Try reading <a href="http://gawker.com/5347066/the-plight-of-prints-lucky-ones" target="_blank">this</a> first. Unfortunately, it's all true.

That said, I'm not one of those magazine people who laments the changing media landscape and the rise of blogs, etc. I LIKE the immediacy of the web and the democratization of ideas—who says journalists are the only ones who get to lead the conversation? (Ironically, when I was an editor, I'd often surf the blogosphere for story ideas and whispers of new trends. How's that for a role reversal?)

Now we're seeing all kinds of bricks-and-mortar editor types (like <em>moi</em>) dipping their toes into the blog world, which I think is a great thing. But cumulatively, when coupled with the economic downturn, there's a downside to all this webby/bloggy action. Like the article says, it's harder than ever to get—or keep—a job in media these days. (And the glam factor is quickly drying up too. Think <a href="http://www3.ttc.ca/" target="_blank">TTC</a>, not <a href="http://nymag.com/daily/fashion/2008/11/fashion_executives_kiss_town_c.html" target="_blank">Town Cars</a>.)

So if you're intent on breaking into magazines, just know that you've got to (A) have a real passion for the work and (B) be hella persistent. It also doesn't hurt to (C) have a trust fund and (D) a back-up career plan.