my life story

credit pic - prcouture.com

my brain's telling me to write. but write about what, i don't know.

let me tell you a story. a short story that looking back, seems like a childish one.

a year after graduation, i decided that i maybe i don't quite fancy doing PR (after all). all i wanted to do was write. and i had a specific writing job in mind, that is to become a fashion writer. i wasn't entirely fashion savvy. but i know for a fact that i have good taste ( i think i do) and i am definitely not a victim of fashion. i dress to my liking and it's usually simple, classic outfits that come to think of it, won't go wrong.

I remember while at work, i decided to sneak an email to the editor of Eh! magazine Asiah Mion. I told her that i wanted to give this fashion writing job a try provided that she would be able to match my salary at that time. Kak Asiah then gave me a fashion assignment to write ust to see where exactly my writing skills were.

the thing about magazines like Eh! and GLAM, the writing skill runs deep and laced with a mixture of english expressions thrown in. that's what i like cause it sounded natural. like how we converse with each other? so i applied that in my assignment. i remember that the assignment was about 'trend musim luruh'. so i decided to look it up from the net and just come up with an article which i think does not linger on self knowing (for i do not know enough to give my 2 cents worth on trends nor was i noob enough that i can't figure what would be a good trend to follow). so i submitted the assignment and lo and behold! Kak Asiah decided that hey, my writing skills were pretty good after all! *pats shoulder*

problem is, i do not know how to tell dad that i wanted this job. i mean, i can job hop for all other pr jobs in the world but to switch to writing wasn't entirely ideal. so i decided to work only for a day at EH! i told kak Asiah that i really wanted this, but i wasn't sure my dad would give his approval (and his blessings is everything to me when it comes to job selection) So I took a day off from work and gave magazine writing a try.

I've to admit that it was quite an experience. Sitting in an open area filled with creative people from different fashion publications. (Eh! was under BluInc) Some faces of course I knew because when in PR, media are supposedly your friends so some of these faces I did recognized so it wasn't entirely foreign. I was of course frantically praying inside that no one would call my boss up to inform that the company's associate happened to be here on a day's trial at work. dang!

Anyways, it was good experience in the end albeit a very short one. I believe writing does come naturally to me. I was given release after release to read through and i even had to write an article on cellulite! i was then given an assignment to go to a hair styling competition but because it was a night event (and you have to remember, dad does not know bout this at all) that i told Kak Asiah i had to pass.

my articles / writeups did get published for the following month and despite it being a non-paying job (come on, it was only for a day!) it did give me a clear conscience on what i really wanted to do. maybe i enjoyed writing. maybe writing was easy and i am sure i could go far if i properly honed my writing skills. but at that time, i also realised that may i do have a love for PR after all. and i never looked back since. Writing was just a diversion, but my calling (for the next 7 years) was entirely corporate comms and now that i have left the field altogether, and with fond memories too (oay, that bit i lied, my last ceo was a monster by the way. gives me breakout every time he crosses my mind) ...

oh well, that all added up to the experience i guess! :)