Diespeker Magazine

Hot off the Press – the Diespeker Magazine!

There’s been a lot of talk about the death of print since the digital era began. Newspapers are closing – or at the least, shrinking, magazines are folding and online publications becoming ten-a-penny. But there’s nothing like print, you can’t beat a quality publication.

I grew up with the Twinkle comic as my main weekly reading material, gravitating to Jackie then the fabulous Cosmopolitan magazine. My dad read the Express and the Telegraph, my mum the Daily Mail. I, being a bit of a socialist, turned to the Guardian, devouring its alternative take on the world. I’m still a fan today.

I’ve been a writer throughout my career. My ambition was to write for magazines, but I only started after a move to Devon and career change into PR, when I began writing occasional features for Devon Life. I’m now on the contributors list. Made it.

But what of print in the corporate world? In the good old days I wrote copy for company brochures, manuals and leaflets. But what company has a corporate brochure now? Everyone has a website where up to date information is easily accessed by potential customers and clients. I’ve seen many annual reports, but not many glorious glossies celebrating the successes of a business.

Fast forward to January 2018.

I was asked by agency Terra Ferma Media to be the content editor for a magazine they were producing for Diespeker & Co. I couldn’t possibly say no. I manage Diespeker’s PR, so I know the company very well. Working to TFM’s flatplan, I scoured the content I had from the past two years, cherry picking the very best stories and repurposing them. I generated new content, via interviews and tracking down project stories. I worked like a demon to meet the deadline, while the design team worked on the overall design, and pulled together images to illustrate the content.

Finally, it was ready and the magazine went to print. There was then a lull, and then, a huge surge of excitement, as the magazine was presented to the MD. I was dying to see it. Finally, my copy arrived with a fanfare (well from me, anyway). It’s fabulous, a really beautifully produced magazine that people will actually want to pick up and read. I’m a very proud copywriter.

There are a limted number of printed copies, and of course the magazine is available online. If you want to take a peek you can order a digital copy here.

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Skydives, Terriers and Ice Cream

So the tandem skydiving world record attempt at Dunkeswell happened on June 21, when the great British weather held its own with blue skies and just the right sort of fluffy cloud.

Having been commissioned to write a feature about skydiving and the event for Devon Life, it was on the cards that I would be jumping myself. In the end that didn’t happen but I did get the chance of a truly exciting flight up to 15,000 feet with one group of jumpers. Sitting next to the pilot, Aussie Tom as we cruised around above the clouds, I turned to watch the intrepid folk leap from the plane into the blue. A little part of me breathed a sigh of relief that I could stay sitting next to Tom while they plummeted out of view! On landing I hung around to watch them all travel back to the ground safely. In small 3 total, 281 jumped, beating the record by 30.

Many were raising money for charity. I interviewed some of these, and there were some amazing stories. I spoke to the mum of a young man who was killed in a road accident at the age of 24. Five brave people were jumping to raise funds for the charity she’d set up, called PAULY. Having a son myself, I had tears in my eyes. I can’t imagine anything worse than losing a child who has his whole life before him. (For more info on the charity click here)

Terrier racingVery different was another feature that Devon Life asked me to cover. Terrier racing takes place in the East Devon village of Yarcombe every year, in August. I don’t live that far from Yarcombe yet I’d never heard of it. I drove over and had a chat with a lovely farming couple, John and Barbara Salter. John was involved right at the conception of the race day in the 1970s, and forty years on is the only surviving member of the original team.

This is a great community event (I love community events!) attracting thousands of visitors from other villages and holidaymakers who come along every year. There are six races with a mixture of dogs, a 10p tote, and lots of fun to be had. This yeIce creamar race day is on Saturday August 2. I’m hoping to go along with the family, and on the way I am dead set on stopping for an ice-cream from the Otter Valley Dairy who make such delicious-sounding concoctions as Ginger and Butternut Squash and Devon Rice Pudding with Raspberry Jam. All made from milk and cream from their own Pedigree herd. Yum!

And now for something completely different – skydiving?

News last year that I had been commissioned to write a first person article about gliding made my friends fall about with laughter, as they all know about my fear of flying. What would they make of the call I received today from Devon Life magazine mentioning the word ‘skydiving’? I have to admit to a moment of general clamminess. My brain went into overdrive wondering if there was any way on earth that I could possibly throw myself out of a plane (without the aid of sedatives, see my recent Blog).  

Luckily it transpired that having to experience the ‘thrill’ of skydiving was unlikely to be a requirement on this occasion. This particular article is likely to be about the charity work carried out by my local skydiving club, which is laudable. I know a little about this already as one of my neighbours has Multiple Sclerosis and did a sponsored tandem jump last year. She loved the experience, whereas I was more than happy simply to hand over sponsorship money whilst keeping my own feet firmly on the ground!

So watch this space for further news. If I’m offered the chance of a jump, I can tell you now I’m 99.9999999% sure I’ll turn it down….

Feature Creature

One of the areas of my work that I enjoy most is when I have the opportunity to write a feature article.

I wrote many hundreds of feature articles for heating and plumbing magazines when I worked for Nu-Heat Underfloor & Renewables in Honiton. If that sounds a dry subject area, well actually no, it really wasn’t. The challenge was always to give life to underfloor heating pipe, heat pumps, solar panels and antifreeze, and I do love a challenge!

Now, however, I can have a bit more fun with what I write about. It’s usually up to me to come up with an idea and then work out the best way of seeing it through. This caught me on the hop when Devon Life commissioned an article on gliding for January’s ‘Try Something New’ spot. From a first person perspective….

I’m known for my dislike of flying although I have flown around the world, to China, Singapore, America and many places in between. However, I generally take Diazepam to keep me from opening the door and jumping out!

So gliding was the last thing my friends thought I’d ever do. And I knew I couldn’t fall back on sedatives as I wanted to remember every detail so I could write about it from a clear perspective. In the end I approached the flight rather like a ride at Disneyland, which I do happen to enjoy, and it turned out to be a great experience. Soaring silently above Broadhembury and waving at my friend’s herd of cows was something new indeed.

I’ve just submitted my next feature to the magazine which this time required my feet to stay firmly on the ground as I wrote about Dartmoor’s myths and legends. A very different commission, with lots of really interesting research to do.

That’s what really floats my boat, I guess. Finding out about another subject, getting my head around more ideas, culture, language – and making it all interesting to read about.

The challenge of the press release is to keep it succinct, web copy usually needs to convey information, a tweet is tiny! The challenge of the feature is to be something that the reader really wants to read to the end. I hope I succeed!