Paper Airplane is...

The grown-up mashup of the magazines you loved as a kid.

“Like Highlights, but for adults.” This is how I once described what my ideal magazine would be like. As soon as I said it, I knew I had to make it exist. 

Paper Airplane has everything you love: Longform writing. Comics. Word games. Puzzles. Mazes. Art. Infographics. Photography. Activities. Novelties. Surprises. Silliness. Zine spirit. Little details. Lovingly designed pages. 

A post-layoff passion project. 

I was Senior Editor at Dictionary.com before I was laid off with just about the whole staff. Being away from full-time work had me itching for some creative collaboration, and the state of things had me looking for a way to take some tangible action to help the people who need it most.  

And then I had an idea. Actually two ideas. I’d recruit a bunch of creatives to create a single issue of the kind of magazine I had envisioned. And I’d release it as a fundraiser for USCRI (Refugees.org). 

Here’s a paragraph that feels surreal to type out: A world-class crew of writers and artists—most of whom I didn't know—said yes to volunteering their work for what became Paper Airplane Vol. 1. I released the donation-only digital debut issue in June 2025, and it ended up raising more than $10,000 in support of refugees and immigrants. 

The response was so positive that I decided to launch the magazine as a for-profit quarterly, including a print version. The goal is to build a sustainable publication, the kind that pays writers and artists a good rate to publish the kind of stuff you can’t find anywhere else, especially not all in one place.

Fun, fascinating, and human. 

It’s obvious that there is an increasing craving for independent media created by humans for humans. Every single page in Paper Airplane is made for the reader—you—to enjoy. Not to feed the algo or fill space with content. 

The whole point of the magazine is to celebrate human creativity and natural beauty—to revel in all the quirks and wonders and small moments that come from the inefficiency of real life. 

No cynicism. No ads. No A.I. 

The exact opposite of doomscrolling. 

I like to describe Paper Airplane as low-stakes but high-quality. Something you can leisurely page through or pore over. Most importantly, it’s specifically made to make you feel better after spending time with it.

I hope you love it. 

Sincerely, 

Nick Norlen
Founder, Publisher, and Editor
Paper Airplane magazine