Well, the news is out. On August 1, I step down as brand director and editor-in-chief of Stuff magazine.

I’ve worked on Stuff magazine (and Stuff.tv) for a decade, and as editor/editor-in-chief for 6 years. Leaving it is not an easy thing to do. Which is why I’ve decided to come back.

You see, although I’m setting up my own creative consultancy, Flying Leaf, one of my main clients is going to be Haymarket Media – and, in particular, Stuff. In fact, I’ll probably be doing more writing and testing than I’ve done for the past couple of years.

So why the move? Two reasons.

Firstly, I recently became a father and want to spend as much time as humanly possible with my new daughter. And yes, I’m well aware that this desire may wear off which is why…

Secondly, I want to establish my own creative business. I want to spend time doing what I love. And I love writing things and making things, I love learning to use new software, I love zooming to 800% on Photoshop and pushing individual pixels. I love working out how to communicate an idea, how to have fun with words, images, movies and animations.

So I’m going to pursue The Way of the Flying Leaf, alongside graphic guru Lise Meyrick and our many talented friends. At Flying leaf, we aim to make everything from books to websites, videos to packaging.

It’s going to be a fun ride… and one with regular injections of Stuff-induced gadget joy. I can’t wait.

PS Is mixing ‘ride’ and ‘injection’ metaphors distasteful during the Tour de France?

Update – 20th April: Well, 8 months in and Flying Leaf has produced 10 videos, 12 scripts, 4 websites (including our latest for hunkydory publishing), 2 rebrands and a bunch of promotional printed material. And i’m still writing for Stuff and getting to play with the iPad. It’s going good so far!

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Comments ( 5 )

Are you looking for talented individuals with a passion for gadgetry to work at Flying Leaf? If so, let me know how I can apply!

LB added these pithy words on Jul 22 09 at 1:01 pm

Sounds really good! I wish you all the best

Michael Smith added these pithy words on Jul 22 09 at 1:04 pm

Sounds splendid – best of luck Tom!

Murdo added these pithy words on Jul 22 09 at 3:21 pm

Good luck hope it goes well

Graham added these pithy words on Jul 23 09 at 1:21 am

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