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Behind UPPERCASE: The Creative and Curious Journey of Janine Vangool
262 Plays2 months ago
At UPPERCASE publishing, Janine Vangool truly does it all! As the driving force behind every aspect of the business, Janine wears multiple hats: publisher, editor, designer, customer service representative, logistics coordinator, subscription manager – you name it, she’s involved. Janine embodies the UPPERCASE ethos: a commitment to craft, a love for the creative process, and an appreciation for the beauty of handmade things.
Janine’s journey began with a background in graphic design. Working as a freelance designer for arts and culture clients, she honed her skills and built a strong foundation in visual storytelling. Along the way, she also taught typography and publication design at the college level, passing on her passion to the next generation of designers.
Her love for design isn’t limited to publishing. Janine has been a shop owner and bookseller, curated galleries, launched a wholesale line of greeting cards, and, impressively, hand-assembled 10,000 books with the help of a dedicated team. Her sewing skills even found their way into her business, as she crafted products for retail by hand.
Adding to her creative repertoire, Janine has collaborated with Windham Fabrics on four distinct collections. Her love for vintage items, particularly typewriters, has not only influenced her personal style but also inspired an entire book. Janine also created the UPPERCASE Encyclopedia of Inspiration—a beautifully curated series of books that are thoughtfully designed and offer a high-quality tactile experience that delves deeply into niche creative fields.
Janine’s story is a must-hear for anyone with a creative spirit and a curious mind!
Website:
https://uppercasemagazine.com/
Newsletter signup:
http://uppercasemagazine.com/free
Instagram:
https://www.instagram.com/uppercasemag/
Our Podcast is proudly sponsored by Jet Creative and UrbanStems! Jet Creative is a women-owned marketing firm committed to community and empowerment. If you are looking to build a website or start a podcast--visit JetCreative.com/Podcast to kickstart your journey. UrbanStems is your go-to source for fresh gorgeous bouquets flowers and gifts delivered coast-to-coast! USE: BLOOMBIG20 to save 20%! Subscribe to this podcast and follow us on Instagram and Facebook @rebloom.podcast
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Transcript
Introduction to Rebloom and Hosts
00:00:01
Speaker
Do you have a dream that is a small seed of an idea and it's ready to sprout? Or are you in the workplace, weeds, and you need to bloom in a new creative way? Perhaps you're ready to embrace and grow a more vibrant, joyful, and authentic life. If you answered yes to any of these, you are ready to re-bloom.
00:00:24
Speaker
Welcome to the podcast where we have enlightening chats with nature lovers, makers, and artisans as they share inspiring stories about pivoting to a heart-centered passion. Hello, I'm Lori Siebert, and I am very curious to hear from friends and artisans about the creativity that blooms when you follow your heart. And I'm Jamie Jamison, and I want to dig deep into the why behind each courageous leap of faith and walk through new heart-centered gardens.
00:00:54
Speaker
Each episode of Rebloom will be an in-depth conversation with guests who through self-discovery shifted to share their passions with the world. Get ready to find your creative joy as we plant the seeds for you to Rebloom.
Introducing Janine Van Goel
00:01:12
Speaker
Well, hello, everyone, and welcome to yet another episode of Rebloom. Today is going to be the most interesting conversation. We get to go to another country again, um and I am going to toss it to Lori and let her do the intro. Hi, Laura. Hi, Jamie. So today we get to talk to a woman that I have had great admiration for for many, many years.
00:01:39
Speaker
um She is the publisher of Uppercase Magazine along with other things that she does that she will talk about. Janine Van Goel, I just, her publication in my opinion is Amazing. It's so well designed. It has such great content. I've been honored to be in it a couple times, which when I get the get the publication in hand, I just like squeal and have to share. And so I can't wait to hear more about her journey. So welcome Janine. Welcome Janine. Hi, Larry.
00:02:17
Speaker
Hi Jamie, thanks for having me today. Oh,
Janine's Background and Career Transition
00:02:20
Speaker
you are so welcome. Well, Taneen, how, tell us, talk to us about, was uppercase the, were you always in publishing or did you start out doing something else?
00:02:30
Speaker
Well, professionally, I'm a graphic designer by training. um So that goes back to when I went to art college to study visual communication, so illustration and design. um But I knew then that I wanted to be a graphic designer because I just have always loved combining text and images.
00:02:52
Speaker
um And I just love, I love books. I love holding books as objects. So um that interest and love of publishing was really early in my life. It goes back to my childhood even. um And so I studied visual communications and became a graphic designer. And I did work for arts and culture related clients freelance for about 12 years before starting.
00:03:17
Speaker
So I read a little bit about your your history of working for a firm that ah there might have been a little bit of sexism there, possibly. Am I right? And so maybe that spurned you to wanting to lead a more entrepreneurial life.
00:03:36
Speaker
Yes, 100%. It was my first real job out of college. And I was like 22, I guess. And um the boss was an older man. He was probably in his 60s. And he he referred to me as little girl a few times. And I would not stand for that. And I corrected him.
00:04:05
Speaker
And I learned a lot. I was only there for nine months. But, you know, when in the first time he called me a little girl, i I was like, so shocked. Like, no, you can't call me that. yeah And I corrected him yeah and he did it again. um And both times he gave me raises afterwards. For a while because you corrected him. I corrected him. I don't know. But it it was not it was not an ideal situation for me. um but I was glad that I stood up for myself and I had doubled my salary by the time I left. Oh, that's great. I got called kiddo all the time. Oh. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. By several older male clients, yeah, they'd call me kiddo. Yeah. Well, I'm short statured. I'm only like five one on a good day, but it doesn't matter.
