Stories250: Media Matters to Our Stories
While working on a draft of the Stories250 Magazine, I re-discovered the first principles of media literacy: How a story is delivered absolutely affects how you receive it. Also, sneak peeks. 👀
During this quiet holiday week, I spent some time focused on my promised Stories250 magazine. Here’s a little of what I learned. Perhaps you’ll find these insights helpful in your own work.
I started all of this in July 2025, when many of us here in the United States began focusing on the July 4th anniversary for the Declaration of Independence. To celebrate, I’ve been collecting stories and recordings about where our ancestors were, anywhere in the world, 250 years ago.
As your stories poured in, I collected them into a web page at Projectkin.org/stories250, an interactive timeline, a map showing where each story took place, and since August, I’ve hosted authors in the monthly Stories250 livestream. Last month, I announced a special event in July and a commemorative compilation of the stories in the form of a Stories250 magazine.
My Start in Magazines
Since I’m always curious about media, I set about playing with the posts we have so far to derisk the final effort after my June 30th submission deadline. Have one or more to add? No problem, there’s still plenty of time:
I’ve concluded that though it’s a lift, it’s entirely feasible. There are a dozen or more operational tricks I’ve learned, but I’m confident now I’ll have the whole thing buttoned up by August.1 Among the discoveries:
A community publication like this gets big fast. 50 articles doesn’t seem like that much on a web page, but in print layout, it’s already over 340 pages. I anticipate at least five more articles, so it’s big.
Price matters. To keep the project within reach of authors, I’ve planned to publish it with a color cover but a black-and-white interior. At cost through Lulu direct, it should be just under $25, with global printing to keep shipping costs to a minimum. LitMag offered great advice, by the way.
Color can be in digital form. I’ll make a PDF of the whole magazine available to writers for their archives. This way, it’s easy to print just your own articles in color, if you’d like.
AI can be fabulously helpful! (Who knew!) AI tools made it trivial to create a table of contents and index. Now I’m not at all worried about rearranging pages and adding new articles.
I’m not declaring victory. I’m sure disasters await, but it has been a good start. The feedback from all of you contributing authors and the community's tremendous advice have been a huge help. Keep it coming.
Feeling the Analog Veil
The work of assembly left me thinking about the separation of media from a story. For centuries, we’ve thought about sharing stories in written form. This magazine is simply a compilation of blog posts. And yet, when they’re assembled into the decidedly analog print form, it’s distinctly different.
In creating the timeline and map, I’d already found ways to view each of our individual posts about our ancestors in a new light. Instead of reading each as the product of the author, you’ll now notice that our ancestors may have been at or near the same place. You’ll also notice the crush of activities between 1750 and 1790. Now, perhaps, you’ll think about where your ancestors were during that time window.
In this draft, I’ve arranged the articles in linear time following the pattern set with the timeline. It seems simple-minded, but I found it surprising to see the continuity created by reading one story after another. Print gave me a much better sense of the progression of time through that period.
The Media and the Message
I know I’ll be thinking more deeply about how to capture and share stories across a variety of media. Because you’ve heard a story once, doesn’t mean you’re done learning from it. Your stories, reprinted from interactive blogs into a magazine, are like characters wearing newly designed costumes. I hope you find them as interesting as I have.
Stories, Hiding in Their Many Forms
While I hunt for stories in my ancestral timeline, I know I will now be on the lookout for tales emerging from unexpected forms, like letters, logs, and records. Though my family history effort started as a means to curate my archive, my storytelling effort has now taken on more forms.
Working with all of you inspires me to keep finding new ways to share these stories. I want to think that’s good for everyone.
Lori Olson White’s Bridge to 2076 time capsule series, inspired by Annie Deihm’s Century Safe, injects a new energy into this effort by looking at ourselves as ancestors for future descendants.
Join us on April 16, when Lori shares her “How to Create a Time Capsule” project.
The program is free. It will be recorded and shared as a video and audio podcast with all Projectkin subscribers.
But Wait! There’s More Down Under!
Next week features a special Pacific edition of the Speakers’ Corner starting with a preview on Sunday (or Monday across the date line) as our presenter Jennifer Jones welcomes Jane Chapman and Lex Knowlton to the soapbox at our Speakers’ Corner.
Jane and Lex will share their family stories from “Down Under & the Long White Cloud,” 19th-century stories from Australia and New Zealand.
I’ll be following up with the authors on such formal details as copyright approvals. Have questions, drop me a message. I’m happy to share more previews.
I can’t wait to see the finished product. Even though I don’t have family involved (that I know of so far) this magazine is going to be truly educational for me. It’s been incredible to watch the growth of Stories250 since the idea first landed. I’m amazed at how huge it’s become and now there will be a magazine. Who would have thought!
I feel like this might be a great addition to my family’s century safe! Imagine descendants opening it up in 2076 and reading all these fabulous stories! Thanks, @Barbara for your inspiration and enthusiasm for preserving all our America250 stories!