Friday, September 25, 2009

Paris Notes


It is with great sadness that I learned today that Paris Notes, a venerable insider's guide to the BEST of everything Paris, is ceasing publication.   For so many years before I lived in Paris, it was my umbilical cord to France when I was longing to live there; and it was a source of irreplaceable information and tips even when I was a denizen of the City of Light.

Editor Mark Eversman reports:

During the past 17 years it has been our distinct privilege to provide you with passionate, reliable, quality Paris information. We've visited every corner of the city, dined in hundreds of restaurants, checked out countless hotel rooms, had more than a few coffees in a multitude of cafés, ogled art and artifacts in every single museum in the city, walked hundreds of blister-prone miles of Paris sidewalks, interviewed luminaries and lightweights alike, endured weather of all extremes, and kept a daily vigil for even the smallest shred of information that would be of interest to you, the Paris Notes reader.
Good news for those who love Paris is that the last 50 issues of Paris Notes are now available for free to read and save -- and savor.  Should be bound -- enshrined --  in book form, in my estimation.

When a door is shut, a window is opened, I guess,  So fabulous France Today magazine has agreed to meet the needs of current Paris Notes subscribers for the remainder of their subscriptions.

Happy reading to all, and best wishes for future endeavors to all who contributed to almost two decades of such a wonderful publication.

11 comments:

Jake Dear said...

Polly,

We’ve subscribed to Paris Notes for about the past 10 years. What a classy, concise, and well-written publication; I loved it from cover to cover.

But I’d been worried about it for the past few years – just as I am worried about newspapers in the Internet age. With so much free information available on the web, it seems very difficult to maintain a business model that’s premised on paid subscription.

Like you, I thank publisher Mark Eversman and his many excellent contributors over the years – including Rosa Jackson, David Downie, Amanda MacKenzie, Vivian Thomas, Paul B. Franklin, Mary McAuliffe, Lisa Pasold, and many others.

PS: Yes, the magazine “France Today” -- hard copy and on-line -- is excellent. But we also like the refreshingly British perspective offered by the “other” fine magazine, ”France.”

Jake Dear

Polly-Vous Francais said...

Thanks for such a thoughtful commentary. And I agree: the business model for publications is in such a state of flux. Chris Anderson has interesting observations about that:
http://paidcontent.org/article/419-chris-anderson-newspapers-need-to-find-the-pet-for-their-penguin/

A 90% free/10% paid answer?

And hopefully some business model for online content that doesn't include annoying chase-'em pop-up ads.

LA Frog said...

As a French expat in the US and long-time subscriber to Paris Notes, I always thought that it had a depth and edge not found in other publications.

I hope its editors won't throw the towel completely, but rather consider going online -- using advertising and the freemium model to make ends meet.

Polly-Vous Francais said...

I agree -- the Paris Notes archive is such a treasure trove!

And Jake, I'm embarrased that it's taken me so long to add your wonderful blog to my links -- but it's done!

Jake Dear said...

Bonjour Polly,

Vous êtes très gentil. I’m so sorry to see Paris Notes pass, but thanks for your kind words and link to/ recommendation of our little site -- I do hope that some of your readers will find it useful (and perhaps especially our “12 restaurant etiquette tips”).

Jake Dear
http://parisandbeyondinfrance.blogspot.com/

Franglais said...

Bonjour! We are french majors at the Indiana University of Pennsylvania. In order to better connect with all things french, we started up a blog, Franglais. We love your blog and would love to network with you. Is there any way you could mention/post/link to our blog? We'd gladly return the favor. Check us out at http://lifeenfranglias.blogspot.com/

Look forward to hearing from you - merci beaucoup!

Jennifer said...

Thanks for the heads-up on this. So sad to hear that they are folding. I wish them well!

Starman said...

Slowly, but surely catching up with my favorites after my two week mini-adventure. If you like, you can read about it here: http://lerevefrancais.blogspot.com/

M.E. Greene said...

I've just returned from Paris, Polly. What a revelation it was! I thought I'd let you know that your blog was part of the inspiration to keep me going over the years as I waited patiently for the opportunity to venture over the ocean. Sometimes reading French blogs is the next best thing to being there. :)

Polly-Vous Francais said...

Thank you, Marie-Jolie. That's one of the nicest comments I've ever had.

Franglais, I'll check out your blog!

maitresse said...

Just now belatedly saw that Paris Notes is no more, and my feelings are mixed. Great mag, but the editor's such a creep!

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