Tonight is the launch of my book The Vogue Factor (Melbourne University Press) and now that I’ve been through the dreary process of being sniped at by the press, I’m ready for the exciting part, which is meeting and interacting with readers.
That was always the best part, for the 13 years that I edited Vogue Australia.
People often have a preconceived idea of what a Vogue editor is like (imperious, vain, bitchy), and what it’s like to work there (easy, fun, indulged), so I hope my memoirs of 25 years at Vogue go some way to dispelling these myths.
While many are waiting for a salacious, withering tell-all, I must confess I didn’t write the book with that intention. We always criticised by omission at Vogue, which I think is a rather elegant way to live life in general, rather than endlessly dishing dirt.
Insiders will be able to read between the lines. The story I wanted to tell was more of a motivational tale — that any young person starting out in the workforce can make it to the top.
You don’t have to have the right connections. You must have passion, it requires hard work and tenacity. I know: I started as a girl from the Shire on the reception desk, and managed to survive seven CEOs.
Whilst my sudden and very public firing last May has put me, (unwillingly!), in the news, the bigger picture of what is happening in magazine publishing is largely being avoided.
There is a seismic shift in the media landscape, falling circulations, magazine closures, and uncertainty about the financial returns of digital platforms.
Many editors have lost their jobs, a slew of journalists and media players are being shown the door or have asked to been shown the exit.
But for the press, when discussing the departure of a former Vogue editor, it seems to be easier to drop into the obvious clichés of discussing handbags and nail polish, parties (and tea refills!) than look at what is happening to the publishing industry, and its standards.
The Vogue Factor does tackle some of these issues, along with the perennial concern of body image and anorexia in the modelling world.
And of course there are recollections of the glamorous parts of the job, such as producing the Princess Mary issue and working with Karl Lagerfeld during his guest editorship of Australian Vogue.
It’s an insider’s view of what can be a very crazy, but stimulating world, and one that I loved being a part of for 27 years, mostly because of the wonderful people that I met along the way, and the ever-loyal readers. The book is for them.
