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Interview
with Michelle Lee
You had some terrific internships while you were in college; The Weekly Planet and Glamour. What kind of work did you do as an intern? I was very fortunate and never
had to do too much grunt work as an intern. One of my first jobs was as an
editorial intern at The Weekly Planet, which is a wonderful newsweekly in
Tampa, Florida, much like The Village Voice. I started out inputting
movie listings into the paper — you know, the times and dates that movies were
playing at local theaters. Not exactly fun stuff, but it led to my first writing
assignments. Pretty soon, I was writing short articles. And eventually, they
hired me as a staff writer and I was writing features. So I was going to college
and getting my B.A. in magazine journalism at night and working full-time during
the day. At Glamour, my internship was part of a great program that the
American Society of Magazine Editors runs. I spent a few weeks in each
department of the magazine. It was a fantastic learning experience. In fact, I
had started out with the dream of being a fashion editor but discovered, thanks
to that internship, that I wanted to be an articles editor. You were a senior editor at Mademoiselle when you were only 25. How did you land this job? I had been working as the
articles editor at CosmoGIRL during its launch year. We won Adweek’s
Launch of the Year that year. I had met with an editor from Mademoiselle
because they had an opening for a senior editor and it sounded like a great
opportunity in terms of the amount of responsibility. Also, after working at a
teen magazine for a while, I was definitely craving a magazine that was targeted
to an audience that was closer to my age range! What helped me land that job was
not only my experience working as an editor but also my freelance clips. By the
time I was interviewing with Mademoiselle, I had written for many major
national publications. What were some of the biggest mistakes you saw writers making in query letters? Being an editor certainly gives
you a different perspective on freelance writing. In journalism school, I
learned how to write query letters. But there’s only so much school can teach
you sometimes. In the real world, depending on what magazine you’re targeting,
many writers create query letters that are too flowery. For most consumer
magazines, write your query in a voice that suits that particular magazine. I
would get pitches at Mademoiselle that were better suited for some
scholarly journal! Another common mistake: not addressing the query to a
specific person. Always do your research and find out the correct editor to send
a query to. And study the magazine before querying to learn the tone, names of
sections, and anything else that could help you. Conversely, in all of your editing jobs, what would make you take a chance on a new writer? A huge part of having a
successful career as a freelance writer is ideas. New writers have the best
chance of breaking in to a magazine through short front-of-the-book items OR if
they have a fascinating personal story. Did you survive ovarian cancer at age
24? Do you have a gay parent? And these types of stories don’t always have to
be sob stories or highly unusual stories. Just show your editor that you know
what you’re talking about and that you’re the right person to write this
story even though you may not have as many published clips as the next guy.
Why do you think Mademoiselle folded? I was deeply saddened when Mademoiselle
folded. The magazine was a real institution for over 60 years. Part of the
reason it didn’t survive was definitely the economy. In a different economic
environment, its parent company Conde Nast probably would’ve given it another
chance. Also, the magazine had trouble finding its niche. It was aimed at women
in their twenties but unfortunately, there is a lot of competition for that
audience. I do feel like the magazine isn’t gone forever though. I could see
it making a comeback in the future. You've also freelanced for several top magazines. When you're new to a magazine, do you tend to pitch features or shorter pieces? Are there any areas that are generally more open to new writers? When I’m pitching a new
magazine, I generally look on the publication’s masthead to find an editor to
e-mail. I then introduce myself to the editor (usually an associate or senior
editor), mention some of the magazines I’ve written for and tell them I’d
love to write for them. Then, I ask, “Are you in need of any particular types
of ideas?” Many editors really appreciate this. Doing this will also greatly
increase your chances of pitching a story idea that works AND help you forge a
relationship with an editor. One warning: Some editors don’t like to be
bothered by e-mail and will either snub you or tell you to pitch by mail,
particularly if you’re a new writer. So, if you’re an unpublished writer,
I’d suggest sending a letter to request writers’ guidelines. For me, I pitch
about 50-percent features and 50-percent shorter pieces. It usually depends on
what my schedule looks like. Why did you write a free short piece for Men's Health? When I was starting out, I came
