Changing Gears
To say we knew what we were doing back in September of 2016 when we launched ReinCarNation magazine would be a bold statement. Our company knows publishing, and the Editor Steve Temple had been in the industry for many years, but the rest of the staff was either new to the subject matter, or publishing entirely in my case. And while our first few print issues were definitely a learning experience, I think our readers could see they were getting a quality publication at an unbeatable price. However it’s fallen on me to explain a few changes we need to make going forward to keep supplying our readers with original content, starting with our print magazine.
More and more so, we’re living in digital world. The upside to this is, of course, the instant access to information from a variety of sources, usually at little to no cost to the reader. Naturally this may put strain on other information avenues, and print publishing has had a rough go over the last few years. This time period alone has seen the final print issue of Autoweek, TEN Publishing (Hot Rod, Motor Trend, Four Wheeler, etc.) end print publication of 19 of its 22 titles along with numerous other titles going digital-only.
With this in mind, I have to break the news that we've canceled the print version of RCN for the foreseeable future in order to continue supplying quality automotive content to our readers at rcnmag.com. The decision was made the day we sent the Spring 2020 issue to print, and an especially difficult one, as our print publication has been our number one priority since we launched RCN back in September 2016. Unfortunately print is also expensive, and we’d prefer to get our stories in front of all who enjoy them, rather than administer a hopped up subscription fee to make it work. But all is not lost, and if you’re still with me, I want to tell you about some exciting things we’ve got in the works.
To start, we’ll still be here at rcnmag.com, and you’re going to start seeing a wider variety of automotive content on our site. In the coming weeks, you’ll see our three-letter acronym come to represent Rare Car Network*, and in addition to the replicas and kit cars we’ve built our reputation on, you’ll see more muscle cars, hot rods, exotics, one-offs and cult classics from the ’80s and ’90s. With nearly four years immersed in kits and replicas, expect them to remain a staple in our content, and if anything, I want our coverage of these to be even more thorough. Furthermore, I want to re-extend my invite to our kit and replica readers to send me an email if you’ve got something to share, whether it be driving experiences, build sagas or custom modifications.
When I look at what we accomplished with ReinCarNation magazine, and the huge leap in quality from our first issue to the last, I feel proud, and confident that our team can tackle new challenges and goals. We’re planning to bring you exclusive features on a wider variety of cars, more original videos, ride alongs and more obscure cars. And to show you we mean business, please check out our first feature in this new direction, titled “Rolling Sculpture,” covering a rare grand touring cabriolet from Cisitalia. This particular car has only been seen by a handful of folks in the U.S., and we even threw a quick video together to get you in the front seat of this blue-chip collector.
So I guess that means I’m the man behind the helm of this venture, the Editor if you will. But this is your site, not mine, and I want to encourage you to email me your stories. Have an interesting car, engine or story to share? Email me, and I hope that together we can make this site an even better forum for sharing automobile knowledge and culture.
Dean Larson
Editor
dean.larson@colepublishing.com
*This story has been edited to change Nation to Network.*
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