First off, This is big news. Second, I have been working on this story for about 2 days now, and had the announcement date wrong..... I had the announcement day to be Friday. So it was a good surprise that I woke up to the new format on "whats new today", being transformed into the new "White Dwarf Daily".
So lets start off with the official announcement, and then I will post up some of the details that I have that I am allowed to post up below the announcement.
via White Dwarf Daily "Whats New Today"
On September 22nd 2012, White Dwarf will be reborn; bigger, better and more exciting than ever before.
As news goes, that's pretty exciting stuff, I think you'll agree. For the last half-year a crack team of designers have been pulling White Dwarf apart at the seams, re-forging it into something incredibly exciting. Everything is new, nothing's the same. Even the paper is a higher quality, that's the degree to which the magazine has changed.
Of course a new magazine needs a new team to work on it and so, without further ado, here's the new White Dwarf team:
Dan Harden (that's me, just in case you didn't know) - Staff Writer
Erik Niemz - Photographer
Matthew Hutson - Lead Designer
Beth Beynon-Hughes - Digital Editor
Andrew Kenrick - Deputy Editor
Kris Shield - Designer
Glenn More - Photo Editor
Jes Bickham - Editor
Adam Troke - Senior Staff Writer
Some of these names you'll recognise. Matt, Kris and Andrew have been working on White Dwarf for several years now. In fact, Matt has been working on it almost as long as White Dwarf has been around (OK, so that's a slight exaggeration, but he has been around for quite some time). Adam and Glenn have moved into White Dwarf from games development and book production respectively, while Beth and Erik are both new to Games Workshop. And last, but certainly not least, we also have a new White Dwarf editor, and the latest scion of Grombrindal himself, Jes Bickham. While this is his first time working on White Dwarf, Jes has worked at Games Workshop before as the editor of Battle Games of Middle-earth, back when The Lord of the Rings first appeared in cinemas and hair was more plentiful.
The last member of the new White Dwarf team is me, Dan. You may have seen me in the occasional blog post over the years dressed as a pirate, chopping up a shrub with a chainsword or lying in the middle of the car park measuring how long 145 paints are compared to your average hatchback. For the last two years I've been looking after the Games Workshop blog, bringing you pictures of painted miniatures from around the world, showing off our latest releases, reporting on events such as Games Days and Tournaments and keeping you all up to date with what's going on in the world of Games Workshop.
Though I've now joined the White Dwarf team as a writer, I'm very pleased to announce that the blog - now White Dwarf Daily - will be coming with me, as will our resident scapegoat Servitor 13, the currently unseen but entirely real Servitor 14, Smiler the Servo Skull and all of the other detritus I have around my desk including my Paint Station full of models.
So what does this all mean for White Dwarf Daily?
Well, first off, we'll still be featuring plenty of pictures sent in by you, our readers. We love receiving emails from our fans, especially when they are accompanied by photos of beautifully painted Citadel miniatures. Some of these pictures we will feature on the blog, just like the fantastic model on the left painted by Mark Schuepstuhl. Some of the best might even make their way into the pages of White Dwarf magazine itself. I bet that caught your interest didn't it? To send us a submission simply click on the button on the right-hand side of this page with 'Send us your Photos' written on it and get emailing.
We'll also be featuring models from our Flickr pool on a regular basis too, just like Michael Boonk's Goblin Hero on the left. With over 43,000 pictures on Flickr now, it's virtually impossible not to find something inspiring in there and we'll continue to show your pictures in White Dwarf Daily. Incidentally, if you do upload something to Flickr then please make sure you email the pictures to us too - that way you'll definitely catch our attention.
We'll also continue to feature new products from Games Workshop, Forge World and the Black Library, report on events, show what our licensed partners are up to, let you know when new Hobby Centres open, tell you about the games we've been playing and, of course, talk about White Dwarf, including behind-the-scenes blog posts on what we've been up to in the White Dwarf bunker that month.
Next week I'll give you a few insights into what you can expect from the new-look White Dwarf, which will be relaunched on 22nd September (and in plentiful supply at Games Day UK on the 23rd). I'll also properly introduce you to the members of the new White Dwarf team and tell you a bit more about what they do. Suffice to say we're all very excited about our work on the magazine, and the select few people that we've revealed it to in the Studio were overjoyed. Yes, you read that right, most of the guys in the Studio haven't even seen it yet - we're keeping it very close to our chests. Jervis Johnson, one of the regular columnists in White Dwarf was allowed a quick glimpse of the first issue yesterday and almost shed a tear of hobby happiness.
So the moral of the story is: make sure you keep your eye on White Dwarf Daily next week to find out more about the magazine and be in a Hobby Centre on Saturday 22nd to see the new White Dwarf for the very first time.
Until then, check back tomorrow because we've got not one, but two videos to show you – one from the Black Library and one from Forge World and both are about the Horus Heresy.
Thats the official announcement about the magazine. Below are bits that I was working on to get a better picture of what is changing for the magazine. Its not a complete view, hence why I thought I had all of today to find what I could on it.
The biggest bit though, is that its a new format. One that will be more focused on the hobby with more indepth battle reports, painting guides, and more. This is to tone down the advertisements for the latest releases, although they will still be there, but in a much more diminished format.
On the source, even though I am posting this and it appears to be one source.... I have had multiple sources telling me the same things and more. This is just what I am currently able to use at this particular moment. Hopefully I will be able to release more later today or tomorrow.
via Faeit 212 (a Must Remain Anonymous Source)
The New White Dwarf
white dwarf is getting a face lift
numbers are here to stay, month is also on it "November (#XXX)"
They are higher quality paper
Picture heavy with lots of hobby articles (things like masterclass from forgeworld and the 'eavy metal team, tactica, battle reports, and developer diaries where they talk about why they made certain decisions)
Will still preview new models, but you won't see them 2-3 times in the same issue
I should add that the current white dwarf team has been disseminated into the ranks and a new, separate office (but not a third party) has taken over white dwarf.
This new office fueled by a former magazine and blog publishing company that has had the fleshy bits replaced with model enthusiasts. This is now a magazine filled with hobbiests, not hobbiests trying to publish a magazine.
The new White Dwarf changes will do more than just change the appearance of the magazine. It will give us more useful and insightful information about the hobby we enjoy. I for one, look forward to seeing the changes coming, September 22nd will be an interesting day.