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spring

The Adrenaline Issue

Impulsively getting a tattoo. Cutting off all your hair. Leaping off a seaside cliff. Meeting a blind date. Helping a stranger
in need. Turning off your phone for the weekend. Trespassing on an alpine lake. Waiting for a Jenga stack to fall.
Did any of those thoughts just make your stomach flip or your cortisol spike? We hope so.
Too often in our modern lives, the exhilaration of the unknown has been organized or edited out. Products aim to make
our lives smoother and free from unexpected mishaps, and were geared to focus on successful outcomes rather than the
haphazard learning we do along the way. And this isnt necessarily a good thing: The best experiences often come from
the most unexpected moments, and no great story ever started with someone reading a book on the couch.
While slow living can be connoted with a literal take on the phrasehammocks, languid afternoons, mornings spent
in bedthe interpretation that Kinfolk encourages readers to take is a lot more lively (and fun). Its not about being safe
or stilted: The end goal should be about bettering ourselves, and that nearly always comes from challenging boundaries
instead of taking the easy, expected or most well-lit route.
We should take more risks and make more mistakes. We shouldnt be afraid of failure and should celebrate our blunders.
We should push buttons just to see what happens and push horizons just to explore the outer edges of our personalities.
Some questions to get you started:
What unexpected moments give you a boost of adrenaline?
Do you know a creative person who broke the rules or took a major risk in their careers?
How can we incorporate small amounts of adrenaline in our daily lives (without base jumping on our lunchbreaks)?

Values
The magazines core values should be at the heart of every story.
These messages should encourage the readers to partake more meaningfully in their lives.
Please keep these essential thoughts in mind when pitching ideas:
Slowing down
Simplifying life
Cultivating community
Spending more time with friends and family
We also focus on five main areas of life:
Home / Work / Play / Food / Community

Have some ideas? Wed love to see them. Please email us your pitches:
submissions@kinfolk.com
Photographers & Artists: Please provide a quick visual mood board along with a written outline for
each idea. Attachments should be no more than 2MB max.
Writers: Please provide outlines of your ideas in the body text of the email (no attachments, please),
200 words per idea max.
If you havent worked with us before, please also provide a short bio and URL links to your
previously published work.
Pitches due: October 4
Copy deadline: November 9
Photo & Art Deadline: Varies by assignment (between November 9 and November 23)
Issue publishes: early February, 2016
Note: Unfortunately, due to our small team and the large number of pitches we receive, we are
only able to respond to successful pitches. The editorial team reads and reviews every pitch, and
all successful applicants will be informed by October 26. Commissioning guidelines concerning
exclusivity, kill fees and deadlines will be discussed with you upon assignment.

Team

Contact

Nathan Williams

info@kinfolk.com

Editor in Chief

Telephone: 503 946 8400

nathan@kinfolk.com
5210 N Williams Street
Georgia Frances King
Editor
georgia@kinfolk.com
Anja Verdugo
Art Director
anja@kinfolk.com

Portland, Oregon 97217