For as long as I can remember, I had always dreamed of working at some sort of major fashion publication. I have always been obsessed with writing and editing and I definitely used to “geek out” in all my English classes in high school. So recently, when I landed an editorial internship with one, I was more than thrilled. With all the excitement also came a lot of fear. I was extremely nervous because I had heard some people making remarks and going “good luck with that” and I truly had no idea what to expect. Needless to say, when I got there I was pleasantly surprised.
On my first day, I woke up and my anxiety was through the roof. Who wouldn’t be nervous walking in to their first day at a fashion magazine? It was also nerve racking because I had only had a phone interview so I didn’t know what the editor I would be working with even looked like. Anyway, I walk into the building get in the elevator and head to the 24th floor (which made me even more nervous because I hate heights). When I got off the elevator and into the hallway the only thing that stood between me, and the office was a glass door. I thought I was just going to walk in and kind of be on my own, but I was suddenly greeted by a woman with a big smile. She told me her name and told me she was going to show me the ropes for the day, I’ve never felt so relieved in my life. I walked with her and met everyone else in my department and they all greeted me with a smile and told me they were so glad I was there.
Now, you’re probably wondering what a typical day in my life at my internship is like. First things first let’s get this out of the way, although I was asked to get coffee one time, that’s it. It was only one time. I was actually offered coffee when I was asked to go pick it up, so I can’t complain. I’ve also never had anyone throw their jacket or purse on my desk, which I wasn’t expecting to happen, but I’m glad that it never has. On a regular day in the office I will come in at 10 am take a lap around the office and say hello to everyone and see if they have any tasks they need completed that day. It’s really important to make sure you say hello to everyone and see if you can help them with anything, this creates good relationships in the office. If there aren’t any tasks that need to be completed at the moment, since I am in the beauty department I will head into the beauty closet and either shelve new products or find a new way to keep things organized. I will also check my email to see if there are any event invitations I can pass along to the editors that day. Throughout the day we will get tons of PR packages that I will open and organize into the beauty closet. I will often look through the beauty section of the magazine online to see what new trends or topics they are talking about so I can be up to date on what is happening in the beauty world. Other than that throughout the day I will help the editors with tasks they need like running things down to the studio for a photo shoot, typing up interviews, or researching different topics for them.
My advice to anyone who’s interested in publishing is to find an internship with a magazine. Don’t listen to anyone else’s opinion, it’s important to experience things for yourself. Just because someone else had a negative experience, doesn’t mean you will too.