My Maryam Monsef Profile for Canadian Living Magazine

Back in the fall I had the pleasure of interviewing the inspiring Peterborough Kawartha MP and Cabinet Minister Maryam Monsef for a profile which was published in the April issue of Canadian Living magazine.

The profile is now live on the Canadian Living website, and you can find it here:

Maryam Monsef: From refugee to barrier-breaking MP

I'm so appreciative that Canadian Living gave me this opportunity, and a special thanks goes out to contributing editor Jackie Kovacs for her guidance throughout the writing process.

My Interview With Scott McGillivray For Parents Canada

A few weeks ago, I had a great chat with TV host, contractor and real estate investor Scott McGillivray, and it's live now on the Parents Canada website. In the interview, Scott chats about his new YouTube series (Good To Grow), what he thinks is the biggest mistake families make when purchasing or renovating a new home, what inspired him to create a hilarious Father's Day Fail video, (pointing out the sexism that hands-on dads face), and what his wife Sabrina thinks of his "Sexiest Man" titles!

You can find the entire interview with Scott McGillivray here, and a condensed version will be in the November/December print issue of Parents Canada magazine.

Kate's Favourite Things: June 2015

"Disclosure" : only one of these items (as noted below) was free, in case anyone's wondering about bias before you start reading!

Next Issue

If somehow you've missed this, I am totally in love with the Next Issue app. I pay ten bucks a month for unlimited digital magazine subscriptions (I currently have 26, including 2 for my husband and 1 for the kids). New issues load automatically, and it seems like I'm never without something to read...which is awesome! I'm not really an iPad person, but I have totally embraced reading magazines this way. It's so convenient, and of course it's environmentally-friendly (though I'll admit that's not often as big a concern for me as it should be). I still have a handful of hard-copy subscriptions (I think I'm getting Today's Parent until February 2017) which can still be handy for reading in the tub or anywhere else I don't want to take my iPad (plus not every magazine is available through the app), but as they expire I'll add them to Next Issue as well.

Neutrogena Ultra Sheer Sunscreen

I've had the same bottle of sunscreen for my face for about three years, and just realized it has officially expired. I'm so picky when it comes to this sort of product, because I've always had oily skin and hate to put anything on it that makes it look greasy or shiny. I was in Walmart and walked by a display of Neutrogena Ultra Sheer Face and thought I'd give it a try - and so far so good (I bought SPF 60 because I am adamant about protecting my delicate facial skin. Vanity can be a great motivator!) The product absorbs so quickly that I feel like I have to move fast to work it in...and while my discerning eye can still tell something's there, it's definitely the most matte finish I've had in a sunscreen.

Leaving Time by Jodi Picoult

I have loved most of her books, and Jodi had me right until the end with this one...the story of a young girl hunting for her (runaway? dead? kidnapped?) mother. I was even pulled right into the elephant-sanctuary setting (I may not love pets, but African animals hold a certain appeal). The end, though, disappointed me a little bit. You can find spoilers elsewhere, and I won't tell you what movie plot it reminds me of...but it's been done, and I didn't totally buy it. But otherwise I was engrossed!

Kids Who Help Kids 

I mean, first of all, there were the girls at my school who donated their hair, but I also received a great email from Alex, an 11-year-old Canadian entrepreneur. She created ‘Ivy and Alex’ a line of kids dresses, to support causes she cares about. Each dress is reversible with a pattern side and a solid side,  and the dresses can change as you grow. So girls can wear it as a tunic (with cool tights) or a shirt once she’s outgrown it as a dress.

World Vision helped her find four projects to support: if you buy a blue dress, World Vision will help provide clean water, the green dress will help provide nutritious food, the pink dress will help provide a chance to go to school or medicine (health stuff) and the red dress will support Canadian programs and help kids right here! Check out the Ivy and Alex website for more details.

Rimmel Colour Rush Balm

When my friend Sarah and I hit Lainey Gossip's SMUT Soiree last year, we were given a little swag bag that included a Rimmel lip crayon (The Redder the Better). This was my go-to lipstick for months - creamy, long-lasting and a classic colour that went with almost everything...except pink. So I went out and bought Boom Chic a Boom. These two now stay in my little Kate Spade makeup bag inside my purse, and every other Tuesday when I arrive at the CHEX studio, I take a glance at my outfit and decide whether it's a red day or a pink day. (My Canada AM appearance was definitely a pink day - and the makeup artist there hadn't seen the Rimmel  before and was very impressed, as she usually bought something similar - and much more expensive - from a bigger brand name.) Next I'll be picking up more of a "neutral" shade to add to my collection.


