It’s been 13 years since I started my first magazine— the same one I’ve grown to over 9 million views and a 6 figure subscriber list!

Back then, I was learning everything on the job, through trial and error, starting subscriptions (and cancelling them!).

I’ve now created systems and have quite a groove going for how I plan and design issues, find new readers, market, and monetize.

There are a handful of softwares and tools I use to run my magazine business (which now includes two digital magazines!) and in this post, I’m going to share my Top 5 with you!

If you want to hear a little more about my story and how I started not one, but two successful magazines, be sure to check out this video where I give you all the details from how I started to where I am now. 

Before we get started, I want to mention, I recently launched the most comprehensive course for starting a digital magazine and my students are all doing some really cool things. If you want to join us and learn how to start a magazine—including how to plan content, photoshoots, design, market, and monetize—in just 7 weeks, you can find more details here or watch my FREE Masterclass where I share the three steps I take to start successful magazines.

Now, let’s get into the five things you need to start a magazine.

Your Niche

You cannot start a magazine without a niche. You’ll want to choose something you’re passionate about, something you have experience or expertise in, or something to fill a void in the market.

Maybe you love to cook or bake, so a food magazine might be a great idea. Maybe you’re super tech savvy, so you’re thinking about starting a tech magazine. Maybe you’ve noticed that there is not a magazine geared toward a certain audience or around a certain topic, and you want to start it.

Choose a passion, an interest, your own personal expertise, or a void filler. You want to think long term and something you’ll be able to write about and create content about over and over again. So make sure it’s something you’re not going to get sick of in a few months.

When I started my magazines, I first chose a parenting magazine. I was only a Junior in the Journalism School, but I noticed a gap in the market and I filled that void with this magazine. It worked out because that magazine has nearly 9 million views and a 6 figure subscriber list.

My next magazine was a wedding magazine. I was newly engaged at the time I started it and I wanted to take all of the inspiration I wanted to see when planning my own wedding and put it into a magazine, so I did. Again, it worked out because that magazine has almost 4 million views.

Magazine Name

If you’re going to start a magazine, you’ll need something to call it. I have a fun exercise for you to do to come up with potential names for your magazine. 

Get out a piece of paper and a pen or even the notes app on your phone. With your niche in mind, sit down and set aside the next five minutes to write down every single word you associate with that niche. 

Don’t edit anything yet, just write. Write every word you think of when you think about that niche. So for instance, if your niche is photography, you’ll write lens, aperture, snap, snapshot… you get the picture.

So set your timer for five minutes and write. Ready? Go.

Now that you’re done, I want you to start to edit that list. First, cross off any words you just don’t like the sound of, words you know are already in use as magazines, get rid of those. You’re then going to identify your Top 5 from the edited list.

This is now your working list of magazine names. You’ll want to do the proper research on these before you narrow it down any further to make sure they’re not already in use or copyrighted.

Content Planning Tool

Before you can begin to contact anyone for interviews, for features, you need to map out your issue and it starts with a planning tool. I personally use Google Docs for my content planning and I have a specific spreadsheet set up that I use every time I plan an issue. I just drop in my content ideas and then get to work on contacting people for interviews and making those features happen.

Inside The Editor Academy, I give you my exact spreadsheet for planning the content for your issues, how to contact people for interviews, even the exact email scripts I use to contact people.

Design Software

This is what will turn your ideas into beautiful pages that your readers will want to flip through. There are two main design softwares that you will likely use to design a magazine and those are:

1. Adobe InDesign
2. Canva

Canva is pretty limited in its ability to design magazines, especially two page spreads, so my pick will always be Adobe InDesign. It’s what I use for my magazines and what I’ve been using since Day 1 when I downloaded a free trial in college and the rest is history.

Now, if you find yourself saying, ‘Hey Kate, I have no idea how to design a magazine. I’m not a graphic designer.’ I’ve got news for you, I have in-depth video tutorials inside The Editor Academy where I walk you through exactly how to design magazine covers, magazine articles, and moodboards or collages in both InDesign and Canva.

There’s a reason it’s the most comprehensive course for starting a digital magazine and that’s because I’ve included every single step to get you from zero to publishing your first issue.

Publishing Platform

Your publishing platform will turn your magazine document into a fully-functioning interactive magazine that your readers will be flipping through, clicking through, and hopefully subscribing to. 

There are several publishing platforms you can use, some of them free, some of them paid. 

Some platforms you can consider are Issuu, FlipHTML5, FlippingBook, Joomag, Flipsnack, even Canva with specific apps like Heyzine. 

I’ve always used Issuu for my magazines and I find it very user-friendly and visually appealing for my readers. It’s easy to add links, access analytics, and even sell your magazines, if you so choose.

So if you’re thinking about starting a magazine, this list is a great place to start the planning process.

If you need someone who’s been there before to personally walk you through this journey from A to Z, from how to show up online as a magazine, to creating a website, email list, finding readers, and monetizing your magazine— then be sure to check out The Editor Academy, the most comprehensive course for aspiring magazine editors that has everything you need to get your magazine up and running.