Treatment

I am going to create a magazine for my media project. The magazine is a spiritual magazine called Element. The name is based on the natural elements as spirituality is based on connecting with nature’s elements such as the earth. The target audience of my magazine is going to readers who are spiritual and are interested in health, nature, God and the body. I have decided to do a spiritual magazine as it is something I am interested in and believe in which hopefully will reflect in my work. It is also different to most magazines on the market today which interested me and I thought it would attract a wider audience as more and more people are becoming aware of the spiritual belief in a society where religion is constantly being questioned.

I am going to produce my magazine in Newcastle. As well as the magazine, I am going to create a blog to help me keep a portfolio of the steps I am going to take to create the magazine. I will be setting up my blog on WordPress, https://laurabaldwinmagzine.wordpress.com/. To help me create a spiritual magazine that connects with the target reader, I am going to be doing surveys as well as buying and reading spiritual magazines already on the market. Some of the magazines I will be looking at are Spirituality and Health and Mind Body Spirit Magazine. I will look at the profile articles and feature articles to learn about what the reader expects to be informed on when buying the magazine. This will benefit me when interviewing and writing the articles that will be included in my magazine. The magazine would be a monthly edition and for readers based in the North of England. I am not going to be spending all my time in Newcastle when interviewing for my articles as some of the interviewees and settings are in the North West.

My first feature article is set at The Sanctuary of Healing in Langho. The Sanctuary is a place of healing and therapy. Run by a man called Tony Clarkson, it is popular for people who suffer from mental or physical illness. It is also a very relaxed place to dine at for lunch with friends. Therapies, events, classes and a café are available at The Sanctuary. There is also a shop that sells candles, Buddha statues, incense sticks and books related with spiritual development. In my feature article I will be talking about how The Sanctuary is a positive place to go to and how it has helped the lives of people suffering from certain illnesses. I will interview Tony as well as other members of staff working in different departments to get a feel of what it is like to be part of a place that changes people’s lives for the better. I will also interview clients who have different illnesses to see why they return for treatment at The Sanctuary on a weekly or monthly basis. The therapies available to clients are: Acupuncture, Chakra balancing, Crystal light therapy, Electro-magnetic therapy, healing, infrared sauna detox, massaging, reflexology and psychotherapy. The therapy used at The Sanctuary has been known to help people who suffer from: M.S., Alzheimer’s Disease, Anxiety and depression, Arthritis, Asthma and other lung/breathing disorders, Candida, Chronic fatigue syndromes including ME, Fibromyalgia, Influenza, Injuries, IBS, Joint pain, ME, Pain, including back pain, PMT, Prolapsed disc, Repetitive Strain Injury, Sciatica, Skin complaints including eczema, psoriasis, burns, vitiligo, Stroke recovery, Ulcers. If there are places to help the reader overcome an illness without using prescribed medicines then it is definitely in the public’s best interest to read this article.

My profile article will also take place in the North West as I will be interviewing a man named Michael Reccia who works alongside Tony on some occasions. It is through Tony that I will get an interview with Michael though the two will not be related in my articles. Michael is best known for this work as The Joseph Communicator. Joseph is a highly evolved spirit guide who is deeply worried about the fate of mankind and returns to channel important spiritual information from the higher realms through spirit medium Michael G. Reccia. He has released five books and has even done an interview with BBC radio DJ Johnnie Walker. I will not read the books before interviewing him as I would like to get to know how he realised he had a gift and why he chose this way of life. When interviewing Michael I would like to know how he believes his work is changing the world and what he thinks the reader can do to help him with his change. I am going to ask where he has travelled and preached. How the change from Michael to Joseph affects him. When did he realise he could make such a difference and I will also make references to his books. Michael has many followers; all spiritual as God is a main figure in Michael’s work. This will draw in a great audience as he is an interesting figure for readers who don’t know about him but also for readers who do know who he is and what he does.

The second feature article is going to look at the spiritual church in Jesmond, Newcastle. A spiritual church provides services on specific nights and includes a divine service, an open circle, healing and specific events. By looking at this church it gives the reader information on what to expect by visiting their local spiritual church. I have attended a spiritual church before and couldn’t believe how popular it was and how the preachers connected with the audience. I saw many emotional faces and saw that it touched people in a positive way. I will interview the people involved in the setup of the church, the people who attend the services and the special guests that preach at the church. I will investigate the changes the church has made in people’s lives and what attracts visitors every week. I will also participate in the events.

The final feature article I am going to write is on yoga and how it can have a positive affect on health and the body. I will also look into how it deals with stress as recent studies have found that it can seriously reduce stress levels. I will attend classes and interview those participating in and teaching yoga. I will also look at the many different kinds of people that participate in yoga, BBC recently wrote an article on how it has helped prisoners overcome their stress. I have also recently read an article on how it has helped cancer patients. I will post these articles on my blog. I will go to more than one yoga class in both the North East and the North West as it will be interesting to see how different classes concentrate on different aspects of the body and mind.

I will interview anyone involved in the articles over the next two months as I will be able to travel to the North West in December. Once I have collected all the information I can, I shall then begin writing the articles making sure there is a similar feel in each one and it relates to my target audience. My articles must give out information that is relevant to the reader and will be of interest to them.

As well as writing the articles I will take a series of photographs at my different locations and with the different people I am going to meet. I will post these photos on my blog as well as write a brief summery of what I have been doing. I will also take some separate photos to put alongside my articles. I want my magazine to also be visual even though I am aware it is marked on context. I want the magazine to have a very relaxed feel about it so will not put too much detail into the design. I do want it to stand out however so I am going to look at a few different designs once I have written all of my articles.