Rediscovering Highlights for Children
by Paula Gail Benson
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| Wall of History at Highlights’ Editorial Offices |
When you
were growing up, do you remember seeing Highlights
for Children (a magazine for ages 6 through 12, with the motto:
“Fun with a Purpose”) in your doctor’s office? I often read it there and for a while
had my own subscription.
know Highlights is still published
monthly and has a million subscribers? It used to have two million, but the
company began a new publication for younger children (ages 2 through 6), High Five, that took over one million subscribers.
A third periodical (for those under age 2), Hello,
comes in a form that curious hands and mouths can explore without fear of
destruction.
reacquainted with Highlights and
learned about its affiliates when I had the opportunity to attend a summer
workshop sponsored by the Highlights Foundation in Honesdale, Pennsylvania, in
the northeastern corner of the state bordering New York. From the experience, I
came to realize why Highlights and
its associated businesses represent a true American success story.
Cleveland Myers and his wife Caroline Clark Myers in 1946, at ages 61 and 58.
Each had distinguished careers in education and had worked for another
children’s publication, which they thought could be operated in a manner that
would be more beneficial for its readers. Eventually, they took over that
magazine and incorporated it into Highlights.
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| Boyds Mills Press |
The
business remains a family concern, with editorial offices based in downtown
Honesdale, a quaint, lovely place with a railroad track running through it,
located in the vicinity of many summer camps. Next door is the affiliated children’s
trade book company, Boyds Mills Press, which publishes distinguished fiction
and nonfiction. Nearby, in the rural countryside, the family home has been
converted into a writing retreat with individual cabins, a lodge, and a “barn”
where three meals a day plus appetizers are provided for visitors. The business
offices for the companies are in Columbus, Ohio.
recently took a workshop in Honesdale, my classmates and I had the opportunity
to tour the Highlights and Boyds
Mills Press facilities in side-by-side buildings on Church Street. Our very
informative guides (who welcomed some additional guests wanting to brag to
their grandchildren that they had toured the Highlights headquarters) made it clear that the readers remain the
primary focus. A single staff member answers every letter received from a child. In the main office, the replica of a skeletal dinosaur head that had
been used in a promotion was on display. Above the archway leading to the hall
was an appreciative message drawn by readers.
were surprised to learn that Highlights
acquired all rights from the submissions it accepted. A member of our group had
sold more than one hundred works to the magazine and advocated submitting. She
said Highlights paid generously for
the rights and, if a story was subsequently sold to another market, Highlights often sent a royalty check to
the author.
asked how Highlights managed to
maintain such high subscription levels in a digital age, the answer made
perfect sense: children still love to receive something of their own in the
mail. I have to admit, when I told my work colleagues where I was attending the
workshop, most said that they had given subscriptions as gifts for children or
grandchildren.
has found the secret to presenting quality materials for children while
continuing to develop new technologies and encourage emerging authors. It’s a
true winning combination for both readers and writers. If you would like to
know more about my workshop experience, check out my post tomorrow at Writers Who Kill. Even if you don’t write for children, you might want to consider this wonderful facility for a possible retreat.
I loved Highlights as a child and I sent subscriptions of it to my grandchildren. Wonderful article, thank you.
Thank you, Pam. My experience with Highlights has always been a good one. It was delightful to find that the company lives up to its reputation!
Tara's mom gave Dash a subscription soon after he was born, and he's now moved up to High Five (and soon moving up to the next level, of course). We love it, and you're right: Dash loves getting something in the mail too! Thanks for some background on the publication here–fascinating!
Art, I did not know about the different magazines for different ages. It was fascinating to see the place where it all happened. If you and Tara have the chance, please consider taking Dash there on a road trip. Not only would he love seeing the Highlights facilities, but Honesdale is known as the "birthplace of American railroading."
We will indeed have to take a road trip!