Meet the Officers: Courtney Lindstrand

CAFME's full of some pretty amazing people, and we want you to get to know them. This week? Meet Courtney Lindstrand, CAFME's 2012-2013 vice president!

Tell us a bit about yourself.
I’m a junior Journalism- Editing and Graphic Design major with a minor in Anthropology. I’m from Greenville, NC and in my spare time you will likely find me browsing fashion blogs or attempting to do crafts.

How did you get involved in CAFME?
I distinctly remember walking (more like stumbling) through Fall Fest my freshman year when I saw a bright pink poster that said, “Do you want to work HERE?” surrounded by covers of Seventeen and Vogue. In my head I mentally answered, “Yes. Yes, I do.” So I signed up for the listserv, went to the first meeting and just kept coming back! 

What do you do on CAFME?
I am the vice president of CAFME this year. My goal is to help the co-presidents in any way I can, whether that be by organizing speakers or special events or helping to plan for the future of the club. I also try to make sure meetings go as smoothly as possible, even when technology poses a bit of a challenge! 

What do you like the most about the club?
I love how passionate everyone is about what they do. I always leave CAFME meetings feeling inspired and reenergized after listening to a great speaker or talking to another member about their big plans for the future.

What is your goal for the club this year?
I really hope to be able to present members with events, meetings and resources that are really going to help them achieve their ultimate goals. Whether that’s getting some great tips on how to improve their resume or learning the best way to reach out to editors, I want CAFME to be a go-to career resource. CAFME’s meetings and members helped me tremendously throughout the past two years in teaching me all about the magazine industry and I would love to share all of the things I’ve learned with our new members. 

What else are you involved with?
This year, I’m the Associate Editor of Blue & White magazine, a designer for Scope magazine, a writer for Her Campus UNC and in the spring I help coordinate COUTURevolution, UNC’s sustainable fashion show.

Tell us about your magazine experience.
After my freshman year, I had an internship at my hometown newspaper, The Daily Reflector. During my sophomore year, I was a campus ambassador for Lucky magazine, which is owned by Conde Nast. Being a campus ambassador was an awesome learning experience and a whirlwind crash course in magazine marketing and sales. It also allowed me to make some very helpful networking connections; those connections led me to my internship at Teen Vogue this past summer, which was absolutely amazing. I couldn’t have asked for more from my time there. I am so grateful for all of the experiences I have had. Each one taught me something new and provided me with an invaluable set of skills that I will use throughout the rest of my career. 

What tips would you offer to others trying to follow in your footsteps?
I have two cheesy, cliché quotes that I kind of use as mantras in my life. The first is “You’ll always miss 100% of the shots you don’t take.” I remember applying to summer internships in New York thinking that it was a long shot. However, through hard work and persistence, I was able to make things that seemed so far out of my reach actually attainable. Even if something seems out of your league, give it your best shot anyway. You never know what someone will see in you. 

That leads me to my second mantra, “Always give 110%.” In whatever you do, whether it’s writing for a campus publication or working as an intern, always give your best and then some. People always take note of a job well done and your hard work will come back to reward you later on.

What would you like to do after you graduate?
After graduation, I plan to move to New York to obtain an editorial or web position at a major women’s magazine. This has been my dream since I was 10 years old and it has been quite the journey so far!

What is your one Carolina must-do?
This is pretty general but just enjoy being a college student! Sometimes it’s easy to get stressed out and wrapped up in all of your coursework and extracurriculars but I think it’s so important to take time to have fun with your friends. After college, it will be pretty hard to find experiences like riding the P2P or going crazy in the Dean Dome after beating Duke!

Meeting recap for Sept. 12: Jenn Talley, digital development editor at Teen Vogue

As fashion week was winding down, Teen Vogue’s digital development editor Jenn Talley found some time to talk with CAFME for our Sept. 12 meeting.

Jenn is an alumna of the University of North Florida in Jacksonville, where she studied English and communications and minored in advertising. She took a variety of classes but all within the same genre of creativity, creating content and writing.