00:04:52
Speaker
It does not matter. And I'm glad that maybe the the workplace has changed considerably, thank goodness, since those 80s, 90s, well, even before that. But when I was working, and it was not was not good. It was not good.
00:05:06
Speaker
Yeah, we were talking with some friends over the weekend or recently about things, different things that were said to us by clients back then. And today, I mean, it's kind of horrifying to think back on those things. so But anyway, we digress.
Uppercase Magazine's Conception
00:05:27
Speaker
So we digress. So you so you you did. Yeah, you did graphic design for a bit. And then was uppercase percolating?
00:05:36
Speaker
always in your brain or was it? what Well, um the interest in someday doing my own books was there percolating from a design standpoint. like I wanted to be able to design my own projects start to finish. um But I did enjoy working for clients and I did design books and magazines for other clients and that was really great to you know learn how to do things and how not to do things like observing of how people did their marketing and around their businesses. so I learned a lot in those years when I did work for clients.
00:06:10
Speaker
um and so Uppercase itself kind of began in 2005 when um I was actually designing um a brochure for a client and they were talking about this new thing that was opening in downtown Calgary called Art Central.
00:06:26
Speaker
And it was an older building that was renovated to be like a three level um destination for art. So there'd be artist studios in there and a cafe and a restaurant and it was meant to be like ah you know a hub for Calgarians to come and get the art and I really love the concept and it was there was opening spaces and it was all like newly renovated and appealing a blank slate and I decided that I was going to ah move my graph design business out of the room beside my kitchen out into the real world because I've been working you know in my house for 12 years and it was
00:07:06
Speaker
Like i it was okay, but I was like, well, what else is out there in the world? yeah So part of the mandate of that um being in the attendant there was you had to have a public facing aspect to your business. So that's how uppercase came about. It was the uppercase gallery books and paper goods.
00:07:22
Speaker
So um in my space, the front of it was the gallery um where I would curate shows that were based around graphic design and illustration. And then I had a nice big wall of books of other publishers books, and then another display of greeting cards and paper goods that I designed and made and I used to like sew things and and sell them there. um So it was sort of like a an experimental playground for entrepreneurship because i didn't I've never you know worked in a store or had a store or curated a gallery or anything. so um then In the back is where I had my desk and my computer and I still did all the work for graphic design clients and that's what paid the bills and paid the rent for a while. But in the front was like my experiments of figuring out what I could do with my own talents and my own ideas.
00:08:11
Speaker
Oh, that's fun. I love that idea. Well, and it's a great way to kind of test the market too, because you're not all in, you're sort of partially in, but really doing some market research, so to speak. What seemed to resonate when you curated that space?
00:08:31
Speaker
um Well, the gallery exhibitions were popular and it was partly because if I was writing it with like a whole bunch of other artists who also had their galleries and we would have events called first Thursdays of the month and so yeah everyone would be open late and it would be an opening gallery shows and people would come and there'd be wine and food and it was very you know popular.
00:08:52
Speaker
And that's how I got to know people and my customers and the artists that I was curating were both locally but also so internationally. um So that was really interesting um just to meet people and to have people come into the gallery en masse on those days and see what they liked. And there was definitely an interest in the kinds of books that I was curating and bringing in because they were um higher-end graphic design books and books about illustration and art that weren't as readily available at the time. This was like 2006 or 2007. And people liked the things that I was creating that were unique. um I had a line of products that called Eclecto, like Eclecto Notes, um which were hand-bound books that were full of um like, you know, vintage
00:09:43
Speaker
and dictionary pages and found ephemera and interspersed with pages that I designed and um I would staple them together and I had a foil die-cut spine that I would wrap around them and they were very pretty and they were all like one of a kind.
00:09:58
Speaker
And I made many, many of those. Those were very popular. um So it's just, yeah, it's just lots of experimenting. It's fun. So two things. You were ahead of your time in the whole artist journal world because that has definitely exploded. And secondly, I feel like I feel like Uppercase is almost like a curated gallery in print. So I feel like you know you choose themes, then people submit to those themes. And I feel like you're almost creating little gallery shows on paper.
00:10:34
Speaker
That's a nice observation. I think it's very true because that's how it started. like So before the magazine, I was curating these shows. And then when I decided to start the magazine, um I was still curating the gallery shows physically and also featuring some of the work in the magazine. So the very first galleries that I featured inside the magazine were indeed also physical shows. um And then eventually when um I focused on the magazine, it didn't have the gallery space anymore than that that um Essence is still there where I send out an open call about a particular theme and um accept submissions for it. Janine, did you see a need in the marketplace or did you just feel a passion in your heart to start to create uppercase?
00:11:19
Speaker
Or was it a little bit of both? It's what I wanted to do. I did no market research. like I just thought, oh, this is a really close space. And I like the idea. I'm going to a place that's full of art already. And it was a nice 25-minute walk from my home. And I thought, this could be interesting. I just i want to get out of the house and see what I can do. and So the concept for uppercase, like that all came about within like I don't know, a few weeks because I had to come up with something for the lease. And I just, yeah, it was just a a good, a box, an open box of things that I could experiment within.