across an interesting study that a doctor did in India. He had found that
hairier men were more intelligent. I e-mailed the idea to an editor at Men’s
Health and he loved it. I wrote up a 250-word piece and it went into an
issue. He never discussed payment and I never brought it up. I’m not
suggesting that everyone do this, and in hindsight, I was probably getting
ripped off. But it worked out for the best. That editor, the next month,
assigned me a 1,500-word article at $1/word. And a few months later, I got yet
another feature assignment from him. I used those clips to build my freelance
career. The lesson: Do anything to get those first clips, especially clips from
major magazines. Many of the major magazines say they won't look at e-mail queries. Does this hold true even after you've "broken in" with a magazine? I actually never write hard-copy
queries anymore. Once you’re at a certain point and you have a relationship
with an editor, it’s usually easier for them to receive things by email. But
again, it’s a personal preference. Personally, I’m quick on email and I’d
rather not waste paper! Are there any topics that are "unsaturated"? That is, are there any particular topics magazines need more queries about, as opposed to yet another query about diet tips and stress-busters? A lot of magazines, like Ladies'
Home Journal, are moving toward “real person” stories rather than
service (how-to) articles. Think about people you know who have interesting
stories and look in your local paper for real-people stories. Also, news will
always be news. If there’s something hot in the papers right now, think of an
interesting way to package that story. For example, if there’s a new study
that finds that coffee is good for your heart, don’t just tell your editor
you’d like to write a story about the study. Package it into an entire story
on how certain foods and beverages are double-edged swords. For example, some
studies say wine is good for your heart but on the flip side, that drinking can
increase a woman’s risk of breast cancer. Think of an interesting way to
package it, such as creating a big chart. You had quit working at Mademoiselle a few months before the magazine folded because you got a book deal. What's your book about? My book is called Fashion
Victim: Our Love-Hate Relationship with Dressing, Shopping, and the Cost of
Style and it hits stores February 11. It’s really the first intelligent
book about fashion aimed at a general audience that I’ve ever seen. In short,
the book is a wake-up call: Why do we all share the common experience of peering
into our packed closets and whining “I have nothing to wear"? The fashion
industry aims to manipulate consumers in many ways and most of us are blissfully
blind to it. For example, in the book, I have chapters on negative body image,
sweatshops, the endless treadmill of trends, health problems caused by fashion,
celebrities, and much more. Most people think of a Fashion Victim as someone who
mixes polka dots and plaid. But we’re ALL Fashion Victims — even
“best-dressed” stars like Jennifer Lopez and Gwyneth Paltrow! Just to give you an example of
some of the ways the fashion industry manipulates us: One interesting practice I
researched was something called vanity sizing. It’s a widespread practice used
by many clothing manufacturers and designers to stroke consumers’ egos and to
get them to continue to buy their brand. Here’s how it works: If you’re a
woman who normally wears a size 8 dress, you’d wear a size 6 or 4 in a
designer brand that uses vanity sizing. You go into the fitting room, feel great
because you fit into a smaller size and, theoretically, keep returning to that
brand. It’s such a deceptive practice and, unfortunately, only makes consumers
feel worse in the long run. What has it been like working with Broadway Books? Broadway Books is an amazing
company. I’m very fortunate to have worked with them. My editor, Ann, is
fantastic. She’s the type of editor who offers very targeted suggestions and
asks just the right questions without over-editing. And as any writer knows,
having a great editor is vital. Anything else you'd like to add? Just that I wish everyone the
best of luck with their writing. And don’t forget to pick up a copy of Fashion
Victim in February. It’s a smart read that appeals to a wide range of
readers, whether they realize they’re Fashion Victims or not! CLICK HERE TO ORDER FASHION VICTIM. Visit Michelle's website at http://www.michelleklee.com/.
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Text on this site Copyright © 1998-2007
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Michelle Lee is
the author of Fashion Victim: Our Love-Hate Relationship with Dressing,
Shopping, and the Cost of Style. She is a frequent contributor to leading
magazines, including Marie Claire, Elle, Self, Cosmopolitan,
Nylon, Paper, City, Us Weekly, YM, Ladies
Home Journal, Health, Fitness, Men's Health, and Maxim.
She has also held editorial positions at several national magazines, including Glamour,
CosmoGIRL! and Mademoiselle. In 1997, she won a William
Randolph Hearst Award for feature writing. She lives and shops in New York City.
