The Grapeshot Process

How does Grapeshot work? Why does it take so long for issues to hit stands? 

Deputy Editor Kayleigh Greig answers your questions and more.

All content within our beloved Grapeshot is produced by currently enrolled MQ students. That includes the writing, editing, illustrations, layouts, cover art, and even the social media posts. Our team consists of a dedicated group of student volunteers run by our Editor-in-Chief, with help from the Deputy Editor(s), who are also students. We accept submissions from the wider student community, so even if you’re not a member, you can send in your work, get it published, and have your voice heard.

Stage 1: Callout 

Callouts are when the Executives (Editor-in-Chief and Deput(y/ies)) announce the next issue theme to the team, and the Marketing Director posts it to our socials for all MQ students. This is when our editorial team (Exec, Section Editors, and Editorial Assistants) and contributors (non-Grapeshot members who are MQ students) write their articles.

Stage 2: Editing & Illustrations

After the callout closes, Editorial Assistants (EAs) have two days to edit articles from other EAs in their section. Meanwhile, Section Editors (SEs) edit all contributor pieces and email them back with changes.

After the Final Edit Weekend, SEs use the next three days to edit all articles in their sections while contributors approve final edits. Two more days allow SEs to recheck any changes.

Exec do a final check of every article over the weekend to make sure they’re ready to be formatted into layouts.

During editing, Illustrators draw illustrations for every article, with one Illustrator per section. The Lead Illustrator guides other Illustrators and creates covers and section openers.

Stage 3: Layouts

Over the next week, the Layout Designers take the edited articles and illustrations and put them on the page, experimenting with layout using Adobe InDesign. One Layout Designer is assigned to each section, following a visual guide from the Creative Director for consistency.

Stage 4: Master File

Layout Designers send all designed articles to the Creative Director, who then spends a week collating them, ensuring design consistency, and designing extra pages such as the calendar, contents, editors’ letters, credits, etc. 

Stage 5: Master Edit

Once the Master File is ready, Exec does a final edit, consulting with the Creative Director to fix remaining errors.

Stage 6: Publisher Review

A complete PDF of the issue is sent to our publisher—at this time, the Dean of Students and Pro-Vice Chancellor, Leanne Piggott, who gives any last corrections and makes sure all content is within the best interests of the Macquarie University community.

Stage 7: Print 

Once approved, the final PDF is sent to a representative of ADM Indicia, the company that does all of Macquarie’s marketing. Indicia manages Grapeshot’s printing budget, which is provided by the Student Services and Amenities Fee. Depending on page count, the number of magazines per print run is decided, and Indicia sends the PDF to the printing company. Printing typically takes around a week or two. 

Stage 8: Party, Distribution, Marketing

About three business days before the magazines arrive on the docks of 18 Wally’s Walk, Exec receives an ETA and quickly organises a launch party. Exec pays for catering and merch using a separate budget—not the printing budget, though this one is also provided by the SSAF—and all MQ students are welcome at the party. 

The next weekday after, any Grapeshot member who is free helps with distribution, using our terrible trusty trolley to ferry mags to the nine stands of campus:

• 1 at 10 Hadenfeld Avenue, Level 2, along the corridor from our office near the sliding door entrance

• 1 at 25 Wally's Walk Building A, outside at the bottom of the stairs

• 1 at 18 WW inside the first set of sliding doors

• 1 at the entrance to the library

• 3 around 1CC

• 1 outside the MQBS (you'll walk past it if you come from the metro)

• 1 inside the doors of 6 WW, under the TV

Meanwhile, our Online Editor uploads all articles to our website, the Editor-In-Chief sends a single-page PDF to the library for Multisearch, and our Marketing Director uploads posts made by Marketing Assistants to promote the articles. Voila! Another issue is done, with a tonne of hard work from us and lots of help from Melroy and Yanina at Student Engagement, Inclusion and Belonging (SEIB), our go-to staff coordinators for anything from booking rooms to getting building access to borrowing a buggy.

If getting involved in the Grapeshot team interests you, keep an eye on our Instagram @grapeshotmq and sign up to our newsletter, Grapevine (QR code on the back cover) for hiring callouts. Just want to contribute? Send your work to grapeshot@mq.edu.au to get published in our mag or on our website. We also happily spotlight MQ societies and events, so feel free to email or DM us at any time.