Experiences and thoughts on running an online literary publication.

1. Online Literature
Experiences and thoughts on running an online
literary publication
By Dominique Gerald M. Cimafranca
villageidiotsavant.com
This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 3.0 Philippines
License. To view a copy of this license, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0/ph/ or send
a letter to Creative Commons, 171 Second Street, Suite 300, San Francisco, California, 94105, USA.

2. The Dagmay Experience
Dagmay: weekly publication
of the Davao Writers Guild
2001: quarterly, then annual, literary journal
2006: monthly literary supplement to Sun.Star Davao
2007: weekly literary supplement to Sun.Star Davao
Online edition http://dagmay.kom.ph
launched December 2008
Rotating editorship, online submissions

3. Some Figures
Over 370 poems, short stories, and essays
In English, Bisaya, Tagalog, and other languages
Over 200 contributors, mostly young writers
Approx.1,000 unique readers per month
Average 80 readers per day
3-5 submissions per week
60% of readers from Philippines,
23% from United States

4. Benefits
Minimal production costs,
minimal distribution costs
International reach
Automatic archiving and organization
Reader feedback
Promotion: events
activities, books
Identifying and developing new talent

5. Challenges
Quality and quantity of submissions
Increasing readership and reach
Generating Revenue – what else? ;-)
Editing
Technical issues
site design, updating,
backup, spam

6. In a world where anyone can
publish online, does a
mediated magazine
still matter?
I think so.

7. At its most basic
Writer Reader

8. Traditional publishing is more
complicated, though...
Writer Publisher Distribution Reader

9. ...much more complicated...
Editor
Sponsors Critics
$$$
Writer Publisher Distribution Reader
Academe
Marketing
&
Promotion

10. In the online model...
Sponsors
Writer Web Site /
Blog Readers
Promotion

11. Challenges for the self-publisher
Finding Readers Growth
Creating Variety Being part of a community
Maintaining Consistency
Integrity
Generating Revenue
Celebrity and sensationalism
Sustaining Readership
Writing for readers...or search engines?

12. Mediated Online Publication
Editor Critics
Sponsors
Writer Web
Publisher Reader
Promotion
Academe

13. “Art begins with resistance
– at the point where resistance is
overcome. No human
masterpiece has ever been
created without great labor.”
--André Gide

14. Feedback
Growth
Selection
Writer Editor
Correction
Validation Collaboration
Verification

15. Future Plans
E-books compilations, Sponsorship
anthologies, reprints of old local advertisting
Additional revenue stream
Digital Preservation Paying Market
so we can pay our writers
Directory
of writers and
their works
Experimental forms
hyperfiction
Best of Dagmay
as print publication

16. Online literature in the Philippines
Rocket Kapre Estranghero
rocketkapre.com
estranghero.kom.ph
rocketkapre.com/usok
farthesthore.kom.ph
Talecraft
talecraft.komikasi.com
Panitikan
panitikan.com.ph
High Chair Sawikaan
highchair.com.ph
sawikaan.net
Filipiniana.net
filipiniana.net
...and so many more...

17. Got Questions?
Ask me!

18. Online Literature
Experiences and thoughts on running an online
literary publication
By Dominique Gerald M. Cimafranca
villageidiotsavant.com
This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 3.0 Philippines
License. To view a copy of this license, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0/ph/ or send
a letter to Creative Commons, 171 Second Street, Suite 300, San Francisco, California, 94105, USA.