ‘know’. Support Doug and HM, spread the word and let’s help take HM to the next level!
Well, long story short, HM Magazine has announced that it is going out of print. There is much I can say about that, but in the meantime, that is now headed towards the past and the future is (as far as I can tell) focused on making the digi-editions we’ve been doing consistently since 2007 as our one and only thing (if you count the digi-edition, the website and the app versions to be one and the same). While our archived digi-editions (which go back to 2007) are free to read, the current year’s issues are password-protected for subscribers only.
What I’d like to do is go monthly with our digi-editions starting in January. You have helped me greatly with your assistance in knowing who to cover, sending me press releases to keep our news fresh and relevant and also helping me get important interviews and album reviews done on a timely and regular basis. I can’t say it enough: “Thanks for your help and doing what you do!” I look forward to continuing to work with you as we transition from paper + digits to just ones and zeros alone (pardon the metaphor). I wanted you to know as soon as possible, but I have to admit, it would be fun to see who actually reads the “Note from the Editor” on the Table of Contents page.:)
I’m not closing the door on print forever. If budgets allow, we might do an occasional special edition and, who knows, maybe the budgets will grow exponentially and we’ll be back in print before you know it. I’m realistic and do not expect that to happen (at least any time soon), but I’m keeping my options and mind open. Please let me know what you think. Attached is my announcement to readers from the “Editor’s Note” on the Table of Contents page. Please read that, as it expresses and explains some of the in’s and out’s of why HM is going out of print.
(ed.note – Below is the letter from Doug as it appeared in HM Magazine)
I don t really want to say this, but HM Magazine is going to have to go out of print – at least for awhile. We are going to shift our (current) focus from print+digital to digital and nothing but the digital. We will honor all the regular subscriptions that are out there. In fact, we will triple their longevity as it translates into accessing the digital with a username and password. That means your one year normal (print) subscription will extend to three years of digital. I hope that those of you who have had a normal subscription realize that you have had access to the digi edition as well. If you haven t bothered to check it out online in addition to your print version, there s no time like the present to familiarize yourself with the browser and how it works with your computer, notebook or tablet. It s pretty simple, and it s pretty cool. Those of you who were already subscribed via the digital only editions; well, you were ahead of the game, and you will keep on rolling with your current subscription. The various app versions have rolled out over multiple platforms (iPhone, Android, with more to come), and these will be accessible on a per issue and separate basis.
Yeah, I have to admit, this feels like a defeat for me. I m okay, though. I can hold my head up, because I know I gave it my all to keep this magazine on the printed page. I’ve placed this publication in the Lord’s very capable hands time and time again. After going without a regular salary for over a year and incurring a mountain of debt for this business, I drew a line in the sand with this deadline. I figured what amount we could pull in with advertising sales and still maintain a profitable business. I set that reasonable amount as both a goal and a litmus test and also sort of a fleece before the Lord. I had confidence that, whichever way this turned out, that God was in control, and He’d guide and direct my paths. Even though HM has been like my baby, I’ve had to give it back to God and watch it change before our eyes.
If the digi edition of HM Magazine prospers, I would very much like to bring the print version back. I’m holding out hope that this will happen someday down the road, although I m making no promises, and I m certainly not holding my breath. To find out if/when this will happen, by all means, read my blog and/or the free weekly HM enewsletter for announcements. Thanks for reading.
Doug Van Pelt, Editor
HM Magazine – est. 1985
www.hmmag.com
P.S. Check out: the HM Commercial Spots #1, #2 and #3 at www.hmmag.com/etc/ & follow me at www.twitter.com/dooglar or www.facebook.com/HM.Magazine and check out my first novel at www.deserthighbook.com.
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