Why subscribe?

I'm converting Bourbon Story Magazine (bourbonstory.com) into a newsletter, and broadening its area of interest beyond bourbon to touch everything at the intersection of literature, politics, culture and Kentucky.

Why Kentucky? If you have to ask ... but here's the skinny: Once, the state was pulled together by two cultural forces: The Courier-Journal newspaper and Kentucky basketball.

The former pulled up stakes from the state 15 years ago, when I was its last-serving central Kentucky bureau chief, and the latter, well, fans would probably rather not talk about it. Seriously, though, Kentucky is a fascinating place full of ambitions and history and culture that too many people -- especially, I might add, in my native Louisville, take for granted or dismiss outright. I'd like to change that, one piece at a time.

So what will be in the newsletter? A regular curation of the best reads from around the state. Original reporting, essays and perspectives from contributors across Kentucky. Bourbon news and reviews, naturally, but also book reviews, interviews and conversations.

What won't be in the newsletter. Boring things. Items with short shelf lives. Things that matter more to people outside of Kentucky than to those inside.

How will it work. It's free for now, but after we reach some initial subscription goals, we'll introduce a paid membership. Those revenues will in turn be used to hire writers, photographers and editors to work on per-assignment basis. I'll keep you updated on that progress. If you are a writer, editor or other creative and want to get involved, please get in touch.