Uppercase's Community Model
00:11:59
Speaker
Well, well clearly clearly there was a need too because it it was 2005 and you're still in print and you're still publishing. So, it was, i you know, it's funny we talked to folks and you can tell that there's this problem burning passion but obviously it's all of your skills coming together, your skill sets coming together and then creating this, I mean, ah and I think Lori's right, it's it's this curated beautiful piece of of art that you create each issue.
00:12:30
Speaker
faul So I wonder, because i I do think your job and what you're creating is is dreamy, but I'm sure, are you a one man band? Like, do you have assistance or are you, we were just talking about this, Jamie and I.
00:12:46
Speaker
because I assume you do all the design. it It's me right now and it's been me just me for many many years so at the very beginning like when when I had the gallery when it was like i I had the gallery for about four years before I started the magazine and and so there's you know some time there to um kind of ease into the idea of having my own magazine but When I did have the gallery, I had health or gallery attendance to man the shop, woman the shop when I wasn't there. and I had my son Finley in 2010, which was the year after I watched the magazine.
00:13:23
Speaker
um and So around- Wow, a new mom. Still had someone um who- I did a new mom twice. yeah Yeah, so someone would be there in the gallery when I couldn't be, but also around that time, like the concept of Art Central um and the the building mandate and stuff, it was starting to kind of fall apart. It wasn't working out for a lot of the tenants. ah Financially, it was difficult.
00:13:52
Speaker
um and so The building was sold, I forget what year that was, but the building was sold and then when it had the new the new management, they were just intent on winding things down and then eventually they tore down the building. Oh no. They didn't have a great ending.
00:14:12
Speaker
But the the good ending for me was that you know I had my my son and the magazine was was new, but it had lots of potential. and The fact that the retail aspect and the gallery aspect was going to have to close was a blessing because I really didn't have all the time to do everything. and That would have been the thing that I would have had to ask anyway yeah because yeah my passion is in graphic design and making print products, not necessarily you know retail.
00:14:40
Speaker
So it was okay for me. um It was a ah transition that had to happen regardless, but it was sad to see all the community that we had built in that place kind of get shuttered. yeah yeah But yeah, that was ah that was a pivotal moment in the uppercase history was having to leave that space.
00:14:59
Speaker
Wow. So you, so your son, um i I think I read your husband stayed home with your son. Is that right? Yeah. My, my husband Glenn was a stay at home dad for the first few years. Yeah. Just so entirely. and it It was necessary that we did that way. Yeah.
00:15:19
Speaker
Well, you were working long hours, I'm sure. And then when the gallery was closed, then I didn't have to have any employees. But when I moved to another location and it was just the magazine, I did have some employees, like someone to help manage the subscriptions and a marketing person. But it just didn't work financially.
00:15:45
Speaker
um and practically it wasn't a good situation. So I had to let everybody go and I sort of rebooted and I've been doing things on my own. Wow. Well, and and so I want to ask about, so it's an interesting business model too. You don't take ads. and Yeah, that's correct. Yeah. um What made you head down that path versus the traditional publication with advertising?
00:16:12
Speaker
um Right from the beginning, I didn't want to be beholden to advertising. um yeah I was looking at other magazines at the time like Blueprint magazine from Martha Stewart was one of my favorites back then and there was Domino magazine and those both folded around 2008 or so. like they just Domino has been resurrected. but um Those were relying on advertising and I figured if someone like Martha Stewart couldn't make a magazine work based on advertising, there's no way that little old me coming out of nowhere was going to be able to do that. So I didn't want to rely on advertising. There was some ads in the very first few issues, but they weren't, um, they were just but and a few and if I could get them and they were things like, you know, the college that I went to school at and like some font foundries at the beginning. Um, but it was,
00:17:06
Speaker
really difficult as a small one-person enterprise at the beginning to sell ads. That takes a lot of time and it wasn't worth it. It does. I just wanted to focus on creating content that people, the readers and subscribers would be supporting. If the magazine was sustainable, it would be because I had the readership base that was going to pay for the print runs and the postage. What is your subscription base? I'm curious.
00:17:35
Speaker
ah Right now it's hovering almost at 8,000. That's great. I need to subscribe again. I think I let my subscription lapse so I'll get on that right away because i did um I covet the issues and you had a sale not too long ago because I think you had to sell your building or get out of a warehouse or something.
00:17:56
Speaker
So I had numerous sales last year because both things I um the place I had been leasing I left and I actually purchased my own location in my own forever studio which is where I'm at now which I love. um So I had to downsize ah my inventory before I moved and then also I have um Like the reason I can be a one person show is I have also systems in place. And so when someone places an order in my shop online, it gets sent to a fulfillment company and then actually packs and ships the order. And the company I had been working with previously kicked me out because I didn't have enough monthly orders to meet their photos, which they just changed randomly.
00:18:44
Speaker
um and And then I went to a new place and they were just terrible. It turned out they were just really bad at their job. And so I had to leave that place as well. So 2023 was a year of just solving problems. And so I had lots of sales, but I just had to offload lots of things. So I didn't have to keep moving it from location to location. So that was a challenging year, but this year's been much better. Well, I want to take us back to launching uppercase though. And so, you put out your first publication, maybe the second. What did you hear from your consumers? What did you hear from your customers when they were buying it? Was it did was it because it's so, to me, unique. um Maybe in your in your world, you saw other things, but it's just such a ah beautiful publication. What were you hearing from people when you launched it that has kept you going?
