like Dom, this is my type of party.
Okay, the magazine is officially in the making, and submissions are being curated now. The marketing strategy is in place, and the launch date has been set, but do you want to have dinner first?
Are y’all trying to make this a party?
You know me, Little Miss Big Dreamer, decided the magazine wasn’t enough. I know a basic plan hate to see me coming.
Hear me out. I get asked all the time for tips and even coaching on how I curate the way I curate. Now, I never looked at my style as something special or unique it’s just always been my aesthetic. I quite honestly, built this online presence aesthetic and style brick-by-brick.
Pinterest hates to see me coming, and that search bar with the word ‘aesthetic’ behind whatever I’m looking for will bring it home every time.
To answer the question, I’ve allowed this vision to unfold naturally with intention, intuition, and a whole lot of big ass dreams.
Remember, BlackStack was just an idea that started venting in my Hood Therapy newsletter about there being no true Black community on Substack. I posted a Note in June saying I wanted to create the #BlackTok of Substack and jokingly said #BlackStack.
commented asking where to sign up. I checked to see if the name was available and dropped the first newsletter This Revolution Will Not Be Televised on Juneteenth making history.THIS revolution will not be televised.
Allow me to introduce myself before we get into the first post. My name is Jacquie Verbal. I organized this community because I longed for a space where we could navigate in our authentic blackness and felt that others might be too. I posted and said I wanted to cultivate the #BlackStack of Substack and like the good fashion of people we are, y’all showed up!
That week, the chat was popping,
, , and others engaged in conversation about how we felt about Juneteenth being for us but our positions not being given the day off. You all showed up and volunteered to contribute to bringing my idea of Sunday Service Announcements to life, thank you to , , and for paving the way for this BlackStack classic.Week 1: Sunday Service Announcements
Welcome to Sunday Service, but nothing like the ones you are used to. See here we keep it real, and we speak our truth. Nobody can silence us in this safe space. Ain’t nobody welcomed that don’t know about what it’s like to be Black in America, especially in 2024. We are all grieving in some way with these high ass rent prices, expensive fake food, I me…
Today makes FOUR MONTHS since bringing this idea to life I see how everything has been divinely unfolding not just before my eyes, but yours too.
The big dream for 2025 is simple.
January - preordered BlackStack Magazines Issue 001 ship
February 1 - BlackStack Magazine launch with a dinner in Brooklyn, NY
Juneteenth - BlackStack One-Year Celebration
June - preordered BlackStack Magazines Issue 002 ship
October - BlackStack First Annual Writers Retreat in San Francisco, CA
Stay tuned for details on all of these big plans, but Substack has been weird lately so I created a website for us just in case anything happens sign up for the email updates through our new website www.theblackstack.org.
Magazine Q&A
I have been getting tons of emails and comments with questions and I decided to answer some of them in one location for us all to reference.
Can I submit already published Substack pieces?
Absolutely!
Originally, my idea was to have everyone submit pieces already published to Substack, however, if you want to write something exclusive for the magazine that is welcome too.
Are there guidelines for what can be submitted?
No.
I am not here to police anyone’s work. If it’s on your heart to write then it’s space for it to be preserved.
Can I submit my art that is not written work?
Yes.
All bodies of creative work are welcome to be curated in the magazine. For the first 100 preorders, a special gift is included. There is a ton of intention being put into this magazine so while the intention is to create a tangible experience these mini CD keychains will merge that gap seamlessly.
The company I have partnered with to make this happen offers a private digital vault to host all digital submissions in physical form. Short films, independent music, photography, and digital artwork can all be submitted.
With the tap of your phone against the mini CD you access everything.
Don’t worry, these will be available for purchase on launch day.
Does the submission guarantee you a spot in the magazine?
Absolutely!
You submit your work, it WILL BE FEATURED, period.
Are there requirements for advertising space in the magazine?
None whatsoever!
In fact, if you submit an advertisement for the magazine, I will go ahead and add you to the Community Resources page on the website.
It’s still a work in progress, so send me your stuff to add: https://www.theblackstack.org/community
How do I officially submit?
Great question, the last newsletter was detailed but there were still some missing parts so I was able to spend this past month getting things better organized. The website is live so here is the process to submit, step-by-step.
Go to www.theblackstack.org
Rave over how nice the website looks, then click the Magazine tab and click the ‘Pay Now’ button.
It will bring you to a screen to review this same information and allow you to pay for your submission fee.
Then you email your PDF submission piece, receipt from fee, and inspirational images (optional) to info@theblackstack.org.
Once I receive your email submission I will email you the waiver requested in the initial newsletter about the magazine.
Complete the waiver and consider yourself a published print magazine author until your complimentary copy arrives in January 2025!
Preorders for the magazine will go live on my birthday, November 21st so save the date for both reasons. *wink wink*
Submissions will be ongoing to curate the magazine twice a year to drop in January and June of each year but to be featured in this first one; I need your submission by November 9 at midnight.
If you have already written on BlackStack and you want your work included, let me know ASAP so I can get the waiver to you and start curating your piece!
…now let’s get to the party!
Uncle Luke said what’s that number one zodiac sign…Scorpio?
Me screaming HELL YEAH!
It’s ya birthday, it’s ya birthday, it’s ya birthday!
I know it’s not quite my season, but today we starting the countdown.
One thing y’all should know about me now before we continue this relationship, I love to dance but more specifically I love a good bounce song to dance to, so without further ado, get out your seats and shake that ass with me!
This is amazing...like truly. I'm new to substack and I've always wanted to be a magazine editor hence why I'm here...deff would love to submit and be apart!!
Hi there, what’s the submission due date?! BTW This is super inspiring and can’t wait to see where you take it 💫♥️