Her first job in the publishing world was as a creative copy editor at an advertising agency, where she proofread the legal text on television commercials.

“I really was able to use my key attention to detail and my love for the written word to make an impact on a product,” she said. “I knew I wanted to write more. I left the agency and started doing any writing job I could get.”

Jenn put her portfolio together and sent it out to anyone who would accept it. Style Media Group, a publisher in Northern California that creates lifestyle content, contacted her. She became their managing editor, managing freelancers, writing whatever she pleased and travelling a lot.

When she moved outside New York three years later, Jenn said she didn’t get a job right away.

“I didn’t realize how competitive it was in New York City,” she said.

She eventually found a job working for a startup tech company, which she compares to a Living Social or Groupon competitor.

“I was able to have writers – people that worked for me creating online content, copy editors, and graphic designers,” Jenn said. “I was able to be as creative as I wanted to be.”

Jenn said this job was extremely helpful for her career because she learned about working in the digital space, as well as leadership skills.

Jenn knew that she ultimately wanted to work in the New York publishing industry, and she said her current job at Teen Vogue fills that wish perfectly.

“It really combines all of my experience thus far into one role,” she said. “I get to put my expertise in publishing and my experience in digital together.”

Jenn works with the editorial team at Teen Vogue, developing new digital initiatives and furthering the Teen Vogue brand.


What kind of digital initiatives does Teen Vogue pursue? Have you developed anything for the iPad?  

So many of Teen Vogue users don’t have iPads, so they doesn’t have an iPad edition.

“You’ll hear people say digital editions are the way mags are moving in the future – I kind of agree and disagree,” Jenn said.

She doesn’t think the novelty of having a magazine in your hand will ever wear off. But, Jenn said working with digital editions is a great tool to study and know.

Teen Vogue created a mobile app that’s tied to the mag – you can take your phone, snap pages of the actual mag and it will open up a behind the scenes of a photoshoot, sweepstakes, etc.


How much of your job is creative versus technical?

A lot of it is creative, for example she's working on an interactive game for the Teen Vogue website. Teen Vogue has a tech department that they reach out to. Jenn said she is partly responsible for website traffic.

“I get to really be as creative as I want,” she said.

For example, Jenn recently developed a Google Hangout career chat for Teen Vogue so that people could have access to people in Teen Vogue they don’t usually know about or get to talk to.

“I wanted to give people an opportunity to talk to an editor one-on-one,” she said. “Not everyone wants to be a fashion editor, a photographer, or write all the time – there’s so much you can do in journalism.”  


What skills should we work on during school? Are there any particular classes we should take?

Jenn said you should take anything that focuses on creating content for the web, focusing on skills such as SEO. They want people who know both print and online, who are tech savvy. She said to not limit yourself to journalism classes. You should learn things outside of your field for a more well-rounded skill set.


How do you incorporate advertisements online and in the mobile app?

“It’s hard to get advertisers on board with all this stuff,” Jenn said.

The advertisers traditionally want five page spreads. It’s up to Jenn and Teen Vogue to show them how to optimize their advertising dollars. The more users the website gets, the more advertisers are on board.


Do you have any tips for standing out as an intern?

“It’s more competitive now than it ever has been,” Jenn said.

When you interview for an internship make sure you know every possible thing about the company – don’t say “I don’t know” to any questions. Doing research about the magazine gives you a leg up because on your first day you already know so much.

Take internships outside of your comfort zone or something that’s not your dream job – even if you want editorial but can’t get it, take one on the ad side.

Make as many contacts as you can while interning. Talk to other interns. Give ideas. Be really excited about what you’re doing. The editors will remember how you knew the brand and had good ideas.

“Just realy know your stuff,” Jenn said.

Put together a portfolio that you are proud of and represents who you are as a writer – don’t be afraid to send a little bit of personality.

