The end of a magazine marathon

by SOON WEI SZE

It's finally over. After a whole semester long of churning out articles, rushing to meet deadlines, pulling all-nighters, it has all come down to our final product- the NOSH magazine. 

To say that it's been a wonderful experience, will be somewhat of an exaggeration. There were tough times, and it wasn't fun all the time to be working on this magazine. Many times exhaustion got the better of us, and to be honest, there were times when this whole project felt like a burden. 

But now that's it all over, I can say without a doubt that it has all been worth it. Witnessing the birthing process of our magazine from scratch, to see how we started with nothing and ending up with a magazine that if I might say so myself, looks good enough to be sold on magazine stands. When we went to print our magazine and watch it "come to life", an immense sense of pride welled up in me in knowing that all our hard work has paid off. 

Sure, there were the inevitable conflicts and misunderstandings. We all have very different personalities and working styles, but we all had a common goal, which was to create an "A" grade magazine. Working together has also taught us the importance of teamwork, compromise, understanding, and how we cannot always put ourselves first.

My role was the writer for the group, and I have to admit that my role wasn't very demanding. So I tried to help out in any way that I can, especially with the designing work as there was the most to be done. I now have a new found respect for Dewi, the designer, as I see her pulling all-nighters to complete the layouts, perfecting every minor detail. 

I'm sure all of us have something to take away from this project. For me, I've learnt to pick up on minor details, and how consistency is a very important factor throughout the magazine. Writing articles of different tones have always honed my writing skills. As there were many articles which I helped to cut down on, I've also learnt the importance of summarizing main points, and which are irrelevant details that are not necessary to include. 

It's a surreal feeling, having our magazine printed and submitted, coming to the end of this project. It's the day that we've all been waiting for since we got this project brief, but I can't deny that it's a bittersweet feeling. Strong friendships have been formed throughout this project, and I think the hardest part of this being over is leaving my group mates. I'll definitely miss working with them, and I'm really thankful that I have the chance to be part of the NOSH team.