A team from Wiltshire have created a new genre of magazine that is receiving global attention, following the overwhelming success of its first issue.
Guru Magazine is the world’s first digital-only science lifestyle magazine, which aims to present scientific subjects in an easy-to-understand way. It launched in June with a pilot edition, and released its first full edition on 1st August, featuring the contributions of great writers from the USA, South Africa and the UK. A free magazine available to download from gurumagazine.org, Guru has been designed specifically with iPads, e-Readers and Smartphones in mind.
Guru has been created by a small team led by Stuart Farrimond, a 29-year-old former practising doctor who had to leave medicine after being diagnosed with a brain tumour in 2008 which left him with epilepsy. Stuart, who is best known online for his popular science site, ‘Doctor Stu’s Science Blog’, created the magazine after the popularity of his blog proved that there was a market for, and interest in, publications which explain scientific subjects in a fun and understandable way.
“There is nothing out there like Guru currently - we’re combining the best from science, technology and lifestyle publications and pulling them altogether into a magazine that we believe has something for everyone,” says Stuart.
Stuart co-founded the magazine alongside two friends, graphic designer Sarah Joy and communications professional Ben Veal, who looks after the marketing and PR of the magazine. Ben says that the choice to offer the magazine as a free download is a risk, but one that the team are willing to take.
“Guru isn’t free to produce, but it’s a project that we are all very passionate about”, says Ben. “Right now, the important thing for us is to get the message out about the magazine; with our web traffic growing by the day, I think people are really beginning to see that we are trying to do something new here. I’m confident that over time we will be able to bring in revenue from advertising, due to the targeted nature of the magazine”.
Since its launch, Guru has encouraged other writers to get involved. Employing the increasingly popular ‘crowd-sourced’ model of journalism, the team behind the project were overwhelmed with offers from talented writers from around the world.
Contributors to the first issue have included American artist Michele Banks, whose science-themed work focuses on cells, bacteria and the human anatomy; South African broadcaster and radio presenter Daryl Ilbury, who explores scientific scepticism; and American psychology expert, Dr Kim Lacey, who looks at the inner workings of the human mind. More new contributors are lined up for Issue Two, which comes out in October.
“With Guru, we’re looking to bridge the gap between popular science writing and lifestyle magazine journalism” adds Stu, who has recently been named a finalist for the national Welcome Trust Science Writing Prize in association with The Guardian, alongside James Lloyd, another of the magazine’s contributors.
“A lot of people are turned off when they hear the word ‘science’ - but really, by its very nature, science is interesting to most people - it’s the way our bodies work, what makes us tick, what goes in our food, and the way technology works. Guru is about redressing the balance, by making these topics engaging and understandable, and delivering them with passion to an audience that would never normally have picked up a magazine with ‘science’ in the title”.
Guru Issue One covers topics such as the art of making false memories, do-it-yourself molecular gastronomy, the top five diet myths, and the secrets behind the success of the Harry Potter franchise. See for yourself – download it, for free, now by clicking here.
