Q: I am writing to you for advice, or any help or knowledge, that you could give me in starting my own publication - a lifestyle magazine for men. As you may have noticed from my address, I am currently in prison, and it is because of this situation and the state of the economy that I intend to go down the route of self-employment when I am released. With this in mind, I came up with the idea of a men's lifestyle magazine, catered towards an urban market - think more of GQ as opposed to magazines such as Nuts and Zoo which tend to be written in a more tongue-in-cheek manner. So far, I have completed a business plan for the magazine, researched the idea, and have designed my own front cover. I have also thought about the contents page with the number of pages intended and what the magazine content would be, but I lack the know-how to turn my ideas from concept into print. Therefore, I would really appreciate any help or advice you are able to give me - big or small - as I am truly dedicated to this project and want to make it a success. If I am able to succeed with this project, I would like to become a mentor or role model in order to show other prisoners, or kids from urban areas and deprived backgrounds, that if you work hard enough then anything really is possible.
Wayne, HMP Ranby, Retford

A: I really admire your ambition Wayne, and suggest that you do everything possible to keep close to what's going on in your target market while you're still in prison. I'm hoping you have internet access of some form. If so, visit the website of PrintWeek's sister title MediaWeek (www.mediaweek.com) to keep up-to-date with the latest developments in the men's lifestyle magazine market. For your reading list, I recommend How to Get Rich by Felix Dennis - he of the Dennis publishing empire and publisher of original lads' mag Maxim. While wealth may not be your primary objective, I think Dennis's experiences and insights will make for useful reading. For lots of practical advice and valuable checklists visit the PPA website www.ppa.co.uk (it's the UK association for publishers of all kinds of magazines). This website provides you with a comprehensive guide for new publishers that has been put together by a panel of small publishers who've ‘been there, done that', so you can benefit from their experiences and avoid any potential pitfalls in the process. Most of all, good luck Wayne! It is a dog-eat-dog world in publishing so your experiences inside will probably stand you in good stead. Do keep in touch and let me know how you get on.

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