00:19:39
Speaker
Yeah, well, when I when I first launched it, um a lot of people bought it on faith, which was amazing because they I didn't have any show for it yet, but they knew what I was curating at the gallery and they I had published some other books before then. And um it was the time when blogging was the way we were sharing our ideas. And so people got to know me through that. um And so they trusted that I was going to deliver something really nice. um So that first issue came out, and I think I had 400 people who had pre-ordered or something, which is not very many, but it was enough you know to pay the bill for that one print issue. And then thankfully, people enjoyed it um and told other people about it and word where it spread. And by the end of that first year, I had about 1,000 subscribers, which was enough to keep it going for another year. like It was always just about like,
00:20:36
Speaker
making sure I had enough to pay the print bills um and then moderately increasing what I could pay for the contributors. But a lot of the first you know issue was like people were generously donating their time and efforts and talents. but um it Yeah, it's it was because of word of mouth and it always has been word of mouth that but the magazine continues to do
Janine's Passion and Evolution of Uppercase
00:21:02
Speaker
well. It's because people can recognize this that it's really a nice magazine and I put a lot of effort into it and there's it's not a it's like fully packed full of content.
00:21:13
Speaker
So you've been doing this now close to 20 years, which is amazing in publishing. So are you still excited about it? And do you always have just tons of ideas that you still want to see come to fruition?
00:21:31
Speaker
Um, well, it's been 15 years for the magazine. Okay. Um, yeah, so I just finished issue 63 Unbelievable, I feel like like my and the issue number relates to my age, but it doesn't anymore but it just feels like I am aging with with these issue number but no, um It's uh, it's really I'm still enjoying it. I'm still inspired and looking at the issue that I just got and holding in my hands. The thrill is still there and I'm still very proud of the magazine and what it's evolved to over the years. It's not the same one that I started when I was in my late 30s or something.
00:22:20
Speaker
the The essence of it is still there. I've always had the tagline for the creative and curious. And that serves me well because it's that's an open-ended statement. What is curiosity? What is creativity? It can mean so many things. And so with that, um I have been able to just keep being creative and curious and finding ideas for the issue and are there's always something that's creative and curious. And there's always something they're deserving of being put in print. And there's always um new artists to discover whether they're new to me or more brand new on the scene or there's people who have had um long illustrious careers who make switches. And, you know, they used to be an architect and now they're an artist. Like there's so many, so many stories. And um so I'm never going to run out of content ideas for the magazine.
00:23:13
Speaker
I agree with that. I don't think we'll run we won't run out of rebloomers either because like you just said I think that there's a lot of folks who have done that who've pivoted but I also love love the fact and I know that this is part of the whole reason you created the magazine that it's not digital but that we can still as Laurie said hold it in our hands and just I mean just sit with it because there's something so beautiful about just sitting with paper and a beautiful publication and just enjoying the moment. So thank you for keeping this up and keeping it going. When did you start branching off from the magazine and doing the books? Actually, I did books before the magazine. Oh, you did? That was related to the gallery. So I did do some books that were specific to gallery exhibitions that I posted. Oh, okay. So I had done maybe
00:24:09
Speaker
four or five books before I also launched the magazine, and then I've continued to do both, which is a lot of work. In addition to the magazine, now I have a series called the Uppercase Encyclopedia of Inspiration, and those are big fat books. They're like 4 out of 38 pages typically, all about a particular topic. Yeah, and they're incredibly beautiful. Thank you. I love them so much.
00:24:38
Speaker
And then you do, do you still do the little u? Little u is, I'm calling it a trilogy. I have three volumes of that and it's a very, it's like ah four four by six inches. It's very tiny, but nice and thick. um And I call it the offspring of uppercase magazine. So it's smaller and cuter.
00:25:00
Speaker
And the content is about children's industry, so children's book illustration and children's service pattern design and um creativity inspired by a childlike mindset. And so I've done three of those and those were inspired by being a mom and um the things that that my son and I would be looking at when he was smaller.
00:25:22
Speaker
um But he was I call him my editor at large for those publications because we would explore things together and um I gave him some writing assignments for some of them and he did some like cut paper illustrations for the very first issue and So it was a collaboration between the two of us. um But now he's 14, 14 and a half. And so our interests together have changed. It's not the same aesthetic as Lil U. So I kind of feel like Lil U, those three volumes are um a memento of a certain time in our lives. But I'm not sure if I will do another one. Well, is he also very creative? Yeah, he is. He's very um
00:26:09
Speaker
He's a he's a writer. He's very given by because you gave him those writing assignments. Yeah. My husband, Glenn, is a writer as well. Oh, OK. Oh, so books and writing run in the family. That's pretty good. So you also are a fabric designer. And I love your ser surface pattern issues, as many people do. And your collaborations with all the the judges on that.