“I always want people to know who I am,” Jenn said. “So I add personality to my resume, cover letter, website – while still staying professional.”

Follow up is great, just don’t over do it. Following up every hour can be really annoying.


What role does fashion play in your life?

“It’s a big drain on my bank account,” Jenn said. “If you’ve never been to New York and you come, you’ll notice how everyone is well dressed regardless of money.”

Some of her favorite designers include:
Proenza – it’s super high end and most of the time out of her budget
Mary Kate and Ashley Olsen’s Elizabeth and James – classic and comfy, really clean lines
rag & bone – her all time favorite


Is it easy or difficult to jump around in publishing industry?

Jenn said it’s difficult, but once you’re in, you’re in. You can work your way up forever and ever. There’s not a lot of money in it right now, Jenn warns.

She said it worked to her advantage that she had a well-rounded resume, including jobs in copy editing, editorial and digital.  

“My role didn’t exist a year ago, even,” Jenn said. “Conde Nast and Teen Vogue saw a need for someone that had an editorial background and a digital background.”
 
“If you can land your dream job, by all means stay there and do your best. Make the news outlet the best and leave your mark. But with how competitive it is, take on internships out of your comfort zone – anything that will allow you to use the skill set you have – what you know you’re good at.”


What’s the future of digital in magazines?

AT Teen Vogue, we have a community manager that does our social networking - that position didn’t exist last year, either.

“If you’d told me that (social media) would be a job, I would never had believed you,” Jenn said.

Those are the kinds of things you need to know. You’ll be expected to know blogging, web 2.0, basic html.”


Do you have advice for southerners moving to New York?

“There’s no sweet tea,” she said. “And if you want barbeque, just stay in North Carolina.”

It’s expensive. If you want to work in fashion, move to New York. But don’t fall into the trap of eating saltines and peanut butter because you want to buy a new bag.

“There are so many people who sacrifice everything – living with like 18 people -  so they can walk around with a bag that’s worth 3,000 dollars,” Jenn said.

There are always things going on. Networking opportunities are happening all the time – make yourself business cards, meet people. It’s something that New Yorkers just do.

“It’s expensive, and that’s the most important thing I can tell you,” she said. “Be prepared – save up a bunch of money. Live wherever you can afford, get some roommates, get a serving job.”

Jenn said there are a lot of jobs in the digital field in New York, but there are content jobs everywhere so if you don’t want to move to New York, don’t. There are a lot of different places you can go.

You have to be prepared if you’re going to live there.


Do you have advice for seniors who are searching for their first job?

Linked In is a great place to start – start groups and join groups. When you’re looking for jobs, apply for them if you think it’s something you can do.

Make sure your cover letter is not generic. Hiring managers can tell how much time you put into it – they can tell if it’s generic.

Make sure your Facebook profile photo is not of you doing something ridiculous.

Be diligent in your search and make sure you do your research. If you’re going to send an email to someone who you really want to hire you, really take the time to craft the message.

Search websites like Media Bistro. Pick your top 10 places you want to work – look at their careers tab, look at job descriptions and get that experience. Then, tell them you have it in your cover letter.


How should we reach out to editors?

It always helps if you know someone who can give you an introduction when you’re reaching out. Recommendations speak much louder than a resume. Use your connections to give you an introduction.

Meet the Officers: Carson Blackwelder

CAFME's full of some pretty amazing people, and we want you to get to know them. This week? Meet Carson Blackwelder, CAFME's 2012-2013 co-president!

Tell us a bit about yourself.

I'm a senior Journalism and English double major and I added a minor in Jewish Studies this semester just because. I'm from Kannapolis, N.C. and in my spare time (which is rare), I love to watch Netflix, obsess about Buffy the Vampire Slayer and play tennis. 

How did you get involved in CAFME?

I found out about CAFME in the fall of my sophomore year, right before we let out for winter break. I emailed the general email and heard back from Sierra, who told me to come to the first meeting of the spring. I was hooked from the get-go.

