An Interview With POPSUGAR Fashion Editor Sarah Wasilak
With my dream of being a writer I have interviewed many people throughout the fashion industry. Fashion photographers, fashion journalists and models such as Yilena Hernandez who has been published in Vogue Magazine. To learn more about the fashion publishing industry I interviewed one of the many fashion editor influencers on instagram, Sarah Wasilak. But, as a fashion editor she warns us about the effects of social media and how disconnecting it can be.
What advice would you give your younger self when you started pursuing this career path?
I think I’d warn myself about the effect of social media and how disconnected it can actually cause you to become from family and friends - the people who matter most. If you want a job in media, there’s no avoiding the internet and its fast pace, but you can learn to have a life with balance, and I wish I learned that and started to practice balance sooner.
Sarah goes on to tell us about aspiring fashion journalists and what they should do to break into the industry. While it’s said by many, the importance of interning in the fashion industry is a must.
What advice can you give a college student wanting to break into the fashion industry as a journalist?
If you want to practice fashion journalism, INTERN. Make sure this is actually what you want to do by immersing yourself in the industry and trying it out first. Your feelings toward the business and its tasks might surprise you. Practice also makes perfect - there’s no studying for this job or preparing. You have to work at it and try and learn by reading. Find editors you admire and read their work. Make sure your personality shines through your writing and you’re not afraid to voice your opinion. No one wants to read a writer whose work is blunt. We want to hear what YOU really feel, that’s what makes journalism interesting. Sarah goes on to tell me about her passion in writing and how she hopes she affects people positively who read her work.
What is your main goal in your career path?
My main goal is to be a writer - I don’t want to necessarily write about fashion forever, but I want to reach people through my words and I want to connect with people through my words and my stories - whether they’re personal stories or stories that I’ve picked up along the way that will help others. I just want to make people feel inspired or excited, if only briefly while they’re reading what I have to say.” Said Wasilak.
For future fashion, entertainment or news journalists everywhere, Sarah Waslik shows us with determination we can all improve our journalistic abilities with writing. While she doesn’t want to write in the fashion industry forever, she hopes people look at her writing and feel inspired each time they read it.
Wasilak’s Instagram: @slwasz , @popsugar
