What we’re looking for

So, if you have something you want the world to know about, be it a product review, a great use for that old pasta sauce container, your two cents on how veganism relates to something else that is important to you or a simply perfect recipe for a fall soup that everyone should be carrying in their thermos, we’re interested!

What you need to do

Don’t hit the send button just yet though! In order to make this whole thing a little easier on everyone, there are a few things we would like to request from you:

• Read some of the past issues so you’ll know (almost) as well as we do what has been done, and you will also understand what it is we do.
• Send us a few ideas. If you’re truly committed to one, and you have some past experience with the topic, then pitch it by all means. However, if you just want to write about something related to veganism, then give us a range of interests.
• Quality and quantity. Although the word count is flexible, you should be comfortable with the idea of writing at least a couple of pages. We like to think our readers are looking for more than just a tweet or a blog entry about something, so stretch your legs and run with the idea. Unless it’s a recipe. Those shouldn’t be more than a page.
• Original content. If it’s an amazing piece that you don’t think received enough attention on your blog, you might sway us, but coming to us with a new idea will get a better reception for sure.
• Unpublished content. Since we started, there have been a bunch of great new vegan-specific publications popping up around the world, and we don’t want to step on any toes. There is room for all of us. However, if you’ve submitted something for one publication already, please don’t send it our way. It could get messy, and we can’t afford a lawyer or an apologetic fruit basket if another mag gets upset.
• Get excited. We don’t want to have to chase after you about the piece. Sure, we will send an email here or there, but if you’re not really into the idea or something comes up and life gets in the way, please let us know. This is supposed to be fun for everyone involved!

Good to go?

If so, then send us your pitch!

Of course, the whole issue would not have come together if it was not for the advertisers and contributors who got involved with this thing back when the summer was just a warm whisper on the wind. So, thanks to all of those fine folks who cared enough to write, hand me their money, and check-in every now and then to see if the whole thing was still alive.

That being said, I’m not done pushing this one yet! I’ll try to post another teaser or two of the stuff you can find inside the issue, and if I come across any great press-related blurbs from other folks I’ll post those too. I believe I’ve seen folks such as Jasmin Singer, Dan Hanley, and Sarah Kramer tweeting or blogging about it recently…

Otherwise, if you’re interested in such things, I’ve been trying to post as many pictures as I could from things I’ve been eating in South Korea on the Facebook fan page. Now that I have a fancy phone you can expect more. Well, as long as Facebook is willing to cooperate. I seem to have a few from this past weekend that just don’t want to show their face for some reason…

thanks,
Ryan

Photo credit: Ryan Patey | New Year’s Eve | Busan, South Korea

Please let us know what you think, and share it with your friends if you love it.

Issue Six Download

Topics include spring cleaning, growing veggies and greens in small spaces, how to promote veganism, making your own baby food, and a spotlight on the work and life of Jo-Anne McArthur of We Animals. Did we mention the cashew cookies, harvest soup and smoothie and shake recipes? What about the hot noodz? Or the full colour, vegan-friendly photos?

How to get it

On top of the content, the new issue is now available in two different ways: by signing up for the newsletter or through the pay-what-you-want model.

However you end up with the magazine in front of you, we hope you enjoy it! Just be careful to pace yourself, the next issue is not due out until right before Vida Vegan Con in August, which may seem like far too long if you finish this one in a single sitting.

play nice this summer,

Team T.O.F.U.

Smart wallets react to electronic spending by shrinking, refusing to open (ecouterre.com)

Designed to create a tangible element to online spending, which on its own can often seem without consequences, the wallets come in three different styles and each have a unique method of reminding you to slow down on eBay or etsy when you need to. They can connect with your smart phone using Bluetooth, so your bank account info can be monitored in real time, which provides an accurate indicator of how much you really should pay for that issue of T.O.F.U.

Yes, I had to go there. How else will I ever be able to even open one of these wallets if I don’t plug my own product?

The fun answer is “if radiohead can do it, so can we!”

The long answer is a little… well, longer. Over the past few years the prices for digital copies of the magazine, as well as the two cookbooks and Halifax dining guide, have fluctuated back and forth. There are many reasons why we have never really been able to settle on a price, and one of them is the simple fact that we’re not sure what the magazine is worth to the folks who read it. From our perspective each issue is worth plenty, and that’s why we invest so much of our time into it – but gauging other people’s investment interest is not that straightforward. So, through some Internet detective work we discovered a store that allows us to put the price in your hands. This not only means that we don’t have to lose sleep over whether or not we’re charging too much, it also means that if you just don’t have the money, but you really want the issue, you can download it. If you like it, tell your friends. If you don’t, tell us. The magazine has always been about giving folks a soapbox, and we don’t believe the audience should have to be rich to hear what our contributors have to say. In fact, with the move to digital-only distribution, T.O.F.U. is now able to give something back.

I’ll write a little more on that later. For now, go check out the magazine!

Issue #4: pay-what-you-want

So, get some sleep tonight because I suspect you will have a reason to stay up late tomorrow once you get your hands on the new T.O.F.U.

bon nuit,

Ryan

Alright, maybe it’s just a crush since they’re not entirely vegan, and they are on the other side of the world, but I can be smitten for today, right?

Lentil as Anything

They have a “pay as you feel” policy, three locations, live music, artwork, films and they are quite active in their community.

Oh yeah, they also share a kitchen with the fine folks who did the cupcake cartoons I posted about a little while ago, Mister Nice Guy Cupcakes.

Swoon.

Now, if they go vegan and add a record store adjacent to the restaurant, I’m going to have to grab my passport and credit card.

So, you may have already heard of bands such as Radiohead and Nine Inch Nails doing it with their new albums, but have you heard of a commercial business taking the pay-what-you-want plunge?

Panera Bread experiments with “Pay What You Want” model

Although it seems this type of thing has been done before, and worked, with a commercial business, it has yet to be done with a national chain.

As the value of digital media continues to be debated, specifically in the music industry, some pioneers are willing to run their own little experiments before the universal answer is found. For the people at Panera I hope this model works. It seems hopeful and positive to believe that customers will pay a fair price for the services you offer, and it also allows those who are unable to pay a fair price to still have access to your services.

Of course, the risk of not paying your bills is still there. Even though Panera has the Panera Foundation to cover most of their bills, it will be interesting to see just how well they do after putting the pricing in the hands of their customers.

Here at T.O.F.U. we will be doing a little experimenting of our own. Although the old issues are already marked as free, the new issue will be released digitally as pay-what-you-want. So, once we set the little guy free into the world yet again, you lovely people will be able to download it for however much you feel it is worth.

Personally, I’m interested to see how this goes, both for Panera and for T.O.F.U.