Why I Quit My Job To Set Up This Magazine
By all accounts, this is a stupid idea. If I was in the last bit of the Apprentice with the mean bald man and I was having to explain this decision, I would be crying whilst doing so. The Dragons Den crew may all be ‘out’ within two seconds of me describing my next plans for life.
That’s not to say it’s not a good idea. In truth, it’s the best decision I’ve ever made.
My explanation goes a bit like this. Four months ago I set up my own blog and wrote an article for the first time in over a year. Two months ago I handed in my notice. (This right here is where Deborah Meaden would narrow her eyes and say she was out).
My year and a half, nearly two years, up until that point had been fine - if slightly life altering. It was the period of life between graduating and starting to work full time and even though I really enjoy my job, I looked back at my University self and hissed. What an idiot. Thinking the life I had at University could continue into my early twenties. I got home from work, sat on the sofa and sighed, fogging my eyes over as I said to no one in particular, a dull wisdom in my voice, ‘They’re right. University really was the best it’s going to get’. It appears that adjusting to a different life and living situation gave me enough of an excuse to bury a lot of things that make me happy - things like going to gigs, nights out, the theatre and, most importantly, writing. There were a lot of explanations of this - having nowhere for the writing to go, being tired, just getting older, not having the time etc etc
But then one evening, thinking back to my University Magazine editor days, I decided to set up my blog.
And that’s what changed everything. It was one article - just one - but in giving myself the reason to create again, everything fell back in place. I was thinking of venues to go to, to see if they had anything to review. I was connecting with other creatives. I was WRITING again. I felt more like me again.
And with that all in mind, The Everyday was born.
The Everyday Magazine is here to be that reason you need to create again. To find that essential excuse you need to write something - or photograph something - or do anything - and know that there is a space for it and people will see it.
This isn’t a space for writers, artists, photographers - it’s for people who write and create, in whatever capacity. A space to grip onto your passions and tell them you will not let them be overshadowed - because the truth is you can do both. You can go to work and you can keep up with your creativity. You can go to work and go out to a gig. You can go to work and then write an article. It’s not as easy, I know, but it is important - maybe even more so than it used to be.
We live in a world where people are fast defined by the profession they have. Small talk about what we study has been replaced by what jobs we have. None of this is terrible, but there are a lot of hours outside of work. There is room in our life for doing SO much. We just have to make a few bolder decisions to be reconnected to that fact.
There is no theme to The Everyday, very deliberately so. This is not the next big magazine. This is not about reads or popularity. This is about the impact it will have on your life to share your work again. So many recognisable tropes of a magazine - themes, physical copies, regular writers - they promote exclusivity. They promote a culture of not replying to emails. The Everyday is not that. It’s doing things differently.
The Everyday is not here to judge your work. The Everyday is here to share your work. The Everyday is here to make your life more exciting, more varied, more full of what you love.
No excuses now. No talk of ‘selling your creative soul’ to the corporate world. It’s still there - and you know you want it to be.
If you create it, we’ll share it. You just need to get started now.
#WeAreMoreThan9-5
Written by Jess Blackwell
I’m Jess, the founder of The Everyday Magazine. Day to day I work in marketing and am training up as a photographer in a Boudoir Studio in Bath. As a general rule, I like to write about things that would be awkward to discuss with the family. Try not to blush.