What do you do on CAFME?

Well, last year I served as the Special Projects Coordinator, where I managed CAFME's Twitter and Facebook accounts (this was the moment in my life where I fell in love with Hootsuite). This year, I, along with Alyssa Bailey, am a co-president, so we make sure everything is running smoothly and help maintain the trajectory of the organization. 

What do you like the most about the club?

I love the camaraderie that I have developed with various members (and the hopeful friendships with the new members). It is great to have a community of people who are interested in the same things as you and it thrills me to think about working beside some of my friends someday!

What is your goal for the club this year?

This year I just want to make sure people get to know each other and really branch out and take advantage of everything we will be offering. If there is one thing I personally want to do is to make sure I present myself as a resource for members and to help them as much as I have been helped by the past leaders. I want everyone to know that I am here for them all the time.

What else are you involved with?

This year I'm the assistant arts editor at The Daily Tar Heel as well as a television columnist for ScottFeinberg.com, which is run by the lead awards analyst for The Hollywood Reporter. It's basically what I want to do professionally, so that's awesome! I'm also working on a column for UNC's Her Campus site. Oh, and classes, I always forget that I have those too! 

Tell us about your magazine experience.

Beyond campus publications, I interned at Our State, N.C.'s state magazine, last fall. I loved my time there a lot. This summer, I interned at TV Guide Magazine as an ASMEintern. It was an amazing experience and I really want to be an ambassador for ASME here at UNC and help the current juniors with their applications to the internship and get the word out about it. It was a life-changing experience and I feel as though it helped me tremendously. Seriously guys, please apply! 

Seeking Interns: Carolina Parent

Looking for a fall internship? This Triangle publication is hiring interns. Apply today, and good luck!

Job/Internship Type: Unpaid/College course credit
Company/Publication Name: Carolina Parent
Location: Durham, NC

Description:

Carolina Parent is a media company that publishes free monthly magazines, annual guides, e-newsletters and a website as resources for parents and others who care about and work with children in the Triangle. We are the primary source of information for area families with children from the ages of newborn through teens, distributing approximately 44,000 magazines each month at sites in the Triangle. Carolina Parent also provides special events and social media engagement for parents.

Editorial interns work directly with the editors and other staff and may be introduced to different aspects of the magazine. They are expected to take responsibility for their own special projects and daily tasks, which vary with the monthly production cycle. News-style interviewing and writing experience and knowledge of Associated Press style is required for editorial interns.

Internship positions need to be for course credit and are not paid positions. Interns must commit to a minimum of 10 hours per week between the hours of 9 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. Schedule specifics are negotiable. Enthusiastic and creative individuals with great ideas and a sense of humor thrive in our office. Our supportive work environment reflects our dedication to individual achievement within a cooperative team atmosphere. We work with Macs and PCs.

Interested students should e-mail a resume, cover letter and at least two news or feature writing samples to:

Crickett Gibbons
Editor, Carolina Parent
cgibbons@carolinaparent.com

Meeting Recap for Sept. 5: Eva Chen, beauty editor at Teen Vogue

At our Sept. 5 meeting, we hosted Teen Vogue’s beauty editor Eva Chen on Google Hangout. She was so charming and answered question after question with thoughtful advice.

Eva got her start in the magazine industry in a non-traditional way, she said. She was a pre-med student for three years at Johns Hopkins University, but she grew tired of that – “burned out,” she said – and wanted to try something different. So, after applying to around 10 different places (she applied to everything she had a mild interest in), Eva landed an internship at Harper’s BAZAAR during the summer between her junior and senior year. She worked in the beauty and features departments.

“I’m the kind of person growing up I could have literally spent six hours looking at Maybelline and Cover Girl,” Eva said.

When her editor at Harper’s BAZAAR asked her to “get rid” of the hundreds of beauty supplies in the closet that were out of season, Eva said she found out her job could be fun.

