In November, our founder and Editor in Chief Paris Kim had the opportunity to speak about her inspirations and the creation of Marjorie Magazine for a panel sponsored by Blurb Books, Unsplash, and Weebly, highlighting the power of self-publishing and marketing. With Blurb, our publisher, we couldn’t imagine a better host for our print magazines that not only make the process of publishing exciting and fun, but easily accessible to our readers. From what started as simple blogging to exercise her BA in English while working a full-time job in the fast-paced, startup world of Silicon Valley, Paris realized that in the middle of all the forward-thinking, innovative buzz in San Francisco, like-minded readers needed a place to step back to read about and enjoy the simple pleasures of the past that still influenced the present. Through Marjorie, the biggest accomplishment was not just creating a print publication, but to provide another outlet for creative writers like her to come together and truly write about what they loved.

We highlight some positive and insightful points of her follow-up interview with Blurb on their blog as a way to better acquaint our readers with Paris:

On Blogging

“I always feel that there will be an audience for your work, even if not mainstream. People will find you, and will find themselves drawn to you and find truth or humor or something relevant in your words. Don’t always look in the New Yorker or Atlantic Monthly, because people with their own blogs feel free to be themselves, without the eye of an outside editor.”

The Print Issue vs. the Online Site

“Print is more intimate and interactive. With a blog post it should be easier to take in information… So accessibility (and aesthetics) should all be made easy, clean, and right there on the page. With a book, the layout is more relaxed, literally layers of beautiful pages or words that a reader can enjoy pacing themselves through—but each page counts, beautiful and unique, giving a reader a reason to go pick up the book a second or third time.”

The Drive Behind Marjorie and How Each Issue is Curated

“I’ve always loved magazines, and the consistency of fun, inspiring lifestyle reads or features about decor or style and travel. And I’m an old soul. I’ve always been in love with the past having grown up on stories like Anne of Green Gables or Pride & Prejudice. My dad also had a CD collection of 1950s music that I listened to for hours, and imagined how things must have been in that era if the music alone made me feel wonderful and happy. In the spirit of mainstream magazines, I hope to showcase these beautiful old things in ways that allow readers to appreciate them today. For example, old cocktail recipes to serve at your next picnic or our picks for the best letter-writing stationery during the holidays. Something old becomes something beloved, no matter the decade or generation.”

Her Basic but Definitive Photography Tip

“Study your favorite bloggers or brands and look at their photos, their compositions and focus. Can your own photos capture that same feeling of awe that their photos do?”

What She Hopes Comes Next

“I would love to create a travel book down the road for Marjorie, one catered to the retro vibes of San Francisco where we’re based. It would be called, Marjorie’s City: A Vintage Guide to San Francisco—that’s the ideal title!”

Read her full interview on the Blurb Blog