You joined Metropol in April as Editor. How are you settling into the new role?
I’m well into the routine now and loving it. There are a few new systems to learn but I love a challenge. There are a few changes ahead too but it will be an evolution, not a revolution.

For the uninitiated, what is Metropol and what does it specialise in? 
Metropol is Canterbury’s No. 1 lifestyle magazine. Established in 1998, and the winner of multiple awards in the last 23 years, it is still going strong. The emphasis is on local, topical and interesting people, events and things.
 
How do you decide what gets placed in the magazine? Are there any stories that will appear online, but not in the magazine?
Content is curated to cater to our readership demographic. Our readers love the finer things in life, such as food, wine, fashion, travel (when they can), renovating and building homes. Our content covers those topics and more. Metropol is online in its entirety.

Metropol focuses on the Canterbury region. Your last role was as Editor of WildTomato, which covered the Marlborough district. How do these two regions differ, and are there any similarities?
WildTomato covered Nelson Tasman and Marlborough (the top of the South Island), whereas Metropol covers Christchurch and the surrounding regions. Inherently they are both lifestyle magazines with a similar demographic, which is those who enjoy or aspire to the finer things in life. Metropol has a larger circulation than WildTomato, with 52,000 audited issues.

What kinds of people in the community are you interested in speaking to?
Innovators, inspirational leaders, rising stars and the like.

Are there any issues on your agenda that you're looking at exploring in coming editions?
Mental health is an ongoing issue, challenges for women (and men), as well as conferencing and how it has changed. Who knows? If it’s topical, I will consider it. I enjoy the fluidity of magazines, as topics can be changed, switched out, or banked for a future issue if something more timely or topical comes up.

You've been working in print media for most of your career, across newspapers and magazines alike. In your experience, how has this medium evolved over the years?
I love working in the magazine side of the print media, especially with good stories that leave people feeling happy. Newspapers still purvey a lot of doom and gloom, although I sadly know from experience that bad news sells.  

How closely do you work with PRs in your role, and can you describe the ideal way you like to be pitched?
I always read the subject line (of an email) to see if it has relevance to Metropol readers and advertising clients, so initially, that must pique my interest. Then I look for a people story rather than a PR puff piece. Something our readers can relate to, yet still take a message from. It should be almost like subliminal messaging, with the PR facts subtly woven into the story. And I also want a standout high-resolution photo attached (or a link).