What’s better than being published? I know this one: it’s when Metro Detroit Weddings sets up a phone interview, then sends a photographer to your studio to capture it all. AH!
Paper & Honey® has been published in print before, but always in a much smaller capacity — a tiny photo or byline here and there. But THIS? A two-page spread! I mean, what am I, FAMOUS? I certainly got a little starry-eyed and am so grateful for this whole experience.
Earlier in the year a writer reached out, letting me know she was writing an article on wedding vendors in Michigan. Would I be interested in participating?
The answer is obviously always a resounding YES, PLEASE, I WOULD BE INTERESTED IN PARTICIPATING SO HARD. Luckily for me it’s the twenty-first century and communicating via email allows me to be slightly more chill.
We set up a phone interview and I sweated the entire time. I’m a bit of a nervous Nellie in everyday situations, but a Very Special Phone Interview had me feeling especially clammy. I just want to seem so cool to local journalists, ok? Fortunately, Beth was a true treasure, and didn’t mind my excited ramblings whatsoever. (Or, at least, she was very good at hiding it.)
Side note: even after nearly 6 years of being in business, I still get so psyched when I get to openly talk about this little company of mine. Why I started it, the type of work I get out of bed for, my visions for the future. This interview felt uniquely special as it was one of the first times I got to chat about Max joining me as the Paper & Honey® press operator. Humblebrag about my handsome letterpress printer? I’m all over it.
After the interview, I patted myself on the back and sent Beth some favorite images of my work. All that was left to do was wait for the issue to be published. Easy enough!
A few weeks passed. A peculiar email landed in my inbox. It was from CJ Benninger, a local photographer, who let me know that he would be photographing me in my studio for “my article” in Metro Detroit Weddings. Excuse me? MY article? A photographer sent out by the publisher, just for me?
HOW VERY FANCY.
Working with CJ was an awesome experience. I’ve worked with photographers I’ve hired in the past, but they’re almost always good friends of mine. Shooting days are work, of course, but they almost feel more like I’m hanging with girlfriends. Having a professional photographer in our studio, setting up his big intricate lighting and telling me how to pose — much different than my previous experiences. He filled me in on what the magazine does and doesn’t want to see in their imagery, and which photographs were likely to be chosen for publication.
Big ups to Max for taking a few photos from behind-the-scenes!
Being published in print still feels like a Big Deal, but the best part?
Sharing the experience with my parents.
I swear, they’re almost always three hundred percent more excited than me. My mama would call me near daily, asking if I had any updated information on which issue my article was going to be in, when it was going to be published, which stores carried the magazine. The absolute sweetest.
When it finally DID hit the shelves, CHAOS. Cue me and my parents scouring every bookshelf in the Metro Detroit area. It was weirdly hard to find. But once found, you can bet that my parents bought a dozen copies. Word from my dad is that my mama even made brand new friends with other bookstore shoppers, simply for the opportunity to let them know her daughter is PUBLISHED in Metro Detroit Weddings magazine and wouldn’t you like to see?? Look! A whole spread! Two whole pages.
My parents remind me to be more proud of myself. I may feel undeserving of this opportunity, but hey — that doesn’t mean I shouldn’t feel over the moon about it.
I think my favorite bit of the interview is the very first line:
“If you want to get excited about paper, just talk to Laura Joseph, owner of Paper & Honey, for about 30 seconds. Her passion for it — and specifically for letterpress printed paper — is infectious.”
Infectious passion? I am SO into it.
Thank you so much for having Paper & Honey® as a featured artisan, Metro Detroit Weddings magazine!
Thank you to Elizabeth Swanson for the enjoyable interview, and thank you to CJ Benninger for your time and talent in capturing me in my print studio.
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