Acting as a comprehensive primer for the field of fashion writing, this book provides an accessible entry point for readers from diverse backgrounds, giving them a clear understanding of the intricacies of fashion writing, the outlets in which it appears, and the possibilities beyond the page.
Fashion Writing: A Primer lays out a framework for various types of fashion writing (runway and trend reports, service pieces, features, and more), while offering students a solid foundation of fashion history, cultural touchstones, common fashion terminology, and contemporary issues affecting the fashion industry today. Featuring interviews with current fashion journalists, such as Robin Givhan, Sarah Mower, Charlie Porter, and Amanda Winnie Kabuiku, as well as annotated bibliographies centred on the themes of each chapter, this book delivers fashion writing essentials for anyone interested in the field. Readers will come away aware of the many influences on the fashion world, helping them establish credibility as a fashion writer.
Covering both print and online outlets, this is a valuable text for students with an interest in fashion communication, journalism, and fashion media, as well as early career fashion professionals looking for a complete guide to the industry.
Introduction
Section 1: Foundational Knowledge
Chapter 1: Where Did You Get That Outfit? A Brief History of Fashion
Chapter 2: It’s All in the Details: The Language of Fashion
Chapter 3: The Write Stuff: Writing Basics
Section 2: Working It
Chapter 4: Ready for Take-off: The Runway Report
Chapter 5: Don’t Get Left Behind: Trend Reports and Service Pieces
Chapter 6: Do You See What I See? Fashion Beyond Fashion
Section 3: Broadening Your Focus
Chapter 7: Taking It All In: Contemporary Issues in Fashion
Chapter 8: Pitch, Please
Appendix: Postgraduate Programmes in Fashion Communication
Biography
Claudia B. Manley has been a university lecturer for over 15 years at Western University in London, Ontario (Canada) and has published in both fashion writing and literary fiction.
Abi Slone is an editor and writer whose credits include The Globe and Mail, Architectural Digest and the CBC and curating the Isabella Blow and Daphne Guinness fashion installation, "Fashion Blows."
