When was the last time you felt the fibre of paper between your fingers as you read something? Yes electronic devices mean we can consume reading material without the burden of lugging a book or magazine around in our daily travels. But is something lost in the experience without the tactile page in our hands?
That is part of the idea behind a new Australian venture called Soul Tread. Billed as a quarterly faith magazine for book nerds, creative folk, and recovering screen addicts. It will be released in a print only format and will feature Australian stories.
Rachael Lopez is the founder and editor and she has put all her other projects on hold to launch Soul Tread. Having written for other publications over the past 5 years she is taking the bold step of launching something brand new and all her own.
I asked her about her all of nothing bet “This is the whole focus. It’s very interesting for me. I’ve always been a jack of all trades. A finger in every pie, on committees, organising conferences, writing for different publications, so it’s interesting to throw everything into Soul Tread.”
Having released a few books of my own over the last few years I have a unique insight into the amount of work that the Soul Tread team and all their initial supporters have put in to date and will need to continue to do so to make Soul Tread a success.
When Rachael told me the magazine would be for the young and young at heart I felt even more honored to have been asked to write about the magazine having used the same tagline for my collection of short stories.
Despite the challenges many have faced this year during September they ran an over funded crowdfunding campaign which should ensure the first edition arriving in peoples mail boxes before the end of the year.
When asked about launching during Covid Rachael said “With so much time spent in front of our screens during 2020 it’s hoped it will provide people with a much needed break from screen time.”
An expat story per issue will be one of the focuses of the magazine among the other articles giving a unique insight into what is happening in the lives of Australian Christians. The initial team has been sourced from around the country but they are on the look out for stories for next years issues, if you know someone who has an interesting story to tell.
Another aspect of the project is not just printing it in Australia but producing it in an an environmentally friendly manner. The magazine will be printed on carbon neutral, recycled and FSC certified paper, and delivered in a compostable mailbag.
With the promise of an exploration of faith from an Aussie perspective through illuminating writing, illustrations and photography. Including exclusive, original content that can’t be found anywhere else I’m looking forward to holding the first edition in my hand almost as much as I look forward to holding one of my own books for the very first time.
Neville Hiatt was the 2020 Press Services International Tronson Senior Writers Award Winner for Australia. His previous posts for can be read here.
He spent a decade working for Radio Stations before his career was intermissioned by someone in a hurry to get home from work. For more of his award winning creativity visit http://nevillehiatt.com.
He also blogs for http://altcoincollege.com/covering the way cryptocurrencies and blockchain are changing our world.