''OutWords'' was a Canadian magazine, published in
Winnipeg
Winnipeg () is the capital and largest city of the province of Manitoba in Canada. It is centred on the confluence of the Red and Assiniboine rivers, near the longitudinal centre of North America. , Winnipeg had a city population of 749,6 ...
,
Manitoba
Manitoba ( ) is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada at the Centre of Canada, longitudinal centre of the country. It is Canada's Population of Canada by province and territory, fifth-most populous province, with a population o ...
for the city's
lesbian
A lesbian is a Homosexuality, homosexual woman.Zimmerman, p. 453. The word is also used for women in relation to their sexual identity or sexual behavior, regardless of sexual orientation, or as an adjective to characterize or associate n ...
,
gay
''Gay'' is a term that primarily refers to a homosexual person or the trait of being homosexual. The term originally meant 'carefree', 'cheerful', or 'bright and showy'.
While scant usage referring to male homosexuality dates to the late 1 ...
,
bisexual
Bisexuality is a romantic or sexual attraction or behavior toward both males and females, or to more than one gender. It may also be defined to include romantic or sexual attraction to people regardless of their sex or gender identity, whi ...
and
transgender
A transgender (often abbreviated as trans) person is someone whose gender identity or gender expression does not correspond with their sex assigned at birth. Many transgender people experience dysphoria, which they seek to alleviate through tr ...
communities. Launched in November 1994 as ''Swerve'' by a collective that included Carol Philipps, Stephen Lawson, Ian King, David McGunigal and
Noreen Stevens
Noreen Stevens (born 1962) is a Canadian cartoonist, who illustrated and wrote the lesbian comic strip ''The Chosen Family''. Her work in the field of comics began in 1984. ''The Chosen Family'' is featured in the ensemble comic book ''Dyke Stripp ...
, it published as funds were available until finally achieving a monthly circulation two years later.
The name ''Swerve'' was chosen as a
portmanteau
A portmanteau word, or portmanteau (, ) is a blend of wordsswish and
nerve
A nerve is an enclosed, cable-like bundle of nerve fibers (called axons) in the peripheral nervous system.
A nerve transmits electrical impulses. It is the basic unit of the peripheral nervous system. A nerve provides a common pathway for the e ...
."Editor helped start gay paper in Winnipeg". ''
The Globe and Mail
''The Globe and Mail'' is a Canadian newspaper printed in five cities in western and central Canada. With a weekly readership of approximately 2 million in 2015, it is Canada's most widely read newspaper on weekdays and Saturdays, although it ...
'', March 16, 2009.
A tabloid newsmagazine, it was distributed free of charge mostly in Winnipeg, with several points outside of Manitoba and in the northern
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...
. ''Swerve'' incorporated as a non-profit organization in June 2000, adopting a set of bylaws and electing a board of directors. The day-to-day operations are overseen by an editorial team who are paid a small
honorarium An honorarium is an ''ex gratia'' payment, i.e., a payment made, without the giver recognizing themselves as having any liability or legal obligation, to a person for his or her services in a volunteer capacity or for services for which fees are no ...
for their work. The former executive director of Canada's national LGBT lobby group Egale, Gilles Marchildon, worked at ''Swerve'' for over four years and served as editor for three years.
In 2005, the magazine became involved in a
trademark
A trademark (also written trade mark or trade-mark) is a type of intellectual property consisting of a recognizable sign, design, or expression that identifies products or services from a particular source and distinguishes them from others ...
dispute, when the ''
Calgary Herald
The ''Calgary Herald'' is a daily newspaper published in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. Publication began in 1883 as ''The Calgary Herald, Mining and Ranche Advocate, and General Advertiser''. It is owned by the Postmedia Network.
History
''The ...
'' co-opted the name '' Swerve'' for a weekly entertainment supplement. Shortly after, the magazine was transformed from a tabloid into a book format under the guidance of its editor since 2001, Richard F.J. Wood. It also revised its mission statement and its tagline, which changed from "Winnipeg's monthly queer newsmagazine" to "One Community > Diverse Lives."
Wood left as editor in April 2006. The trade-mark dispute was settled in August 2006. In January 2007, the magazine re-launched under the name ''OutWords'' with the tagline "Getting the word out since 1994."
In May 2016, the final print edition of ''OutWords'' was published and it became a digital-only publication.