A SPECIAL MESSAGE FOR READERS AND ADVERTISERS FROM OUT iT

[Guest JamesBarnes]

Merry Christmas... and thank you.

 

The January issue of OUT iT is now at the print shop and will celebrate our first birthday. This edition will have improved paper quality, a thicker cover, a review of the year, announce all the winners of the first annual OUT iT awards and feature Justin Pascua who has recorded a song, 'OUT in Thailand' (co-written by George Nash) which will be available to download from i-Tunes. The magazine was launched into a sceptical market last January but has now established itself as the market leader and that success is entirely yours. Thank you.

 

Bjorn has excelled in the design department with luscious photo-spreads that have become a hallmark of our style and marvellous subtle touches of flair that complete the house look which define our standards and keep us head and shoulders above the competition. After several false starts in our marketing, Wouter has quickly established himself as an efficient, personable and professional ambassador for OUT iT with many new advertisers now on board and many more in the pipeline. Dan has been constantly updating our web presence, with the OUT iT Forums his latest development and his work keeping the maps and listings up to date is appreciated by all visiting readers who need to know where to go.

 

Brian Baxter, Alan Brown, Darika, Kenneth Dobson, Dodger, Guy and John Howe have all made regularly sterling contributions to our editorial, all the while adhering to our copy brief: informative, intelligent and inspiring. In our first year we have scored some major scoops; Apichatpong and Chaiwut gave us their first ever interviews to a gay magazine. We have had contributions from David Furnish and in the January 2012 issue, his hubby, Sir Elton John. The coming year will see a new batch of big name interviews, new serials (including the world's first gay superhero) and fresh writers. Reader feedback, much (to my surprise) from Thai fans, informs that we have made the right editorial choices and that the high word count for each issue is appreciated. There will also be regular interviews with gay Thai professionals designed to undermine the misconception that all young Thai guys are for sale and to inspire our Thai readers.

 

An important aspect of our operation is in distribution/delivery and updating the maps and listings. Por and Jim (Bangkok), Peter and Jiab (Chiang Mai), Tim (Hua Hin), Daniel (Hong Kong), Bruce and Mark (Koh Samui), Mike and Ton (Pattaya) and John and Rob (Phuket) have all made a vitally important contribution in making sure we are OUT there and that the listings are as accurate as possible.

 

The demand for the magazine increases every month (some business owners have even thought that they did not receive copies because they were all taken so quickly!) and I am considering keeping our print run to 10,000 copies throughout the year with no reduction in low season months. The online version has been downloaded in 97 countries around the world and we have scored as many as 220,000+ visits to our Facebook page in a single month. All this is down to your tremendous effort and I would like to take this opportunity to offer my heartfelt thanks. Thanks to you, OUT iT has made a real difference to gay life in Thailand and I am sure that the next year will see even greater achievements.

 

I wish you the most plumptious holiday season and everything that you wish for in 2012,

 

Yours,

 

James Barnes.

[Guest]

Keep up the good work. Your magazine is a good quality publication, with clear maps.

 

On line maps to go with the guides for other SE Asian cities would be a nice step too.

[Guest thaiworthy]

Yes James, your magazine shows quite a bit of spit and polish. I like Dodger's articles especially. I am in Thailand now so I will be picking up a copy. Great work, and congratulations on your first year!

[Guest JamesBarnes]

Many thanks to all of you who have sent messages and emails with your congratulations, which mean a great deal to me personally and to the OUTiT team who all work so hard.

 

Thank you. Here's wishing you a very happy, healthy and prosperous 2012.

 

James.