I have a dream...is it stupid though?

Question

OK, I would absolutely love to write for a fashion or a women's magazine one day. Journalism has always interested me. However, some people say "haha don't be stupid, that won't happen!"
I think they are right to be honest. This industry is based in London and I live nowhere near. Even when I leave uni, how on earth am I going to move there? Doesn't it cost a bomb? I mean, I already write for my college newsletter and getting my portfolio together but...I'm stuck. When I say I want to live in London, people always say "OMG why?". Is my dream too big? I'm scared I'll fail. It's all I have ever wanted to do. Please help. Be honest. :)

All these answers are absolutely fantastic, and I can't decide! I think I will let the votes decide! I just want to say to everyone who took the time to write back, you don't know how much this means to me. It's been my dream for ever now. I can't say thank you enough, I appreciate it so much. :)

Answer 1

No its not stupid at all! If you want it that bad then you will achieve it. Yes it does cost more to live in London but if you are willing to work hard then you will do it. Don't give up, work towards your dream! I have total faith in you!

Answer 2

Well you MIGHT fail if you try. You DEFINITELY will if you don't.
It would be a shame if you look back in later years and regret not giving it a go.
What you are doing in writing for your college newsletter in a good idea - keep copies of this. If you can organize some kind of fashion show in your college, or interview a fashion design student who has done particularly well, and write a piece and send it to a local newspaper - even better.
Doing a fashion course at university and then maybe a post-graduate journalism course may be the way to go.
You won't necessarily have to move to London in the future - there are large regional magazines/newspapers that have fashion sections. Thinking about moving away from home will seem like a big step now; it won't seem so big in a few years time.

Answer 3

Lots of people live in London. And fashion and women's magazines DO have writers, so SOMEBODY gets those jobs.

Yes, London is very expensive. And you won't likely start out with exactly the job or flat that you'd like to have - you might want to get some writing experience elsewhere first, since that would probably make you a more desirable job candidate. But if that's really what you want to do, make sure you have all the credentials you can get, then go for it. It might not happen, but you never know until you try.

Good luck.

Answer 4

Firstly prepare your self for disappointments in this life .you are 1 in thousands.you have to make your writing different .To get noticed Why London You are trying on the top flight set your sights lower to start.Have you all your options open 1 option is no good .You need more than 1 iron in the fire.Why be scared if things don't work out .Would you not take a driving test if again if you failed 1st time .That is a defeatist attitude.lots of people don't get the profession they really want.Has 1 door opens another closes.Coming from UNI these days don't mean nothing these days no guarantee of a job like it used to .a few years ago people were classed has special coming from UNI Not today every one is at UNI so Quantity is not Quality.The goose that layed the golden eeg has been killed .An employer finds it very difficult to fill a job when everyone at the interview has all the same qualifications all been to UNI and you have lots of applicants best of luck for the future

Answer 5

Your dream is not to big, think positive, you already write for your college newsletter so you must have a good feel for it. Why not get in touch with several fashion magazines(I`m sure addresses will be easy to get), explain what you want to do, offer a sample piece of wrting about fashion) ask for their advice on how you can get into this business, are there any other courses you can do, do they take apprentices? Be willing to start at he very bottom...
London is a very expensive place to live, maybe other cities are something to think about. If it it something you really want to do, don`t give up and don`t listen to people who say it stupid, it isn`t.
Approach some newspapers, starting there maybe will lead on.
Most if not all journalists for papers, TV, magazines etc, all start at the bottom, my father before the war chauffered for his cousin who owned a national newspaper, eventually my father through hard work became a general manager from 1948 to 1970.
Goo luck for your future.
Oh and if you become a famous writer , i`m an artist can you promote me please...
Have a star for a rising star...

Answer 6

Hey...Don't feel stupid. I think you are a visionaire and that's a good criteria. For me, I would tell you to keep on working hard to make your dream come true. You scare of failure because people around you had been so demotivating, saying words like 'stupid'...and so on,makes you loosing trust of your ambition. Maybe you can't get to London as fast as you want, but why not gaining experience at local journalism based companies first? Give yourself some time to know more about journalism as well as plan your finance for your London dream! Accomplish things you want in your life might be hard, but definitely NOT what people say as IMPOSSIBLE. Dream big makes you achieve higher in life, but everything had to start from small to big. All of all, just work hard and you will get what you want. Good Luck and all the best!

Answer 7

I don't believe the industry is "based in London" only. I would expect three or four major locations for primary fashion industry...
London - New York - Paris and somewhere in Italy.

Draft a letter expressing your interest and asking for mentor assistance. Send one copy to Tyra Banks. Send one copy to Oprah.
Send a copy to each of the major fashion magazines in the U.S. - to the editor.

We've all been scared. Your friends are foolish to shoot you down the way they have. That's a positive expectancy to fail. You seem to have enough desire, you just need some guidance.

Doing a google search for "center of the fashion industry" I found links galore, including those below. I see places you could get training in Delaware and Berkley, California, so I don't see a need for you to move to London.

See if these sites help, and if you want more, redo my google search. Good luck

Answer 8

The fastest way into this industry is to join a professional organisation such as The Writer's Bureau.

www.thewritersbureau.com

They provide tutoring, advice and guidance, give you feedback on your articles and help you to become an established writer.

The other thing I suggest you do is subscribe to Freelance Market News (you get a discount if you belong to The Writer's Bureau). This is a monthly publication and gives you up-to-date information on what is happening within loads of industries.

You don't need to move to London to write for fashion magazines, or any magazines for that matter.

I wish you all the best!

Answer 9

No, it's not stupid and if you have friends that also want to move to the city, or if you find a flat share it's not that expensive to live there either (especially if you live further out and commute in by tube).

Try to get as much experience at writing as you can, you're starting out well with the college newsletter but try to get some work experience at the local paper or even at a radio or television station if there are any near by as any media experience will set you in good stead.

Answer 10

You are the UK equivalent of the kid from Minnesota who dreamed of living in New York and writing for the New Yorker literary magazine. His name is Garrison Keillor and he is now a successful writer who has published books, columns, and, yes, pieces in the New Yorker. He also has a successful weekly radio show.

When you are 75 some day will you be saying, "I wish I had...?", or "I'm glad I tried?" Life is short - if you try and fail, you'll have learned something that will help you the next time - but you will have tried.

Best of luck - I have a feeling we'll be reading more from you than Yahoo questions in the not-too-distant future.

Answer 11

in 5 years time when you are a successful journalist working for one of the top fashion magazines then you can call all the peeps who said ha ha and say nah nah de nah nah to them!

You sound like you are making the right steps to enable you to get where you want to be but dont get frightened by the big goal - focus on the small ones that you need to acheive before you reach the big goal.

I desperately wanted to teach and was always told by my parents then my husband then myself that I could never do that well after a divorce and some desperate scraping by years I took the bull by the horn - started a degree at night uni and although it took me six years I graduated with the biggest smile on my face - I am in the middle of doing a course for teaching english as a second language and plan to move to hong kong next year. there were times when I almost gave up and times that I wish i had neve started but my life has changed so much and I now lecture in a local college two afternoons a week on top of my full time job but it gives me such a buzz.

dont loose sight of your dream just be careful who you share it with!