Become Your City’s
GO-TO GUIDE

City Living Network is a national collective of women building beloved local guides in their own cities…

WITH THE INFRASTRUCTURE, BRANDING & COMMUNITY ALREADY BUILT.


Start with our free playbook. 22 pages, 30 minutes, five exercises.

Useful whether you ever apply or not.

DOWNLOAD OUR FREE PLAYBOOK
DOWNLOAD OUR FREE PLAYBOOK

What’s inside the Playbook?

22 pages, five steps, five exercises, and the real stories of five women who've built city guides of their own.

It's the most candid thing I've published about this work — equal parts teaching, fieldwork, and honest answers to the questions every editor asked me before they started.

Step One — Name the City, Not Yourself. Why a city-first brand outperforms a personal brand every time, and the five-question naming filter I run every candidate through.

Step Two — Define Your Editorial Lens. The five-pillar framework that keeps a guide specific instead of generic — with the Laguna Beach Living example and what to leave out.

Step Three — Build Trust First, Audience Second. What loyalty actually looks like in the first six months, and why it compounds in ways followers don't.

Step Four — Design for the Eye, Not the Algorithm. The five typography, color, and photography rules that separate amateur guides from editorial brands.

Step Five — Monetize on Your Terms. The five revenue levers in order of ease — brand partnerships, ad packages, affiliate, sponsored experiences, and your own products. Plus when to actually start charging.

Plus: real editor stories, the fears, and the truth about what it takes. Five spotlights — Maui, Boulder, Naples, Destin, Las Vegas — with photos, quotes, and all the perks. AND, the four objections I hear most often and the honest answer to each.

Hi, I'm Lindsay,

7 years ago I started a neighborhood publication in Laguna Beach as a side project.

Today it's a full-time business, and the model has quietly traveled: 27 women, 27 cities, each one the trusted voice of her place.

If you've ever thought "I could do this for my city" — you probably can. Start with the free playbook below.

No sales call. No pressure. Just the playbook, real editor stories, and an honest read on whether this is for you.

MAUI

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LAGUNA BEACH

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NAPLES

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BOULDER

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DANA POINT

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LAS VEGAS

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MAUI 〰️ LAGUNA BEACH 〰️ NAPLES 〰️ BOULDER 〰️ DANA POINT 〰️ LAS VEGAS 〰️

This is for the women who are natural CONNECTORS.

You’re the friend everyone texts when they’re visiting town. You know the boutique that opened last month, the florist worth the detour, the restaurant before it got written up.

You've thought about turning all of that into something — a newsletter, a brand, maybe one day a business — but the idea of building it from scratch is a lot.

City Living Network is for women who already have the instinct. A style sense, a voice, a rolodex, a feed.

We hand you the scaffolding: a beautiful website in your city's name, a brand identity, a monthly content foundation you can riff on, city exclusivity so no one else in your market can do what you're doing, and a network of women doing exactly the same thing in their own towns.

The playbook will tell you in about 30 minutes whether this is for you. Whether you ever apply or not, it's a useful read.

OUR PERFECT EDITOR TENDS TO BE:

  • She's trusted locally.

    She loves to be in the center of things — whether she’s attending (and hosting!) events, mingling with fellow locals or trying the latest and greatest.

  • She's creative and style-literate.

    If the Scout Guide, Cup of Jo, or a thoughtfully designed newsletter lives in her browser, she'll feel at home here.

  • She's between the ages of 25-55.

    But what's more important than age is that she lives in a city she loves with no plans to leave.

  • She's not looking to become an influencer.

    She's looking to become the voice of her city and position herself as the town expert.

  • She wants flexibility.

    This doesn't have to be a full-time job — but it can pay like one.

  • She knows her way around an iPhone.

    Maybe she's not a pro, but she has an eye for culture, and making Reels is fun for her.

Not sure if that’s you?

Download our free 22-page playbook. It’s a 30-minute read with five steps, five exercises, and the stories of five editors who've built guides in their own cities. 

WHAT'S ALREADY BUILT FOR YOU?

The hardest part of building a local media brand isn't the vision — it's everything else.

The website, the branding, the content pipeline, the legal structure, the quiet confidence that comes from knowing you're not the only one figuring this out.

All of that is already handled.

With every city guide we build you get:

  • A beautiful website

    Fully designed, hosted, and built in your city's name. Ready to publish on day one.

  • A brand identity, done right

    Logo, palette, typography, and templates — editorial, modern, and a pleasure to use.

  • A content foundation you can riff on

    Plug-and-play monthly content — editorial frameworks, seasonal guides, Instagram templates — so you're never staring at a blank page.

  • City exclusivity

    Your city is yours. No other editor in the network can publish in your market.

  • A real community

    Monthly support calls, a private space for editors, and an annual in-person retreat where the network actually meets. You are not building alone.

  • A clear path to ownership

    Year one is a license. After that, you own your brand outright. Stay in the network for $150/month if you want the community and content engine. Walk away with everything if you don't.

If you want the full picture — how to know if it’s right for you, our tips and tricks on starting, and real editor stories — it's all inside the playbook.

27 cities, 27 women.

