/diy/ - Do It Yourself

>>284969
first run the number of how much will it cost to print "X" number of papers, use the backpage to make ads, sell the page for the cost, if a business want half the page, it should cost half the paper.

I dont thinkg that asking for money to people who takes it would work. But i have being wrong in the past and in the internet.

If its a small town, make the news a local as possible, and try to involve your sponsors in your news.

"Local wal mart breaks national record of days without accidents"

>>284991
Hmm I like the idea of using the back page for adds, if it looks interesting enough It should be ok to readers, and I can include things on that page like local weather predictions and other shit,

the more i think of it the less i like the idea of charging anything the paper i think if it gets popular enough the ad space could get to be worth a pretty penny.

heres an example of the kind of design possibilities there are in newspapers

award winning newspaper designer--
http://blog.ted.com/2009/03/31/can_design_save/

OP, do a web edition and post back here. Or fuck, upload a jpg I guess.

Anyway, it sounds like a neat idea. The only problem I have is that local news is fucking boring, even when you're not paying for the paper. If you have an agenda, push it. Even something as simple as gathering a bit of science/tech news. One thing I noticed when I was in the States was that local papers, even the Madison whateverthefuckitwascalled had very very little non mainstream info. True of probably all local papers worldwide mind.

Anyway, if you're going to do it, might as well educate people a little bit rather than just feeding them bullshit about Walmart plebs not fucking shit up for a record 4 days in a row.

>>285179
putting the weather is always a good thing, also if you can put some valuable info, like weather, traffic, i dont know, something that everybody wants to know most of the time, and your paper is free and available, the paper can become something that people would look for it. An idea, concerts and events, have a schedule there for your area/city. And people will look for it, this used to be the only reason people bought the news here, to know the cinema schedule.


>>285182
The wal mart idea is to attract sponsors, as long as the sponsor gives a shit, and money it doesnt matter.

In regards to writing/writers, I can help you with some basic things:

Yes, people will write for your hobby but there should be payment. Even the most altruistic writer wants some reward. It can be $5, it can be a "staff" pizza night. But there needs to be incentive.

If you can find a zine writer, chances are you've found a willing author. These guys do it for the love of sharing information/art and very little monetary reward. This doesn't go against my first point; in their own zines, their reward is total control over the finished product and credit for the work.

Emphasize that this is an independent venture. Look for sites that talk about independent media with forums and you'll likely find some interested parties. Besides, anything they publish with you is another piece in the portfolio.

For ads, you'll likely get more money from interested sponsors by having ads on the front. You can have them on the bottom, but front page ads usually get more views than back page - and you can charge for that.

Regarding ads: Go to local stores first. They're more likely to be able to purchase ad space if they want to. Your huge chain stores usually have to clear advertising with the head office - and they probably aren't interested in small time media anyway.

For ad costs, don't get too greedy. You're a one man rag and according to statistics, your print won't last too long, even if you're approaching it as a hobby.

One last thing! Try to get a mailing list going before your first print. That way you can show a print out to a potential ad space buyer and say "X amount of people will see your advertisement from the start." That's always more compelling than being empty handed.