The Glam Observer Fashion Podcast · Glam Observer - Giada Graziano

How to become a fashion writer

·25 min·2 clips

Giada Graziano challenges you to start a fashion writing career in just three days with her exclusive live webinars.

Giada Graziano, a fashion educator and career advisor, hosts this episode focused on launching a career in fashion writing. She draws from her own non-linear path into the luxury fashion industry to guide listeners. The episode serves as a primer on the role and offers concrete strategies for breaking into the field. A fashion writer is responsible for articles like news pieces, fashion features, catwalk reports, and shopping guides. Senior writers often specialize in one category, such as Nicole Phelps, the global director of Vogue Runway, who consistently covers runway shows. Writing for a digital publication differs from print, as online content is typically shorter and optimized for search engines. Graziano notes it is often easier to start with digital outlets because they publish more content daily. A fashion writer's day involves admin tasks, editorial meetings, researching, and potentially attending events or fashion shows. The role can sometimes blend with that of a fashion editor, who may also handle styling for editorial shoots. There is no mandatory degree for this career, as evidenced by Phelps, who studied women's studies. Building a writing portfolio with sample articles, published or not, is more critical than formal qualifications or prior experience. Job opportunities can be found on magazine career pages, but Graziano emphasizes pitching article ideas directly to editors as a more effective strategy. Freelancing offers the flexibility to write for multiple publications from anywhere and can be managed alongside another job. As a freelancer, a writer must treat their articles as a product to be sold to magazine clients. This requires dedicating significant initial time to pitching and client acquisition. However, freelance writers can establish long-term relationships with publications, reducing the constant need to find new work. Graziano reveals that attending fashion weeks, while glamorous, can be exhausting due to tight deadlines and extensive travel. She clarifies that the job title "fashion editor" can encompass writing, styling, or a mix of both, depending on the individual and publication. A key insight is that a strong writing portfolio can outweigh a lack of experience or a non-traditional educational background. The episode promotes two live webinars titled "How to Start a Fashion Writing Career in Three Days," which Graziano hosts only once a year. The tone is instructional and motivational, blending career coaching with insider industry knowledge. The style is conversational and direct, as Graziano speaks from personal experience to demystify the profession. Aspiring fashion journalists, career-changers, and fashion students seeking a practical roadmap would find this episode highly valuable. Listeners looking for deep narrative storytelling or critical analysis of the fashion media industry might want to skip it.

As heard by us

Fashion journalism is shown as practical work shaped by access, deadlines, and clear role boundaries.

This piece treats fashion writing as work, not glamour. Giada Graziano's outsider path gives the advice some weight, and the focus stays on the practical side of the job: finding a way in without connections or a fashion-capital base, keeping up with fashion month deadlines, and…

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Why you'd press play

You want the real route into fashion writing, not the fantasy version or the front-row myth.

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