Survey Results and Some Updates to Micromance Magazine
Hey, everybody! Hope this finds you all well. I’d like to thank everyone who took part in the reader survey - you know who you are. Since it was anonymous, I don’t…lol...out of 185 subscribers at the time of the survey, half opened the email, and of that half, about a third responded. Of the respondents, only one said they were not enjoying Micromance. But that’s okay… we can’t please everyone, right?
When asked if a story/poem emailed a day was too much, it remained pretty 50/50, but “NO” eked out the win, but only by a vote or two.
When asked if readers would prefer a downloadable PDF to read, with story/poem posts being more spread out, it was pretty neck and neck with the first handful of votes, but quickly “NO” took the lead and stayed there.
And, finally, when asked if readers would like to see other content, such as writer spotlights or “columns” by regular writers, it was also a steady 50/50, with “NO” eking out the win, by a click or two.
As the Editor in Chief, I want reading and submitting to Micromance Magazine to be the best experience it can. I want us to be among the best lit mags out there. But it’s hard work. Hard work I signed up for. But I don’t want to end up in a spot where I can’t follow through or keep up with the flow of the magazine. Some changes need to be made…. One of those is the PDF. It takes a lot of time to prepare each post for each day. And my whole purpose in creating this magazine was to spotlight writers. I didn’t want to just publish everyone at once, where people scroll through and overlook pieces, or just upload a PDF, as some people can’t open them or download them, etc. I always wanted each writer to be featured and have the same opportunity to be read, noticed, shared, celebrated as all the other contributors of that issue. I would still love to produce a PDF of each issue, but it’s much too time consuming, and the survey shows that most readers like the emails. So, I will still produce the PDF for Issue 1 as promised. And, I think, it will be nice to have them for special issues, like the upcoming Holiday Issue. But, otherwise, I think time is best spent at my end making sure pieces are properly presented and the writers properly represented, and in promoting Micromance on social media so we continue to grow readership.
As far as the special features, the writer spotlights, etc., I intend to go on with those. I understand readers are interested in the stories/poems, but I do think its important to uplift and encourage our contributors. So, going forward, Micromance Magazine will be bi-monthly (this is reflected in updated submission guidelines). There will always be 25-30 authors accepted, with their work being posted every other day over the two months of that issue. The in between days will be used for interviews, spotlights, and news/updates such as this email - that way they don’t cut into the time of the featured writer of the day.
I do believe these minor changes will work in favor of the magazine, its submitters and its readers. And, not going to lie, they will help me significantly to not feel so rushed and stressed to get things done and be able to manage time better between posting, promoting and replying to submissions.
I want to thank everyone once again for their continued support. It is greatly appreciated and makes me feel really good to have started this. I hope you all stick with me, and we can make Micromance Magazine THE place for romance writers, flash fiction writers, poets and readers of all of the above!!
Happy Reading,
G. Lynn
P.S. We just joined Threads, as well as Instagram… so if you’re on either or both, give us a follow - we’re on both as Micromance Magazine…