meet me at the pear tree

For the last few months, I've been busy. Busy with baby things, obviously, busy with an uber active two-year-old, busy trying to keep the house together at the seams, busy with work, and busy trying to launch my own magazine.

For several years, quite possibly since my university days, I've wanted to start a magazine of my own, with gorgeous photos and write-ups of heritage homes, antique furnishings, homemade foodstuff, independent boutiques and artists, crafters and artisans. Obviously, the start-up costs of such an endeavour would be, shall we say, prohibitive.

But now, the time seems right to create such a publication. No, I did not recently win the lottery. The times, they are a changing, and it's now possible to do all this online. No printing costs, no 10th storey office. Just me, my laptop and my Canon Rebel XT.

I've been doing a lot of research and have discovered many excellent examples of what I want, online. And if the number of advertisements gracing their side columns are any indication, they are successful.

Of course, to keep mine from being just like the others, I'm giving it a local slant - the Okanagan and neighbouring regions. At least to start.

To begin with, The Pear Tree will have one or two feature stories a month, a calendar of events and a blog. To begin with it will all be written by me, but (if) as advertising revenue increases, the plan is to contract other writers/photographers and an advertising agent, and leave me with the job of assigning and editing the work.

It's an exciting and yet somewhat daunting project. I'm NOT a salesperson, and so the prospect of rounding up advertisers scares me just a little. But it's something I'm passionate about and that should help ... I think ...

Our (Kyle is in charge of the graphic design side of things, including the above logo, and has been so lovely about indulging my sometimes mad whims) first issue should be out in December (egad, that's next month!) and will have, of course, a Christmas theme. I'm currently setting up pics with the Homes for the Holidays house tour, and am in negotiations with my favourite food writer to contribute something delectable for a food page.

When we go live, I will likely shut this blog down and continue - posting at least three times a week - on our Pear Tree site.

In the meantime, there's lots still to organize - in between the baby, toddler, house and other work. Whoever said that motherhood is dull??