Aletheia---A Search for Truth

What is truth? That is the mission of Aletheia Magazine...to find out what Christian teens perceive as truth. Aletheia is the Greek word for "truth" or "unveiling ."

Today I was listening to a lecture about how it used to be that kids went from being children to being adults at around age twelve or so. Yup. No kidding. There was no such thing as a teenager a hundred years or so ago... no drawn out five to ten year period required for each individual to "find himself." Kids went from childhood to adulthood when puberty hit, with all the responsibilities and rights of an adult (including marriage and the privilege of defending their country) at a much earlier age than they do today, and I think that history shows, many of them did a much better job of it than even our twenty plus year olds do today. The bare truth is that general society did not consider the teen years an excuse to be immature. They were a chance to prove oneself as an adult.

I'd like to see those days return to our world. After all, that concept of early maturity worked for centuries before modern psychologists came around and created the idea of teen angst being a necessary rite of passage. The lecturer I was listening to pointed out that at age 14, John Quincy Adams was assigned as the Ambassador to Russia and was sent to serve in Catherine the Great's court. Age fourteen. Wow. Obviously, someone thought he was mature enough to be trusted with the reputation of his nation as a very young man. Should we think less of our own children's ability to act and think responsibly or deeply?

Well, Aletheia Magazine is an online and print publication that is attempting to acknowledge the fact that teens (those young adults who are ages 13-19) are mature, thinking, feeling, imaginative, creative, purposeful, and dedicated individuals and that they have something important to say, and to give them an outlet by which to express their ideas.

Aletheia offers an opportunity for your teens to write creative works, as well as non-fiction and poetry, and to get them published. In print. Now that's something. I mean, anyone with a computer and an Internet connection can start a blog these days and be "published" (just look at me!), but not everyone can get into print. To me, print is still "the holy grail" of writing achievement. How special would it be to see the words your son or daughter labored over written on a page in a professionally printed magazine that arrived in your own very real mailbox? Wow. That would be special.

A long time ago in a land far away, I was a Junior Apprentice at Colonial Williamsburg. One day, during a demonstration, someone with a camera snapped my photo and it wound up on the cover of a national magazine. I wasn't really doing anything special (just listening to my mentor and doing what she told me to do...spinning wool into yarn), but you'd better believe it that when that magazine came out, my mom bought a dozen copies or so...one for each of the grandmas and a few for us. I still have several. One was framed and hung up on my folks' wall for years. It was a treasured reminder of something I accomplished. Now, imagine how amazing it would be for your teen to actually have their original writing, art, or photo published? That would be priceless.

Artwork by Heather Greenwood, age 17. WOW!!

For only $26 a year, you can subscribe and receive four issues (published quarterly) of Aletheia Magazine to inspire your teen who loves to write stories or articles, draw, or take photos. Aletheia accepts submissions from kids aged 13-19, and has a clearly Christian theme, which is addressed very seriously and deeply in many individual ways. Aletheia publishes poetry, non-fiction, fiction, drawings, and photography. 

In each 40 page issue, readers will find a new Writer's Challenge (a contest), a book review, a spotlight on a Featured Contributor (a fellow student), an interview with a writer, selections of original artwork and photography, plus plenty of poems and stories from readers and fellow writers.

You can head over to Aletheia's website to check out a free online issue before you decide if it is a good fit for your family.

Who Would Like Aletheia Magazine?

• If you have a creative teen who LOVES to write, and likes to read what others their own age write about, this magazine would likely be a good fit for you. Check out a sample issue just to be sure.
• If your teen would LOVE to be published, and would find the challenge and potential of writing to be published motivating, then this magazine is a good fit for you.
• If the quarterly writing challenges would motivate your budding writer to greater heights of journalistic performance, then you should order this magazine right away and make your homeschooling easier! Check out this quarter's challenge HERE. There is also a good page of writing tips to help you get started.

• If your teen likes to draw or take photos (which they would eventually want to try to submit for publication), and also enjoys reading what other people their own age write, this magazine would be a good investment.
• If you have a teen who is thinking they might like to get into printed publishing and writing, then this magazine could be a good place to start.
• I know that if a magazine like this had been available to me when I was a teenager, I would probably have been inspired to write for it. I liked to write poetry and short stories, and perhaps my chosen subjects might have been more edifying, had I the example of the writers I read in the issues I had access to. I was impressed...even brought to tears once. If you think you've got a budding writer, but you'd like to see them hone their craft along a more Christian vein, this magazine might be the answer...Check out the sample issue HERE.

However, 

• If you have a teen who likes to write, but is happy just being read by mom and dad, is already happy publishing a family or neighborhood newsletter, or feels  adequately "heard" on their free blog, then maybe this would not be a necessary investment (though your student might find the magazine to be an additional challenge they could rise to or an inspiration, if you have the budget for it). 
• If you have a teen who is "young" and might not understand allusion, allegory, satire, and irony...or one who might be disturbed by sometimes very serious and thought-provoking topics (such as modern slavery or martyrdom), then perhaps you should wait a few years and check this opportunity out again later.
• If you are looking for a publication that offers tips on how to be a writer, illustrator, publisher, or editor, then this magazine will not fit the bill.
• If your teen is not a budding writer, editor, publisher, or a voracious reader of teen-written fiction and non-fiction, I think you need to really look at the sample issue and consider whether this is your best option. You might also want to see what other reviewers from the TOS Crew have to say about Aletheia Magazine.

I commend the publishers of Aletheia Magazine for the service they are doing for young adults and the homeschooling community by providing this creative opportunity for our students...by giving them a voice so they can be heard, and be taken seriously as the concerned, aware, and involved young people they are. Thanks, Aletheia Magazine!

Blessings,

I was provided with a copy of Aletheia Magazine for the purposes of reviewing it here on Blessings Pour Out. The opinions you read here reflect my own personal experiences with and opinions about this product. If you have any questions, you may feel free to contact me.