ROANOKE TIMES 
                      Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times

DATE: Friday, August 16, 1996                TAG: 9608160041
SECTION: BUSINESS                 PAGE: A-9  EDITION: METRO 
DATELINE: CHICAGO
SOURCE: Associated Press 

IF YOU'RE AN EX, THIS ONE'S FOR YOU

THE BRIDAL MAGAZINE FOLK don't think much of the comparison, but this publication's target market is similar - and growing.

If it hadn't been for his wife's encouragement, Dan Couvrette might never have started his new magazine.

``I remember her exact words,'' he said. ``They were, `I want a divorce.'''

While going through the breakup, the Canadian publisher discovered there were no magazines geared toward people ending their marriages. Two years later, Couvrette and some associates are changing that.

This week, the first issue of Chicago's Divorce Magazine will hit the newsstands, to be followed by other regional versions and a national issue by year's end.

Subjects include finding the right lawyer and tips on re-entering the dating world. Advertisers include lawyers, financial services and real estate agents.

``This can be a very traumatic part of a person's life,'' he said. ``The magazine will provide lots of useful information and advice.''

The magazine's creators have no doubt that a market exists for Divorce: There were more than 1 million divorces in the United States last year, according to the World Almanac.

``It's not the kind of thing people would keep reading for years, and we're expecting a pretty high turnover rate,'' Couvrette said. ``But, like bridal magazines, we'll pick up new readers who are swimming in waters they've never been in before.''

Cele Lalli, editor in chief at Modern Bride, isn't so sure about the comparison.

``There are people who would find it helpful, but I don't see it in the same light as a bridal magazine,'' she said. ``Weddings are a traditional rite of passage, something most families greet with anticipation and joy. That's not what divorce is all about.''

Couvrette and editor Diana Shepard released the premier version of the magazine in Toronto last spring. The quarterly Chicago version is the first for the United States, with localized content for area readers.

A national edition and regional issues for other major cities, such as New York, Los Angeles and Washington, will follow starting in October.

More than 17,000 copies will be distributed in the first Chicago run. A few thousand will go to newsstands and will be available through subscription, but associate publisher Terri Albert said most will be free at such places as courthouses and social service agencies.

Despite Couvrette's confidence, some say the magazine faces long odds.

The name and the content matter might be too negative for readers, said Samir Husni, head of the magazine program at the University of Mississippi. That, combined with the difficulty of maintaining a new magazine, might keep Divorce from being able to sustain itself, he said.

``Half of all new magazines die in the first year. Only three of 10 make it past the four-year mark,'' Husni said. ``Plus, this one is addressing such a negative topic. Who's going to want to go to the newsstand to remind themselves that they're getting a divorce?''

Couvrette has another view.

``When you're going through this, you think you're the only one who's suffered,'' he said. ``With the magazine, you can know you're not alone.''

LENGTH: Medium:   71 lines
ILLUSTRATION: PHOTO:  AP. Publisher Dan Couvrette and editor Diana Shepard 
          display the first issue of Chicago's Divorce Magazine. Other 
          regional versions and a national edition will follow by the end of 
          the year.|