Jamberry

The details: $17 for a set of nail wraps, and I can get two full manicures out of each set. (Don't want to do the math? $8.50 per manicure.) It takes me about 15 minutes to do, cutting the wraps, warming them under the hairdryer, applying them to my nails, trimming, and applying heat again. I get at least two (though I stretch it to three) weeks of wear, with tons of both trendy and classic styles to choose from. Tip: I prefer patterns to solids, because the tips tend to wear out a bit, which you don't notice at all when the wraps are patterned. My dealer consultant Lindsey can hook you up!

That's it for this month! I'd love to know what you think about any of my favourites!

Adventures in Freelance Writing Volume V: Editors Share Pitching Tips

This post is dedicated to Tracy Chappell (1973-2015), the late senior editor of Today's Parent. It seems fitting as Tracy accepted several of my pitches - though admittedly not all! She was a very supportive editor, and I was lucky to have worked with her. It's hard to imagine the loss of a mother with girls the same ages as mine, and I join the Today's Parent team, along with her family and friends, in mourning her passing. 

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One of the biggest questions freelancers have is how to perfect the art of the pitch. While every editor is different, I thought it would be informative - and fun - to ask a few of my favourite editors for their best gem of advice for writers trying to break into their publications.

Here are their thoughtful contributions, in their own words:

Sandra Martin

Multiplatform Editorial Director, Canadian Living

@SandraEMartin

A mistake that I see rookies and longtime pro writers make over and over is to pitch a story that's been covered by the magazine within the past year. Take some time and read a year's worth of back issues (this is literally one of the first things you're taught in journalism school). It could be that a story merits updating with new information the freelancer has access to; if that's the case, then include that in your pitch, along with why the update is merited.

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Karine Ewart

Editor-in-Chief, Chatelaine

@karine_ewart

My number one recommendation for all freelancers is, if they are new to the publication they are pitching, contact someone closer to the bottom of the masthead. Going straight to the EIC may not be the most efficient way of getting your pitch the attention it deserves. Look for an assistant or associate editor to reach out to, as they are interested in growing their roster of fabulous writers, too. Finally, face-to-face meetings are much more effective than emails or random phone calls; take a junior editor out for a coffee and they will be much more willing to listen to you.

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Sasha Emmons

Editor-in-Chief, Today's Parent

@semmons

The most important thing I look for — and I rarely see — is to build a case for your pitch using digital metrics. Even for a story that originates in print, you can show there’s an audience for it by using analytics from free tools like Buzzsumo, Google Trends, and the Google Adwords Keyword Tool. So, for instance, if you can show that searches for “ADHD" spike at a certain time of year, or that searches for “ADHD medication” are on the rise, you’re proving that there’s an audience for your story. Add in a unique POV, and you’ve got an assignment!

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Janice Biehn

Editor-in-Chief, Parents Canada

@JaniceBiehn

• Do as much research as you can to determine whether the publication has recently covered the same topic
• I get a lot of pitches from bloggers. If you are a blogger, be sure to demonstrate that you understand the difference between a blog post and a piece of reporting and that you will do the reporting required for a magazine article
• If you are sending a link to writing samples, send the actual links, not a link to your website or blog. We don’t have time to parse through and look for your writing samples. We are also very lazy that way. : )

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Sydney Loney

Health Director, Chatelaine

Editor-in-Chief, Canadian Health and Lifestyle

@sydneyloney

I get so many pitches and often they start with long, rambling paragraphs that talk around the idea, or explain at length who the writer is. No one has time to read those kinds of pitches anymore. So, my advice is to "think sales." Basically, your job as a freelancer is to sell your idea to an editor – and if you can't write your idea in a quick and compelling single sentence (the elevator sales pitch), then you don't have a story. So, lead with that and then quickly and smartly substantiate your idea to show both that you've done your research (i.e. that you know the editor, the magazine, the audience and why your story is timely) and that you have a solid plan for executing the story.

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Amy Bielby

Managing Editor, Parents Canada

@BunOutOfTheOven

1: Get the name of the magazine right!!! We get so many pitches for Today’s Parent or Canadian Family—and that drives me nuts. I usually won’t respond.

2: In school, I learned how to write queries and they were quite long—typically a page in Word. Don’t do that. I like short, to-the-point queries. If you are pitching a 500-word article, the pitch itself should NOT be 500 words. Get to the point. Describe the main points of the article, the sources you have in mind, and in which section of the magazine it would appear.

3: Don’t suggest a column or a series of articles. Do you know how hard it is to land a column? And most magazines do not have the room for a regular column.

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Thanks so much for taking the time to share, ladies - and I hope your inboxes show the results!

Random observation: my husband always tells me that I need to smile with my teeth more on TV and in photos...and I noticed all of these ladies use gorgeous teeth-smile shots on social media. Not at all related to pitching, but no post of mine would be complete without one of my deep thoughts.

