Magazine operations — context

Context on shipping and stock, from onboarding #118 Magazine, #91 (merged into #118 on 7 Oct), #115 Eternity Issue and the OML email thread, as of 2026-10-22. Tasks belong in Beads, not here: the open tasks from #118 and #115 are in epic lip-str (created 2026-10-22). Buyer names, donor emails and tracking numbers stay in Stripe, the shipping sheet and the issues.

Shipping and stock

Who does what

• Asdra owns day-to-day shipping.
• Fae took over the weekly Stripe check and the shipping sheet in August 2026.
• OML (Berlin, fulfillment@oml-kg.de) stores the magazine and ships orders.

Rules

• If fewer than 10 copies ship in a month, OML charges a €15 storage fee. Sylvie notes her time is worth more than €15.
• Monthly stock check with Asdra: not a formal meeting, just an update at the start of each month on copies sold and remaining.
• Sylvie wants a standing list of donors to send free copies to in low months, and recipients for the damaged and unsold copies.
• Sasha and Max were to get copies. #118 says only "confirm whether Sasha and Max have already received copies", with no other detail. Fae is to check with Sylvie.

Weekly orders-to-shipping process

1. Check Stripe for magazine payments since the last check.
2. Cross-check the shipping sheet so nothing is entered twice.
3. Add any missing order to the OML_SHIP tab so OML ships it.

The magazine-order-triage skill now does this. Asdra's earlier weekly trigger was turned off on 6 Oct to avoid duplicates; its approach is in #91's history. The sheet's tabs are OML_SHIP (new orders), shipped (history), on hold, Item Codes and Sample.

Damaged copies (OML email thread)

• OML received the Issue 2 stock (item 2RMAG#02) on 28–29 Jul 2026, packed without edge protection:
  • 3 of 25 copies were damaged in the first delivery;
  • 13 of 100 copies were damaged in the second (4 boxes with no delivery note).
  • So up to 16 damaged copies in total (to be confirmed). The board refers to 13.
• On 21 Sep Fae asked OML, as Sylvie's PA, to keep the damaged copies so we can send them out gradually.
• OML created a separate item code for them: 2RMAG#02-def (confirmed 23 Sep). To send a damaged copy, add the address to a normal shipping order using that item code.
• OML now sends its emails to ops@lifeitself.org instead of Sylvie (noted 23 Sep).
• Source: email thread "Mythos Magazine", OML Fulfillment and Sylvie's mailbox, 28 Jul – 24 Sep 2026. OML's "Shipping Instructions" PDF is attached to that thread.

Decisions and context from the 12 Oct check-in

• Promotion has stalled for about two months, which is likely driving lower sales. Uriel is looped in, with at least one Instagram post every two weeks.
• Free copies as a PR tool (for example Nate Hagens, Zach Stein, Daniel Schmachtenberger), framed as part of the overall digital marketing and PR strategy. This became the SCQH plan.
• Planned run: Eternity plus about three more issues (six in total), then likely stop. The magazine will never break even; a broader strategy conversation is needed eventually, but it is not urgent.
• Open question from August: whether to change Stripe pricing to €29.99 plus regional shipping, or whether that's not worth changing everything again.

Links

• Mythos Magazine shipping sheet (OML)
• Crowdfunding Database 2025
• Drive: Mythos Issue 2
• Armelle handover doc and recording (23 May). Rufus granted access on 19 Aug; the doc should be moved to the shared drive.

Eternity issue (Issue 3)

Moved to its own project: 2619 Eternity — Magazine Issue 3.