Layoffs
Magazines have been dropping like flies for a couple years now. When I was at Wondertime it seemed like every couple weeks we learned about another title that was folding. And then of course it was our title that folded.
Today it was announced that Conde Nast is closing several more titles, including Cookie. This one is particularly noteworthy to us Wondertimers. We saw Cookie as one of our main competitors, moreso than other parenting magazines, because it was taking an unconventional approach — as were we, although those approaches were very different. I imagined I’d feel some satisfaction that Cookie was closing — if we don’t have jobs, neither should they, darn it! — but I actually found myself feeling bereft. On and off all day I’ve been imagining the editors and designers packing up their desks, as we did at Wondertime nine months ago. I imagined those people had been working on their next issue, as we had been at Wondertime when we found out the news. I remember very well how it felt to go back to my desk after the big revelation — surprise, you’re unemployed! — and see the meaningless work lying there as if it somehow still mattered. So, Cookie employees: Good luck. Unemployment can suck. We know.
(But it can also be kind of nice. Just sayin’.)
