When the Time Out Chicago editorial team was tasked with relaunching a magazine, I was newly installed as deputy editor and eager to get my byline in print. We covered all the best things to do in the city three months at a time — a pretty long lead that usually required a lot of emails and phone calls to gain access to information. 

Distributed to locals and tourists alike, the magazine was positioned as a celebration of all of everything that makes Chicago a special city, from the amazing people who live here to the events that take place across a network of neighborhoods. With sections devoted to food, music, art, theater, and general things to do, each issue functioned as a miniature guidebook and a cultural checklist (we usually included an actual checklist on the final page).

As a quarterly publication focused on Chicago's ever-shifting cultural landscape, no issue of Time Out Chicago was quite like another. While the structure was consistent, our approach to the content was always evolving — I previewed Lollaplaooza five summers in a row, finding a new approach each time.

Throughout the run of the magazine, I consistently covered music, art, and local beer (during the height of Chicago's brewery boom). I also planned stories, edited copy, approved layouts, and signed off on final pages for every issue. Getting an issue out the door usually required late nights, but it was always gratifying to be able to actually hold something that you worked on.