00:26:37
Speaker
Yeah, that was a serendipitous ah little detour. um I hadn't heard about surface pattern design, really, I didn't really know what the industry was. And so I did a whole issue about surface pattern design to to see um what I could learn. um And that way I forget the year, um but that was, I don't know, probably 12 years ago or something. And um maybe not so many, 10 years, I can't remember, but it was a service power design issue and um with industry
Fabric Design Journey
00:27:10
Speaker
experts that I asked questions and there's tips and kind of a general overview of what is involved in that career and um the the president of Wyndham Fabrics
00:27:22
Speaker
um purchased that issue and he has a subscription and he ended up um licensing a number of artists that were in that including the person I picked for the the interior cover for the the theme and she got her her very first um fabric collection. So it actually um was a terrific experience for me as an editor to see that the things that I had curated were um appreciated by people who were actually in the industry. Yeah, that's amazing. Making those licensing deals. That's so Then I got to know the people at Wyndham because of this. A few years after that issue came out, I ah emailed with Mickey Krueger, the president. and
00:28:09
Speaker
just ah suggested that hey you know I have like the the decorative spine patterns on all my magazines each one is different and they're created uniquely for the magazine and I just sent him a picture of them all stacked up and said hey wouldn't this look this would be nice and fabric that's and he just said yeah let's let's talk and so that I My first collection was based on li the spine patterns of past issues, and then I've done a couple, three other collections with them since. Oh, that's amazing. That's very good. That's amazing. Let's take a quick minute and thank our amazing sponsors.
00:28:45
Speaker
Our podcast is proudly brought to you today by Jet Creative and Urban Stems. Jet Creative is a women-owned marketing firm committed to community and empowerment since 2013. Are you ready to rebloom and build a website or start a podcast? Visit jetcreative dot.com backslash podcast to kickstart your journey.
00:29:07
Speaker
They will help you bloom in ways you never imagined. And bonus, our listeners get an exclusive discount when you mention Rebloom. And a huge thanks to Urban Stems, your go-to and our go-to source for fresh, gorgeous bouquets and gifts delivered coast to coast. Use Bloom Big 20 and save 20% on your next order.
00:29:31
Speaker
And don't forget to subscribe to this podcast and follow us on Instagram and Facebook at Rebloom Podcast. Thanks to our sponsors and thanks to you for joining us today. You know, it also shares with our listeners, too, that I mean, doing the the magazine is obviously creative and it's intense, but you still need to do creative things for you, for your heart and soul. And I'm gathering that this surface design was really the fun in the play that you still needed to have in in your life. Is that correct?
00:30:08
Speaker
um It was interesting because like it was another opportunity to learn because here I was publishing about the industry and now here's my chance to actually learn about it in real practical senses and um it opened up doors like I had been before that invitation from wind in my was invited to be a judge for QuiltCon. um So I got to see, I don't know, hundreds and hundreds of quilts. With judges like Carolyn Freelander was one of the judges and then there was another woman who was like an officially
00:30:44
Speaker
Accredited the quilt judge and to hear them with all their experience um Talking about quilts was amazing experience. Yeah So it yeah, it's just part of that creative and curious thing It's just like what opportunities are there that are tangential to my main love which is publishing and so the Becoming a service pattern designer um has been interesting. I haven't had time though to really explore that as an actual you know side project. I'm i amm overdue for creating another collection um because it's a lot of work to to do that. and i
00:31:24
Speaker
and publishing magazines and books. It's a lot of work so I'm gonna have to stay true to where my focus is and that's with with my my print um publications but I do hope to be able to trade another collection someday. So you kind of said at one point that as a girl you were always a lover of books like We always ask, tell us about the little person. What was little Janine like and what were your interests and how have those threaded through your journey? Well, I actually used to make little tiny books. Of course you did. How about that? Yeah. So my my mom was an executive secretary and my dad was a drafts person. And so they would bring home scrap paper a lot because like my dad had these big roles of of um like drafting.
00:32:16
Speaker
um drawings with that blue on the one side and they were blank on the other and they're just going to be discarded, you know, so he brought them home so that, you know, we could draw on them. And my mom would bring home typewritten sheets of paper, like one side had memos that were irrelevant and the other side with Mike. And so I would cut these up and make little books where where the my content is on one side and then this these different remnants of my parents' careers are on the other. um So I did that really quite young. I was making those and I would make, um I had a little magazine that I called Crafts.
00:32:54
Speaker
Oh my gosh. Which is about making things. And they were very tiny. They were like you know three or four inches, very small books. And then I would keep them in a ah little cardboard box that I had wrapped in wrapping paper. And then when it was like going to my grandparents or something for like a family birthday party or something, I would bring my books and then make people look Oh, wow. Do you have that? Do you still have those? Oh, yeah. Yeah, I still do have them. Oh, I still want to see pictures of those. I bet they're really wonderful. They're funny. They're funny. Because I can have like little trademark symbols and I put my name on everything. Oh my gosh. I love it though. So you were a publisher at a very young age. I love that.
00:33:43
Speaker
but So we love, oh go ahead, I was gonna say we love the seeds of inspiration and Lori always often asks about being a child and and what you were like. And Lori, I'm always amazed. it It does seem like those seeds happen when you're little and the and the creativity just is part of who you are. And i love I love it. You need to take, she's right, you need to take photos and put those in one of your magazines. They would be wonderful to see.
