The textbook definition of “inspirational” is “providing or showing creative or spiritual inspiration”, which doesn't give us much to go on. In turn, “inspiration” can mean “a sudden brilliant or timely idea” or a lot of other jargon. Inspiration can mean a lot of things. Usually, these things are laden with cheese. People might talk about how they saw a raindrop on a window and felt the urge to write pages of poetry about the beauty of the ocean: that could be (very corny) inspiration. An inspirational person is another story, and what makes one is generally different for everyone and is affected by millions of things. For example, Miley Cyrus is probably not inspired by Kate Middleton's dress sense. The Daily Mail, on the other hand, likes to take photos of Kate's clothes quite a lot.
The first in this series of “inspirational people” focuses on a person you probably haven't heard of, an eighteen year old girl from America. Introducing Tavi Gevinson.
Tavi Gevinson is, as described by Wikipedia, an “American writer, magazine editor, actress and singer.” She is also a normal person, a girl attending high school in Chicago. Apart from inventing Rookie, Gevinson found fame for her blog ‘The Style Rookie’ at the age of eleven, writing about fashion. I first heard of Tavi when I started reading ‘rookiemag’, an online publication aimed at teenage girls. You are most likely too young to have read the magazines of my day – a blessing. Pages of dribble about lip-gloss and current boy bands are all well and good, but the best thing about Rookie is that it incorporates lip-gloss and current boy bands (see: One Direction) with other important things, like how to get through hating secondary school, how to cope with the endings of friendships and relationships, what to do if you're upset about things. Real information and advice that young people need. It's not all heavy though. There are also interviews with people like Emma Watson (Hermione Granger in the Harry Potter series) and vital advice on how to wear denim. What's inspirational about all this is that a teenager like any other went out and did this, without caring if she was allowed or who she was catering to. She is still doing it.
Today, Rookie has a team of young and old people to contribute their wisdom, as well as input from celebrities in interviews and articles, sponsorship from Urban Outfitters and a large and loyal fan base. The best thing about Tavi - and every member of Rookie's staff - is how very real she is. In any number of editor's letters used to introduce each issue, we as readers know firmly that she is a person with a life/struggles/school to get through, as opposed to a shiny Anna Wintour copy who always keeps cogs turning. Relatability goes a long way.
Every month at Rookie has a theme, ranging from 'Freedom' to 'Longing' to 'Family'. Rookie is not strict in its themes, many articles are associative or funny or just plain informative. The team also draw on their knowledge of music, film and books to create endless lists of material to enjoy in every mood possible. Behind all of this is Tavi, an editor-in-chief very much involved. In her December 2012 editor's letter, for the theme of 'Faith', she tackled a difficult theme with her usual honesty and humour:
“I haven’t put a tonne of thought into an editor’s letter in a while. I haven’t been writing on this site much, either. Lately I’ve felt so utterly overwhelmed by the absolute horror that is EVER TALKING, EVER, that I’ve retreated in as many areas of life as possible without neglecting the ole Rooks completely.”
Tavi's openness is a rare and beautiful thing in a media industry that claims to know everything. Most magazines treat readers like confused puppies, people to take in hand and transform into fashionable, well informed human beings. They feed us “expert advice” and current trends without ever connecting on an emotional level. Tavi and Rookie provide that.
Tavi's brainchild has an integrity that can resonate with any teenager. She is unafraid to admit confusion or share wisdom. In her very first editor's letter for Rookie, titled 'Beginnings', she puts it into words far better herself:
“I don’t have the answers. Rookie is not your guide to being a Teen. It is not a pamphlet on How to Be a Young Woman. (If it were, it would be published by American Girl and your aunt would’ve given it to you in the fifth grade.) It is, quite simply, a bunch of writing and art we like and believe in. While there’s always danger in generalising a whole group of people, I do think some experiences are somewhat universal to being a teenager.”
Tavi admitting she doesn't know exactly what she's doing is great. It is very human, and there lies the appeal. Every person alive has experiences, and sharing them without any attempt to appear cool or put together is way more important and relatable than any six page spread on celebrity cellulite. Summing up, is Emma Watson: “Being a young woman is confusing. Tavi interprets, rationalizes and articulates so much of what we experience, and in doing so de-stigmatises it. I think Tavi makes women unafraid of themselves.”
IMAGE: nymag.com
0 Comment:
Be the first one to comment on this article.