In my current line of work, that might seem like a bad idea. There are plenty of marketing notions out there that suggest pulling back the curtain to show what really happens behind the scenes is a good way to kill a brand.

Of course, most of those same marketing notions are focused on how to profit from the work you do, and T.O.F.U. has never really been good at that. Hell, T.O.F.U. may not even be good at being a brand per say, but I like to think the magazine has come to be known for something in at least a few circles. I also like to think those thoughts are positive.

So, where’s the honesty come in you ask?

The Inner Workings

With six issues out, and another one still in the works, T.O.F.U. has gone further than imagined when the idea first came into being. So many things have changed, some for the better, but some for the worse.

One of the negative changes is the fact that Team T.O.F.U. is currently one person. Sure, the magazine couldn’t get anywhere without all of the contributions from so many over the years, but, as it currently stands, the behind the scenes work is done by me. When it started, the magazine was driven by two people, and for every issue but one, that was always the case.

So, there is no team of editors, public relations, financial advisors, etc… There’s just me.

No, This Isn’t a Vegan Dating Ad

Don’t get me wrong, I’m not writing this as some sort of elaborate singles ad. In fact, I’m happily involved with someone at the moment, and I don’t see that changing. What I am writing this for is to hopefully help you understand a little better why the magazine is far from a constant publication and why some emails may go unanswered for some time.

As it stands, all the moving and changes my life has thrown at me over the past few years have pushed T.O.F.U. to the back burner. Sure, I’ve debated stopping the magazine, and I feel I made that clear before the last issue was released over a year ago, but I still think T.O.F.U. can do some good in the vegan community. Plus, with the great contributors and supporters who have approached me still onboard, and folks continuing to read the magazine, I can’t walk away.

That’s fine and all, but where’s my new issue?!?!

And that leads us to here: the end of January with no issue #7 on the digital shelf.

All I can tell you is that it’s being worked on. Folks have contributed some great work, and a few other pieces are still in the pipeline. Mainly, the delay is my fault. I’m sorry, but I’m only one person.

Sure, I could throw something together right now and put it out there, but all of you deserve, and should expect, much better. I’m hoping I can deliver that. I just don’t know when yet.

Patience is a virtue, right?

thanks for reading this and supporting the magazine,
Ryan

Of course, another issue wouldn’t be possible if it wasn’t for people being interested in the last six, and that’s why I’m happy to hear from folks like Megan at The Vegan Cookbook Aficionado. She was looking for some help on her vegan MOFO posts by interviewing vegans she found interesting, and I’m flattered to be among that crowd.

So, jump over to her site and check out what I had to say about how T.O.F.U. came to be and a few other things. Of course, while you’re there you should be sure to check out her recent posts on Nanaimo Bars, and her drool-inducing vegan poutine.

Did I mention, she’s a fellow Canadian? Not only that, but she’s a Newfoundlander at heart too.

So, while I’m taking this holiday Monday here in Canada to keep the ball rolling for issue #7 submissions (you have sent in a pitch, right?), feel free to listen to what we had to say about YouTube cat videos, Canada, Newfoundland, Ontario, PETA (I’ll give you two guesses how this topic went), and so much more.

Red Radio Ep. 39: Shootin’ the T.O.F.U. with Ryan Patey

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!

Has it really been seven months? Like so many big shifts in one’s life, it seems like both shorter and longer in many ways. For better or for worse, a lot of things have changed in my life, and that means a lot of things have changed for the magazine too.

First and foremost, the attention that the last issue received, and even still receives now, has been overwhelming. So much so that I’ve decided I will continue with the magazine. In fact, a month or so ago I was struck with an idea for the cover to issue seven, but my decision to move back to Canada led to that being put on the backburner.

Rest assured, the new issue will happen, and hopefully in a much more efficient manner than the last few. However, I hope you will all bear with me as I make yet another move with my minimal belongings to once again try to settle. I’m moving to Winnipeg, Manitoba for plenty of reasons, and one of them is certainly all of the support the magazine (and I) have seen over the years from the veg folks there.