“I always thought work had to be work,” she said. “It was a realization that I love my job and want to go to work every day.”

Eva said she created a contact list at her internship at Harper’s BAZAAR that she still uses today.

When Eva graduated from Johns Hopkins, she couldn’t find a job at a magazine because many had started folding. She started working at a law firm, which she said confirmed the advice to not do what you don’t enjoy.

But that’s not to say her experience at the law firm was a waste, as she learned a lot of organizational skills.

She stayed in touch with the editors at Harper’s BAZAAR, which she said was crucial to getting her first job at Lucky Magazine in the fashion department. Eva stressed that networking is a must in the magazine industry.

“It’s just a fancy word for staying in touch with people and being a good pen pal,” she said.

In another instance of networking, Eva was hired as an assistant at Elle, where she worked for three years until Amy Astley, the editor-in-chief at Teen Vogue, called her up. She was hired in four days – a speed she said is not uncommon in the magazine industry.

Eva has been at Teen Vogue for seven years, covering beauty and health.

____________________________________________________________

Our question-answer session with Eva allowed CAFME members to ask the editor questions. Below is a summary of the exchanges.

How are you able to keep up with your multiple social network platforms?

It’s definitely an endeavor. Don’t do them if you don’t want to (only do the ones you love – be authentic). Eva has two phones. She integrates postings throughout her day. It’s a matter of figuring out your content calendar – set numbers of posts per social network per day. She uses Hootsuite for twitter, scheduling her tweets and responses.

I’m graduating in December and kind of freaking out – do you have any more advice other than networking for me?

Don’t freak out. Freaking out is not productive. Graduating in December is kind of awesome because around May there’s a huge tidal wave of people looking for jobs then – but that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t graduate in May, either.

Contact every single alumni that works in publishing. Do as many informational interviews as you can. If you can’t get up to New York, you can do five to 10 minutes over the phone or via email.

In the email, you should talk about things you love about the magazine in particular – show you aren’t generic and that you have studied the magazine. Keep it concise, and attach a resume.

Use the time that you are in school to intern, as well.

What are five essentials for fashion week that you keep in your bag?

-         -  plenty of blotting papers, always, because it gets really hot backstage

-         -  a Hello Kitty compact with a comb and mirror

-         -  blush – coral

-         - Sugar lipstick – she likes it for the texture that has a soufflé aspect

-          -  an eye lash curler

How important do you think it is to go to grad school?

Eva shakes her head no. She did go to Columbia School of Journalism to get her masters while she worked at Elle part time.

 “It’s not necessary at all,” she said. “Actual experience will trump it every time”

It can be good if you want to work at New York Times, the Atlantic or Harper’s, but 99 percent of the time you would start in the same position anyway – it won’t help you get a better job.

What do you expect of interns/interviewees? How much knowledge do you expect them to have?

There’s a popular misconception that working at a magazine means that you need to know everything about the fashion industry, beauty, etc. You should have a general interest in it, but you don’t need to know every brand, every designer.

Eva tends to hire an intern with experience, but sometimes a curiosity and a hunger will trump a lot of experience or past internships. She looks for someone who really wants to be there. It drives her crazy when 6 p.m. rolls around and an intern wants to leave instead of finishing a task. She looks for someone with an eagerness to learn and a good attitude.

Is there something in a cover letter that jumps off the page?

The jury’s out on cover letters. Half say they love them and some say they never read them. Eva says she considers the email that comes with the resume attached is sufficient as a cover letter. She says to keep the email short and definitely don’t include a headshot. Include an introduction and show that you are in tune to the magazine. Make sure to personalize it, explaining how your experiences would help at Teen Vogue, but don’t include detailed explanations of every job you’ve ever done – your resume should speak for itself. Don’t do references and no typos.

What looks good on resume?

It looks good to have worked at the school newspaper. Show that you love magazines and care about Teen Vogue. Show consistently that you want to write and that you are articulate.

Can you tell me about the Teen Vogue Fashion University?

