As part of our 150th celebrations, we asked our readers to let us know what the “Friend” means to them.
We were so impressed by the volume of letters we received, we thought we’d ask our writers, too!
Here, fiction writer and frequent “Friend” contributor, Pamela Kavanagh, shares her thoughts:
“Transports The Reader To Other Realms”
My contact with the “Friend” spans many years, during which the magazine has undergone inevitable changes. New editors, different views and ideas, a degree of restructuring. And yet somehow, throughout it all, the “Friend” has retained its warmth and vitality so beloved by the readers.
For me, the magazine represents its readers and their thirst for a story. This is something I can share with them, a need that never diminishes.
My working life began in the classroom teaching little people, and even now their piping voices echo down the years.
“Tell us a story, Miss. Tell us one of yours . . .”
Story time was our special time together; a group of children in a quiet corner, listening wide-eyed as the drama unfolded, while beyond the school walls the world rattled on at its relentless pace. Well, little people grow up into big people and the magic of the story still holds true.
If the readers find pleasure in my stories, that gives me pleasure, too.
The “Friend” offers a chance to escape, to snatch a few moments of respite in a long, busy, and often frantic day, and curl up by a blazing winter fire or sit in a sunlit summer garden and enjoy a cuppa and a read that transports the reader to other realms.
Catch up with all of our 150th Anniversary goings-on here.
Or you can take out a subscription to “The People’s Friend” today, and never miss another story!
Yvonne McKenzie I work on the Features team and admit to being nosy, so I love looking after the Between Friends letters and finding out all about our lovely readers. I also look after our health copy and enjoy writing about inspiring people that help make the articles in the magazine so interesting.
