Before I learned that stretching my voice was necessary, imperative actually, I was quiet & miserable.

I dated men who silenced me; I attracted relationships where I felt claustrophobic. When it mattered most–during intimate dialogue, emotional exchanges and reconciliation—I didn’t speak. I had to run from all those relationships because I couldn’t hear myself. I needed space to let my voice grow, expand, flex, vibrate, echo back to me; to find it’s own place. To get stronger, louder, a fuller crescendo.

I won’t claim to know exactly what I’m trying to say all the time, but I know what it sounds like when I’m weak and apathetic. And I know I’m not the only woman who’s ever been haunted by thoughts of failure, the fear of being ugly or buckling under pressure. So you see My Voice really is YOUR voice. And when we encourage each other to stand up for ourselves, fight for what we believe in and achieve our dreams, OUR voice is strong.

If it weren’t for all the fabulous women in Atlanta, My Voice is Strong would have stayed a quiet whisper. That’s why giving back to the passionate, driven, changemaking women in Atlanta is super important to My Voice is Strong.

With Bi-Monthly uploads, essays from REAL women using their voices, profiles of hot Atlanta editors and up-and-coming designers, lists of stuff that make us strong (Beyonce, anyone?), and videos up the wazoo, My Voice is Strong encourages you to use your voice to create the life you desire.

So it’s an online magazine that is uplifting & upbeat. But let’s face it, it’s a magazine and the magazine industry has been looking a little grim recently.

What will the new magazine look like? Print. Digital. An amalgamation of both? We’re not sure yet, but we’ll be damned if we don’t try to figure it out. We owe it to the thousands of print magazines we’ve pored over, cut out, dog-ear tagged, loved with all our hearts and who have cultivated our own voice.

MASTHEAD:

FOUNDER & EDITOR, BETHANY BENGTSON

Bethany bust onto the Atlanta magazine scene in 2008 under the direction of the fabulous ladies at skirt! Magazine (print edition). But when it was time to move on and the market began to shift, Bethany had a huge hole in her heart. Where was she going to get her insider info on fun events, cute products and mom ‘n pop shops? While the wound in her heart began to heal, the ink in her pen began to flow. She filled notebooks with fashion finds, underground women’s networking events, heart stirring nonprofs and stories of women in Atlanta instigating change. She couldn’t help it, she had to get the word out. And the most amazing thing? She had a ton of women mentors encouraging her. Every Atlanta woman editor, shopkeeper, barista and media guru was more than willing to sit down for coffee, divulge career advice and offer encouraging “you go gettem girl”s. My Voice is Strong became Bethany’s project to give back to the women in Atlanta who had given her so much. Bethany’s education is in rhetoric, the history of composition over the span of, well, forever, gave her the drive to put her quill to the test. Upon graduation from Georgia State University, she celebrated her creative nonfiction essays published in skirt! Magazine and Relate Magazine. She is currently a freelance writer composing product reviews, profiles, restaurant and nightclub reviews, and social and restaurant scene commentary for several print and online Atlanta based magazines. Bethany thanks the many women (and men) who have contributed their time, talents & energy to My Voice is Strong.

CONTRIBUTING TEAM:

EDITORIAL: Lauren Mace | Speak My Voice Editor
VIDEOGRAPHER: Jason Recio

BOARD OF DIRECTORS: Mary Simpson, DOCHO International | Big Vision and Strategy Advisor
INTERNS: Kelsey Simpson | Editorial & Fashion Intern

Minh-Thu Tran | Marketing Intern

Minh-Thu is currently a graduating senior working on her BBA degree in Marketing and Communications at Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia. In her spare time, she is involved with numerous committees and events around the city to help raise awareness and sponsorships for charities and local communities. She is a hard-worker and a fun-loving girl who loves trying new food, playing volleyball, and traveling. She recently returned from a study abroad trip in Sydney, Australia.

Growing up in a very traditional family, she always felt bounded and restricted to only being able to do what her parents wanted, which was for her to become a successful doctor or lawyer. In her search for her passion, she had to continuously use her voice to gain support from her family so that she could define her own path and be in control of her own future. Minh-Thu believes that “if you truly follow your passion and not be afraid to use your voice, it will take anywhere you desire!”

Aga Kruk| Graphic Design Intern

She came to the U.S. when she was 22.  She left Poland to prove she could do it all by herself.  Nobody believed this always too skinny, vulnerable and with “head in the clouds” girl could survive 6,000 miles away from home.

Many times she felt too weak, too “foreign”, too much on her own.. but there has always been this voice somewhere deep inside, stomach all tied up in knots, which has begged her not to give up, which would ask for more, which would not likely settle. This voice helped her stand on her own and pursue a degree in psychology and fashion marketing. It encouraged her to learn new languages that opened doors to new people.

This voice told her to go out and meet new people when she felt the weak. And she met a circle of beautiful, spiritual and strong women who reinforced her that her voice is strong.

WOMEN WHO’VE INSPIRED MY VOICE IS STRONG TO COME TO FRUITION: Ginger Emas, author of skirt! book Back on Top: Fearless Dating After Divorce, Gina McNew, It’s Hip to Be Hot creator, Stephanie Davis Smith, skirt! Editor, Laina Orlando, The Power of Awareness creator, Cynthia Good, PINK Founder and Little PINK Book Editor, Jennifer Guarton, former skirt! Marketing Manager, and many many more women.

MEN WHO HAVE PUSHED THE ENVELOPE & ENCOURAGED MY VOICE IS STRONG TO THINK OUTSIDE THE BOX: Dan Smigrod, Andrew Bate, Jaysen Goodwin, Jeremy Porter, Dan Greenfield, and the countless other unofficial advisors.