00:34:10
Speaker
Actually, it would be cool to ask like people to share their art from when they were a kid because I have some yeah stuff that I love looking at too. But yeah, it seems like some of the guests we've had, they they pivoted because as a child, they love certain things and they kind of went away from those things because you know maybe their parents were not supportive or maybe they were fearful or you know, different reasons. they They didn't follow their heart and then they ended up doing a pivot and swinging back towards what they were doing when they were young. But it seems like you've pretty much stayed true your whole life to what you've always loved. yeah i I guess and there were the one time that I defied my parents was to keep this
00:35:03
Speaker
to eat my dream alive. So, you know, in high school and school in general, I was like, super nerd, um very academically ah minded and really good at, at school. but um And so there was a lot of pressure that I should go to university and I should become an engineer or um i I was interested in maybe physics, becoming a physics teacher or something. and But really what I wanted to do was I wanted to go to art college and I wanted to explore that aspect and graphic design was something that I had been introduced to.
00:35:48
Speaker
um via the Communication Arts magazine. oh yeah um Because it was at my it was at the public library downtown and super expensive magazine that my parents gave me a subscription. So I'm grateful for that. But everyone just expected that I was going to go to university and do like a real career and because I was always a dutiful student and um child. They just assumed that I had applied to university and I just never did. I apply only applied to our college. They go, well, you can apply and see what happens. right But i I narrowed down the opportunities by only ac applying to two places that I actually wanted to go to.
00:36:39
Speaker
Well, good for you. Good for you. That's that then all that's the the place I'm going to go. um And then my parents supported me in that. But that was the the one thing like I knew I didn't want to I didn't want to become an engineer.
Sustainable Publishing and Challenges
00:36:54
Speaker
I wanted to explore art. So that's amazing. Well, right. It's amazing and very brave. I mean, very, very brave for if you think you were probably 17, 18 at the time.
00:37:05
Speaker
It's a very brave thing for a young person to do and good for you and isn't the world so much better that you did go to our art school because you've made our world so much more beautiful because of your magazine. Yeah, go ahead.
00:37:19
Speaker
So our guests often have made kind of significant pivots from one thing to an entirely different thing. But I feel like everybody makes pivots in their journey. So during your journey as a publisher, I know you've you've made changes in how you publish, how you ship, like things like that. So do you see certain pivots or times where you had to make changes in in your and what you're doing?
00:37:50
Speaker
um Yeah, I think mostly it's my pivot to being as what I understand to be as an entrepreneur, as a business person, because I don't have any training in running a business or doing anything like that. Being a graphic designer freelance and you know,
00:38:08
Speaker
getting clients and maintaining those relationships and getting new clients. Like that was some training as far as running a business, but not really about like, how do you market a thing? How do you promote it? How do you get new readers? Like all that, it's been learning as I go. And in the earlier days I had like, I just looked at other magazines and well, they have to have these people on staff and they have to do it certain ways. And I thought, okay, well, I'll just kind of model my business after that, because that seems to work.
00:38:39
Speaker
for other people and it really wasn't working. so The biggest pivot I had was going from having two employees and an intern to letting everybody go and rebooting and just doing everything myself again. um and that was That was a low point. and It was super painful to have to let people go, um but it was necessary because I run out of money and uppercase has always been the supporter of my family, so I need to make sure that I can, you know, you shouldt do that. So I had to make some really tough choices. So that was the biggest pivot I ever did was that kind of reboot. And that was, that was 10 years ago. Um, and it's been much better ever since. And no regrets, no regrets, no regrets about having to do that. And you know, even if it was like a really, really tough time and I'm sorry for the people that
00:39:33
Speaker
I could no longer work with, but I learned so much. You know, you learn by doing and sometimes you learn by doing the wrong things and then you change course and move forward. So yeah, I learned a lot. But Janine, it seems like that pivot was a really necessary one because so many magazines have folded in the past 10 years and you're still thriving.
00:39:56
Speaker
And so um have you seen any it has shifts in publishing maybe currently? I mean, do you think people are coming back to magazines or is that business model changing or anything different now? um I think that publishing magazine is really difficult. And unless you're very lean like I am,
00:40:25
Speaker
or have been, um and I'm not sure. there there There are plenty of magazines that have lots of people and they can't afford you know to pay all those people, but they try and keep going and then it flops. And then sometimes it's because the the people who are in charge of the magazine just burn out because it is so grueling to keep up with it. um There's lots of reasons why magazines don't can't be sustainable, partly maybe they relied on ads and then that dries up.
00:40:55
Speaker
um um or they rely on sponsorships or they think that social media is going to be the be all end all for promotions of their print magazine and it's not at all that way. So there's lots of reasons why independent magazines um don't last and and sometimes they don't have to last like sometimes there are better in a like a finite amount of issues. um but For me, I'm in it for the long haul. like I'm aiming to get to 100 issues. That's my goal. um and By the time I get there, I'll be in my early 60s. It would be another time for me for reblooming at that point to see what I do next.
00:41:34
Speaker
I love it. I love the goal, Lori. Well, one thing i I think about your magazine and the the way you've modeled it is you really do involve the community in the content. So I love that you put out the open calls and people can submit ideas and you know they're they're doing some of the writing, some of the image curation. So in essence, you yeah you have staff in a way.
00:42:04
Speaker
But it's the whole it's the community that surrounds the magazine and wants to support what you're doing because it's so good Yeah, I think it's what we're all doing and so you're right like uppercase is um It has a community of readers. that like Many people have been with the magazine either consistently or off and on for 10 years or even more. and so um like We're part of it, training it together. and so Having the open calls for people to share their work um is integral to what makes uppercase. uppercase um and so There's always open calls where people
00:42:42
Speaker
can submit their work. and that I love that because I get to know what people do. and I love having conversations with my subscribers. and they a lot of like there's There's a nice roster of regular contributors um through the magazine. and Some of them have been subscribers and then I invite them and we get along and it works out and they become core contributors. And then sometimes there's people who i come in and they have a specialty and I commissioned them to do a particular article. um But to to be clear that all of the content that I commission or ask someone to do in the magazine, that's always paid. there's That's always paid contribution.