I’m looking forward to becoming more involved with the veg community in the Peg, as well as the community around the world. I know this blog has gone unattended for far too long, and I keep promising to do better, but if you have a chance to check out the Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram accounts you’ll notice I’m doing something at least!

So, as the clock ticks down for my time here on the other side of the world (29 days!), I promise it is also counting down to the time when I will be able to shift to focusing on a new issue. Building on the momentum of the last one, the focus issues will be tough, the recipes will be great, and the words inside will be from vegans all around the world. And yes, that’s where you come in!

thanks for sticking around,
Ryan

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

The following is an excerpt from a focus piece written by Noemi Martinez, which will be available in issue six later this week.

Being a vegan is as much an identity to me as being a poet, being a Boriqua/Chicana and living on the borderlands, both literally and queerly speaking. It seems only natural that my eating habits find themselves in my poetry and writing. As a single parent, unschooling around the kitchen table is common as well as something I call edupunk, a mix of DIY and punk ethics education. Many of our conversations revolve around food, justice, the environment, oppressions and what it means to be brown bodies living in our society. I am largely truthful about the real world to my two children. The other day I spoke to my son, River, about the high percentage of Latino and Black men in United States prisons and how one in six Latino and Black boys have a chance of going to prison in their lifetime — that is a painful reality check as a parent to a young Chicano. Both my daughter, Winter, and River, grasp that the work I do on domestic violence, DIY (do it yourself) media and racial inequalities is just as important as my veganism.

Dinner for Two

I have not tried one recipe
from the cookbook you gave me.
I finger through it some days.
The foods- elaborate experiments
you thought I’d make
when I became a vegetarian.

It’s just like you
to give me something
of little use,
like flowers that die
when I needed seeds
to take root,
plants in soft dirt,
clay to form words.

Time-the residual effect
can’t be measured by scientific methods
and can’t be seen but
we are as one
even now
when I sense your
brooding thoughts
100 miles away
when I haven’t seen you
in ten years.

Rose Colored Thread

I grew in love with you
around the table
stalking flowers we
couldn’t afford to plant.
We laughed and you let me sleep
instead of touching my hand.
We could have mended
each other’s
bloody noses with
slow nights.

Next spring, there will be time
to tend to this garden
to wake me up,
tell my stories
that make the edges of your
mouth crinkle into a smile.

Honestly, the long-awaited issue six is certainly our biggest one yet (100+ pages!), and we’re going to be releasing it later this week. So, don your new favourite sweater, prep the kettle for some hot tea, cocoa, or whatever else you want to drink, and get ready to spend a couple hours nestled in a chair with plenty of new articles, interviews, recipes, and even some tips on how to compost on your balcony.

Just to get you back into the groove of reading what our lovely contributors bring to the table, you can expect a few teaser posts leading up to the release of the full meal deal. In fact, we’ll probably post one in the next hour or two.

thanks for sticking around,
Ryan

Needless to say, I’ve been quite busy gathering documents and figuring out other logistics to make this whole thing happen, and now it seems it will by the start of November.

What this means for T.O.F.U.

We’re still hoping to get the sixth issue out, and it may even happen before I leave the country. However, I can’t say where things will go from there. In many ways, this last issue helped me to realize why it is I even started the magazine, but it also made it obvious how much has to be sacrificed to get it out to people. Moving to another country is going to be an incredible experience, and I’m excited and gut-wrenchingly nervous about the whole thing. However, I don’t know where T.O.F.U. fits into all of it.

That being said, I will continue to update the various social media suspects with my adventures in Asia, and maybe even Australia if I can make it happen! So, although I’m sure you’re accustomed to it by now, please accept my apology for the delay with issue six and whatever comes after that.

Until then, I’m going to be busy trying to figure out my food options in a country where I don’t speak the language. Luckily, I have a few great resources already, such as this helpful blog.

Photo: Thorfinn Stainforth, September 2004, View of Daegu, South Korea from Mount Apsan Park