It happens every October. College students from around the world fly in to New York to listen to lectures. This year’s keynote speaker is Grace Coddington, the creative director of Teen Vogue. Many designers come and give lectures. It’s a great networking opportunity, so bring your resume and business cards. You should do this any time you have the opportunity – don’t be shy. Unless you ask, no one is going to help you.

How do we get our applications seen?

A lot of people think it’s like applying to work at your local J. Crew, but there’s no system when it comes to applying to magazines. Apply through big companies like Hearst and Conde Nast, and a lot of times it doesn’t hurt to apply to the editor and to the department that you’re interested in working for. Send your application to the assistant in the department where you want to work. Then follow up with an email a month later. Make sure to apply early because it shows you’re organized.

How should I keep in contact with editors I’ve worked for?

Email them once a season, like around the Holidays. Say thank you for the internship. Eva says she even sent brownies one time, but she lives in New York. Keep in touch as a professional friend. Don’t be too familiar, Eva says – like don’t use hearts and “dude” in an email. Always remember that you’re talking to a person who has the ability to hire you. That applies on social media, as well. Remember you’re leaving a digital footprint.

____________________________________________________________

Eva invited us to participate in a couple other Google Hangouts that she has planned with some fashion industry figures including Rebecca Minkoff. If you’re interested in participating, send your questions and your Google Plus name to editor@lyst.com.

Meet the Officers: Stephanie Blackmon

CAFME's full of some pretty amazing people, and we want you to get to know them. This week? Meet Stephanie Blackmon, CAFME's 2012-2013 treasurer.

Tell us a bit about yourself.
I'm a senior English major minoring in Cognitive Psychology and I'm from Clinton, NC. When I'm not reading books for class, I'm reading books for fun, painting, and watching movies.

How did you get involved in CAFME?
While I was stalking the UNC journalism website for campus publications that needed writers, I stumbled upon a blurb about a CAFME meeting so I went to the next meeting and I've been a member ever since!

What do you do on CAFME?
I'm the treasurer for the 2012-2013 school year. I handle all the money transactions for the organization through the SAFO office.

What do you like the most about the club?
I love the people of CAFME. Everyone is so friendly and they genuinely love some aspect of the magazine business. I love how dedicated people are to coming to meetings and how they really listen to the advice given by the guests who take the time to speak to us via Skype or in person. And speaking of, I love listening to all of our guest speakers!

What is your goal for the club this year?
I really want our members to learn a lot about the magazine business and how they can better prepare themselves to make it into the industry. I hope that this organization helps people network, figure out whether or not this is really what they want to do in the future, and provide them with all the resources necessary to succeed.

What else are you involved with?
I'm a writer for Uncharted magazine (an online publication); I'm Vice President of UNICEF at Carolina; I'm a member of minority student recruitment.

Tell us about your magazine experience.
I found out about CAFME spring semester of my junior year and that's also when I began stalking the Journalism website so I was somewhat late getting into the magazine experience. However, Uncharted provided me with experience writing for an online publication. It allowed me to write in a manner that, as an English major, I'm not taught like journalist students are. It was fun getting to go outside my comfort zone and do something I had never done before. I was able to talk to people and learn more about their backgrounds and experiences. I really enjoyed it.

What tips would you offer to others trying to follow in your footsteps?
Scour the journalism website for experience writing on campus, scour the Ed2010 website for internship opportunities, don't be afraid to ask questions and reach out to people. If you really want it, don't give up. You should use all the resources and opportunities in front of you; those are what help you make connections to start your future career.

What would you like to do after you graduate?
I actually decided I wanted to go to law school after graduation for family law. I'm still not sure if I want to jump right into law school after undergrad or if I want to take a year off and do something like Teach for America or go to NYC and try and write somewhere. Either way, I do want to go into magazines at some point because I love everything about them!

What is your one Carolina must-do?
Introduce yourself to someone you see on campus all the time but you don't know their name! I recently did this.