Officeland is one of several new features we've introduced on unlimitedmagazine.com
In 1968, when he was 36 years old and had published several books, the American writer John Updike told Paris Review “You can’t always rehearse your instincts. Far better to seek out models of what you can’t do.” Now, Updike was speaking about literary matters and his own career, but that advice is well heeded by anyone looking to push themselves in their lives.
A bit more than a year ago, I ran into Dan Rubinstein at a conference in Vancouver. We immediately hit it off. It turned out, he was looking for a second-in-command at a little magazine called Unlimited. Me, I had worked for several years in the same role in Montreal and I was seeking out something new—even if it meant moving across the country to do it.
This is not the first time I’d moved across the country, or the first time I’d started a job where the learning curve was like the spike on a seismograph. But this position turned out to belong squarely under Updike’s dictum. Over the past 14 months, I’ve worked with a small, but passionate group of contributors, fellow web editors such as Rachel Singh and Duncan Kinney, with our web technician Gunnar Blodgett, associate publisher Joyce Byrne (who moonlights as a fount of pop culture knowledge and wit), art directors Malcolm Brown and Stephanie Chan and others to re-imagine what Unlimited could be as we launched the magazine as an online-only publication.
The past year in Edmonton has been busy, cold, often fun, sometimes challenging and unforgettable. Now I’ve decided take Updike’s advice once again and leave Unlimited to travel and write, write and travel and all permutations between. As a bit of a year-end review, I’d like to share some of my favourite stories UL published only online.
+ Job Training
Laura Trethewey’s cross-Canada trip, talking with ordinary gen Y-ers about their jobs.
+ Audio: Batman Was a Businessman
Greg Hudson’s chat with venture capitalist and comic book aficionado Sean Wise
+ Officeland: Sharesies for Freelancers
+ Coming tomorrow… Unlimited’s special Advent Calendar
This interactive box of goodies goes live tomorrow. Check back for details.
Enjoy!
Craille Maguire Gillies, editor, unlimitedmagazine.com
Tags: Careers, Editor's Note, Edmonton