You can catch up on the entire Adventures in Freelancing series here:

Volume I - My Start, and Top 5 Tips For New Writers

Volume II - More Tips

Volume III - A Successful Query Letter, You Got the Job - Now What? 
and Make Your Blog Work for You

Volume IV - How To Thicken the Skin

Disciplining Big Kids (No More Time Out): My Today's Parent Article

For the April issue of Today's Parent magazine, readers were asked to submit ideas for topics they'd like to see covered, and for the "Big Kid" page, one parent wondered about the best ways to adapt discipline strategies as their little kids get bigger, and the "time-outs" aren't so effective anymore.

I was happy to tackle the question, and with expert input from psychotherapist Alyson Schafer, as well as a couple of parents currently in the "big kid" trenches, I put together this article for the magazine:

http://www.todaysparent.com/kids/school-age/smart-discipline-strategies-older-kids/

And because you know I love to show my byline in print:

Alyson's tips are terrific, though sometimes I want to go completely against her advice and embrace the tough-love Dr. Phil philosophy: figure out what the kids love and use it as leverage, whether the punishment fits the crime or not.

One Twitter reply to this article mentioned that it's missing a discussion of consequences for more serious infractions, and I totally agree. Word count is always my biggest challenge, and this piece only had room for dealing with day-to-day issues and the general evolution of discipline as the kids grow.

As always, I want to thank my sources (Alyson, Sally and "Jessica" - you know who you are!), and I'd love to know what you all think!

Should Kids Be Allowed To Dye Their Hair? My Today's Parent Article

This was a fun article to write, as parents have varying opinions on the matter, and even the medical experts don't yet have definitive data one way or the other. There are studies involving rats ingesting huge amounts of the chemicals found in hair dye (which don't look good), but those don't exactly correlate perfectly with humans using the ingredients externally (and perhaps only occasionally/rarely) and then washing them off.

Here's a quick snapshot of the article in print in the March issue (I always love to see that!)

To read the entire article online, visit: http://www.todaysparent.com/kids/tween-and-teen/hair-dye/

Thanks again to Sue, Sally, Kim, "Kelly", Amber, Alyson Schafer and Dr. Lanphear for their contributions!

What do you think - should kids be colouring their hair?

Second Pregnancies: My Article For Today's Parent Magazine

I'm very excited to share my first byline for Today's Parent magazine: an article on the physical differences between first and second pregnancies.

The October issue of Today's Parent arrived in my mailbox just over a week ago, and I quickly flipped through the magazine until I found it...and yep, there it is, "Kate Winn" right there at the end!

The article is now available on their website here: http://www.todaysparent.com/pregnancy/second-pregnancy-what-you-need-to-know/ in case any of you are interested in checking it out!

Coincidentally, my next national magazine piece is also on a pregnancy-related topic...watch for that one is 2014.

Photo Shoot For My Magazine Article

I was super excited when Jackie Kovacs, Editor in Chief of Professionally Speaking (magazine of the Ontario College of Teachers) tweeted out this photo on Friday:

Another nice moment on the @CTVCanadaAM set with the lovely @MarciIen and her amazing former teacher. pic.twitter.com/wt4k6lWSIu
— Jacqueline Kovacs (@Jackiekovacs) July 12, 2013

Why did I care so much? Well, because the photo will run with the article that I pitched and wrote for the magazine, that's why!

If I were someone else, jaded and cool, I probably wouldn't have posted about this. But I'm neither jaded nor cool, and yet you're still here, right?

The article will run in the September issue of the magazine, and of course I'll provide the link when it's available! And try to cut back on the exclamation marks! (But hey, only one set of parentheses today. Wait, two...)

Second Pregnancies: Need Sources and Input For Article

Hello dear readers,

I'm working on an article about second pregnancies for a national magazine (I'm trying to act cool about it but really I'm super excited!) and I'm hoping you can help me with two things:

1. If you've had two pregnancies, how was the second different from the first, physically? Was it better or worse? What symptoms changed the second time around? You can leave a comment below or e-mail me at katewinn77 at yahoo dot ca

2. If you've had two pregnancies, have lots to say about the question above and LIVE OUTSIDE ONTARIO, I'd love to interview you for the article. Again, you can give me contact info in the comments, or email me at katewinn77 at yahoo dot ca

Thanks so much for your help!

Walmart's New (and FREE!) Live Better Magazine

You know how I love my magazines, and last month Walmart launched a brand-new (and free) publication. Walmart Live Better, a multi-platform lifestyle magazine, is now available at Walmart Supercentres across Canada, and online through mobile devices and an iPad app. I haven't picked up a hard copy yet, but I've spent lots of time checking it out online (I'll share my favourite stories below).

