Interview with
Gabrielle Lichterman,
Founder and editor of
Four Weeks Magazine
Interview by Amy
Brozio-Andrews
Gabrielle Lichterman is the founder and editor of
Four Weeks Magazine, a monthly online
magazine for women that coordinates its content-- shopping, food, DIY, how-to,
etc.-- with women's monthly hormone cycles. Lichterman is also the author of
28 Days and a former freelance journalist and magazine editor.
Four Weeks Magazine tailors
its content to be in synch with a woman's monthly hormone cycle; it's quite a
unique concept. What was your inspiration for organizing the magazine in this
way?
I wasn't content with the one-size-fits-all approach to
women's magazines. As the founder of Hormonology (www.Hormonology.info)
and author of 28 Days: What Your Cycle Reveals about Your Love Life, Moods,
and Potential (Adams Media, May 2005), I know that women's moods, energy,
and needs change from week to week as their hormones rise and fall in their
monthly cycle.
I felt I could bring women useful tips, shopping recommendations, and travel
suggestions in a better way-- tailored to the days of their cycle when they were
most likely to want to read about them or use them.
Women's monthly cycles are so often thought of as "too
much information" for public consumption. How have you worked to overcome the
challenge of readers' potential "ick" response?
Four Weeks offers readers content based on how their
hormones will have them feeling. I don't think there's anything icky about that.
It's useful and interesting to know when you're in the mood for fun, when you're
feeling adventurous, when you prefer some quiet time or when you're craving a
little self-indulgence.
According to your research, studies have shown that men
have regular hormone cycles too. What made you decide to start your magazine for
women and not men? Do you have plans to roll out a men's version of Four
Weeks?
For the past ten years, I've written for women's magazines
and, as a woman, have a special interest in women's issues. So, naturally, I was
more inclined to start with a woman's magazine.
A man's hormone cycle is 24 hours long as opposed to a woman's month-long cycle.
So, a magazine based on the male hormone cycle would certainly be formatted
differently than Four Weeks. It's doable, but I have no plans at this
time to roll out a men's magazine just yet.
What's it like going from being a journalist to a
magazine editor? How much do you think being a former journalist has an impact
on how you relate to prospective freelancers to your magazine? What's the
biggest challenge you've found in being the editor of a magazine?
It's pretty natural to go from journalist to editor. Many
of the most important responsibilities overlap-- such as coming up with
compelling story ideas that readers won't want to miss and crafting a great
article.
My experience as a freelance journalist has an enormous impact on how I work as
an editor. I try to treat journalists as I'd like to be treated when I'm writing
for a publication: I pay quickly, don't order rewrites till the writer is blue
in the face or make the writer chase down the answers to a million questions
that ultimately never end up in the piece, and I try to respond to a writer's
submitted article right away.
The biggest challenge in being an editor of a magazine is the amount of
responsibility you have. As a journalist, my job is to focus on a single topic,
research it, interview experts, and write the article. As an editor, my job
requires a hundred more things to do. So it's important to be organized and keep
your eye on all 100+ balls you're trying to juggle at once. It's fun. But you
really can't take your eye off those balls for a minute.
What should freelancers keep in mind before pitching
submissions to Four Weeks? Is there anything in particular that will make
or break a submission?
Keep your pitch short, simple, and fresh. Offer a new
perspective and definitely use studies and/or experts. Don't try to write as an
expert. I recently received a pitch that was something like "five ways to
de-stress" and the tips included bubble baths, manicures, massage, going for a
walk, etc. These tips were boring and overused, the writer didn't include a
scientific reason for why these tips were beneficial, and she was pitching the
article as herself being the expert. In other words, in her opinion, bubble
baths help de-stress you because they're soothing and warm. That just doesn't
fly.
Readers want to know what the latest study says, what the most credentialed
expert says, and, ultimately, they want something new. If you're going to pitch
bubble baths as a tip for a de-stresser story, have a new study that says,
"Scientists at Duke University recently found that bubble baths decrease your
heart rate 30% over non-bubble baths." Or add a twist: "Bubble baths may be
known for their de-stressing ability. But a new type of bubble bath-- the
De-stressing Bubble-- is the first to contain chamomile, which is known to
reduce anxiety due to uridine, a sedating chemical the herb contains."
At Four Weeks, our rates are currently relatively low, so we're very open
to working with writers who are just starting out and need bylines and
experience. Don't be afraid to pitch us if you don't have clips. We can usually
tell by your pitch if you've got the talent and drive needed to write articles
for us and, if you do, we'll give you a shot.
