Sienna Bentley

I’ve been a bad editor.

I have so much going on behind the scenes that you never see… because I’m not a content creator (maybe 2026 is the year I become an influencer?) and I’m shit at social media. I’ve shared my wobbles on Instagram before, where I’ve explained that sometimes keeping all the plates spinning can be super overwhelming. Running the mag and editing content to publish (and making sure there is content to publish) and juggling a corporate 9-5 job and designing a print mag from scratch and making content for Substack and social media and also, like, having a life, is hard sometimes. Legends have bad days too. Shocker, I know.

The days where I feel so overwhelmed that I have a mental breakdown are pretty rare, I absolutely love what I have chosen to do. But so many other factors come into doing these things on my own that I hadn’t expected and that I’m not so good at (Sienna admits to having flaws? Gasp!). Like marketing. I hate that shit, can’t do it. It’s the same with music – I never really tease my music, I just drop it and then… that’s it. I’m working really hard on bite mag but no one actually knows that because I never show it online. And the fact that I have to remember to show it online pisses me off. I just want to make art. Know what I mean?

Everyone says “people want to see the process; you should post the behind-the-scenes of what it’s like to make a magazine” and I’ve just never felt like it’s something that anyone would want to see. It’s not glamorous. It’s just me, sitting in bed – in a very specific position because I have a slipped disc – with my laptop, chocolate coin wrappers next to me, in my depression era (can’t say I don’t keep it real). I don’t want to film a behind the scenes when I can’t even show what’s on the laptop screen because that would be a SPOILER, I don’t have a studio (I have a desk but it’s so cluttered I can’t sit there), I don’t even have a printer to make it look like I’m doing things that a publisher would do. Why would anyone want to see that?

I’m struggling with how to promote something that you can’t actually show people yet, but I guess I can tell you about it. This goes against everything I ever learned in English class. Tell, don’t show.

I have mocked up a few potential covers but I’m currently undecided on which one to go for. I have laid out almost all the submissions. It’s shaping up well. There will be a couple of interviews with some very exciting people, thought-provoking and insightful essays about what it means to be creative in today’s world, poetry and creative writing pieces, original art and photography series and fashion deep dives… you know bite – we’re not in the business of keeping things niche.

Oh, and there might be puzzles and things for you to do. No, really. The whole idea behind the wild theme is being unafraid to get stuck in, unburdened by the fear of making mistakes, getting messy. And I think part of that necessitates satisfying your inner child. I satisfy my inner child by doing word searches… so… yeah. So can you.

I thought making the second issue would be easier than the first, because I learned so many lessons from making mistakes the first time around. That’s the last time I assume to know anything. In all honesty, I have no idea what I’m doing, ever. Oh, the joy of being in one’s twenties.

However, if there’s one thing that I know to be true, it’s this: the print is looking sick so far. I’m so excited to share it (I definitely feel nervous too).

You might not get another update like this from me until I decide on and announce the release date (it’ll be some time around mid-March again) as I venture back into the trenches and avoid daylight for a week, so if you have questions about the print, now’s the time to ask. I don’t bite, I swear. Yeah, yeah, pardon the pun.

Vibe check

Here’s a playlist aptly titled, “What I’m listening to while creating the bite wild issue”. There you go, a little look into my creative process.

Here’s a Pinterest mood board of the vibes (not real contributions).