Caroline Pover’s September message
What a year it’s been.
Being A Broad has come a long way from that morning when I woke up with the bizarre idea that I was going to produce a magazine for foreign women. Lots of people ask me how the magazine started and how it progressed, so I’ve taken the opportunity to explain this in the numerology article on page 4.
I should mention the little things that have happened that have made the magazine such fun for me: the time when Cressie and I carried 400 magazines from Omotesando through Harajuku to Shibuya, via the Body Shop, which we thought we’d pop into to get some bits and pieces and ended up having a full-blown half-hour make-up session; the many times when people have called or e-mailed to say that Being A Broad has changed their life here into a much more pleasant one; dancing at 4 a.m. after an exhausting day at the event at Cars last January; meeting people like Ted and Daneeta who offer to do such major things like revamp the entire design of the magazine or put it onto the Internet because they love it so much; going to Kyushu to be the guest speaker at an annual women’s conference there; giving speeches to female Japanese high school students who have told me how inspired they are by the magazine; meeting tourists on the train who have heard of the magazine in their own countries; the men who take me aside and whisper “Is it OK for boys to read Being A Broad?” and the recent arrival of my dearest, oldest friend Natalie, who left England in July to be part of the Being A Broad team. It’s like being six years old again with her around and she reaffirms my belief that anything is possible.
There’s also been the odd unpleasant moment which I can now laugh about. The time when a certain well-known Tokyo publisher confiscated the December issue, and Mike Tokue and I went on a ‘stake-out’ to get the magazines back. The time when the January issue was held up at customs so we didn’t even have any magazines to give out at the event. The times when I’ve been so exhausted I haven’t made it to my day job (thanks for being so understanding). Fortunately the good times far outweigh the bad.
But back to the men. In this issue, Daneeta Saft interviews the men who have played key roles in Being A Broad during our first year. I wanted to show you that BAB is not exclusive and that there are men out there who are supportive and understanding of the challenges unique to foreign women here. I must admit to being rather surprised at some of the comments from the men I thought I knew so well! All this time I thought their intentions were purely honourable ones.
This issue sees the introduction of our new classifieds section, providing information specifically for foreign women. We’re also celebrating our birthday on the 19th this month, at what was formerly known as Cars. If you went to the BAB event last January, you’ll know that our parties are not to be missed! Everyone is welcome, it’s not a ‘ladies only’ party. See you there.
In a year Being A Broad has grown from a 16-page free black-and-white magazine with a Tokyo readership of 3,000 to a 56-page paying colour magazine with a readership of 30,000 throughout Japan and in other countries too. I wanted to thank everyone who has helped in any way whatsoever, but when the list of names ran to over 300, I realised it would be impossible, so I’ll thank you here and now. You know who you are.
