From the editor: Changes & opportunities

Heidi Marttila-Losure
Publisher & Editor-in-Chief, Dakotafire Media

Dakotafire Media is planning a few changes.

First, starting with the September/October issue, we will no longer distribute the magazine by inserting in weekly newspapers unless we’ve been able to find a sponsor in that community.

This is a sad announcement for us, as it also means the end of the formal editorial partnership we’ve had with those newspapers. We’ve very much appreciated that connection to rural Dakota communities. Unfortunately, this distribution model isn’t working financially without grant funding. We still hope to work with area journalists on some stories, but we won’t be connecting as regularly.

We have sponsorship agreements in Arlington, Hoven, Ipswich, Roscoe and Redfield. Those communities will continue to receive the magazine through the rest of their sponsorship periods, and beyond, if they choose to renew. We would welcome sponsorship by organizations, businesses or individuals in other communities; the cost is $3.50 per household per year.

If you would like to ensure that your household continues to receive Dakotafire, regardless of whether a sponsor is found in your community, we invite you to subscribe ($25/year or $40/two years). You can do so at dakotafire.net/getfiredup.

You can also subscribe to the online version of the magazine, which has the same content as the magazine plus much more, at dakotafire.net/digital-issue-login.

Second, the format of the printed magazine will change. We love our horizontal format, but switching to a portrait format will allow us to print more efficiently.

Change is often hard, but even then, there is often opportunity in it. We have a couple other changes in the works that we’ll announce when they are closer to ready—changes we are pretty excited about. Stay tuned.

One thing that will not change is our mission: Dakotafire Media is still sparking a rural revival in the Dakotas and beyond by encouraging conversations that help people rethink what’s happening and reimagine what’s possible.

Thanks, readers, for all you have done to enrich those conversation up to the present! Let’s keep them going into a brighter future.