It has been pointed out that McSweeney's is selling subscriptions to a new monthly publication called The Believer that's co-edited by Heidi Julavits, which perhaps means that The Balloonist was never The Balloonist, but The Believer.
The Believer: 12 issue subscription [McSweeney's store via The White Shoe Irregular]

An insider tells us that The Balloonist will be published by "Heidi Julavits" and "some other guy whose name I couldn't remember." But "Dave [Eggers] is distributing the magazine, not publishing it. It will in no way bear his stamp."

The Observer's passing mention last week of The Balloonistthe new magazine Dave Eggers (McSweeney's, Heartbreaking Work of a Staggering Genius) is startinghas generated a bit of curiosity. Eggers hasn't really talked about it and Google searches are futile. The Black Table speculates. [Ed. noteI'm just waiting for Russ Smith to write a WSJ editorial where he screams "hubris" and says he never liked Dave Eggers anyway.]
Is Dave Eggers trying to break our hearts? Searching for answers about The Balloonist [TheBlackTable]

Post-punk superstar Jack White (of the White Stripes) on his upcoming interview with Dave Eggers' soon-to-be-published magazine, The Balloonist:
"Dave Eggers ?"
"The guy who wrote A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius," his publicist told him.
"Oh, O.K.," he said. He still didn t know.
[Ed. noteSomewhere someplace, in a dark room, Dave Eggers sits fuming...]
Elephant in the room: White Stripes hit New York [Observer]