Tom Witherspoon of Vype

Tom Witherspoon is quite possibly the most stressed person I've seen speak to a class, but I can definitely understand why. Being in charge of a publication is exhausting, and often it seems easier just to do everything yourself rather than to depend on someone else to get it done. I understand the magazine staff is pretty small, but I just don't understand why there's no delegation. You can't do it all, Superman!

I thought the discussion of niche magazines was really interesting, especially to find that there was no competition content wise. There is definitely a tight market for ad dollars, but with such a targeted group of readers the advertisers should know that their money is being spent on the audiences most likely to buy anyway.

I'd never seen Vype before, although I had heard of it. I took a look at the online version and was pretty impressed. The design of the magazine is pretty sleek (design is almost always the first thing I notice) and I was surprised with the size of the publication. I expected it to be the size of NakedCity but it really was a good sized monthly.

The one thing content wise on the Web site that I did notice is that there is a video tab but no videos. A couple of photographers could shoot a couple of videos just so that the tab isn't empty, or they could just decide to take it off, but it seemed odd.

As I was scrolling through the content I was surprised to see that Steve Shook is retiring in Derby. I remember talking with Shook, by far one of the most helpful athletic directors I've ever come across, as editor of the high school paper.

I'd be interested to find out how long this niche magazine sticks around the Wichita area. It seems like a community that could keep a high school sports interest magazine up and running.