Newsletters As Inspiration

One of the core beliefs within our little Rogue pod is that a great idea can come from anywhere! We know admin lead Kris can come up with a campaign idea that rivals anything our art director Sid can. We know that sometimes a walk in the park can be as effective as hours of sketching and planning when it comes to developing an idea. 

The truth is, ideas are unpredictable and our muses are illusive. Sometimes it’s about having all the research at your fingertips and sometimes it’s a passing comment from a client that sparks some of the best work. 

Here at Rogue Penguin we consume a lot of media to inform those ideas, and then we spend a lot of time being bored to allow that lovely marinade to flood our brains with colours and concepts which serve the purpose. 

We gather inspiration from everywhere, but one of our tried and true methods is the good ole email newsletter. We had a chat about the newsletters we love recently and wanted to give you a reading list you may find inspiring as well! 

What Are You Reading?

Sam’s Favourite Newsletters

Sam Leaman, our social media manager, is constantly looking for tidbits to share, but she’s not a reader of marketing newsletters, preferring to look at culture and art more widely. Sam loves Culture Study, (available through Patreon) written by Dr. Anne Helen Petersen about the niches of life with specific focus on pop culture.

“I find Petersen's takes on the world substantive and open-minded; her guests (interviewees, guest writers etc.) are also such interesting and dynamic people. She makes critical thinking digestible." 

Sam also always opens The Gist, a women-led sports news newsletter, which covers all sports. It's a women-led sports news newsletter, which aims to be fun and accessible to fans at all levels of engagement – from the die-hards to the newbies. 

Alisha’s Favourite Newsletters

Alisha loves designer Mike Montiero’s weekly Good News newsletter, which is all about tangents and tall tales. Sure there’s a design focus, but it’s also about how humans interact with that design. His passion for bike riding and dog parks and the impacts are delightful. Montiero - who is passionate about ethics - hosts his newsletter on Buttondown, which is a refreshing choice as Substack takes over the newsletter world. The Art of Noticing is another great read which reminds us weekly to pay attention to the world around us. Finally, art magazine Colossal puts out a daily newsletter (you can change how often you receive them in the subscriber settings) that shows the best art and design out there as well as plenty of art/news connections too! 

Sid’s Favourite Newsletters

Sid isn’t a big fan of newsletters - not a joiner that one - and loves to keep his inbox uncluttered as possible. BUT, he does check in with his favorite design-focused blogs, including Creative Bloq, Adobe Blog, Designspiration, and Dribbble pretty regularly. 

I visit these sites because they are generally well-designed (as expected) and provide information and topics that resonate with me professionally.

Trevor’s Favourite Newsletters 

As an art director, Trevor is ALWAYS looking for inspiration, but he’s also known to go on “unsubscribe” purges pretty regularly. One of the newsletters that’s survived those purges has been TheRundown.AI.

 It’s typical AI-focused news, but with real-world examples and tie-ins offering a concrete understanding of advancements in the AI world. 

I like that it mixes news, tools, and trends in a way that’s easy to read and helps me stay current without feeling overwhelmed.

To Subscribe or Unsubscribe

What newsletter do you open religiously? Is it all about the sales at a favourite store? A business rundown, or something you can learn from? Let us know and when you’re ready to Go Rogue and get in touch to build a newsletter template that looks as good as it reads!