Dee,

Dee Yates is a publisher, photographer, author, and educator with 25 years of experience across the creative industries and over one million print magazines produced. She built her career on her own terms, without waiting for anyone to hand her the keys.   A native Californian through and through, Dee radiates the warmth and grit of her home state in everything she creates. She is a devoted wife, a proud rodeo mom, an avid gardener and homesteader, and a passionate advocate for the Western lifestyle. She lives on a ranch in Northern California surrounded by Labrador Retrievers, quarter horses, and the kind of wide-open space that feeds a creative soul.  

Her career began behind a camera. Opening her first studio in 2000, Dee spent the next two decades documenting life's most intimate moments, from weddings and portraits to commercial work and magazine features. Over 25 years photographing women, she developed a rare gift: the ability to uncover the authentic story beneath the surface and reflect it back with honesty and grace. Her sessions became transformative experiences, and her studio became a place where women rediscovered their own worth.   That work eventually led her to publishing. As owner and editor-in-chief of HERLIFE Magazine, she built the publication into a thriving platform for authentic storytelling, championing the voices and achievements of women across her community.

Her Publisher's Notes became reader favorites, known for their wisdom, humor, and unfiltered honesty. After many successful years, she made the necessary decision to return to her roots.  And in 2024, Dee acquired Ropers Sports News, a 58-year-old Western sports institution and the publication known in the roping world as the Bible of the sport. Under her leadership, she has transformed it from a black-and-white newspaper into a full-color glossy lifestyle magazine, honoring the heritage of its founder while bringing it boldly into its next era. She travels extensively to photograph events across California, Nevada, Arizona, and Texas, documenting not just the competition, but the culture and the people who keep it alive.  

Dee is the author of Write Your Own Damn Story, a memoir and manifesto that sits at the heart of everything she teaches. She is also the creator and author of the Cowgirl Culture book series, a passion project years in the making that documents the life, style, families, and heritage of contemporary cowgirls across the American West. The first volume, Cowgirl Culture, California, is published. The second volume, Cowgirl Culture, Arizona, is currently in development. Alongside it, she is building the Western Elders Series, capturing the unfiltered stories of culture pioneers before they are lost to time.  

Dee is also the founder of Magazine Mastery, an educational platform where she teaches aspiring publishers how to launch and run a profitable niche print magazine. After 25 years of doing this work, she is now sharing everything the industry never wanted to give away. Learn more at MagazineMastery.com.   Write your own damn story. No permission required.