00:43:26
Speaker
covers. It's always paid and I'm pleased i please did I've been able to pay people more year after year as best as I can. and Then the the open calls for submissions, those are just volunteer. If people want to submit their work and get published, then they can, but those ones I don't pay for.
00:43:46
Speaker
Right, right. Well, I think that's a great blend. And I, you know, back to when you were saying you didn't have experience, I i think sometimes that's a blessing truth because sometimes you just invented the way that you think it should be invented. You know, you, you tried the model where you were following other people, but that didn't work for you. So the fact that you recognize that and then you're doing it your way,
00:44:13
Speaker
I think in a lot of ways that's better like when I started my I started my design firm three years out of college and knew nothing and just like you invented it as I went along and you make mistakes yeah but but you learn from those and you improve and make changes and pivot and so I think there's something to that that's a blessing. Yeah I agree.
00:44:40
Speaker
I would agree you know and it's interesting listening to Janine to the bravery that you had in high school to go to art school and then the thought when you were working from your home to say you know what I'm gonna go to this building and I'm gonna you know take take the show on the road over here and and pay for rent which is expensive. But I'm wondering was that, it seems from you telling this beautiful story that that was your first sense of really community and bringing artists and artisans together. And you've continued that even though the building came down and it closed, you've been able to keep that thread of that beautiful community
00:45:22
Speaker
that would not have happened had you stayed in your kitchen or in your office next to your kitchen.
Building Community and Confidence
00:45:27
Speaker
um So sometimes I think those opportunities happen for a reason, but I'm feeling like you're really a connector and a community builder that has started when you were young. Well, I'm a complete and utter introvert.
00:45:43
Speaker
like It's so introverted, I can't even. um But so having a gallery, a public aspect, was that was a really big deal for me to do that. And I'm so glad I did it. Because I didn't think I could honestly, like to have people come into my space just wandering in all day long in the gallery while I'm doing work. And like that it was it was a test ah of of my abilities to do that. And then having you know hundreds of people come in every month for a new gallery show and getting to know people and having conversations with everybody in the media would come and do like live from but from Art Central and then be on TV, all that stuff.
00:46:30
Speaker
um I'm glad I did it. It was really super challenging for me, um but I learned a lot and I learned that I'm more confident than I thought I was. and They also learned that within the context of uppercase, it's my creation, so I'm 100 percent confident about it. like there's yeah It's my thing and so there's no reason to feel nervous about it and there's no reason to to not share about it. so that was That was a huge thing I learned from having those like public facing um aspects. um But it was exhausting um and it was bittersweet to close up the gallery because i there's lots of people that were connected within the community because they would just come hang out there, not necessarily even through me, but just with each other. um But the the benefit of you know having the internet community and being connected with people through that
00:47:26
Speaker
Then I have the the uppercase circle, which is a membership kind of site for for subscribers to the magazine where we can connect online there. so you know The community building is not the same, but um it's still there and it's like connecting people with like-minded kindred spirits um through visual means is just what I enjoy doing.
Future Creative Aspirations
00:47:52
Speaker
I love that and you were kind of almost forced to do that when you entered that building like had you not had to do it you may not have forced yourself to do it but then what a blessing it turned out to be.
00:48:06
Speaker
Yeah. with So and then somewhat of a blessing that it they said move along because then now you then you didn't have to be. So I mean, that's the thing. I think sometimes we do things. Laurie and I had to do something last year that we were both very nervous about. It was more it was more on camera type work.
00:48:24
Speaker
And it's not something that I was comfortable with. Lori was not, Kyle speak for Lori. She wasn't, we definitely not. and That's why we like this audio podcast. It's much easier. um but ah But it pushed, it it definitely pushed me outside of my comfort zone. But it also, by doing that to your point, shows you what you like and what you want to do. And and you've maintained some and continued beautiful connections, even though they're well through the magazine now and through your through your work and continue through your career, which is just phenomenal, phenomenal. So I have a I have a question. You may not know the answer to this, but so you get on the other side of your issue 100. Are there other dreams that you have cooking in the back of your brain? I want to be a painter.
00:49:17
Speaker
oh And then I wanted to happen before issue 100. But um when I moved into this my my forever studio here, this um building, um my my vision is I want to be be painting. I want to have a setup where I can just make some art. And at a return to like briefly in art college, there were some times when they got to just experiment with painting. um But I didn't know what I was doing back then. And I didn't have time and I was driven by becoming a graph designer. So I never explored that part of me. So I would like to um paint. That's what I love. What medium?
00:50:03
Speaker
ah probably acrylic although I i really love oils. um my My grandfather was an oil painter. He used to paint landscapes and so as a kid um I would paint with him. He would like I was really really young but he would take my hand and the paint brush and dip it in the paint and and kind of show me how to do it and I just like the I think what appeals to me is the tactility and the texture of paint because it's so different from like flat perfectly printed magazines. So I want to do something that's like colorful, textural, immersive. So... Oh my gosh, I can't wait to see what you do. Yeah, that's...