The network is intentionally small. We've said no more often than yes. But the women who are in have built something real — in Boulder, in Naples, in Maui, in the small coastal towns you can picture without trying.

These are a few of them.

JOIN THE NETWORK
JOIN THE NETWORK
  • A smiling woman with long wavy hair wearing a pink hat and black sunglasses, standing outdoors near a boat with other women in the background.

    Kama Hagar from Maui Makai

    "My favorite part of running my guide has been all the cool people I've met — and all the free spa treatments, are you kidding me."

    Kama brings a deeply rooted perspective to Maui Makai — Maui through the lens of someone who lives ALOHA every day.

    MAUIMAKAI.COM

  • Kim Genung from Locally Boulder

    "Starting Locally Boulder gave me such a new sense of love for this town."

    Within twelve months of launching, Kim hosted a holiday market on a farm that drew over two hundred guests — and became one of the most recognizable local voices in Boulder County.

    LOCALLYBOULDER.COM

  • Two women walking on a sidewalk surrounded by greenery and large potted plants in a sunny outdoor setting.

    Amy Cummins & Gemma Shields from Naples Days

    "We sold out a beachside painting event and co-hosted a cocktail workshop with VINCE."

    A publishing background and a merchandising background, meeting in a coastal town. Their bright orange VW bus has become a Naples landmark.

    NAPLESDAYS.COM

  • A woman in a pink dress and black knee-high boots standing next to a white limousine, holding the door handle and smiling, with tall palm trees in the background.

    Angela Christine from Las Vegas Parents Club

    "Seeing the community come together in real life after building it online was surreal."

    Two years in, Angela has met her mayor, connected with the people shaping Las Vegas, and built a platform her city can actually feel.

    LASVEGASPARENTSCLUB.COM

  • Smiling woman on the beach wearing a light blue cap and a grey t-shirt with 'DESTIN Florida' written on it.

    Jamie Kamber from Destin Snapshots

    "Getting invited to stay at Henderson Beach Resort — somewhere I'd admired for years — felt like a full-circle moment."

    A photographer and mother who turned her eye for coastal life into a real platform — and now hosts monthly "Walk & Talk" gatherings for local women in Destin.

    DESTINSNAPSHOTS.COM

How working with us actually works

  • Ten-minute read. Walks you through the five things I'd do before launching a guide in your city. If it resonates, keep going. If not, you've got a useful read either way.

  • Not a sales call — a conversation about your city, your audience, and whether the model fits. If the answer is no, I'll say so. If we're a fit, I'll walk you through the license, the timeline, and exactly what the first 90 days look like.

  • Your website, your branding, your content foundation — all delivered. You launch in your city's name within weeks, not months.

  • Monthly calls, private community, annual retreat. Year one is a license ($5,500 upfront + $400/month for twelve months). Year two is yours to own.

Want to see if running a city guide is the right fit for you?

QUESTIONS, answered.

  • How is this different from just starting my own newsletter?

    You can absolutely start your own. Many of our editors considered it first. The difference is the year you save — and the quality of the launch. Building the website, brand, content cadence, and business systems from zero typically takes 12–18 months and a lot of trial-and-error revenue. We compress that to weeks, with a playbook that's been proven across twenty-seven markets.

  • Do I need a huge following?

    No. Trusted beats big every time. Most editors launch with between 0 and 2,000 local followers — or a strong word-of-mouth reputation. What matters is that the people who know you, trust you.

  • How much time does it take?

    It's flexible. Most editors spend 5-10 hours a week — more during launch. It can grow into a full-time business, or it can stay a meaningful side project. Your pace, your rules.

  • How do editors make money?

    The revenue engines are the same ones Lindsay uses in Laguna: brand partnerships, advertising packages, sponsored content, affiliate revenue, and — for some editors — events and local products. We teach the playbook and share what's worked across the network.

  • Who is Lindsay?

    A journalist of 20+ years based in Laguna Beach. Founder of Laguna Beach Living (launched 2019) and City Living Network (twenty-seven cities and growing). Mostly, a woman who figured this out in her own town and decided to hand the model to other women who wanted to do the same in theirs.

  • What happens if I launch and it doesn't work?

    It's rare, but it happens. We'll talk through it honestly on the discovery call. The license is a real commitment, which is why the playbook and the conversation come first.

  • Is this a franchise?

    No. You own your brand, your audience, and your city outright after year one. There are no royalties, no corporate approvals on your content, and no forced uniformity — the network is a resource, not a rulebook.

  • What's actually in the Playbook?

    22 pages: five steps, five exercises, five editor spotlights, and the four objections I hear most often before women start. About 30 minutes to read. It's the same playbook every editor in our network read before deciding to launch.

A group of women wearing summer dresses and wide-brimmed hats on a yacht, with a hillside cityscape in the background. 
NOT SURE WHERE TO START?

Start with the Playbook

You don't need to commit to anything today. You don't need to be sure. The playbook is a real read — useful whether you ever apply or not. If it sparks something, we'll talk when you're ready.

ALREADY KNOW THIS IS FOR YOU?

BOOK A 20 MINUTE DISCOVERY CALL
BOOK A 20 MINUTE DISCOVERY CALL