How to start a publication?

This week I was asked:

I work for a church of 3600 members. Currently, we don't have any type of monthly or quarterly publication for our church. I was wondering if you could help orient me in getting started. What baby steps would you recommend for a church of 3,500 Sunday attenders to go from no monthly publication to something nice??? Can you refer me to someone who I can pay to do it for me?

My reply was that I would be surprised if, among any group of 3600 people, there are not people who have some experience of producing a newsletter or magazine -- perhaps for a school, business or service group. They may be a starting point. Another is to look at what is being produced by other organizations -- and it is common for copies of locally produced publications to be sent to local libraries, so the librarian may also be a good contact. And while you may decide that your needs can be served by a home-produced publication, perhaps photocopied, a call at local printing businesses may also produce samples of publications, and an indication of other services, such as someone who can set up templates in a word processor or page layout program and help train in their use. This kind of enquiry may also help to give some idea of costs, depending on what services have to be paid for and what can be done on a voluntary basis. You also have to make choices on whether a publication can be at least partly financed by advertisements, and how you will obtain editorial: can it be all produced by you and your members, or will you need to seek outside contributions. Several of the chapters in our book "How to Start and Produce a Magazine or Newsletter" look at various ways of organizing a magazine and at the many levels of production from photocopying or laser printing to digital printing and to the uses of commercial and specialist printers.