Friday, August 17, 2012

Counting My Blessings, Weighing My Options

Hey Edsters,

Last week, there was a going away toast for all of the summer interns. With an array of sugary sweets and Styrofoam cups flowing with bubbly (surprisingly champagne) laid out for everyone, one of the senior writers speaking on behalf of our supervisor praised the interns for a job well done. Also one of the head editors added a few kind words expressing his gratitude for our efforts. All in all it was a nice gesture, presenting a rare moment of socializing at the magazine. Not only was I able to compare notes with the departing interns (some who I had never met until that day), but also speak freely with the staffers whom I had gotten to known through working on assignments. I personally thanked them for everything, sharing my experiences and what other interns could benefit from in the future.

I know the end is near, but I feel as though I’m still at a crossroads. As all of the interns leave one by one, I’m delaying the inevitable while I decide what to do about my fate. Although one intern is extending his time at the magazine through the fall, I unfortunately have to make a hard decision.

Thursday, August 16, 2012

3 Tips For The End of Your Internship

Here I am in the last week of my internship and I can’t help but wonder—where did the last two months go? Many of my duties may be over and done with, but it’s not time to slack off yet. There’s still plenty of time to make a good lasting impression.

How do I do this? You may ask. Here are three things you should do before you leave to make sure you’re remembered as the best intern your editors were ever lucky enough to hire.

Wednesday, August 15, 2012

It's Not Goodbye, It's See You Later

I've got to tell you, Edsters. I was pretty darn scared about coming to NYC. I've known since I was 14 years old that I wanted to break into this industry, and ever since that age I knew that this very summer was going to be a make it or break it situation for me. Was I going to land an internship in the big city? Was I going to sink or swim? It's a scary thought, but not everyone is going to succeed at the one thing they want to do the most.

New York went from being a fantasy land in my mind where dreams come true and only the best movies are filmed (Devil Wears Prada, anyone?), to an insanely big island with tall, scary buildings where I suddenly wasn't sure of anything I wanted to do.

Tuesday, August 14, 2012

5 tips for a great last week

Hey Edsters! 
Somehow I'm coming up on my last week at the magazine. This has been the best experience I could have hoped for and I've met some amazing people, so leaving is the last thing I want to think about right now. Looking at my schedule for this week, though, I don't think I'll have much time to think about it until I'm packing up my office on Friday afternoon. Here are a few things you should do to stay busy in your last week, inspired by my slightly-overscheduled office calendar.

Friday, August 10, 2012

What I’ve Learned From My Internship (So Far)

Hey, Edsters.  It’s been nearly four months since I began my internship, and now I can’t believe that it’s time to wrap thing things up.  As the end of the summer approaches, I’ve reflected on the life lessons that I’ve gained from working at the magazine.

Thursday, August 9, 2012

Getting My First (And Second) Byline

And finally, the moment I’ve been anticipating for weeks now—my very own byline in the magazine (two, to be exact)! When the new issue came out this week, the first thing I did was flip to the pages my two stories were on to see how they came out.

What I found was a bit surprising.

Wednesday, August 8, 2012

Words Of Wisdom From An Editor In Chief

Hey there, Edsters!

Tell me if this sounds familiar: You walk into the first day of your internship and meet your fellow interns for the first time. Your internship coordinator shows you your desk, gives you a form or two to fill out, and walks you around for an office tour along with staff introductions. You finally arrive at the door of the mag's EIC, you smile politely and shake hands, and then never talk to them again.

Yep, that's happened to me. I can't say that it was intimidation, but I truthfully had no reason to even cross paths with the EIC at my first internship. She was constantly busy and everyone on staff said nice things about her, but when the last week of my internship rolled around I didn't bother saying goodbye or thank you, since I wasn't sure if she even remembered my name in the first place.

Tuesday, August 7, 2012

Why We Do What We Do Despite Long Hours and No Pay

Last Friday when I was riding the subway home from work, I glanced over the shoulder of the man standing next to me to see what magazine he was reading. I always do that on the subway - it's interesting to put a face with a particular magazine's demographic. I couldn't see the cover of the magazine he was holding, but I recognized it immediately because it was the magazine I'm interning at. 

It's a national magazine, so I know people are reading it. I even know about how many million read each issue, thanks to research in our media kit. But it's a totally different experience to see one of those millions standing right in front of you, a visual reminder of the individuals who make up that statistic. I was glad I had a few more subway stops left because he was only a couple of pages from the story with my byline.  Sure enough, a minute or two later he flipped right to the page.

Monday, August 6, 2012

Ta Ta For Now NYC!

Well, Edsters, this is it; the big day has finally come. After eight months straight of interning, working 40+ hour weeks, and slaving over hot weather and hot coffee, it is time to bid adieu to the city that never sleeps so that I can finally get some. 

It has been an AMAZING experience and I do not regret leaving school back in the midwest for anything. So far I have learned so much about the magazine and fashion industries and about myself and my future career path. As I pack my bags and head out of my midtown apartment, all I can do is flashback to the day my parents left me in NYC.

Friday, August 3, 2012

How Do You Handle Pushy Publicists?

Hi Edsters,

Over the last several weeks, I’ve nearly poured my blood, sweat and tears into this internship to make the most of every minute of every day.  In order to get assignments completed so I can leave at a decent hour, I try to arrive to work early.  But often I end up working through my lunch break and staying well past the end of my day.  Sometimes, I wonder if it would be better to pack a sleeping bag and camp out overnight in a spare conference room rather then endure the long commute when I leave so late.  But then I remind myself that I’m still paying my end and hope that my sacrifices will be worth it in the end.

In the meantime, as a reward for my efforts I’ve been granted opportunities to write a few pieces for the web.  Although one originated from my own story idea, an editor assigned most of these from press releases.  Each time I starting working on an article, I had to get in touch with the public relations person.  From these experiences, I’ve quickly come to realize that PR reps can either be either pleasant peers who provide practical information or pushy people that could try the patience of a saint.  Through a trial and error system of approach, I’ve figured out a couple of methods of dealing with publicists: 

Thursday, August 2, 2012

4 Tips For Making the Dreaded Phone Call

If you’re a little on the shy side like I am, making phone calls can be a bit like pulling teeth. I get that it’s important to communicate well with people in order to get the right information for writing stories and fact-checking them. So much of my job revolves around making phone calls, but every time I go to pick up the phone, my heart starts racing and my words seem to stumble over themselves.

These past few weeks, I’ve been trying to come up with ways to help myself get over this fear. Here’s what I’ve come up with so far.

Wednesday, August 1, 2012

3 Things You Don't Want To Be Remembered For

Hey Edsters!

For these last few weeks working for Lifestyle mag, I've been trying to stay as busy as possible, and my biggest goal from this point on is to be remembered in a positive way by my editors. Coincidentally, I've heard a few horror stories from editors and interns alike of what they think makes a bad intern, so of course I couldn't help but share these helpful hints with my fellow Edsters.