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A Work in Progress
On My Mind
An Effortless Performance
Official State dinners go off
perfectly. They are organized with
seamless efficiency. First the appetizer
appears, immaculately prepared and
arranged. Then soup and a palate
cleanser. Course follows course, 11 in
all, accompanied by complementary
wines, all arriving on time with the
precision of a Cartier watch.
It looks effortless, but as any
experienced restaurant manager will
agree, official dinners are successful
because of precise advanced planning
(entire day planners are filled with
notes), unbelievable hard work (the
Normandy landings in World War 2
were a “beachwalk” by comparison), and
fanatical attention to detail that is never
seen, only experienced.
It is much the same with the
production of this magazine. Each issue
requires weeks of advanced planning.
Meeting after meeting. We prepare lists
of stories to cover, defend each inclusion
and exclusion, fight over the final list
and prepare a new one. Then we
commission the writers, edit the stories,
occasionally rewrite them as new
information becomes available, add
headlines, and send them out for
proofreading.
Then we plan the photography,
loading assignment after assignment
on to the shoulders of our staff
photographer. We line up all the images
per story, choose one for the cover, fight
over that choice and sometimes change
our minds. Then we examine the
layouts, make graphic adjustments,
change colors, cut stories or add text,
write captions, reproofread all pages,
place the advertisements … and finally,
finally, electronically deliver the pages to
the printer. Effortless! Seamless!
The magazine that reaches the
mailbox of each township resident and
business represents the commitment of a
team that enthusiastically believes in the
mission: to deliver a quality publication
that enlightens and entertains, that
offers advice, supports local businesses,
and tells us what the schools and
township are planning and achieving.
When you hear screams emanating
from the kitchen, do you refuse to eat
the roast sitting on the table? Better not
to know what goes into the creative
experience. If our readers find the
magazine a smooth and enjoyable
reading experience, so be it. We’ll never
tell what went on in the kitchen.
On the
other hand, we
will reveal that
the magazine’s
editorial flair
has much to do
with the
abilities, talents
and skills of
Tim McNellie.
An awardwinning
writer,
Tim commissions stories and writes
several pieces himself for each issue.
Photo: Tim McNellie, Editor
Please contact our editor at tim@mcmags.com to let him know what you think of the issue, or to share your ideas for future issues
— M.C. and Brian McKee, Publishers
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Real Estate 2008
