Ruminate Magazine

We are getting ready for our second annual RUMINATE Benefit: "Shop for Christmas: Support the Arts," which will be held on December 10th from 7-10 p.m. at Grace Church Presbyterian in Fort Collins, CO.

Last year's benefit had a great turn out and featured amazing work from over 10 local artists (which ranged from pottery and jewelry to photography and paintings)! We had yummy food, great beer and wine, and live music. We also raised money for RUMINATE and brought more awareness to the Fort Collins community about our mission and our heart for the art community. 

We are hoping to make this year even better and already have some great artists lined up, including our featured artist from Issue 09, Evan Mann, and local jewelry artist, Nicole Roloff, as well as some great work for the silent auction that has been donated from past RUMINATE art contributors Steven D. Johnson (Issue 08), Josh Schicker (Issue 05), and Katie Jenkins (Issue 03). We really want to thank these artists for their support of RUMINATE!

If you are in the area, please come join us for a great evening. 

And if you aren't in the area but still want to shop for Christmas and support the arts, please consider giving a RUMINATE gift subscription to some of the folks on your list!

We are working like mad to get Issue 10 ready, which probably explains the lapse in blogs. But, we're back, and so excited to share some great news about RUMINATE's talented graphic designer, Anne Pageau.

Anne has been with us from the very beginning and is responsible for making RUMINATE what Pulitzer prize nominee Lawrence Dorr called, "the most beautiful magazine [he] had ever seen." We happen to agree with Mr. Dorr and love how Anne has made RUMINATE far from the typical literary magazine.  Instead, RUMINATE looks much more like an artist's sketch book or a writer's journal, with each poem, paragraph  and page hand-crafted. And this is all thanks to Anne.  

And because so many of our reader's have told us how much they love the design of RUMINATE, we wanted to share Anne's latest creation with you all: Give Studio. Together with her husband Brian, Anne is creating gorgeous letterpress cards and stationery (and don't worry, Anne will still be designing RUMINATE, too).  Anne loves beautiful typography and paper and taking the time to write good friends, so it is no surprise that she and Brian hope Give Studio will encourage these things, and as they put it: celebrate "generosity, handwritten sentiments, the use of postage stamps, a slightly-slower pace of life, shared emotions, experience, reminding someone of who they are, curiosity, and kindness" just to name a few. 

To us, these are quite worthy of celebration, and in many ways, coincide with our hopes for RUMINATE and why we care so much how each page is designed and the type of paper we print on--because we want RUMINATE to be something you love to read, but also something beautiful that you want to hold and touch, and pause over, and share with friends. And with much thanks to Anne, we think it is!

We wish the best for Give Studio. Go ahead and check it out for yourself...and I bet you'll want to write a letter--because Anne and Brian's enthusiasm is that infectious and the cards are that beautiful. Plus, they make great Christmas gifts too. 

For those of you who haven't heard, Rock and Sling, a journal that shares a very similar mission to RUMINATE, has had to cease publication because of a shortage of funds. Here at RUMINATE, this was very sad news and hit close to home. (Yes, there is many a day when our entirely volunteer staff isn't sure if we can keep going, or if the printing bills can be paid).

Rock and Sling is trying to raise the funds to begin publishing in the near future, and we seriously hope this will happen and that our readers might consider helping. It has been our honor to publish poetry from Rock and Sling editor Laurie Klein in our first issue, and over the past two years we have been encouraged and lifted up by the folks at R&S as well as moved and inspired by the quality publication they produce. For those of you who have been R&S readers, or even for those of you who haven't yet read the journal, check out their website to read a letter from the editor and consider making a donation or ordering the CD of the Rock and Sling collection. Every little bit will help, and you won't be disappointed with their publication. 

And I must add that with over 600+ literary magazines being currently published today, it blows my mind that only four Christian literary magazines currently "exist"... and have a tenuous existence at that. It is our hope that publications like RUMINATE and Rock and Sling, Image and Relief can continue to provide a much needed outlet for artists and readers to engage the arts and their faith, but I am reminded of just how much we depend upon the help of our supporters. If you are a subscriber or a donor to any of these fine publications--thank you! This is quite a humble business and I am never beyond shouting for joy every time we get a new subscription order or that $20 donation. And I am sure the folks at Rock and Sling feel the same way.

We are getting really excited about the annual Ad Lib Retreat that is coming up in a few weeks at the beautiful Fransiscan Retreat Center in Colorado Springs. Ad Lib is a ministry that is close to our hearts as our staff members have benefited the past two years from attending their retreats and from the support of the Ad Lib staff. So it is an honor that Ad Lib has asked us to present a discussion on literature, faith, and getting published. And even more than that honor, we are just thrilled to be able to have a weekend to rest and be surrounded by other like-minded souls. I can't wait.

If you want to know more about the Ad Lib ministry, visit their site. And if you live in the Colorado Springs area and don't have plans for the last weekend of September, consider joining us. I think there are still a few open spots!