Tattoo Master 15

So here we go with issue number fifteen and somebody new at the helm. The past couple of months have been manic, to say the least, with the realisation that I had to get 80 pages of cool, fun and interesting stuff together for your pleasure. Since this is quite clearly outside of my comfort zone and evidently a lot of work, why would anybody take on the job of putting a magazine together?

Well many years ago I had a similar situation, where I could have become involved in The Association of Professional Tattoo Artists and I hesitated long enough that APTA, and its magazine, Buzz, ceased to exist. How well I remember Lal Hardy begging for written contributions to Buzz. We lost a great organisation that had credibility, allowed us to belong to something, meant we could successfully self regulate, had lobbying power, and could help us sleep at night knowing that as a group we couldn’t be picked off by predatory politicians, cheating, fee-less solicitors or self-serving officials. Also APTA with Buzz worked hard to be informative and it was here that a fledgeling tattooist could learn clever, fully tested tricks. I could have had a hand in helping a brilliant organisation, one that all tattooists respected, to survive and be a structure for new tattooists to look up to. All it required was a bit of effort for it to remain strong.

What would be so wrong therefore with resurrecting this same spirit of progress where, with each issue, upbeat professionals within and without the tattoo world offer their time to teach what they know for our joint benefit? My goal is to pull the best ideas together in this and future issues to get your business working efficiently. If it works out right, you will find that each copy will get you knowledgeable about your profession, better able to plan, better equipped to advance and better qualified to earn money. This is a trade magazine and finding ways to make or save money will be a key feature to making this magazine different from the rest. I have always held that it is not the tattooist preaching that they aren’t in it for the money who should be held in high esteem, but the tattooist who makes money and reinvests it into improving the art and craft in a way that benefits themselves, their customers and the general good of the profession. Nothing is free. And making money through good service, or saving money by intelligent use of available resources so that tattooing can prosper is more enlightened. Everything I have said here is honest trade, the basis of what this mag is leading towards.

But at the same time I invite you to get involved wherever you are in the world. Is it more likely that I am going to phone or email all you millions of tattooists? If you really want tattooing to improve it can’t happen if everybody clams up about the best ways to get tattooing to progress. I won’t bite and I will listen to what you say or read the stuff you write. Besides I will only get lonely if you don’t throw ideas my way.

Here is to a colourful future and to the very excellent previous editor. A hard act to follow you know.