Did you know that "YGA" spells "GAY" if you re-arrange the letters?
Yes, it's a way of saying we're gay, but a little different, too.

Who are you aiming for?
YGA is a new way of looking at the world. We don't believe "non-straight" people are minorities at all; we believe we're gifted, in a way. And we also really don't like stereotypes that try to pigeon-hole people who like to sleep with, or have relationships, with members of the same sex or gender. We come from a background in empowerment for lesbians, gay boys, queer girls, straight dudes, trannies, "label-free", and everybody else. We kinda think YGA is a magazine that's unique enough, any person who was aching to see the kind of stuff we put in our magazine would like to get their hands on a copy.

Do you have sexy photographs?
We have tasteful, hot photographs, up-to-the-minute ideas and articles, and How-To Guides, as well as quizzes, essays, role models, culture, and lots more. Our advice section has gotten tons of response lately from readers. Our goal is that YGA Magazine can stand aside Seventeen or YM on the mainstream newsstand; to provide an alternative and also something that affirms your sexuality, rather than exploits it.

How can I contribute to YGA?
We are looking for essays, artwork, photography, idea suggestions, news features, models, and editorial support help. Click here for more info, or send us an e-mail at [email protected].

What is going to happen with Linda and Bette in Close Quarters? And is Zach really dead?
You'll have to read the next chapter to find out, sorry.

Are you bi-monthly?
Yes. It will take us a little while to get strong enough to afford hiring more people to help us go monthly. Our goal is to go to a monthly publishing schedule within the first year and a half. So next Spring (2006).

How can I help out?
Subscribe. Tell your friends about YGA Magazine. Go to a store in your town and tell them they have to order YGA. Lots of stores don't even believe that young gay people exist in their area!!! Contribute. Especially if you're someone who feels you're not usually represented in mainstream - or even gay - publications. We go out of our way to be diverse and broad in our depiction of your life, but we're not perfect and it's a constant struggle to represent everybody. Help us out.

Are you going on any more YGA road trips?
Hopefully, yes. We're going to be at True Colors in Connecticut in March. After that, we may do our long-delayed Dixieland Trip. Keep an eye on the site for updates.

Are you making any more films like JIM IN BOLD (www.jiminbold.com)?
Yes we have one in the planning stages, but it isn't a priority. It will be a documentary/reality thing involving a bus and a whole bunch of gay kids doing crazy things.

When will you have articles on the website!? Chat room?
We're working on all those things. Soon...

At $5.95 an issue ($7.95 in Canada), do you guys make a lot of money off of the magazine?
We wish. Here's the actual breakdown of how much it costs to produce a glossy magazine. Actually, we lose money every issue right now from the newsstand. The only way we actually make money is by subscriptions, which is why it's so important for you to subscribe if you can to keep YGA Magazine strong and help us grow nicely and confidently.

In case you were interested, here's a breakdown of how the costs of putting a magazine together break down:

One issue, 15,000 copies, x $5.95 per copy = $89,250 but only 40% of those sell on the newsstand
= $35,700
From that $35,700, our distributor and the stores that carry YGA Magazine take their cut, which amounts to about 60%, which leaves us with $14,280.

Printing costs us $20,000 an issue!!

So as you can clearly see, we're losing money on every issue. In order to make money, we have to have advertising and subscriptions. As our circulation (how many copies are going out on the newsstand) numbers go up, the printing will go down, and we'll actually be breaking even on the newsstand. But for that to happen, stores need to know about us. Especially the big stores like Borders and Barnes & Noble. Go in to those stores and tell them about YGA, so we can grow.

Why don’t you have a clothing line or other YGA stuff to buy?
Its designed. But its not available yet. One thing at a time.

What will happen to Young Gay America.com?
Young Gay America, the traveling resource and interview website is still going strong. It will stay as it is and keep growing, but slowly. It will be folded in a bit with the YGA Magazine website but still retain its own identity. YGA Magazine is based on all the values and ideals of Young Gay America.com. Check out more at http://www.younggayamerica.com/about2.shtml

Where is your office located?
Right next door to the biggest Buddhist magazine in the world, ShambhalaSun. YGA Magazine's offices are in Halifax, Nova Scotia, a small city in Eastern Canada. We're here because Benjie Nycum, YGA's founder and Publisher, actually grew up here - even though he's American. YGA's editor Mike Glatze, a native of Olympia, Washington, has trouble dealing with the cold winters in Halifax, but he thinks Nova Scotia has many advantages for a small publisher hoping to reach the whole North American market. "Our costs are lower; we're an hour from New York City, an hour from Boston, and we get to be exposed to a bit more of the North American continent, which gives us an even broader perspective," says Glatze. "YGA is a magazine for all Americans, and when I say that, I mean North Americans. We're all about breaking down the boundaries as queer people, and that seems to go hand-in-hand with breaking down the boundaries between countries, or regions, or states."

YGA's design office is located in Newport, Rhode Island. YGA's webmaster lives in Kansas. YGA's printer is near Toronto, Ontario. YGA has freelancers and photographers across North America. YGA also has strategic alliances with groups and organizations in all 50 states.

Who are you guys?
Mike Glatze, YGA Editor In Chief, wrote the ground-breaking essay "Why Queer?" in 1998. Benjie Nycum, YGA Publisher, wrote The XY Survival Guide: Everything You Need to Know About Being Young and Gay in 2000. Benjie and Mike founded Young Gay America (www.younggayamerica.com) to tour the country and create a new means of visibility and empowerment for non-straight individuals, and also to share your stories with the rest of the mainstream world to cut down on homophobia and ignorance. YGA created JIM IN BOLD, a film about a gay youth's suicide and featuring interviews with LGBTQ young people across the Heartland of America, in 2003. JIM IN BOLD won several "Best Documentary" awards at film festivals across the country, screened on Capitol Hill to an audience of Republicans and Democrats, and screened at the annual meeting of the American Psychiatric Association. YGA's exhibit of LGBT youth faces has shown in New York City, Philadelphia, Montreal, Columbus, and even Eastern Europe! YGA's road trips, interviewing young queer people in their towns and cities, have encompassed 41 states and 4 provinces, and over 1,000 people!! In 2003, Benjie, Mike, and YGA (Young Gay America) receieved the prestigious National Role Model Award from Equality Forum, given to MTV in 2002. After the success of JIM IN BOLD, the award, and other milestones, an investor approached YGA offering to fund the creation of a brand-new print magazine -- unlike any other. That's the magazine you're reading about.

YGA's designer, Ted McGuire, has designed Young Gay America materials since 2001; he comes from a position as one of the head designers of Adobe Systems Inc., maker of Photoshop, InDesign, and Acrobat. Ted also designed the first edition of The XY Survival Guide: Everything You Need to Know About Being Young and Gay. Ted's design skills enhance YGA Magazine in ways we can't even describe. He works out of Newport, Rhode Island.

Sheena Jamieson is a youth leader in Halifax, Nova Scotia. Scott MacPhee starred as young filmmaker in JIM IN BOLD and has spoken about the experiences of touring North America, interviewing LGBTQ youth in their small towns and cities, to audiences in New York City, Philadelphia, Notre Dame University, among others.

What is the meaning of life?
It's a secret.

If you have a question that we did not answer in this F.A.Q. about Young Gay America or YGA Magazine, don't hesitate to contact us at [email protected].