Kung Fu Tai Chi is ceasing publication

[GeneChing]

With the deepest sadness, Kung Fu Tai Chi is ceasing publication. The decline in newsstand distributors coupled with the impact of the pandemic has forced the closure of TC Media International. Current subscribers will be notified by mail on compensation.

Thank you for supporting Kung Fu Tai Chi. We are enormously proud of what we achieved over the last 28 years. It has been an honor to serve the martial arts world. Please continue to support KungFuMagazine.com and MartialArtSmart.com.

Stay Strong and Healthy. And keep the practice alive.

Gene Ching FORMER Publisher, Kung Fu Tai Chi

[Jimbo]

Gene, I am so sorry to hear this. I really got a lot out of Kung Fu/Tai Chi magazine (or by the various names it went under) since the early ‘90s. I want to express my thanks to you and all the contributors throughout the years.

May the spirit live on!

[Kevin73]

So sad!

Will there still be the online content?

[GeneChing]

Will there still be the online content?

Yes, for now. As long as MartialArtSmart can stay in business, KungFuMagazine.com and this forum will stay online. I'll still be active here part time. It's all still being sorted however. Putting the print mag to rest has a lot of factors. But both KFM and this forum are tremendous archives (over a thousand articles on KFM and I can't even begin to tabulate what's stored on this forum) so I'm going to do my best to fight for it. However, I gotta pay my own bills too.

There is a chance that the SUMMER 2020 issue might still be produced. We were almost done with it when the Shelter-in-Place order was given. I'm looking into doing some sort of fundraiser like a GoFundMe to complete it.

Publishing has been a struggle and this fate is inevitable for every niche mag. Remember, I've been charting the decline of print mags in our Print-publishing-death-watch since 2009.

Thank you all for your continued support.

[Songshan]

I will miss the Shaolin specials the most. Gene, you were definitely a voice to the west for the Shaolin Temple along with the Songshan Shaolin masters that moved and opened schools here in the US. Sometimes doors close and new ones open. Have you thought about taking your talent to social media outlets like you tube, live streaming, etc.?

[GeneChing]

The Shaolin Special were my favorite, my personal pet projects with KFTC.

I've had several people suggest I start live streaming on YouTube. I may consider it but to be honest with all of you, I'm a writer, not a vlogger. My appearances on shows like Man at Arms: Art of War were under directors and heavily edited. I have my moments, but in general, I'm not that spontaneous in front of a camera. It's a very different media, and frankly, building up my name as a franchise wouldn't be profitable for a long, long time. There are so many vloggers in that game.

We've worked YouTube for years through our KungFuMagazine channel. We currently have 33+K subscribers, something that we built after years of work. Unfortunately, due to copyright issues with some of the music played at the martial demonstrations, we can't advertise profitably there. But that being said, I know how long it takes to build that big of a following in the martial world, and how much I'd make back for that investment, so it doesn't seem that good of a bet at this time. Maybe later, but now I need to find a more stable paying job, which is challenging with all of the hiring freezes and the largest unemployment since the Great Depression.

Sadly, we were developing the first of a vlog series when the Shelter-in-Place began. It's almost done, however now, I've lost my team. Patrick (Design Sifu) and I hope to complete it because we put so much work into it, but we shall see if that comes to pass. He is also looking for work. I had several more vlogs mapped out, along with so many other projects in developmet, but I don't know if they'll ever be completed now.

What's more, TC Media is looking to retain me for KungFuMagazine.com and social media. It's a part-time position now, but I will do what I can to maintain those resources (including this forum). Maybe it'll grow back into a full-time position, but that will depend entirely upon sales at MartialArtSmart. To be prefectly frank, like I've said so many times here before, if you want this forum and KungFuMagazine to go on, support MartialArtSmart.

[GeneChing]

The Final Newsstand Cover Story Exorcising the Mad Demon Staff of Shaolin By Gene Ching with Gigi Oh is available online

THREADS
Spring-2020
Feng-Mo-or-YinShou-gun

[GeneChing]

End of Watch: Kung Fu Tai Chi Magazine 1999-2020

Threads
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My-personal-blog

[GeneChing]

In honor of the Kung Fu Tai Chi Bardo, read My Life in Print.



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My-personal-blog

[Oso]

is the go fund me active? I'd like to help.

this place was a 2nd home for much of a decade.

much love for all you have done, Gene.

I know you didn't do it all alone, but you are the face of the magazine here.

[GeneChing]

The gofundme has not begun. The market has to stabilize enough first. Enough schools need to reopen safely so that Tiger Claw's business picks up allowing the bandwidth to pursue this.

If you want to support now, shop at MartialArtSmart - it's under the TC Media Intl umbrella, which is who published KFTC.

[Oso]

ok, I'll make a purchase. There is a kung fu school close by that I could donate the merch too.

I'll try to reach out to them to see what they might need.

[Fu-Pow]

Print magazines are going the way of the dodo, so it was probably inevitable. Hopefully, you can develop new online revenue sources that will keep the content flowing.

Anyways, thanks for letting me write for the magazine many moons ago. It helped me get into one of the best j-schools schools in the country!