2. GENRE
• A genre is a stylistic category or sort especially of literature, music, film or art. It
basically means kinds or types that share similar characteristics and features that the
audience expect to see.
• In terms of a magazine, the genre is the topic that the content is featured on and
focused around. Regional magazines can range from having music genres, film
genres, entertainment genres or cultural genres.
• Daniel Chandler quotes “Conventional definitions of genre are based on the idea that
they share particular conventions of content that appeal to a specific audience.”
• It is important to choose a genre that will appeal to the audience and also be able to
compete in the magazine industry.
3. SUB- GENRE
• Genres can then be broken down into sub- genres which are smaller divisions of the
main subject area/ topic. For instance, music is a genre which can be branched out to
the sub-genres of pop, rock, punk or country. This allows the product to have a much
more specific generalization of styles so that it can have a deeper focus on a certain
topic. You can also have a magazine that covers more than one genre. This would be
useful if you wanted to appeal to a wider audience and therefore get a greater
publicity for your magazine. I think having more than one sub-genre would be
extremely useful for a regional magazine as the audience is already quite limited due
to it not being national and therefore you wouldn’t want to alienate anymore possible
members. It also means that you can focus more on making different aspects regional
as there will be more content to report on.
4. REGION
• I’ve decided to base my regional magazine within the North East of England as this is
my hometown and therefore I have the most knowledge of it. It also means I have
greater opportunity to identify the current magazines in my region and find out what
the magazine industry is lacking. Already, I know there are a very limited number of
magazines dedicated specifically to the north, especially for young adults. This is quite
ironic considering the North East boasts a student culture with over 5 universities and
numerous colleges/sixth forms. I therefore feel that a region specific magazine will be
extremely beneficial for the north east particularly if it is aimed at older teens and
young adults as this is an evident gap in the market. In this presentation I am going to
look at a range of current regional magazines and what genre they are based on to
see where there is a gap to appeal to my audience in terms of the content I could
provide.
5. MUSIC MAGAZINES
• Music magazines can range from pop, rock, punk or country and
therefore can appeal to a significant audience. NE:MM (North East
Music Magazine) is the main regional music magazine in the North
East that offers information on local concerts, artists, gigs and
reviews. They focus on the sub-genres of classical, roots, popular,
groove and RPM which I. think are quite unique as usually
magazines are based on the rock, pop or R&B genre. The main thing
I like about NE:MM is that they have a community page on their
website which allows you to have your own say on different articles
or start a conversation with like-minded locals. I feel this offers a
really nice community vibe which is essential for the magazine
however this can be adapted to any genre that I choose. I feel that
although music plays a significant role in a young audience lifestyle,
there is a very limited music scene in the north east and therefore if I
focused the magazine on a specific style of music I would alienate
my audience even more. Instead, I think I will use music as a sub-
genre to my magazine and include a few local music events for
example.
6. SPORT MAGAZINES
• Sport is a very popular genre of magazine with a stereotypical audience of 16 – 31 year old
males. Some sport magazines cover a range of sub-genres like football, tennis and overall
competitions however others are more refined to a specific type of sport. Northern golfer is a
regional magazine that offers information on the latest golf tournaments and courses. It is
predominantly aimed at males and due to the very specific sub-genre, golfers. When reading, I
noticed that it included mainly national stories and lacked a lot of input from regional stars or
professionals. I think this is due to the very refined target audience and topic which makes it
harder to apply specifically to the north east. The north east isn’t a very well known region for
golfing and therefore I wouldn’t want to choose a genre like this which would limit myself. The
layout of it is very professional and informative and because I don’t know a lot about golf, it
would be hard for me to adapt it and make it successful. I also don’t fit in the same target
audience and therefore I want to create content that I myself understand and would want to
read.
7. FASHION MAGAZINE
• Gossip is a fashion and lifestyle magazine based in the north east and distributed to over 13,500
ABC homes and businesses. Fashion is a sub-genre of the lifestyle genre however has a
stereotypical audience of women. This is portrayed by gossip which uses mostly female
inspirational images and articles about beauty, home design, fashion and local events. I like how
the magazine promotes regional stores and charities however again I think the sub-genre is too
regined and the audience is almoy just alienating by just focusing on women. The magazine
itself looks very mature and therefore aimed at a middle aged woman. I know this from the links
to house innovations, business outfit idea articles and wedding details. Although some people in
the region clearly like this, I don’t think I could appeal this to students and if I did, it would be
mainly females which I don’t want to focus solely on. I do know a lot about fashion however
which would help me to adapt it to a more modern audience. I would use fashion as a sub-genre
of my magazine however not have it as the main feature.
8. CULTURE AND LIFESTYLE MAGAZINE
• A culture and lifestyle magazine can be greatly adapted to a specific region and
therefore is my favorite choice. The Crack magazine, is an example of a North East
culture magazine which is aimed at an audience of 18 – 31 year olds. It offers a
range of sub-genres such as music, clubs, art, film, dance and food which allows
no audience member to be alienated or feel left out. It means that there is
something for everyone to enjoy and therefore I feel would be most successful in
appealing to the majority of young people in my area. I have noticed that the
Crack and other culture magazines such as Luxe are aimed more at an older
audience therefore I think there is definitely a gap for a modern and youthful
culture magazine.
9. CONCLUSION
• After conducting this research into different magazine genres and sub-genres in my
region, I have come to the conclusion that I will create a culture magazine. I feel this
will allow me to incorporate the most sub-genres and therefore attract the biggest
audience whilst keeping my content regional and relatable. Sub-genres I am
considering include fashion, music, film, events and art however more could be added
after further research. I feel this will allow me to add a bit of everything to my
magazine but keep it specific to the region which is what is most important. I also feel
the gap in the market for a modern culture magazine should be taken advantage of.
As I have a keen interest in all of these topics, I will be able to portray them to a
standard which I believe will be professional and creative. I also enjoy reading these
types of magazines and therefore already have existing knowledge of what to expect
which I will develop with further research.