The publication offers content from top Canadian editors and contributors, including Editor-in-Chief Sandra Martin, formerly of Today’s Parent. Readers will be able to enjoy the latest in food, home, beauty and fashion trends and tips.

At 1 million copies per issue, Walmart Live Better will immediately become Canada’s largest circulation magazine (published six times per year), and of course all products featured in the magazine are available at Walmart Canada Supercentres.

“Canadians want to be inspired by new ideas and stay on budget. With Walmart Live Better they don’t have to make a choice. Our team of experts provide great ideas on how to make dollars go farther with style,” said Martin.

A few of my favourite pieces from the Walmart Live Better debut (under the website categories of Recipes, Living, Wellness, Beauty, Fashion and Kids):

Plan The Perfect Indoor Birthday Party (tons of practical tips, which of course could be used with any of my themed birthday parties)

Get Organized In Six Simple Steps Organizing is one of my favourite things to do, and I got some new ideas from this piece, as well as a bit of inspiration: "Quit reading about it and just do it."

Couch To 5K: An 8 Week Fitness Guide (while I'm not currently following this, I like knowing it's there should I ever decide to do a 5K. Over the summer I'll gear up to practice Cross Country with my students, but 2K is usually my limit!)

Oh, and for those of you who actually like to cook - or do it willingly anyway - there are more than 30 recipes as well. These I skipped over, but they may be the highlight for some of you!


Pick up a copy at your nearest Walmart, or check it out online as www.walmartlivebetter.ca.

Magazines: The Power of Print

I'm going to go out on a limb here and assume that you are reading this on a computer screen. (I know, I know, my psychic abilities are astounding.)

The question is: how much of your reading do you do from a computer screen?

Obviously I am a blogger, and also enjoy reading other people's web work. If someone in my family presents some sort of medical symptom, I am quickly Googling it to access the information as quickly as possible. (Okay, let's me honest, if I hear a celebrity couple has split, I am quickly Googling it to access the information as quickly as possible.) Although the Internet has enhanced my reading experiences (as well as replaced the need to do many of my errands in person, e.g. banking, shopping), there's no way it will ever replace my need for print media.

I love magazines. I come by it honestly, as my grandmother, mother, aunt and great-aunt have taken part in a complicated magazine exchange since I was a child. ("Take the Chatelaine to Grandma's. Tell her I need the Ladies' Home Journal and Maclean's, Aunt Shirley hasn't seen the Good Housekeeping, and Susan can read the Redbook before me, as long as she sends it back after.")

Once the issues had made their rounds, they would come back to our house with "Discard" written in black marker on the cover, an indication to me that they were fair game for tearsheets and collages. I can remember my Mom reading "Glamour", then foregoing it in favour of (what I believed at the time to be) old lady magazines. (I have since followed suit.) Her sister, only eight years older than me, first passed me her Teen, then YM, then Seventeen, which taught me many womanly facts before my time, but fostered my adoration of the medium.

I love being able to throw a magazine in my purse, enjoy it in the tub, or flip through it while on the treadmill. (One of my workout secrets, by the way. I force myself to save the best magazines for my treadmill sessions. Very motivating.) There's also a satisfaction that comes with devouring your favourite title cover to cover - much more daunting if attempting to navigate an online edition.

Plus, there seems to be a credibility that comes along with print media. Information in a "real magazine" must be true, advertisers must be legit. It saves a lot of wasted time being sceptical.

Although I often check out various parenting websites (and the online editions of print magazines), between my brother's wife and myself, we subscribe to the print version of pretty much every North American parenting magazine on the market.

You may think that perhaps I am biting the hand that feeds me, by promoting print magazines over the all-powerful Internet. The thing is, I make nothing from blogging, a minimal amount from magazine writing, but my true salary is paid by the taxpayers of the province of Ontario. (Thank you, by the way.) Therefore, I feel no particular loyalty to digital media.

I am intrigued by the recent ad campaign by magazine publishers called "Magazines: The Power of Print". (Is it ironic or perfectly appropriate that they also have a website?)  If you're a regular reader like me, there's no way you have missed the 2-page spreads found in every title I've seen lately, touting research which shows that magazine readership is actually increasing, and adults between 18 and 34 (who presumably would be the most web-savvy) are among the most dedicated readers when it comes to issues read per month and time spent per issue.

One of my favourite quotes from the advertising campaign: "We surf the Internet. We swim in magazines...people aren't giving up swimming just because they also enjoy surfing."

I'd love to know what you think. Do you still read magazines? Which ones? Has the Internet replaced any of your print magazine reading?