Deal breakers: Writers who send me an e-mail saying simply, "I'm a freelance
writer who wants to write for you. Please send me assignments." I get these all
day long. I'm looking for freelance writers who have their own ideas or who
write about a particular niche that they're excited about (for instance, DIY
crafts, recipes or fun things to do on the cheap), or who are passionate about
Four Weeks and actually refer to the magazine and why they want to write
for it in their e-mail. We do hand out assignments, but show us that you've got
your own ideas and passion to bring to the table, too.
If we could touch on an earlier point in your career,
how did you break into journalism? What was your biggest coup? What words of
advice do you have for fellow freelancers? How did you make the move from
journalism to editing?
Right out of college, I started out by pitching articles to
small lifestyle magazines and local newspapers while I worked a full-time job.
As small as those publications were, every article acceptance was a big deal for
me. That's because I felt that the clips and experience were more valuable than
any amount of money I could have been paid. And I was right.
In just a few short months, I landed my own (non-paying) column in a small
Manhattan newspaper and had amassed clips from six or seven small publications
under my belt. Using those clips, I began pitching larger publications and was
soon writing for Time Out New York and the New York Daily News.
Again, these didn't pay well, but I knew that clips from these larger
publications would be more impressive and get me even bigger, better-paying
gigs.
Sure enough, I heard about an opening at Playgirl Magazine for an
associate editor position and I sent in my resume, which listed all the small to
mid-sized publications for which I wrote. I landed the interview and was hired
on the spot. After about a year, I moved up to managing editor at Playgirl.
When I left Playgirl to be a freelance writer again, I not only had clips
but also editorial experience. So when I pitched top magazines, like
Cosmopolitan, Marie Claire, and Vibe, I found it easier to get
my articles accepted. I think it's because, when you have experience as an
editor under your belt, the editor of the magazines you pitch expect your work
to be more polished, more thoroughly researched, and on time.
Now I've returned back to editing, but I also still freelance for a few clients.
So I'm playing both sides of the fence, which many of my own magazine editors
also do. And I think that's a good thing since, when editors to experience what
it's like to be a freelancer and vice versa, it lets you really understand what
the other is thinking and why they do the things they do, for instance, why it
sometimes takes forever to hear back about an article query. (It's usually
because of that 100+ ball juggling act I mentioned above.)
My recommendation for freelance journalists who are just starting out is to
simply pitch good, interesting, and new ideas. Editors are hungry for them. Look
for new studies--they're usually terrific ways to come up with an idea for an
article. I know that many people recommend trying to make a personal connection
and shmooze in person with editors, but I wouldn't have time for something like
that. Your query can tell me a lot more about your talent and passion than a
chat over lattes.
Please tell us a little about the process of writing
and pitching your book, 28 Days: What Your Cycle Reveals About Your Love
Life, Moods, And Potential. Were there any big surprises? Anything you wish
someone would have told you?
28 Days was a project years in the making. I started
researching it in 1999, I pitched it to agents in 2003, it was accepted by a
publisher soon after, and it finally came out in the spring of 2005. This was my
first book, so there were a lot of surprises. I think my biggest lesson from all
this was that an author should see the publisher as nothing more than that--
they will publish the manuscript for you.
Regardless of all the promises they make (and there are always many), there will
be no huge publicity or marketing push. The onus is on the author, and the
author alone, to take the published book as far as it will go. Had I been more
acutely aware of just how on your own you are when you publish a book, I would
have definitely coupled my own publicity efforts with that of a professional for
the first month when publicity is most critical.
I urge any new author to take a publicity boot camp (I took Bella Stander's Book
Promotion 101 --
bookpromotion101.com -- and highly recommend it or you can call her for
private consultation.). If you plan to hire a publicist for the first month,
expect to pay about $3000. Approach them as far in advance of your book
publication as possible. And before you choose a publicist, make sure they have
a proven track record. You can do this by finding out if they placed any clients
with major TV, radio and/or publications in the past six months.
PS: My article clips were a big factor in my landing a book deal. Publishers are
looking for journalists to write nonfiction books nowadays. That's because
journalists are proven writers, meet deadlines, know the editing process, and
have a platform.
Your career has covered everything from journalism to
book writing and editing. Which do you like best and why?
I know it's p.c. to say there's something great about all
of them, but I honestly get the biggest kick out of being an editor. It's
incredibly challenging and involves a much wider variety of responsibilities,
which makes it far more interesting. I also enjoy nurturing new talent, in much
the same way the early editors in my career did. I hope that years from now,
some of my writers are sending me e-mails announcing their new book, latest
New Yorker piece or promotion to editor.
Amy Brozio-Andrews is the managing editor of Absolute Write.