00:50:47
Speaker
But it's going to be an amazing pivot. Go ahead. I know. We're talking. over We're so excited for you. You should see us. We're like, yeah. I mean, amazing. And, you know, I think, as I said earlier, it's it's always having that creativity in your heart. I mean, even though we are doing we have day jobs, we often need to just keep.
00:51:05
Speaker
keep bringing that creativity. we We had one guest and she wanted to dance. And we said, well, then get out there and dance. Just dance. Yeah. You know, yeah, and I love it. ah Go ahead. I was just going to say, we always ask our guests, if you weren't doing what you're doing, what would you what would you pick like any other career or would you stay close to what you're doing? And she said she would love to do more dancing, which I loved.
00:51:36
Speaker
I love it. Well, Janine, what would you love to what a piece of advice has been given to you or do you like to share with um some ah some fellow artists or even friends?
00:51:51
Speaker
um Well,
00:51:54
Speaker
I'm not sure. Some some people ask me, like how do I get everything done? like Because i my my business is complicated, and and it as a one person operation for the day to day, like there's a lot that I have to do, but yet I'm always looking forward and I'm always creating new projects and there's always like a new issue or a new book coming out. and so The question I get asked the most is like how do you get everything done? and um I'm figuring that out. like what like I know how I do it internally, but I'm figuring out like how to actually do that and I'm going to create a ah course about it, like kind of the mindsets and some of the systems that I use too to actually get things done.
00:52:35
Speaker
So hopefully that will answer the question, so people can see. um But ultimately, how I get things done, it comes down to being very um focused on what I want to create. And I'm very, I'm realizing as I age that I'm very stubborn. um like I just if I want to do something, and I believe in it, and I can see it, I just do it. And so I figure out a way to make it possible.
00:53:04
Speaker
um so it's like ah it's i'm i'm I don't know if that's advice, but that's like to to find like what is it the thing, what is the thing that really drives you forward that you can really fully concentrate on that brings you joy and fulfillment and makes you feel like you're using your entire being in the best way possible.
Closing Thoughts and Farewell
00:53:27
Speaker
Find that and and just go with that. Like don't second guess it. Like that's just where you're supposed to be. So so find what that thing is for you.
00:53:36
Speaker
I wouldn't call that stubborn. I would say passionate and brave. i yeah yeah Like when you're so lit up by something that it just has to happen, but then you don't let any fears get in your way and stop you. So I love that.
00:53:55
Speaker
ah think I love it and and I would go with your tagline which is to to always be creative and curious. I love that too and you have been an absolute delight. Janine, thank you so much for joining us. We really appreciate this conversation and we know that our listeners will absolutely love to hear what you had to share too and my goodness everybody get uppercase magazine. Subscribe because It is phenomenal, and we will share that in our notes too. Yeah, and I've been fangirling forever, and so we we email. We've emailed and you've judged one of my online competitions, one or two, but we actually see each other. Our listeners don't, but I get to see you this time, so this has been great. Thanks. Well, Lori, your ideas and concepts, you've come up with your very challenge your various challenges. and and um
00:54:52
Speaker
I'm amazed. like I'm impressed with the juxtapositions that you create and the opportunities you're providing to your to your artists and followers and workshops and everything. so um I'm inspired by you as well. And maybe I'm a recent follower to your Instagram and your beautiful florals with thank you for sharing your gift with us too. Well, I have a few ideas as we've been talking that I'm going to have to pitch to you because sir the wheels never stop turning. yeah The more I did, the better. Yep, exactly. Well, thank you so much for joining us today. Thank you, Lori.
00:55:31
Speaker
Each one of our guests leave me speechless. i I sit there and I'm nodding my head and I'm just smiling because I love hearing their journeys and and also their bravery. And Janine is something else. I mean, to have to me, to have bravery as a 17-year-old And then to keep, and and as she said, she's an introvert, but then to go into a studio space and then to start a publication. I mean, sort no these are no small feats. This is huge. Huge. Yeah. This is why I love doing this podcast with you, Jamie. And you know, I was a reluctant podcaster when you said, you called and said, we're doing a podcast. And I'm like,
00:56:12
Speaker
I've come to just cherish these conversations and I've i've emailed back and forth with Janine over the years and I just am such a fan of what she's done being a graphic designer myself. That's what my background is. And they're just so well put together and so well thought out and so beautiful. And to do that over a sustained period of time in ah in a world where magazines are disappearing off the shelves right and left. And to build a community that is so loyal and so supportive, that is such a testament to her passion and her her desire to put something out into the world that's so high quality. And what a legacy. Like I think about that all the time when I think of Janine that
00:57:06
Speaker
you know she can the bookshelf we're seeing behind her is lined with her magazines and her books. and what How proud would you be to have created that and shared that with the world? I think that's really special.
00:57:21
Speaker
That is extremely special and thank goodness that she continues to be creative and curious and share her gifts with all of us. And we hope everyone has enjoyed this episode as much as we have and we thank you and we hope we wish you um much happiness and peace, love and re-blue.
00:57:43
Speaker
Life is too short not to follow your passions, so go out there and let your heart plant you where you are meant to be and grow your joy. We will be right here sharing more incredible stories of reinvention with you. Make sure to subscribe to our podcast so you never miss an episode of Rebloom. Until next time, I'm Jamie Jamison. And I'm Lori Siebert. Peace, love, and Rebloom, dear friends.